The compartment of an international train to Moscow. [Photo/ Suzhou Daily]

Residents in the city of Suzhou, Jiangsu province, now can travel abroad by train as the city has rail links with Russia, Vietnam, North Korea, Mongolia and Kazakhstan.

Russia

Although it takes much longer to travel to Russia by train than by air, great scenery on route will compensate you for the long ride. The journey consists of a five-hour trip to Beijing and 127-hour trip aboard K3 or K19 trains to Moscow. The ticket to Beijing costs 523 yuan ($80) and more; the ticket to Moscow costs 3,522 yuan ($540) and more, available only from a travel agency. Transit visa from Mongolia and tourist visa from Russia are required.

Vietnam

Train tickets to Hanoi, capital of Vietnam, are sold at Nanning Railway Station in the capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. A valid passport is needed to buy tickets. People can also buy tickets from a travel agency. The journey costs 12 hours to Nanning and another 11 hours to Hanoi by train T8701. It costs 767 yuan ($117) for the first trip and 215 yuan ($33) for the second trip.

Mongolia Train K23 travels 27 hours from Beijing to Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia. The ticket costs 1,248 yuan ($191) and up and must be booked with China International Travel Service one month before departure. The train departs from Beijing every Tuesday and Saturday.

North Korea

The group tourist visa is needed to go to North Korea. Train 95 travels five hours and a half from Dandong, a border city in Liaoning Province, to Pyongyang, the capital of North Korean. The ticket costs 253 yuan ($39) and up. The train ride from Suzhou to Dandong takes more than 10 hours and costs 775 yuan ($119).

Kazakhstan

First, take a train from Suzhou to Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. The trip costs about 38 hours and 372 yuan ($57) or more per person. Then, take a train (K9795/9796) from Urumqi to Alma-Ata, the capital of Kazakhstan. The trip costs about 33 hours and 826 yuan ($126) or more. A tourist visa can be obtained at the Kazakhstan Consulate General in Shanghai or a Kazakhstan visa office in Urumqi.