International Railroad Discussion > Train Time at Nha Trang, Vietnam

The following morning we were back at the train station in Nha Trang for the fourth and final leg of our journey from Hanoi to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City). This was about an eight-hour journey. And this time we did have access to the platform prior to train arrival.

1. The train schedule at Nha Trang. We would board train SE7 which arrived at 9:43 AM and departed at 9:55 AM. It was quite common in the former South Vietnam to still use the name Saigon instead of Ho Chi Minh City.

2. Some passenger cars had been refurbished, in fact, we met one train that was nearly all refurbished cars. Note that this car is lettered 'SRT' for Saigon Railway Transport while I had previously seen cars marked Haraco for Hanoi Railway Transport. I was never so lucky to ride a refurbished car or even have one in my train. Our first-class chair car on this last leg was the oldest (a bit ratty) of all.

3. I was happy to see this mail car in its unique paint scheme at the rear of my train. This was the one time that I was warned not to go farther down the platform. At the far right are one and a half a car inspectors with their hammers.

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Note: No dog was harmed in the making of this video. Stray dogs were a common feature around Vietnam. They tended to be on the skinny side and not interact with people.

At the start of the video, note the rare brown boxcar with yellow stripes, I had forgotten about that variant. The train is led by a typical D19E-class locomotive with a fourteen-car train. I also did not remember that there is a pleasant amount of diesel noise. Several of the coaches are labeled for Saigon Railway Transport Joint Stock Company and not Vietnam Railways, even the logos say SRT and not VNR. All but one of the cars were lettered 'SRT.' At the end of the video note the crowd on the platform, the number of uniformed railway employees, and the car inspector (car knocker).

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Nice coverage of your Vietman trip.  When did you take these images-?

February 13-21, 2025.

Nice train. How is inside? Confortable and clean?

Pedro Rezende
Vespasiano MG,
https://youtube.com/c/minasgeraisrailways1

I would say reasonably clean but old and worn and realize that I never saw the second class cars. The seats were good enough that I survived one eight-hour trip and one 11-hour. The window shades (drapes) on the last car we rode were ratty. One guy's chair would not remain vertical (kept reclining) until they tied it up in such a way to lock it in the upright position. The bathrooms, when in service, were very primitive and pretty nasty but that was part of the adventure. Like I said previously, I really would have liked to experience a refurbished car because they looked good from the outside.

What would you say was the average speed when out on the main? Fastest speed? Are the airways developed enough that many citizens can fly back and forth btw major cities and China?

Victor Baird

Very nice, love the video.

wabash2800 Wrote:
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> What would you say was the average speed when out
> on the main? Fastest speed? Are the airways
> developed enough that many citizens can fly back
> and forth btw major cities and China?
>
> Victor Baird

I think the typical speed was probably around 40 mph. I think they may have said at one point that the maximum was 60 mph but I would not swear to that. The freight cars were often labeled with a maximum speed of 60 kph which is only 37.5 mph. If you do the math, the scheduled time from Hanoi to Saigon is 34-36 hours for a distance of 1030 miles, so the average speed (with stops) is roughly 30 mph. Track conditions were excellent, mostly welded rail with some segments of sectional rail with aligned joints which you can get away with if everything is well-maintained.

There is certainly well-developed air service in the region from the major cities of Hanoi and Saigon and likely to and from the next tier of larger cities both within Vietnam and to places like China and Cambodia. Not sure that the average Vietnamese is wealthy enough to be flying around the country (which is very long north to south). I flew into Hanoi from Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific. All of the Brits on the tour came direct from Heathrow into Hanoi on Vietnam Air. I think part of the reason that the trains are well-patronized is that it is an economical way to travel and more comfortable than long trips on a bus although the Internet says 26 hours by car.

Thanks for sharing.

Victor Baird

Hello NMlurker,
the schedule your picture shows for Nha Trang seems a little funny. I am currently in Vietnam and will stay there for the time being. The schedule for Hanoi advertises six trains going all the way to Saigon, stopping in Nha Trang. Unfortunately I cannot upload the appropriate picture which shows the full(?) schedule from the mobile device. And the computer is about 11 hours away by plane. Maybe I can do so some time in August or a little later.
Cheers
kbs651

Posted from iPhone