Vietnam forum

There are several classes of travel - how comfortable do you want it to be? Most travelers opt for the private carriage service which must be booked through private agencies. You can save by using less expensive soft sleeper or hard seat - book through either an agent or the station. Hanoi station (use the rear Station B for Lao Cai) is somewhat of a zoo with all the guys trying to make a buck off of tourists - they grab your bags, carry them to the train, and then demand payment. Use an agent and you will make out far better. I've used both Livitrans and King Express - comfortable and clean.

Posted from within Vietnam.

From an agent, around $76 return for the private carriages, a bit less for standard sleeper. Prices on this site are relatively up to date for buying at the station, but that's tricky to do.

Posted from within Vietnam.

To do it yourself, in a standard soft sleeper (booked through an agent) and basic but decent hotel, for two people you're looking at $140 + $40 (hotel) + $12 (bus) + $30 (trek) + $6 (transport to station in Hanoi) = $228 for two people plus food and drink. I don't know exactly what price you've been quoted, but given the soft sleeper, booked at the station is about $60 each return (hard sleeper from about $35 to $50), and the agent has to add hotel, transfers and trek onto that, if they're charging less than $80 I'd check the details of the train class and accommodation class carefully.

I'm a fan of self-organised travel but nothing wrong with doing an organized tour if you want to not have to worry about planning anything - plus it's an easy way to meet other travelers.