What to expect
Enjoy a comfortable overnight journey with stunning decoration with high use of carved wood. 
Experience the most relaxed transfer between Sapa and Hanoi.

VIP cabins provide a cozy atmosphere with two comfortable berths.

Feel right at home with complimentary welcome drinks, air-conditioning, reading lights, and snacks (biscuits or fresh fruits).
Meeting point
Hanoi Station to Lao Cai Station (21:35 – 05:30)
20:40: Arrive at Hanoi Train Station (No. 7 Tran Quy Cap street, (see this destination on Google Map) for check-in procedure. Your online ticket would be exchanged for a paper ticket at this point.
21:35: Depart to Lao Cai Train Station.
05:35: Arrive at Lao Cai Train Station.
Note: The distance between Lao Cai Train Station and Sapa Town is about 40km. Some forms of transportation are needed to travel from Lao Cai to Sapa.
Lao Cai Station to Hanoi Station (20:50 – 04:30)
20:00: Arrive at Peterchef Restaurant (No.337 Quảng Trường ga Lào Cai Street - see this destination on Google Map), meet Orient Express train staff for check-in procedure. Your online ticket would be exchanged for a paper ticket at this point.
20:50: Depart to Hanoi Train Station.
04:30: Arrive at Hanoi Train Station.
Reviews
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Bed, pillow and blanket are comfortable. Snack,drink and banana are given. The toilet is surprisingly clean. We are a team of six and we took two cabins. The young ones enjoyed the double deckers. We old folks enjoy the two bed cabin though its more pricey.
We booked the VIP 2 berth cabin and the trip was nice. It is nicer than we thought or read from the other reviews. The cabin was clean and we had some freebies to enjoy during the trip. Staff are friendly and in good mood. We were warned not to take the morning coffee from the lady but we did and paid for it since it is just a small amount and she is quite polite and friendly. Highly recommend this train to everyone!
We travelled from Hanoi to Lao Cai railway station on the Victoria Express. You then get transporting Sapa via mini buses about an hour away
Check was pretty painless, they have a lounge at the station and you luggage is taken for you to the lounge.
You get tea and a seat. There is a mini supermarket in the station downstairs to buy anything you need for the journey, prices in the lounge itself are high
You get help to take you luggage to the train, they seen to call you in small groups to board
You take all you luggage to your cabin. So can be a squeeze if it doesn’t fit under your bed.
We had a 4 berth cabin for the two of us, it was okay. We use the spare duvets to lay on and the bed although a bit narrow was fine
There is no restaurant car, there are two toilets which are clean and have hot & cold waterstaff onboard are friendly & helpful
There is a power socket in the cabin to charge phones etc. & the WiFi worked well although did struggle with FaceTime
You get two bottles of water, some people got fruit.
The train departs at 22:00 and does shake about and is noisy but I slept on & off okay.
They wake you at 05:30 with coffee or tea and a small croissant and you arrive at 06:00
Disembarking in easy & orderly
I enjoyed the journey
We were treated like special guests throughout our trips. We were a group of four adults and the room was small but comfortable. The ride was as smooth as a train ride can be. The bunks were comfortable and the room was air conditioned so even the top bunks were cool. The bathroom was clean and very nice. We were greeted with refreshments in the morning before leaving the train. Would recommend to take a ride.