Atlas of China
Guangzhou to Sanya 广州 – 三亚
Door to door, the flight comes out ahead: about 4 hours against about 16½ hours by train, counting about 20 minutes to board a train and 2½ hours of airport time for a flight. Fares run about ¥430 against ¥232. If you would rather not fly, the overnight train turns the journey into a night’s sleep.
| Way | Time | Door to door | Fare | A day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TrainGuangzhou Baiyun 广州白云 → Sanya 三亚 | 16 h 20 minZ504, fastest | 16½ hours | ¥232standard class | 218:30–20:24 |
| FlightGuangzhou Baiyun (CAN) → Sanya Phoenix (SYX) | 1 h 40 minin the air | 4 hours | about ¥430varies by day | 1107:05–23:25 |
By train
2 direct trains a day run from Guangzhou Baiyun to Sanya, between 18:30 and 20:24. The fastest, Z504, takes 16 h 20 min, and a standard-class seat is ¥232. It runs overnight, so a sleeper berth saves a hotel night. Coming back, 2 trains a day, the fastest 15 h 39 min (Z502, 11:55 to 16:26).
Sanya: Hainan's ring high-speed line is not linked to the mainland network; trains to the mainland cross by ferry and are slow, so most visitors fly.
By air
11 nonstop flights a day from Guangzhou Baiyun (CAN) to Sanya Phoenix (SYX), 1 h 40 min in the air, 07:05 to 23:25, with China Southern Airlines, 9 Air and Hainan Airlines. 11 fly back. Door to door, with the airports at each end, count about 4 hours; fares vary by day and are typically about ¥430.
Stops on the way
Cities between the two with direct trains from Guangzhou and on to Sanya, so the trip can be broken there.
- Haikou 海口 460 km from Guangzhou · 11 h 36 min there, 1 h 14 min on
At the other end
Featured places around Sanya.
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Sanya Beaches 三亚
China's tropical south coast, where winter is beach season
Around Guangzhou: Canton Tower & Pearl River.
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 Guangzhou · About Sanya · Where Guangzhou reaches in a day · Where Sanya 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.