[Lao Cai Station]
The Hanoi-Lao Cai Railway is a railway line that connects Hanoi to Lao Cai in Northwest Vietnam. Lao Cai is on the China-Vietnam border, and it’s the closest station to Sapa.
Overnight train services to Lao Cai are met at the station by minivans and buses to shuttle passengers to Sapa.
Hanoi–Lao Cai trains
There are only overnight trains to Lao Cai.
Hanoi–Lao Cai
Train: SP3
Departure: 22:00
Arrival: 05:55
Travel Time: 7h 45m
Train: SP7
Departure: 22:40
Arrival: 06:25
Travel Time: 7h 45m
Tickets: Buy Hanoi-Lao Cai train tickets
Lao Cai-Hanoi
There is a day train and overnight train from Lao Cai to Hanoi, so this gives you an opportunity to see the scenery on the way back. Another option is to get the day train (Train SP8) from Lao Cai to Yen Bai, and visit the famous terraced rice fields.
Train: SP4
Departure: 21:30
Arrival: 05:35
Travel Time: 7h 32m
Train: SP8
Departure: 12:05
Arrival: 19:37
Travel Time: 7h 32m
Tickets: Buy Lao Cai-Hanoi train tickets
Hanoi–Lao Cai Railway map
[Map of Hanoi–Lao Cai Railway.]
Stations
Hanoi
Gia Lam
Phu Tho
Yen Bai
Pho Lu
Lao Cai
About the Hanoi–Lao Cai Railway
The Hanoi–Lao Cai service is sometimes referred to as the Sapa Train or the train to Sapa by travel agents, but there is no train to Sapa. The drive to Sapa takes about 45 minutes, and travel agencies sell train and bus transfer tickets.
The Hanoi-Lao Cai service is operated by Vietnam Railways, but there are special carriages operated by tour companies that are added to the back of the train. The online booking sites show all of the available seats for Vietnam Railways and the tour company carriages.
The Hanoi-Lao Cai line is part of the original metre-gauge Kunming–Haiphong railway. There are currently no trains to China operating on this line, and the train to Haiphong is via a separate Hanoi-Haiphong service.
The train used to run to Kunming in China, but that no longer operates. You can walk across the border to Hekou and get the train to Kunming.
[The closed railway bridge to China in Lao Cai]
The Hanoi-Lao Cai service only operates at night in both directions, so there is no chance to get a day train and stop somewhere along the way.
There used to be a Hanoi-Yen Bai service that operated on the same line, though this service has been suspended.
Future plans for the Hanoi–Lao Cai Railway
Vietnam is planning to rebuild the entire line from Lao Cai to Haiphong. This will be a standard-gauge electric railway with an operating speed of 160 km/h. This will be integrated with the railway in China, so there will once again be trains from Kunming to Hanoi.
Construction is expected to begin in December 2025, so there will be disruptions to the current Hanoi-Lao Cai service at some point. I will be posting news about the construction here.
Hanoi–Lao Cai Railway links and resources
Wikipedia: Hanoi–Lào Cai railway.
Good to see this site James. The Hanoi-Lao Cai train was the first train i ever rode in South East Asia, with Vietnam being my first non-western country. That was way back in 2000/2001. That train. we rode hard sleeper when hard sleeper was indeed hard.. just a thin bamboo mat on top of the wood. Rode it again in 2011 and hard sleeper was actually very soft and comfortable… will enjoy the posts on you new site
Wow that is a great experience, and it has definitely changed since then!