---
title: "Vietnam–China Border 2026: Hanoi–Nanning Bus, Train, Visas"
description: "Lào Cai–Hekou, Hữu Nghị–Youyiguan, Móng Cái–Dongxing and the Đồng Đăng train. Dated bus fares, local train times and the 240-hour transit entry restriction."
canonical: "https://vietnamtransportguide.com/vietnam-china-border/"
language: "en"
content_type: "guide"
last_checked: "2026-10-09"
status: "published"
structured_data: "https://vietnamtransportguide.com/vietnam-china-border/#webpage"
alternates: "en=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/vietnam-china-border/ fr=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/fr/vietnam-china-border/ de=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/de/vietnam-china-border/ es=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/es/vietnam-china-border/ ja=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/ja/vietnam-china-border/ ko=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/ko/vietnam-china-border/ ru=https://vietnamtransportguide.com/ru/vietnam-china-border/"
---
# Vietnam to China: road crossings, the Nanning train and entry permission

## Short Answer

Hanoi to Nanning takes 8 hours by tourist bus, 1,000,000₫ online for October 2026, or a night on the international train from Ga Gia Lâm, which crosses at Đồng Đăng and Pingxiang. Sort out China first: the 240-hour visa-free transit does not apply at any crossing from Vietnam, so you need a Chinese visa or a passport that qualifies for the 30-day exemption.

## Quick Facts

- Last checked: 2026-10-09

## Three ways across, and the permission you need

The bus to Nanning, the domestic train to Lào Cai and the international train from Gia Lâm are three different journeys. The crossings on the Vietnam–China border:

- **Lào Cai–Hekou** (road and on foot): Cửa khẩu quốc tế Lào Cai, opposite Hekou, Hà Khẩu in Vietnamese. The Hanoi–Lào Cai train gets you to the town; the crossing is separate.
- **Hữu Nghị–Youyiguan** (road): Cửa khẩu quốc tế Hữu Nghị, opposite Youyiguan, Hữu Nghị Quan in Vietnamese.
- **Móng Cái–Dongxing** (road): Cửa khẩu quốc tế Móng Cái, opposite Dongxing, Đông Hưng in Vietnamese, over the Bắc Luân bridges.
- **Đồng Đăng–Pingxiang** (rail): the Gia Lâm–Nanning train, with formalities at Ga Đồng Đăng and Pingxiang, Bằng Tường in Vietnamese.

Vietnam's e-visa covers the Vietnamese side only, and Chinese permission does not replace a Vietnamese visa coming south.

## Chinese visas: the 30-day exemption, not the transit

The State Council's notice of 4 November 2025 extends China's unilateral visa exemption for more than 40 countries to 31 December 2026, for visits of up to 30 days including tourism. Ordinary passports from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Switzerland, Ireland and Hungary are among them.

The full list is on the [National Immigration Administration's nationality page](https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147418/n147463/c183390/content.html), dated February 2026; if your passport is not on it, you need a Chinese visa before you go.

- The **240-hour transit exemption** works only at 65 named entry ports, and only if you are travelling on to a third country. The NIA's August 2026 announcement added Vietnam to the eligible nationalities (57 in all) but kept the 65 ports.
- Hekou, Youyiguan, Dongxing and Pingxiang railway are not among those [65 ports](https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147413/c187308/content.html), and Vietnam–China–Vietnam is not a third-country trip anyway.

One trap in that NIA notice: Hekou, Youyiguan and Dongxing do appear in another table, for Taiwan residents' travel permits, which has nothing to do with foreign passports. Hainan's visa exemption does not cover entering Yunnan or Guangxi from Vietnam either.

## Lào Cai–Hekou: the train only takes you to the border town

The railway's October 2026 timetable for the Vietnamese leg:

- Ga Hà Nội (Hanoi station) → Ga Lào Cai: SP3, 22:00 → 05:50 next day, 7 hours 50 minutes. Upper berth in a four-berth compartment: 475,000–533,000₫.
- Ga Lào Cai → Ga Hà Nội: SP8, 12:05 → 19:30, 7 hours 25 minutes. Upper berth in a four-berth compartment: 202,000–222,000₫.

These fares cover the Vietnamese train only; the [Hanoi to Sapa page](/hanoi-to-sapa/) has the other Lào Cai trains. Coming from Hekou, Vietnamese formalities come first, so leave room before a train from Ga Lào Cai.

The Lào Cai railway gate joined Vietnam's e-visa list in December 2025, but no cross-border passenger timetable has been published for it.

## Hữu Nghị–Youyiguan and the Hanoi–Nanning buses

Golink Sao Vang's tourist buses on sale for October 2026 all leave **55 Trần Khát Chân, Hanoi**, for 1,000,000₫ per adult:

| Departure in Vietnam time | Arrival in China time | Drop-off | Journey |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 06:00 | 15:00 | Langdong bus station, Nanning | 8 hours |
| 09:30 | 18:30 | Langdong bus station, Nanning | 8 hours |
| 11:50 | 20:50 | Nanning East railway station | 8 hours |

China is an hour ahead, so nine hours on the clock is eight on the road. The Nanning East ticket is a bus that drops you at the railway station, not a train.

The tickets name neither the border gate nor any change of bus; the company can tell you both. Coming back, only flights were on sale from Nanning for October 2026, so ask Golink Sao Vang for its Nanning departures rather than reversing these times.

## Móng Cái–Dongxing: which Bắc Luân bridge

Since 23 March 2026, while the Dongxing side of Bắc Luân I is rebuilt, passengers have been sent over **Bắc Luân II**: VOV reported in March 2026 that most tourists and groups use it, and customs reporting in Thời báo Tài chính in May 2026 described the same. An itinerary built on Bắc Luân I is out of date.

Móng Cái is on Vietnam's e-visa list; Dongxing is not a 240-hour transit port.

## Đồng Đăng rail: board at Gia Lâm, mind the two clocks

Vietnam Railways' May 2025 notice reopened daily MR1 and MR2 trains between **Ga Gia Lâm (Gia Lam station, Hanoi)** and Nanning, with formalities at Ga Đồng Đăng and Pingxiang. A Chinese government report of April 2026 gives the same daily service and times:

| Train and direction | Departure, local time | Arrival, local time |
| --- | --- | --- |
| MR1, Gia Lâm → Nanning | 21:20 Vietnam time | 10:06 China time next day |
| MR2, Nanning → Gia Lâm | 18:05 China time | 05:30 Vietnam time next day |

The Chinese report writes the Gia Lâm times as 22:20 and 06:30 Beijing time, the same moments on the other clock. Gia Lâm is on the east bank, a different station from Ga Hà Nội and the Lào Cai trains.

The railway suspended the international trains after a storm in August 2026, until 30 August. The fare announced in May 2025 is out of date, so get the current fare and confirm the departure with the railway before travelling.

## Entering Vietnam from China with an e-visa

Resolution 389/NQ-CP of 2 December 2025, reported in the government's notice the next day, added the two railway gates:

| Vietnamese gate | E-visa entry and exit |
| --- | --- |
| Lào Cai road | Already on the list |
| Hữu Nghị road | Already on the list |
| Móng Cái road | Already on the list |
| Lào Cai rail | Added on 2 December 2025 |
| Đồng Đăng rail | Added on 2 December 2025 |

The [Vietnam visa guide](/vietnam-visa/) covers the application and the exemptions.

## Visa and ticket questions at the Chinese border

### Can I enter China from Vietnam with the 240-hour transit exemption?

No. Hekou, Youyiguan, Dongxing and Pingxiang railway are not on the National Immigration Administration's list of 65 transit entry ports. The 30-day visa exemption for some passports is a separate scheme with its own rules.

### Which Hanoi station has the train to Nanning?

Ga Gia Lâm, not Ga Hà Nội. The railway's May 2025 notice gives MR1 leaving Gia Lâm at 21:20 Vietnam time and reaching Nanning at 10:06 China time the next day; a Chinese government report of April 2026 confirms the daily service.

### How much is the Hanoi to Nanning bus?

Golink Sao Vang tourist buses were 1,000,000₫ per adult sold online for October 2026 departures. Examples leave 55 Trần Khát Chân at 06:00 and 09:30, arriving at Langdong bus station at 15:00 and 18:30 China time. Each ticket displays 8 hours.

### Does a bus ticket to Nanning East railway station include a train?

No. Golink Sao Vang's 11:50 from Hanoi, on sale for October 2026, is a bus that drops you at Nanning East railway station at 20:50.

### Can I use a Vietnamese e-visa coming from China?

Yes, at the Lào Cai road gate, Hữu Nghị and Móng Cái, and since Resolution 389/NQ-CP of 2 December 2025 at the Lào Cai and Đồng Đăng railway gates too.

## Immigration authorities and railway notices

1. [National Immigration Administration of China — official](https://en.nia.gov.cn/n147413/c217834/content.html)
2. [State Council of China — official](https://english.www.gov.cn/news/202511/04/content_WS690964b0c6d00ca5f9a0749d.html)
3. [Báo Điện tử Chính phủ (Government of Vietnam news portal) — official](https://baochinhphu.vn/bo-sung-41-cua-khau-quoc-te-cho-phep-nguoi-nuoc-ngoai-xuat-nhap-canh-bang-thi-thuc-dien-tu-10225120309085849.htm)
4. [Vietnam National Railway Group (Tập đoàn Đường sắt Quốc gia Việt Nam, VNR) — official](https://vr.com.vn/)
5. [Vietnam National Railway Group ticket site (dsvn.vn) — official](https://dsvn.vn/)

## Hanoi, Sapa and Vietnamese entry permission

- [Vietnam visa in 2026: e-visa, exemptions and border gates](https://vietnamtransportguide.com/vietnam-visa/)
- [Hanoi: Noi Bai airport, the train station and where buses leave](https://vietnamtransportguide.com/hanoi/)
- [Hanoi to Sapa by bus or night train](https://vietnamtransportguide.com/hanoi-to-sapa/)
- [Getting to Sapa: buses, Lao Cai station and onward routes](https://vietnamtransportguide.com/sapa/)
- [Vietnam to Laos overland: buses, border crossings and visas](https://vietnamtransportguide.com/vietnam-laos-border/)