Transit corridor becomes unmissable tourism route

For Min, a 64-year-old traveler from Guizhou province who gave only her surname, the Qinghai-Xizang Railway was far more than a transit route to Lhasa — it became the focal point of her journey.

She and her husband first planned to travel to the Xizang autonomous region by train and return by air. But after checking the schedule, she realized that part of the landscape between Golmud and Xining would pass in darkness on the inbound journey. So they changed their plan and decided to return by train as well.

"We wanted to see the part we missed," she said. "Lhasa was the destination, but the most beautiful part was the journey there and back."

For many travelers, the railway has changed how Xizang is experienced. Flying takes visitors quickly to the destination. The train lets the plateau unfold gradually — snow mountains, grasslands, lakes and distant settlements appearing outside the window as the line climbs toward Lhasa.

That experience is now being developed into more specialized tourism products.

On June 25, a plateau tourist train made its debut at Xining Railway Station. The train is designed as a long-distance travel product combining rail transport, sightseeing and onboard accommodation.

The 11-car train has a capacity of 132 passengers, with nine sleeper cars, one sightseeing car and one multifunctional car. Each berth is equipped with oxygen supply, while the sightseeing car has large viewing windows for passengers to take in plateau scenery along the route.

For older tourists such as Min, such details matter. She said the soft sleeper was comfortable and more affordable than she had expected. When some passengers experienced altitude discomfort, oxygen facilities on the train offered reassurance.

Her children had worried before the trip, but she kept in touch through video calls. "They asked if I had altitude sickness," she said. "I told them I was fine."

For Sun Yanqing, a 44-year-old Tibetan tourist from Yushu, Qinghai province, the railway has changed the way different generations in his family travel to Lhasa.

He first came around 2000, before the railway opened, traveling by road from Golmud for a day and a night. After the railway opened, he brought his parents to Lhasa by train. This year, he returned from Xining with his two children.

The trips, spread over more than two decades, gave him a personal measure of how travel to Lhasa has changed — from a tiring road journey to a train ride with oxygen supply, onboard attendants and medical support.

The change has also reshaped cities along the route — and raised a question that many tourism destinations face: how to welcome more visitors without overwhelming local communities.

Zhou Shuqin sees that question from two perspectives: as an official with Golmud's culture and tourism bureau, and as a resident who has lived in the city for more than 30 years.

She said the railway has helped Golmud become more visible as both a transport hub and a tourism stop. "The opening of the Qinghai-Xizang Railway gave Golmud a solid platform to reach the outside world," Zhou said. "Today, when people mention Golmud, many know it as an important hub."

Zhou said Golmud has tried to turn railway passenger flows into longer stays and wider local spending, linking transport with cultural tourism, local food and specialties.

For tourists, the railway may begin as transport. For cities such as Golmud, it has become a test of how to turn movement through a place into a reason to stop.