Borders between China and Vietnam

The China–Vietnam border is the international boundary between China and Vietnam, consisting of a 1,297 km (806 mi) terrestrial border stretching from the tripoint with Laos in the west to the Gulf of Tonkin coast in the east, and a maritime border in the Gulf of Tonkin and South China Sea.

While disputes over the terrestrial border have been settled with the signing of a land boundary treaty between the two countries, the maritime border is currently undefined due to disputes over the ownership of territorial waters and islands, including the Spratly and Paracel Islands.

Description
The terrestrial border begins in the west at the China-Laos-Vietnam tripoint at the Shiceng Dashan peak. It then proceeds overland in a broadly eastwards direction, albeit in a highly irregular zig-zag pattern, predominantly through isolated mountainous areas inhabited by ethnic minorities.In places, rivers are utilised for short sections, such as the Lixian River, Red River, Nanxi, Sông Gâm, Song Chay, and Jin Jiang. In the east, the border reaches the mouth of the Beilun/Ka Long River near the Chinese city of Dongxing and the Vietnamese city of Móng Cái, following the river through a marshland out to the Gulf of Tonkin.

Border crossings and trade points
China and Vietnam signed an agreement on border trade in 1991. In 1992, 21 border trade points (cross border markets and goods import/export but limited through access for people) were opened, of which four also served as border crossings. Vietnamese living in the border region may enter China using a one-day border pass that reduces wait at Chinese customs.

The border points between China and Vietnam
1.Dongxing Port/东兴口岸
Dongxing (东兴;/東興) is a county-level city within Fangchenggang, Guangxi, People’s Republic of China, on the border with Móng Cái, in Vietnam. The city spans an area of 549 square kilometers, and has a population of approximately 130,000 as of 2011. Dongxing is located in the very south of Guangxi, on the northwest shores of the Gulf of Tonkin. The Beilun River marks the southwest border of Dongxing, with Vietnam on the other side of the river. The terrain is largely hilly.

2.Pingxiang Port/凭祥口岸
Pingxiang (凭祥市) is a county-level city under the administration of the prefecture-level city of Chongzuo, in the southwest of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, China.Situation The city covers an area of 650 km2 (250 sq mi). It is bordered in the north by Longzhou County and in the east by Ningming County, both in Chongzuo, and in the south and west by Vietnam’s Lạng Sơn Province. National Route 322 comes through the city centre, as does the railway which continues on to Hanoi; a high-speed expressway, now also international, passes nearby.

Zhennan Pass, site of the Battle of Bang Bo during the Sino-French War, is now named the “Friendship Pass” and is considered the gateway to Vietnam. There are also plans to build a high-speed railway from Nanning to the Vietnamese border.

3.Youyi Port/友谊关口岸
Friendship Pass (traditional Chinese: 友誼關; simplified Chinese: 友谊关; Vietnamese: Hữu Nghị Quan), also commonly known by its older name Ải Nam Quan (traditional Chinese: 隘南關; simplified Chinese: 隘南关), is a pass near the China-Vietnam border, between China’s Guangxi and Vietnam’s Lạng Sơn Province. The pass itself lies just inside the Chinese side of the border. Vietnamese National Route 1 starts at the border near this pass, which lies less than 5 km north of the town of Đồng Đăng in Lạng Sơn Province, ending in Năm Căn in Cà Mau Province. China National Highway 322 runs from here to Guangxi Province and Hunan Province. This is one of the busiest border trading points of Vietnam.

4.Tianbao Border/天保口岸
Tianbao Port is located in Malipo County(麻栗坡县), Wenshan, Yunnan.
The port is an important platform linking China-ASEAN Free Trade Area. The port administration said China-Vietnam border trade and tourism have gained momentum thanks to the Belt and Road Initiative and Tianbao’s privileged location. Nearly 100,000 vehicles were also cleared, and 1,236 tourist groups received at the port as well, the border checkpoint said.

5.Longbang Port/龙邦口岸
Longbang Port in Baise, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region recently gained approval from the State Council to further open up and become an international port, officials from the Baise bureau of commerce said on May 12. Longbang Port, one of the three major ports in Guangxi, is the most convenient land passage connecting Southwest China, Vietnam and ASEAN, and is also an important hub along the New International Land-Sea Trade Corridor.

It is opposite to Tra Linh in Vietnam’s Cao Bang Province and was upgraded into a national first-level port in January 2013. Construction on Longbang Port has achieved remarkable success, as its five-hectare border trade area is now China’s largest among all land border trade areas with the most completed facilities.

This post is for overlanders who want to drive to china or ride to china from vietnam by car/motorcycle or China-Vietnam Tour.
Ports between China and Vietnam
The land boundary line between China and Vietnam is 1347 kilometers long. There are many opposite opening ports and channels, including seven pairs of ports of national-level land border (four of which are in Guangxi: Dongxing, Pingxiang, Youyiguan, Shuikou, and three of which are in Yunnan: Hekou, Tianbao and Jinshui River).
Dongxing Port,
the largest port on the Sino-Vietnamese border, corresponds to MongCai Port in Vietnam.

Dongxing Port is located at the junction of Beilun River and Kolong River in Vietnam. It is only 100 meters away from MongCai Port in Vietnam. It is the only national port in China connecting to Vietnam’s land and sea. There are nearly 1 million tons of import and export goods every year, and the number of people entering and leaving the country reaches more than 3 million per year. It ranks first among similar ports in Guangxi and third among land ports in China.

Hekou Port
corresponding to Vietnam’s LaoCai Port

LaoCai border gate is one of the most important frontier gates in tourism and economic activities between Vietnam and China. It is located in the center of LaoCai City in LaoCai Province, adjacent to Henan Province of China, and in Yao Autonomous County in the south of Yunnan Province. The Ho Kieu bridge connects the LaoCai border gate with the estuary border gate. Travelers often go through this border gate rather than the Muong Khuong border gate, because after passing though the gate, you will arrive at the beautiful Hekou town.

The nearest border crossings to Sapa and Kunming, Australians and some Europeans can pay $45 for a one-month Chinese visa inside LaoCai/Hekou border, Vietnam(which takes an hour to process). But the British, Americans and others have to get visas in Hanoi. Please check with the Chinese Embassy before arriving at the border.

Visa
You must get a Chinese visa before you travel! To obtain a Chinese visa, you must register at the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in Hanoi (Address: 46 Dien Banu Street, Bating District, Hanoi City) or at the Chinese Consulate in Ho Chi Minh City（Address: 175 Haibatrang Street, District 6, District 3, Ho Chi Minh City).

You must prepare these documents:
Effective Vietnamese visa
Passport validity exceeds six months
A photo 23 and a photo of 46
Completed application form
Visa invitations and hotel lists provided by travel agencies
Sometimes, officials may ask you to add more documents according to your own conditions, just provide what they require. You need to pay a certain amount of visa fee (about $30 to $45).

Other Considerations
China uses RMB or RMB is Chinese currency, so I suggest that you exchange currency in Hanoi before you travel. You can easily exchange at any jewelry store on Hang Bong Ward’s Ha Trung Street, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi City. The exchange rate is about $1 = 6.3 RMB or 1 RMB = 3,570 Vietnamese dong.

It doesn’t matter if you forget to exchange money, because there are several ATMs in Hekou.However, not all ATMs accept foreign cards.Please look for the ATM of Bank of China to exchange. Actually there are English instructions on the ATM has English instructions, so it’s easy to draw money.

Opening Time of Vietnam and China Border
China is an hour ahead of Vietnam. Vietnamese Immigration Bureau opens at 7 a.m. (8 a.m. Chinese time). Then you need to cross a bridge to enter the China Immigration Bureau. The opening time for the China Immigration Bureau opens from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. (China time), that is, from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Vietnam time.