Atlas of China
Beijing to Xi'an 北京 – 西安
Door to door, the high-speed train comes out ahead: about 4½ hours against about 5 hours by flight, counting about 20 minutes to board a train and 2½ hours of airport time for a flight. Fares run ¥587 against about ¥580. The stations are in or near the city centres, which is what tips it.
| Way | Time | Door to door | Fare | A day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High-speed trainBeijing West 北京西 → Xi'an North 西安北 | 4 h 10 minG351, fastest | 4½ hours | ¥587standard class | 3807:00–20:41 |
| FlightBeijing Daxing (PKX) → Xi'an Xianyang (XIY) | 2 h 15 minin the air | 5 hours | about ¥580varies by day | 3206:40–22:55 |
By train
38 direct high-speed trains a day run from Beijing West to Xi'an North, between 07:00 and 20:41. The fastest, G351, takes 4 h 10 min, and a standard-class seat is ¥587. Coming back, 37 trains a day, the fastest 4 h 10 min (G324, 06:05 to 23:34).
Beijing: Several main stations: South (Shanghai), West (Xi'an, Wuhan), Chaoyang (north-east) and North or Qinghe (Datong, Hohhot); flights use Capital (PEK) or Daxing (PKX). Xi'an: Trains to Shiyan and on to Wuhan via the new line use Xi'an East, opened in June 2026.
By air
32 nonstop flights a day from Beijing Daxing (PKX) to Xi'an Xianyang (XIY), 2 h 15 min in the air, 06:40 to 22:55, with Air China, China Eastern Airlines and Hainan Airlines. 29 fly back. Door to door, with the airports at each end, count about 5 hours; fares vary by day and are typically about ¥580.
Stops on the way
Cities between the two with direct trains from Beijing and on to Xi'an, so the trip can be broken there.
At the other end
Featured places around Xi'an.
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Terracotta Army 兵马俑
Thousands of life-size clay soldiers standing guard for China's first emperor
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Big Wild Goose Pagoda 大雁塔
A Tang-dynasty pagoda built for scriptures a monk carried home from India
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Huaqing Palace 华清宫
Hot springs at the foot of Mount Li where a Tang emperor wintered with Yang Guifei
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Xi'an City Wall 西安城墙
Cycle all 14 km of a Ming city wall, high above Xi'an's rooftops
Around Beijing: Forbidden City, Ming Tombs, Summer Palace, Fragrant Hills Park, Universal Beijing Resort.
On the map
Open either city on the illustrated map, or put both in a trip and let the planner lay out the days and the legs between them, with the same tables these numbers come from.
Book
About Beijing · About Xi'an · Where Beijing reaches in a day · Where Xi'an reaches in a day · All routes
Trains are every direct train on 2026-10-28 or 2026-11-11 in the 12306 timetable, with standard-class fares; one weekday, so weekend and holiday services differ, and the fastest train may not run every day. Flights are the airlines' schedules for 2026-10-28, plus routes Wikipedia lists for small airports. Drives are routed on OpenStreetMap roads (extract of 2026-10-21) where the pair was routed, else estimated from the distance. Door-to-door times add about 20 minutes to board a train and 2½ hours of airport time to a flight. How to book is in the guide to trains and 12306; the rail times are open data on the data page.