A reactive-template vapor phase polymerization method for the preparation of bamboo-like polypyrrole (PPy) nanotubes has been successfully demonstrated in this paper. Herein, electrospun V2O5 nanofibers were chosen as templates to deposit PPy, which served as the oxidants as well. This method can provide the fabrication of PPy nanostructures more easily than conventional routes due to its independence of removing template, which is usually a complex and tedious experimental process. The application of bamboo-like PPy nanotubes for Cr(VI) ions removal in aqueous solution has been explored. The resulting bamboo-like PPy nanotubes exhibited much higher adsorption performance than traditional PPy nanoparticles. (C) 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.