Watch out for scam bus services from Hanoi to Sa Pa

If you are invited to book a seat on a bus traveling from Hanoi to the famous tourist town of Sa Pa, do not hesitate to say no, as there is no such service.

Local transportation firms are running attractive ads for bus routes bringing tourists from the Vietnamese capital to the town, located in the northern mountainous province of Lao Cai.

But Tran Dang Hai, head of the inspectorate of the Hanoi Department of Transport, asserted that the capital has yet to launch any bus service to Lao Cai.

“It’s not easy to open a new route, as you have to consider a number of issues such as the travel path and time and parking places,” he told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper.

Most of the buses in Hanoi are operating on short routes and within the city, according to the official.

“We will verify and strictly sanction those companies that disguise themselves as bus operators to cheat passengers,” he promised.

Transport firms have taken advantage of a new expressway linking Hanoi and Lao Cai, which was opened to traffic in September 2014, to offer the scam Sa Pa bus services, which are in fact crying wine and selling vinegar.

Vehicles run on the Hanoi – Lao Cai expressway. Photo: Tuoi Tre

IoneTour, a Hanoi-based tour organizer, said in an announcement on its website on July 10 that the company was offering bus services to Sa Pa at VND250,000 (US$11.48) a passenger.

The bus departs from Hanoi at 9:00 am and 4:00 pm from Sa Pa and takes five and a half hours, according to the announcement.

The trip is insured and includes free Wi-Fi access, a bottle of water, plus “an English-speaking tour guide,” the post says.

The departure point in Hanoi is at 72 Tran Nhat Duat Street, and the VND250,000 per passenger fee is “the biggest price cut ever released,” a female employee asserted when contacted by Tuoi Tre.

A Tuoi Tre correspondent booked a trip to Sa Pa with IoneTour on July 20, and found that the journey was not like the one advertised on the website.

The bus, operated by Good Morning Co., dropped passengers off in Bao Thang District, some 70km from Sa Pa, even though they had paid VND250,000 for the full service.

The manager of the bus operator said passengers “had received information about the trip from a different company, which sold seats without notifying Good Morning Co.”

A foreign tourist and H"Mong vendors are seen in Sa Pa. Photo: Tuoi Tre

Many long-haul coaches and for-hire cars are also disguised as Hanoi-Sa Pa buses and offer cheap tickets to dupe passengers.

On a website focusing on promoting tourism in Sa Pa, there is a list of nine bus operators claiming to offer services to the tourist town at VND250,000 per passenger, and one at VND350,000 ($16) a ticket.

But none of these are licensed to operate buses.

Another Sa Pa tourism website, meanwhile, offers services on the Hanoi – Lao Cai – Sa Pa route at only VND150,000 ($6.89) per passenger.

When contacted by phone, a representative of the service refused to answer questions regarding the pick-up locations and license plates of the buses.

“You don’t have to ask so much about these things,” the man said.

“Just come to My Dinh Bus Station and call me, someone will come and pick you up.”

But drivers of the licensed long-haul coaches between Hanoi and Lao Cai said these are brokers of scam services.

“A ticket to Sa Pa that costs only VND150,000 is a hoax,” they said.

The 245km Hanoi – Lao Cai expressway, the longest of its kind in Vietnam, runs from Hanoi’s Noi Bai District through the provinces of Vinh Phuc, Phu Tho and Yen Bai before reaching Lao Cai.

Map of the Hanoi – Lao Cai expressway. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The expressway helps shorten the time to travel from Hanoi to Lao Cai from seven hours to 3.5 hours.

Tourists can also take trains from the capital city to Lao Cao, which takes much longer, around nine hours per journey.

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Watch out for scam bus services from Hanoi to Sa Pa

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