Hangzhou East Railway Station 2026: West Lake, metro & the airport

Hangzhou has three main rail stations and visitors regularly book the wrong one. Hangzhou East (杭州东站) is the biggest, with the most high-speed trains — the default for most travellers, in the east of the city on Metro Lines 1, 4 and 19. Hangzhou Station (杭州站), locally 'Chengzhan' (城站), is the older central station — a ticket that just says 'Hangzhou' in English is this one, the easiest mistake to make; it has the fewest HSR trains but is closest to West Lake (Metro Line 1/5). Hangzhou West (杭州西站) opened in 2022 in Yuhang district to the northwest for westbound routes (Metro Line 3/19). Read the full station name on the ticket — 杭州东 (East), 杭州 (Chengzhan) or 杭州西 (West).

Take Metro Line 1 (toward 湘湖) direct from Hangzhou East to 龙翔桥 (Longxiangqiao), about 16-20 minutes, no transfer. Leave by Exit C and walk west along 平海路 ~500 m (5-8 min) to the 湖滨 lakefront. (Line 1 also stops at 凤起路 if you want the 断桥/Broken Bridge end.) On holidays West Lake gridlocks, so the metro beats a taxi; a taxi/DiDi is ~8 km, ~26 min, ~¥30-45. The same Line 1 also reaches 武林广场, the downtown core, on the way.

Metro Line 19, the express line, runs from the East Plaza station (火车东站东广场) to 萧山机场站 in about 22-25 minutes, ¥7 — the fastest way, stopping at both Terminal 3 and the new Terminal 4 (check your terminal). Line 1 also reaches the airport but on a slow ~50-minute loop, so use Line 19. An airport bus leaves from the East Plaza coach station (¥28). Allow about 2.5 hours door-to-gate for a domestic flight, 3 for international. Note Line 19 boards from a separate East-Plaza concourse — follow the signs after you exit your train.

About 45-60 minutes to Shanghai Hongqiao, with several trains an hour through the day — frequent enough to treat almost like a metro between the two cities, which is what makes Hangzhou the classic Shanghai day-trip. Fastest G-trains do it in ~45 minutes; second class is roughly ¥73-90. Book on the official 12306 app or on Trip.com; outside holiday peaks turn-up-and-ride is realistic, but a reserved seat is wise in busy season.

For almost every visitor, Hangzhou East — it runs by far the most high-speed trains and Metro Lines 1/4/19 connect it everywhere. People pick the old Hangzhou Station (Chengzhan) only when it genuinely suits them: it is closer to West Lake (one Line 1 stop / a 15-minute walk) and more central, but it has far fewer HSR services. Hangzhou West is for westbound routes and is well out in Yuhang. The trap is booking plain 'Hangzhou' (= Chengzhan) when you wanted Hangzhou East — read the full name.

Allow 45-60 minutes before departure — Hangzhou East is one of the largest stations in Asia and the metro-to-platform walk is long. A traveller rule of thumb: gates 1-15 are nearest the West Plaza, gates 16-28 the East Plaza. There is left luggage on the arrival level (self-service lockers about ¥4-6 per hour) plus staffed storage (~¥15-20 per 12 hours) on both plazas. The station is real-name (实名制): your passport is scanned at the automated gates as both ticket and ID.

Yes — there are tourist service desks at the West Plaza lower level (by the 旅游驿站) and on the East Plaza arrival level. They hand out Hangzhou maps, give trip and transport advice, and some desks offer a luggage-to-hotel delivery service if you book ahead — handy if you want to head straight to West Lake and pick your bags up later. There is also a free overnight rest area (21:00-08:00, valid same-day ticket) if you have an early train or a late arrival.

Yes. Book through the official 12306 app/site (which registers foreign passports) or Trip.com's English site. Hangzhou East is real-name: there is no paper ticket — your passport is scanned at the automated gates as both ticket and identity, and again at security. Use the same passport you booked with; staffed lanes handle any passport a gate can't read.