Contact us to book Hanoi - Lao Cai - Hanoi tourist train tickets
The best way to go to Sapa from Hanoi is to take the trains. Most of the tourists who visit Sapa travel from Hanoi to Lao Cai (a town at the border with Yunnan province of China, separated by the Red River and the other side is the town of Hekou of China) by overnight trains. Night trains is the best option because it saves time and two nights of accommodations. The train runs along the Red River. All trains leave at night from Hanoi and arrive at Lao Cai train station in the early morning. Trains also leave at night from Lao Cai and arrive in the morning in Hanoi.
To meet tourist demand, some service providers upgrade carriages and put them different names. These carriages are clean, comfortable, fully meet tourist standard with air-conditioners and soft berths. Please click to see brief information and pictures of all tourist trains from Hanoi to Lao Cai train station.
Lao Cai - Sapa Transfer
The Hanoi - Lao Cai train stops at valley of Lao Cai, just 40 km from Sapa; to reach Sapa, you need to travel an hour more by shuttle buses or private car. The buses stops at Sapa's main post office, leaving you with some minutes walk into town center. It can also drop you at your hotel, depending upon the location of the hotel. Ticket price for connecting buses Lao Cai Station - Sapa is Vietnam Dong (VND) 40,000/person/way (about US$2/way).
The tourist bus back to Lao Cai leaves from outside Sapa's church, but usually it can pick you up at your hotel. You can ask the staff at your hotels for getting a bus ticket back to Lao Cai Railway Station.
Hanoi - Lao Cai - Hanoi Train Tickets Fare
| Train name | Accommodation | Fare |
| VIP cabin VIP 2 cabin Business Class, 4-berth cabin | ||
| VIP cabin First Class, wooden cabin, 4 berths | ||
| First Class, wooden cabin, 4 berths | ||
| First Class, wooden cabin, 4 berths | ||
| Business Class, wooden cabin, 4 berths | ||
| AC soft sleeper, 4 berths | ||
| First Class, wooden cabin, 4 berths | ||
| Deluxe King Express 4-berth Wooden cabin, 4-berth | ||
| VIP cabin Business Class, wooden cabin, 4-berth AC 4-berth cabin | ||
| See detail in Victoria Train rate | ||
Note:
- We recommend that you choose the 4-berth cabin in the chart above for cleaner cabins and sleepers.
- We can only provide return tickets booking from Hanoi for tourist trains. For normal trains, you need to buy the return ticket yourself when you are in Lao Cai or Sapa, or request the hotel to buy it for you (you cannot be guaranteed if you buy in short notice).
- Child fare: under 5 years is free of charge if sharing bed with parent; 5 years/up: adult rate.
Hanoi - Lao Cai - Hanoi Trains Schedule
| Train name | Hanoi departure | Lao Cai arrival | Lao Cai departure | Hanoi arival |
| 20:35 | 05:00 | 19:30 | 04:30 | |
| 20:35 | 05:00 | 19:30 | 04:30 | |
| 20:40 | 04:35 | 20:05 | 04:40 | |
| 21:00 | 05:40 | 20:15 | 04:45 | |
| 21:00 | 05:40 | 20:15 | 04:45 | |
| 21:00 | 05:40 | 20:35 | 05:10 | |
| 21:00 | 05:40 | 20:40 | 05:00 | |
| 21:15 | 05:45 | 20:40 | 05:10 | |
| 21:15 | 05:45 | 20:40 | 05:10 | |
| 21:55 | 06:30 | 20:00 | 05:45 |
Other trains for reference, see updated information at Vietnam Railway corporation
Hanoi - Lao Cai route
| Station | SP1 | SP3 | SP5 | LC1 | LC3 | LC5 |
| Hanoi | 21:15 | 21:55 | 8:20 | 22:05 | 6:10 | 20:40 |
| Viet Tri |
|
|
| 0:12 | 8:16 | |
| Yen Bai | 1:53 | 1:40 | 12:40 | 2:30 | 10:40 | 0:22 |
| Bao Ha | 3:16 |
| 15:14 | 5:08 | 13:32 | 2:47 |
| Pho Lu | 5:03 | 4:44 | 15:59 | 5:53 | 14:19 | 3:29 |
| Lao Cai | 6:15 | 6:00 | 17:05 | 7:10 | 15:40 | 4:35 |
Lao Cai - Hanoi route
| Station | SP2 | SP4 | SP6 | LC2 | LC4 | LC6 |
| Lao Cai | 20:15 | 21:00 | 8:40 | 18:45 | 9:45 | 19:30 |
| Pho Lu | 21:22 | 22:07 | 9:47 | 20:04 | 11:34 | 20:34 |
| Bao Ha | 22:21 |
| 10:35 | 20:49 | 12:20 | 21:17 |
| Yen Bai | 0:17 | 1:10 | 13:45 | 23:10 | 14:59 | 23:31 |
| Viet Tri |
|
| 16:13 | 1:46 | 17:42 |
|
| Hanoi | 4:30 | 5:05 | 19:10 | 4:00 | 19:55 | 4:10 |
Video clip
Hanoi - Lao Cai train route and vice-versa
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