Part 1: Oslo - Shanghai | The Great Overland Adventure

6

Countries

165

Hours on trains

115

Scheduled stops

11 000

Kilometers

Trip overview

The first part of The Great Overland Adventure took us by train from Oslo Central Station to Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station. An absolutely epic adventure of 11 000 ++ kilometers mostly by train, including 7 nights on trains.

The first leg took us by train from Oslo to Stockholm. What a joy to walk down to your local railway station knowing that the final destination is a long, long way away! From Stockholm, we had to do the only leg on water, going by ferry to Helsinki. From Helsinki we took the night train to Moscow, and in Moscow we jumped onboard the Trans-Siberian Railway to Irkutsk and Lake Baikal.

After Irkutsk we continued on the Trans-Mongolian Railway to Ulan Bataar in Mongolia. And once in Mongolia, we could not resist to spend a good 6 days to see what this vast country had on offer. We joined a 5-day tour that took us to remote areas and national parks, staying in gers with local families, riding camels and horses, eating excellent vegetarian food (yes, it is possible in Mongolia!) and experiencing local culture.

From Ulan Bataar we travelled by train to Beijing, and after a few days in Beijing we did the final leg by high speed train down to Shanghai. Arriving in Shanghai without stepping a foot on a plane is a very rewarding feeling, something we can highly recommend.

Map

Itinerary

Oslo – Stockholm

Stockholm – Helsinki

Helsinki – Moscow

Moscow – Irkutsk

Irkutsk – Ulan Bataar

Ulan Bataar – Beijing

Beijing – Shanghai

Shanghai – Oslo

For train geeks and others who are specifically into the nitty gritty of train traveling: Click here to view the railway timetable from Oslo to Shanghai.

Planning

This trip involved a lot of planning and organising. From visa applications to ticket bookings, it was all a big puzzle to do things in the right order while keeping the time limits so we had everything in order before departure. Some of the tickets were not confirmed before we’d come half way, like the ticket from Ulan Bataar to Beijing. The reason behind this is that some trains and tickets cannot be booked before as little as 10 or 14 days before departure (!)

What we did not realize when we settled for our tour dates was that we would arrive in Beijing on their Independence Day (Oct 1st), and that this marked the start of the Golden Week where most of the chinese population go travelling. It is in fact a week where it is advisable to stay away from China due to the crowds.. We took this as an extra challenge and managed to secure both train tickets and accommodation, and it all worked out fine. The Great Wall of China was a nightmare though, too much people and traffic!! 😃