How to Get to Sapa from Hanoi

If you plan to visit Hanoi for several days you can combine your visit to the Vietnamese capital with a tour of the surrounding cities, and in that plan Sa Pa is one of the best destinations you can choose. Surrounded by the Hoang Lien Son Mountains, this site is a famous hiking base in the region and also offers views of the terraced rice fields of the Muong Hoa Valley.

Located about 300 kilometers from Hanoi, Sa Pa brings with it the challenge of traversing the northwestern mountains to visit, although you will find a variety of modes of transportation to suit your travel plan. Whether you choose the organized tour, shuttle tour, train, bus or rented car, touring this destination is part of the best things to do in Hanoi.

Sa Pa is located more than 300 kilometers away from Hanoi, so one of the best alternatives to visit this place is to opt for an organized excursion of at least 2 days. These experiences will allow you to travel in comfort, delegate the organization of transportation and also discover one of the most famous mountain destinations in Vietnam.

During the tour you can visit the Fansipan Peak with the assistance of an expert local guide, where you can explore the remote population that inhabits the site. A cable car will take you to the peak located at an altitude of 3150 meters above sea level, making Fansipan the highest mountain on the Indochinese Peninsula.

After visiting Fansipan, you can tour the historic center of Sa Pa, which is known as the City of Clouds due to its altitude. From there, you can also discover the surrounding iconic cascading rice fields, view the surrounding valleys and observe the emerald mountains that frame the skyline in one of the best destinations to discover on a tour from Hanoi.

As a 2-day tour, these experiences usually include hotel accommodation, lunch, dinner and breakfast, plus round-trip transfers with hotel pick-up. Please also note that the entire itinerary of the trip will be mapped out in advance, so you will be able to know in detail the travel plan included in these organized tours.

Details of interest

• Price: approximately €137 per person, including meals, round-trip transfer with hotel pick-up in Hanoi, expert local guide assistance and accommodation in Sa Pa.
• Travel time: about 2 days.
• Advantages of this option: you will be able to delegate the responsibility of tour and sightseeing planning and have permanent assistance.
• Disadvantages of this option: not compatible with a short stay in Hanoi, as it will take you at least 2 days of sightseeing.

If you prefer to avoid organized tours or want to opt for a cheaper alternative but still get to Sa Pa quickly and comfortably, you can choose to travel by shuttle. The trip by shuttle takes about 4 hours each way, so it is faster than the bus or train, which is ideal if you plan to visit Hanoi in 3 days or even less.

There are many Vietnamese companies offering this service, but one of the most popular is Eco Sapa Bus. These tour service providers will offer stops in the city center or at any of the most visited sites in Sa Pa, such as Fansipan, the most famous peak of Hoang Lien Son mountain.

Note that if you buy both the outward and return trip, you can usually get discounts on the final price, and that these same companies will offer you to combine your trip with some of the attractions of Sa Pa, as is the case of the Fansipan cable car or a guided tour of the city center to see the views of the rice fields and the nearby mountains.

On the other hand, a shuttle ride is a good alternative for those who want to combine a comfortable tour with a relatively inexpensive proposal that does not compromise budgets. If you plan to visit Hanoi in groups, you can also get better final fares.

Details of interest

• Price: approximately 23 euros per leg.
• Travel time: about 4 hours.
• Advantages of this option: you will be able to use a cost-effective means of transport.
• Disadvantages of this option: it does not include other services than the transfer, so you will have to combine this tour with tours of the tourist sites of Sa Pa.

If you want to opt for an economical alternative that does not compromise your heritage, you can choose to visit Sa Pa from Hanoi by bus. This option will allow you to reach this destination in approximately 6 hours, and will take you from Hoan Kiem Terminal to the center of Sa Pa, which is famous for its sweeping views surrounded by mountains on the border with China.

There are several companies offering the bus transfer, which has an initial cost of approximately 16 euros per person, but among the most prominent are Futa Bus, Sao Viet and Green Lion Bus. All of these services will get you to Sa Pa, although you should note that once you are in the center of town you will need to hire a local transfer to the surrounding attractions, including Mount Fansipan.

Consider that while bus travel is an economical alternative, it requires a long travel time, which could be counterproductive to a 2-day stay in Hanoi or even less. In addition, you may need to stay overnight in Sa Pa in order to explore the city thoroughly, especially if you arrive very late or if you plan to travel during the winter, when the sun sets earlier than in the summer.

Also, many of these companies will offer you to combine bus tours from Hanoi to Sa Pa with hop on-hop off sightseeing bus tours of the city. With these alternatives, you will usually be able to get discounted fares for both transfers.

Details of interest

• Price: approximately 16 euros per person.
• Journey time: about 6 hours each way.
• Advantages of this option: you will be able to visit Sa Pa in the cheapest option available.
• Disadvantages of this option: it is a trip that takes many hours each way, so it could be incompatible with a short stay in the city.

Vietnam has a long railway tradition and is one of the Southeast Asian countries with the largest number of kilometers of operational railways, so a very common alternative to travel to Sa Pa from Hanoi is to use the train service. This option will also allow you to contemplate the mountainous landscape along the tracks between both destinations and to cross several intermediate cities.

However, keep in mind that the train does not go to Sa Pa but to the Lao Cai railway station, and from there you will have to take a cab to the center of the city or to the base of Mount Fansipan, which are located on the other side of the Red River. This transfer and the slow train route make it one of the slowest transports to travel from the Vietnamese capital to Sa Pa.

Also, this train service has a daily frequency, that is to say, it provides only one service during the day, every morning. This could alter the itinerary of your tour or condition your participation in the best tours of Hanoi. In any case, you should keep in mind that if you choose this option you will have to consider its timetable limitations, being an inflexible alternative in that sense.

Details of interest

• Price: approximately 26 euros per person, although to this price you will have to add the cab fare to get from Lao Cai to Sa Pa.
• Travel time: about 8 hours each way.
• Advantages of this option: you will be able to travel in a traditional option and discover the mountain scenery along the way.
• Disadvantages of this option: the frequency of train services is daily, so you will only have one alternative per day to use this means of transport.

A rare but very flexible alternative is to opt for a rented car trip from Hanoi to Sa Pa. In general, these options are not very common due to the heavy and disorderly traffic in Vietnam, but if you finally choose it, you will be able to build your own itinerary and comfortably organize the conditions of the trip.

To get to Sa Pa from Hanoi you will have to travel along the CT05 road and on the way you can cross Lang Khay and Thai Van, two very important cities located on the banks of the Red River, which follows the winding route. In addition, if you travel by car you can add intermediate stops that will allow you to discover not only Sa Pa and its mountain range, but also the surrounding villages.

Although renting a car in Hanoi is not cheap and costs around 65 euros per day, the route linking the Vietnamese capital with Sa Pa has no tolls, so you can save money in this aspect. Likewise, using this option will also allow you to visit Halong Bay from Hanoi and other tourist destinations although, of course, you will have to hire the car for several days to cover the route.

Details of interest

• Price: approximately 65 euros per day.
• Travel time: about 3 and a half hours each way.
• Advantages of this option: you will have at your disposal a flexible means of transport, which will allow you to manage the itinerary at your own pace.
• Disadvantages of this option: traffic in Vietnam is usually chaotic and very busy, so it is often not advisable for tourists to rent a car.

Sa Pa is a picturesque corner located among the mountains, in the north of Vietnam and very close to the border with China. It is also one of the most famous tourist sites in the region, so it offers year-round experiences, although it is in spring, from March to May, when the city best showcases the rice fields and the temperatures are friendly for touring the surrounding mountains and climbing Mount Fansipan.

During the spring, in addition to the scenery, you can also find many local music and art festivals in the city, which will allow you to discover not only the spirit of the Vientiane north, but also the richness of its culture. Also in summer, between June and August, you will find many interesting activities in Sa Pa, although you should keep in mind that this is the rainy season, which could hinder your experiences.

If you are an autumn lover, traveling between September and November will be the ideal choice. The rice fields ripen in golden tones, creating an unforgettable postcard. In addition, cool temperatures and clear skies make hiking very pleasant. It is also a perfect time to discover Vietnam by bicycle.

If, on the other hand, you want to see the snow-capped mountain peaks, you can opt for winter, which transforms Sa Pa into a magical landscape, although temperatures can drop substantially and complicate trekking and mountaineering activities. Also, during the winter season the sunset is usually earlier, so you will have fewer daylight hours for daytime tours.

The answer will depend on the time you plan to spend on a visit to Sa Pa and also on the budget available for these experiences. If you want to choose a comfortable and relaxed alternative, where you can delegate the logistical planning, a 2-day organized tour will be the best option. However, you should keep in mind that due to its duration it could be incompatible with a 3-day tour of Hanoi or even less time.

However, if you want to save money and have access to a relatively comfortable option, you can opt for the shuttle tour, which will allow you to reach Sa Pa in a few hours. This option, however, does not include the excursions included in the organized tour, which will take you to Mount Fansipan and the sweeping views of the rice terraces from the city center.

The bus and train options are also very popular, although they are at a disadvantage because they require many hours of travel time on each leg. This could be detrimental because it will take time away from touring Hoang Lien Son Mountain and using the Sa Pa cable car.

The best of each of the alternatives to visit Sa Pa