One of Hanoi’s most popular tourism destinations, the ‘train street’ where an operating rail line runs between buildings on a narrow street, may soon be off-limits to tourists.
In a series of moves starting last fall, officials have ordered cafes along the street to close, cutting off a source of income from tourists who sip their tea and coffee inches from passing trains.
Now, travel agencies and tour operators have been told not to organize tours to visit the street because of complaints that traffic and train traffic is being held up by groups of tourists congregating at a street crossing. In the past, there have also been complaints about visitors taking selfies lying on the tracks.
The decisions are not popular with residents and businesses along the street, some of whom complain that there was no attempt to work out other solutions. They say that they have relied on the income from visits to maintain their homes and care for elderly relatives.
