What to do when upper lifts stop in wind or the Chongli train sells out, and what to check in your insurance. Includes the numbers to call in China.
David
Upper lifts at Chinese resorts can stop or slow in strong wind, and night sessions can close in wind or extreme cold. Resorts usually post a notice on their official WeChat channels. The high-speed train is the other usual weak point, because Friday and Sunday services sell out first. This guide covers what to check before you leave, what to do when a train sells out, which second stop to keep in mind, what to ask your insurer and which numbers to call. Each resort page shows temperature, wind and a seven-day snowfall forecast, and the opening dates page tracks the season.
Yanqing, Genting Secret Garden and Jikepulin in Altay all warn that upper lifts can stop or slow in wind (Yanqing, Genting, Altay). Read the resort's WeChat notice in the morning before you go up. Night sessions can be cut for wind or extreme cold too (night skiing guide). Whether a closed lift earns a refund is up to each resort, so ask at the ticket window or in the booking mini-program before you buy a multi-day ticket.
Foreign visitors cannot simply rent a car in China, so a trip to Chongli runs on the Beijing-Zhangjiakou high-speed line (getting there). Friday-evening trains out of Beijing and Sunday-afternoon trains back sell out first.
| Problem | Backup | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Taizicheng trains are full | Ride to Chongli station, then taxi or DiDi | Chongli station is next to Chongli town and the resort. |
| 12306 rejects your foreign card | Book the same train on Trip.com | It charges a small service fee, and the site is in English. |
| Your skis are too big to carry | Rent at the resort | Gear over 200 cm in combined length, width and height must be checked as baggage. |
| Resort shuttle timing | Taxi from the station | Free shuttles run from Taizicheng to Genting, Thaiwoo and Wanlong. |
Register on 12306 with your passport and verify your identity before travel day. The queue at the station is too late. The full steps are in our train guide, and Alipay and WeChat Pay covers paying on the spot.
Chongli has several resorts on the same rail line, so a wind-hold at one leaves the others as options. Fulong is reached from Chongli station, and the other three from Taizicheng. Near Beijing, Nanshan and Badaling are the nearby options. If you are in Harbin, the indoor park in the Songbei district is handy for a lesson before Yabuli, and Shanghai and Shenzhen also have indoor halls (indoor halls guide). Chinese New Year and other holidays fill every resort, so build in extra slack then (crowds guide).
The UK government says healthcare in China is not free and can be very expensive, so it advises cover for treatment, evacuation and repatriation. It also says insurance should cover your itinerary, planned activities and expenses in an emergency, and it notes that altitude sickness is a risk in parts of China (GOV.UK). We cannot say what your policy covers, so ask the insurer these questions:
Dial 110 for police, 119 for fire, 120 for an ambulance and 122 for traffic police (GOV.UK). Ask the resort front desk or ticket office to make the call if you do not speak Chinese. Entry rules also change often, so read China travel essentials before you book.
We found no rule that applies to every resort. Ask at the ticket window or in the booking mini-program before you buy a multi-day ticket.