Atlas of China
Xi'an to Taiyuan 西安 – 太原
Door to door, the high-speed train comes out ahead: about 3 hours, counting about 20 minutes to board a train and 2½ hours of airport time for a flight. A standard-class seat is ¥190. The stations are in or near the city centres, which is what tips it.
| Way | Time | Door to door | Fare | A day |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| High-speed trainXi'an North 西安北 → Taiyuan South 太原南 | 2 h 45 minD2536, fastest | 3 hours | ¥190standard class | 4707:45–23:34 |
By train
47 direct high-speed trains a day run from Xi'an North to Taiyuan South, between 07:45 and 23:34. The fastest, D2536, takes 2 h 45 min, and a standard-class seat is ¥190. Coming back, 49 trains a day, the fastest 2 h 44 min (D2523, 06:25 to 23:32).
Xi'an: Trains to Shiyan and on to Wuhan via the new line use Xi'an East, opened in June 2026.
By air
No nonstop flights.
Stops on the way
Cities between the two with direct trains from Xi'an and on to Taiyuan, so the trip can be broken there.
- Pingyao 平遥 430 km from Xi'an · 2 h 25 min there, 31 min on
At the other end
Featured places around Taiyuan.
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Jinci Temple 晋祠
Song-dynasty halls, painted clay maidservants and a cross-shaped bridge at the Jin springs
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Qiao Family Compound 乔家大院
Walled courtyards of a Qing merchant-banking family, the set for Raise the Red Lantern
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Shanxi Museum 山西博物院
Bronzes of the ancient state of Jin, Buddhist statues and tomb treasures on the Fen River
Around Xi'an: Terracotta Army, Big Wild Goose Pagoda, Huaqing Palace, Xi'an City Wall, Han Yangling Mausoleum.
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 Xi'an · About Taiyuan · 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.