Passengers who take the High Speed Rail to Mainland China from Hong Kong can now buy two new multi-ride passes that will get them discounts of up to 36% on short trips across the border. The passes, which cover 20 rides over a 90-day period and 60 trips within a 30-day time frame, will be available for sale on January 25 on the 12306 website.
The new tickets will only apply to 10 destinations on the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong section of the High Speed Rail network: Futian, Shenzhenbei, Guangmingcheng, Humen, Qingsheng, Dongguannan, Changping, Dongguan, Guangzhounan, and Guangzhoudong. Passengers can use each ticket for one ride to any of these stations, and will get discounts ranging from 4%-36%, depending on the type of ticket they buy, their destination, and seat class.
Travellers can get a maximum of 11% off a full ticket to any of these 10 stations if they have the 20-ride pass, which allows reservations for up to four train trips. Those who purchase the 30-day ticket can book up to 10 train trips at a time, and can get a 36% discount on each ride. Each trip will be deducted from the ticket only once a passenger completes a journey.
MTR also plans to include Shenzhenbei Station in its Same-day Flexi-trip Arrangement, which currently only applies to tickets booked to Futian. The scheme, which was introduced in August 2023, allows passengers heading to Futian to change their trip plans up to three times on their day of their travel for free. The arrangement will apply to Shenzhen trips from March 2024.
Last year, the High Speed Rail added five new destinations in Guangdong to its network — Jiangmen, Kaipingnan, Yangjiang, Maoming, and Zhanjiangxi — and increased the number of trips between Hong Kong and Guangzhoudong, as well as Futian Station.
Header image credits: Saiw Olma Havekoh