7,000 Chinese tourists travel to Vietnam by charter train

Informing Giao thong Newspaper, Vietnam Railway Corporation said that on November 21, the railway welcomed 400 Chinese tourists entering through Lao Cai International Border Gate by road, boarding the train to continue their journey to Hanoi station.

From Hanoi station, the group traveled by train to destinations such as Hue, Da Nang, Nha Trang, Phan Thiet, Binh Thuan, and Ho Chi Minh City. Then, they returned to Lao Cai to enter China through the land border gate, ending the 13-day train tour.

Chinese tourist group at Lao Cai station.

This is the largest group of Chinese tourists to travel by train since the end of the Covid-19 pandemic and is also the first charter train in the cooperation program between Lao Cai Department of Tourism and the railway.

It is worth noting that this group of tourists is just one of 16 railway charter groups that have signed cooperation agreements with travel and tourism companies to organize in 2024 with a total of about 7,000 visitors. Of these, 12 groups travel from Hanoi - Ho Chi Minh City - Hanoi and 4 groups depart from Lao Cai.

Chinese tourists can enter through Mong Cai, Dong Dang, Lao Cai border gates, from there travel by train to visit famous tourist destinations in Vietnam.

A representative of the Railway Transport Joint Stock Company added that the Chinese tourist market to Vietnam is very large, about 3 million visitors/year, second only to Korean tourists.

The railway is working closely with tourism and travel agencies to exploit this potential market with many transport products on railway routes, especially charter trains.

Such as coordinating with Chinese railways to organize charter trains of 1,435mm gauge from Chinese railways to Vietnamese railways through Dong Dang international transit station and running deep into Vietnam's interior to Ha Long station; or running to Gia Lam station, from here transferring to Vietnamese trains of 1,000mm gauge to the provinces.

Visitors can also enter the country through the land border gate, take the Vietnamese train running directly from Lao Cai - Hanoi - Hai Phong, from Hai Phong to Ha Long by road and vice versa, continue by train back to China or continue traveling to the southern provinces.

“Currently, Chinese tourists only travel by charter train, sightseeing during the day and sleeping on the train at night, to save time and hotel costs. In the future, the railway will coordinate with travel agencies to organize more experiential services on the train such as providing local products, group activities, entertainment such as music, dancing, etc. on community cars to attract train passengers,” said a representative of the Railway Transport Joint Stock Company, adding that Vietnam Railways is also proposing that China Railways re-organize international passenger trains to serve passengers traveling regularly between the two countries.

Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/7000-khach-trung-quoc-du-lich-viet-nam-bang-tau-hoa-thue-chuyen-192241124105150155.htm