From Vietnam to China on the Hanoi to Nanning Night Train

The Hanoi to Nanning night train is one of the most popular options for overland travellers heading from Vietnam to China.

In this guide, I’ll tell you everything you need to know about this daily sleeper train, including the best way to book tickets and what the actual travel experience is like.

Booking the Hanoi-Nanning night train

Tickets for the Hanoi-Nanning night train are best booked through the reliable booking website 12Go.

Note that this night train between Vietnam and China offers only 4-berth soft sleeper compartments.

If you want sole occupancy of a compartment, you will need to book all four berths.

Onboard facilities

The 4-berth soft sleeper compartments are perfectly comfortable, both for sitting upright and for sleeping.

At the end of each coach, you will find shared toilets and a large communal washstand.

There is no dining car on this train between Vietnam and China, so be sure to bring your own provisions for the journey.

My travel experience

The Hanoi-Nanning night train has a journey time of 11 hours and 46 minutes, with both border crossings occurring in the middle of the night.

In Hanoi, the train departs from Gia Lâm station, while in Nanning it uses the main railway station.

During the stops at the border stations of Dong Dang (Vietnam) and Pingxiang (China), travellers must leave the train with their luggage for passport control and customs checks before boarding again.

Although I slept reasonably well, the border formalities took over three hours to exit Vietnam and enter China, making it quite a disrupted night of sleep.

This is something you will need to take into account, so it is best not to plan too many activities upon arrival at your destination in case you are tired.

Other Vietnam-China train services

Apart from the Hanoi-Nanning night train, you can also travel by train from Hanoi to Kunming in China if you prefer rail travel to other forms of transport.

I took this route when I travelled in the opposite direction, from China to Vietnam.

To travel this way, you need to take the night train from Hanoi to Lao Cai (Sapa), cross the border on foot, and then continue from the Chinese border town of Hekou to Kunming by high-speed train.

Read the two articles for more information about these train services and how to book tickets for them.

Around two or three times a week, the Hanoi–Nanning night train also carries through coaches to Beijing, allowing you to travel directly from the capital of Vietnam to the capital of China.

However, the prices for this two-night journey can be rather high, and I think you would be much better off buying split tickets: one from Hanoi to Nanning and another from Nanning to Beijing or any other Chinese destination.

You can easily book Chinese train tickets online using Trip.com.

Conclusion

The daily Hanoi-Nanning night train is one of the best ways to travel between Vietnam and China.

This train offers comfortable 4-berth soft sleepers, although your night’s sleep will be interrupted by the midnight border formalities.

In addition to the Hanoi–Nanning night train, you can also travel between Vietnam and China by taking a train from Hanoi to Lao Cai (Sapa), walking the short distance across the border into Hekou, and then taking the high-speed train from there to Kunming.