Chinese high-speed trains can now originate and terminate in downtown Kowloon, Hong Kong. Although a lot of attention has been focused on the once-daily eight-hour through train to Beijing, most travelers will find the new line more useful for getting to Shenzhen, Guangzhou, and other cities in southeastern China. Immigration clearance will be at the Hong Kong terminal, so the platforms there are effectively within China. The absence of formalities at the actual border is a big plus, as it is in the similar situation in Geneva. Ticketing information

— Ed Perkins, editor