High-speed sleeper trains linking mainland megacities of Beijing and Shanghai with the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) completed their maiden trips on Sunday morning.

With the new high-speed sleeper trains, the time it takes to travel between Beijing and Hong Kong has been reduced to about 12 hours, and the travel time between Shanghai and Hong Kong to about 11 hours, allowing passengers to travel between the mainland and the SAR overnight.

Train D910 arrived in Beijing West Railway Station at 6:53 a.m. on Sunday after departing from Hong Kong at 6:24 p.m. the day before.

Train D908 reached Shanghai Hongqiao Railway Station at 6:45 a.m. on Sunday after departing from Hong Kong at 7:49 p.m. the day before.

Many passengers posed for photos to mark the journey.

Trains departing from Shanghai and Beijing also arrived in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Railway Station on Sunday morning.

Hong Kong's Secretary for Culture, Sports and Tourism Kevin Yeung Yun-hung, CEO of the MTR Corporation Jacob Kam Chak-pui, and other representatives held a welcome ceremony in the station for mainland passengers, distributing souvenirs and posing for group photos.