Hanoi Train Street is still there and trains still squeeze between the houses, but visiting it in 2026 is a grey area. The stretch between Tran Phu and Phung Hung streets has been fenced off to tourists since September 2022, and since March 2025 the city’s tourism department has told tour companies not to bring guests at all. Cafes on neighbouring stretches still lead customers in when guards allow it.
From Silk Path Hotel Hanoi on Hang Bong Street, the track is about 200 m away, a three-to-five-minute walk, so you can check the situation yourself on the day.
What Train Street actually is
The railway is a single track laid by the French in 1902, running north out of Hanoi Railway Station towards Long Bien Bridge. It is not the main north–south line; it carries a handful of passenger and freight trains a day. For about 850 m the track runs at street level between rows of narrow houses, close enough that residents step back into their doorways when a train comes through.
From around 2017 families along the track started selling coffee to visitors, and the scene went viral. Overcrowding, people standing on the rails and emergency stops followed, which is why the authorities have repeatedly closed parts of it.
The three stretches visitors talk about
| Stretch | From Silk Path | Status (October 2026) |
|---|---|---|
| Tran Phu to Phung Hung (Hoan Kiem side) | About 200 m, 3–5 min walk | Fenced at both ends since 15 September 2022 |
| Tran Phu crossing to Dien Bien Phu (Ba Dinh side) | About 400 m, 6 min walk | Cafes have kept serving; access depends on the guards that day |
| Off Le Duan Street, south of the station | About 1.2 km, 15 min walk | Quieter; also covered by the March 2025 rules |
Is Hanoi Train Street open in 2026?
Officially, no part of it is a tourist attraction. In March 2025 the Hanoi Department of Tourism issued a notice telling travel companies not to sell or run tours to the train-street cafes, naming the wards of Cua Nam, Hang Bong and Cua Dong — the area right around the hotel. The railway’s safety corridor is meant to be at least 3 m wide; along the cafes it shrinks to about 1 m.
In practice the picture changes every few months. Reports from 2023 onwards describe guards at the main entrances, cafe owners escorting paying customers through side alleys, patrols in the early evening, and periods when everything is shut. A travel blog updated in October 2026 again reported the main stretch closed for cafes breaking the rules. Treat any visit as something that may not happen on your chosen day.
What that means for you
If a guard or a cafe owner tells you to leave, leave. If a cafe invites you in, you are buying a drink at a business the city has asked not to operate, and you accept the risk that comes with sitting a metre from a moving train.
When the trains pass
There is no published timetable for this stretch, and trains run late. Residents interviewed by the Vietnamese press said the most reliable passings are around 3.15 pm and 9.15 pm; travel blogs in 2026 also list trains in the mid-morning and between about 7.30 and 10 pm, with more at weekends. Some passings are a locomotive on its own.
Ask at the hotel’s front desk or at a cafe on the day, arrive 20 minutes early, and be ready to wait. If you want to see a train without the cafe question, stand behind the barrier at a level crossing such as the one on Tran Phu Street and watch it pass from the road.
Visiting from Silk Path Hotel Hanoi
Walk west along Hang Bong to Phung Hung Street, three to five minutes. Here the railway runs on a long brick viaduct whose arches were painted with murals of old Hanoi in 2018; it is a free, legal place to photograph the line, and trains cross above you. The fenced Tran Phu stretch starts just south of it. Our neighbourhood and distances guide maps the walk.
What the cafes charge
Where cafes are serving, you are expected to buy something. An October 2026 report put a cold egg coffee or a local beer at about VND 45,000, around 20–30% more than an ordinary cafe nearby. Pay when you order and keep your bag on your lap.
With children
The seats sit within arm’s reach of the train. Families with young children are better off watching from the Phung Hung arches or a crossing barrier than from a cafe stool.
Questions about Hanoi Train Street
Is Hanoi Train Street closed permanently?
No. It has never been formally closed for good, but the main stretch between Tran Phu and Phung Hung has been fenced to tourists since September 2022 and tour companies were told in March 2025 not to bring guests. Access to neighbouring stretches opens and closes with enforcement, so check on the day rather than relying on old reviews.
Can I get fined for going onto Train Street?
The rules target the cafes and tour operators rather than individual visitors, and reports describe guards moving people on rather than fining them. That can change. Never step onto the track, and leave when a guard or cafe owner asks you to; the train cannot stop in time.
What time does the train come on Hanoi Train Street?
There is no official timetable for the street section. Residents point to about 3.15 pm and 9.15 pm as the most dependable times, and 2026 blog lists add mid-morning and evening trains between roughly 7.30 and 10 pm. Ask locally on the day and arrive 20 minutes early.
Where is the nearest Train Street to Silk Path Hotel Hanoi?
The Phung Hung end of the line is about 200 m from the hotel, three to five minutes on foot west along Hang Bong. The fenced Tran Phu stretch begins just south of the Phung Hung arches, and the quieter section off Le Duan Street is about 15 minutes’ walk past Hanoi Railway Station.
Is Train Street worth visiting with kids?
Only from a safe distance. The cafe seats are within a metre of the train, and the scene can get crowded and pushy. Watching a train cross the brick viaduct on Phung Hung, or from behind a level-crossing barrier, gives children the moment without the risk.
Read first: Getting to and around Silk Path · Silk Path rooms, compared
Status, distances and cafe prices checked October 2026. Access to Train Street changes without notice.