1

I think that you should go to Datong after Xi'An on your way to Beijing.

2

There are trains to Mongolia in Datong. Baotou and Hohhot are the cities of Mongolia you can arrived by train from Datong.

6055 (Datong - Baotou); K888/K885 (Tianjin - Baotou); 2464/2461 (Linfen - Hohhot East); 1714/1711 (Shenyang North - Baotou); 1458/1455 (Tongliao - Hohhot); K710/K711 (Qingdao - Baotou)

I recommend that:
Qingdao: Zhan Qiao, Ba Da Guan (2 days)
Shanghai: Yuyuan Garden, Chenghuang Temple, The Oriental Pearl Tower, The Bund, Xintiandi etc. (3-4 days)
Nanjing:Qinhuai River, QiXia Temple, Nanjing Confucius Temple, Dr. Sun Yet-sun Mausoleum (1-2 day)
Xian: The Bell Tower and Drum Tower, Terracotta Warriors and Horses, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Shaanxi History Museum (3-4 days)
Beijing: The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, Badaling Great Wall, Hutong (3-4 days)
Datong: Yungang Grottoes, Huayan Temple, Nine Dragon Screen Wall (2 days)

3

#2 Baotou and Hohhot are in Inner Mongolia (China) not Mongolia.

4

Cdongdong - wrong country.

5

By the way, I'd consider leaving out Datong/Yungang caves in favor of Luoyang/Longmen caves. That is nicely en route from Xi'an to Beijing. Furthermore, I found the Longmen caves more interesting than the Yungang caves. Finally, I think that the Luoyang/Zhengzhou area has much more interesting places to visit, compared to the Datong area.

Edited by: pknielsen

6

Datong into Mongolia, you can't get an international train. But you can get a Chinese train from Datong to Erlian. However, I don't recommend it since timing is pretty inflexible and you'll be doing 6.5 hours in hard seat. What I would recommend is train or bus Datong to Jining (Jiningnan station) which are more plentiful since Jiningnan is a major junction for trains heading to Hohhot. Then get off and walk across the street to bus station, get bus to Erlian, 4.5 to 5 hours on good road. There are multiple daily buses Jining to Erlian between 07:00 and 14:00. Assuming you do not want to see Pingyao (between Xi'an and Datong) or don't have time to do so, I'd actually go from Xi'an to Beijing directly, then go to Datong AFTER Beijing by train or bus. Then to Erlian. From Erlian, you'd cross the border then on the Mongolian side in Zamyn Uud, get a local train to UB. If you don't mind a bit more work and adventure, this would be cheapest way to do what you're proposing.

I prefer Yungang Caves in Datong to Longmen Caves at Luoyang and find the former more interesting, just the opposite of #5's opinion. Luoyang is less gritty and more interesting of a city than Datong, however. And it has some other stuff to see in the immediate vicinity. Plus, it has the advantage of being a place to break up the Nanjing-Xi'an trip. All this makes it a reasonable proposition for substitute. If you go the Luoyang/Longmen route instead of Datong, then head to Xi'an after, then Beijing, then look into local train to Erlian (not daily) or sleeper bus (daily). Or spend the big cash and take the international train from Beijing.

7

Thanks everyone for the advice. Seems I have a bit more tweaking to do. The Longmen Caves do seem like a great substitute and from researching it looks as though there's quite a divide on opinions about them. Thanks pknielsen. Also cdongdong thanks for your recommended itinerary, I'll give it some thought.

Now jiejie, the bus route does seem interesting, and I've read about it before, but some things bother me. Firstly, how safe is this route for a single female traveler, as essentially I'd be 'hitchhiking' across the border? Secondly, I'd need to show an exit ticket to the Chinese consulate to get my visa. Would I be able to do that going through Erlian?

Also, exactly how much cheaper is it? The hard sleeper on the K3 to Ulaan Bator is 246 USD.

Thanks,
konayuki

8

Well, I'm a solo female and have done it. It's safe to do. Chances are except in winter, you'll find other foreign travelers doing the same thing, that you can join forces with. Once in Erlian, you just get to the side of the road as far as you can go on the Chinese side, get your little RMB 5 "Exit Ticket" (must be shown at Immigration) and wait for a jeep with space you can flag down and bargain with to get you to Zamyn Uud. There's only one road through the borders/immigration checkpoints and nothing that can happen to you. The drivers drive from exit point to Chinese Exit Immigration, then to Mongolian Entry Immigration, then the last short hop to Zamyn Uud. There's no place for them to turn off and no way they can really stop and molest you. Mostly, the entire border crossing sequence is just a hilariously silly hassle.

Well, total cost from Beijing all the way to UB by local hopscotch methods is usually about USD 100 all-in, including a night in Erlian or Zamyn Uud (whether this is necessary depends on your timings, when you leave Beijing, methods of transport BJ to Erlian, etc.). It's a huge savings over the international thru-train, which is why budget travelers are willing to deal with the extra connections and hassles of the process.

9

Fair enough. It seems like a great way to save cash and sounds really interesting to boot. I'll be researching further on that, thanks! The exit ticket should be pretty easy to get at the border, right? I'm assuming there will be fellow travelers going that route in March. :)

So far, though, this is my updated itinerary:

Saturday March 2nd: Incheon to Qingdao (arrive the 3rd)
Monday March 4th: Qingdao to Shanghai
March 7th: Shanghai to Nanjing
March 9th: Nanjing to Xian
March 12th: Xian to Luoyang Longmen
March 13th: Luoyang to Beijing
March 20th: Beijing to UlaanBaatar or start the journey to Erlian via bus =subject to further research=

Thanks all!
konayuki

10

There's no point in backtracking from Xi'an to Luoyang, when you'll pass it on the way from Nanjing. Makes no sense. In fact, I wouldn't play your itinerary this way at all. I would do either of two options:
Option 1:
Balance of March 3 and all March 4 in Qingdao
March 5: early morning fly to Shanghai. balance Shanghai.
March 6: Shanghai
March 7: Shanghai. Afternoon bullet train to Nanjing.
March 8: Nanjing
March 9: Nanjing. Early evening train, overnight sleeper to Luoyang.
March 10: Early arrival Luoyang main station. City/museum/tombs and Grottoes.
March 11: Morning bullet train to Xi'an. Afternoon Xi'an
March 12: Xi'an
March 13: Xi'an. Overnight train to Beijing.
March 14-19: Beijing
March 20: journey onward.

Option 2:
Balance of March 3 and all March 4 in Qingdao
March 5: early morning bullet train to Nanjing. Afternoon Nanjing
March 6: Nanjing
March 7: morning bullet train to Shanghai. Afternoon Shanghai
March 8: Shanghai
March 9:morning Shanghai. Afternoon train to Luoyang, overnight sleeper. (alternate, fly to Luoyang, flights booked 2-3 weeks out often really cheap).
March 10: Early arrival Luoyang. Rest of trip same as Option 1.

I personally think you may be spending a little too long in Beijing, perhaps take a day or two from there and put into seeing something else in the Shanghai area, such as a water town like Tongli, or Suzhou, both of which are on the Shanghai-Nanjing bullet line and in close proximity to each other. Another option if the weather is good, is to make a day + overnight stop in Huashan, between Luoyang and Xi'an and also on the bullet train line. Yet a third option is after Xi'an, to make a stop in Pingyao for a day + overnight. If you've already seen Luoyang, you could forego Datong and after Pingyao, just get up the road to Taiyuan and take the fast train to Beijing from there (or cheap flight). Of course, pick ONE of these extra options, not all three!