Atlas of China
Chengdu to Guilin 成都 – 桂林
Door to door, the high-speed train comes out ahead: about 5½ hours against about 4½ hours by flight, counting about 20 minutes to board a train and 2½ hours of airport time for a flight. Fares run ¥482 against about ¥560. The stations are in or near the city centres, which is what tips it.
| Way | Time | Door to door | Fare | A day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High-speed trainChengdu East 成都东 → Guilin West 桂林西 | 4 h 58 minG917, fastest | 5½ hours | ¥482standard class | 1707:00–19:30 |
| FlightChengdu Tianfu (TFU) → Guilin Liangjiang (KWL) | 1 h 50 minin the air | 4½ hours | about ¥560varies by day | 309:50–18:40 |
By train
17 direct high-speed trains a day run from Chengdu East to Guilin West, between 07:00 and 19:30. The fastest, G917, takes 4 h 58 min, and a standard-class seat is ¥482. Coming back, 16 trains a day, the fastest 4 h 59 min (G918, 08:59 to 21:22).
Chengdu: Tianfu (TFU), about 50 km south-east, is the busier airport; Shuangliu (CTU) is closer in, and Trip.com's CTU city code covers both. Guilin: Guilin West and central Guilin station also have high-speed trains, so check which one your train uses.
By air
3 nonstop flights a day from Chengdu Tianfu (TFU) to Guilin Liangjiang (KWL), 1 h 50 min in the air, 09:50 to 18:40, with Air China and Air Guilin. 3 fly back. Door to door, with the airports at each end, count about 4½ hours; fares vary by day and are typically about ¥560.
Stops on the way
Cities between the two with direct trains from Chengdu and on to Guilin, so the trip can be broken there.
At the other end
Featured places around Guilin.
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Li River & Yangshuo 漓江与阳朔
Limestone peaks, bamboo rafts and bike rides through rice paddies
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Longji Rice Terraces 龙脊梯田
Rice paddies stacked up the mountains like the scales on a dragon's back
Around Chengdu: Chengdu Giant Panda Base, Sanxingdui Museum, Dujiangyan Irrigation System, Mount Qingcheng, Wuhou Shrine & Jinli Street.
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 Chengdu · About Guilin · Where Chengdu 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.