Nong Khai to Vientiane, the idiots guide

[dirtydog]

Right so you have got to Nong Khai, the odds are you will either be at the bus station or the train station, if your at the train station you can walk to friendship bridge, just go to the main road, maybe 100meters, turn left over the tracks and walk another 100meters to the real big road, then turn right and walk another couple of hundred meters, if you get a Tuk Tuk then 20baht is a normal price.

If you are at Nong Khai coach station you got a bit further to go and will be ripped off by the lovely tuk tuk drivers, 60baht would be a good and fair price to pay to get to Friendship Bridge but I doubt you will get it from these thieves, if you already have a visa for getting into Laos then you can get the bus from Nong Khai direct to Vientiane for 55baht, more info on that here.

Nong Khai Bus Station.



Pretty dreary but has plenty of restaurants and food places around the bus station, although why the only crisps they sell are Nori seaweed flavour I have no idea, I mean does anybody actually eat them through choice?



If you have just come back from Laos and want to go to Pattaya or Rayong then this is the office you need to go to to buy your ticket, 581baht to Pattaya.



Get your visa to go into Laos here, 35$ for English people.



Cross the bridge on the 10baht bus.



Now time to visit the duty free and buy cheap wines, cheeses and cigarettes.



They charge i think 20baht to go into and out of Laos, could be 10baht, I have to admit I never bothered paying this before, just never noticed it before, assumed it was for Asians only, the Laos immigration don't seem to worried if you don't bother paying it.

Now you got to get to Vientiane, the prices are all listed at the Laos immigration or you can walk to the end of the road and get a cheaper tuk tuk that is passing by.

If you take a tuk tuk from Friendship Bridge they will take you to the Thai embassy in Vientiane and wait for you, a tourist visa costs 1,000baht and non immigrant 2,000baht, passport, application, fees, and photo have to be at the embassy before 12am, you can then pick your passport up with your new visa after 1pm the next working day.

In Nong Khai itself and near Friendship Bridge you will find agents that will do just about everything for you, they charge from 1,800baht depending on nationality, Lao visa prices vary for different nationalities, drive you to he bridge, get you through immigration and take you to where ever you want to go in Vientiane.

[peterpan]

Get your visa to go into Laos here, 35$ for English people.

Only 30 Dollar for Kiwi's, some advantage being the white trash of the Pacific.

I went on a Visa run yesterday, while waiting for my Lao visa the couple next to me ( A Brit and his Thai GF) were in discussion about a Lao Visa for him. He asked me are you waiting for a visa? (bloody obvious I would have thought) when I replied politely, Yes,
He said, I don't need one.
Fair enough I replied.
He then went on to tell me.
I am just coming over here for some Duty free and so don't need a enter Lao.
My curiosity was piqued as they say.
How do you manage that I asked?
Someone ( at a pub I bet) told me you can just leave Thailand, buy up as much Duty free as you want and go back into Thailand without having to enter Lao.

I don't think so I said, you have to do the full tour, into Lao and turn back again. NO he said,you don't need to do all that.
Not willing to argue I left him to it

[CharleyFarley]

The arrogance of the ignorant. If what he says was true don't you think the place would be ckokka blok with duty free runners with white vans.

[spiff]

You can cross the border and come back without a visa, this is true. But you are still subject to customs regulation, i.e. standard quantities of duty free.

[Rigger]

Originally Posted by spiff

You can cross the border and come back without a visa, this is true. But you are still subject to customs regulation, i.e. standard quantities of duty free.

Yes but if you use the visa service with car supplied they drive you across and back and you can fill the whole car up no one cares

[peterpan]

Originally Posted by spiff

You can cross the border and come back without a visa, this is true. But you are still subject to customs regulation, i.e. standard quantities of duty free.

What are you saying spiiffy? you can check out of Thailand, cross into No mans land and then return to Thailand and they will give you a new visa, don't think so. When I do it they always check the for Lao departure stamp.

[Dick Rangerous]

Good question on the duty free front for all the Beerlao fans in Thailand. Seeing as the Thais beverage economy would be F**ked if such a great beer was ever sold in Thailand (aside from the opportunistic expat bars) I wonder how much you can take back with you back across the border?

Another thing I noticed in Laos is that it ain't really Marlboro country.. the ciggies were really poor copies over there and I ended up on the blues for a while cos the MLights were little better than cowdung.

[sunderlandstephen]

Originally Posted by Dick Rangerous

Good question on the duty free front for all the Beerlao fans in Thailand. Seeing as the Thais beverage economy would be F**ked if such a great beer was ever sold in Thailand (aside from the opportunistic expat bars) I wonder how much you can take back with you back across the border?

Another thing I noticed in Laos is that it ain't really Marlboro country.. the ciggies were really poor copies over there and I ended up on the blues for a while cos the MLights were little better than cowdung.

Have experienced Laos Malboro bought 200 gave them to a night porter in Chaing Mai,only smoked 3,truley carsanagenic

[Texpat]

The duty free stores are beyond the immigration check point.

You are in Laos if you go into the store.

[nanthicha]

Sooooooooooooooooooo useful thanks see my earlier request for advice in Sakhon Nakhon on 29/10 wanting to take old mum and dad to Laos, never been out of village

[onuk]

How about the new Train from Nong kai to Vientiane??
Did anyone used this Train already?
what time they leave Nong Kai?

[racefan]

I used one of the many agencies in Nong Khai in February when I had to get a Non B Visa for my work permit. Primarily because I had never had to do a visa run before having previously had a retirement extension.
They charged 2000 baht including 1 night in a very pleasant hotel close to the centre of Vientianne.
The advantages were such that I would always use them again even though you can do it cheaper independently.
Firstly, their driver is well known to the immigration officers on both sides and apart from getting the Lao entry visa we didn't have to leave the minibus when leaving and re entering Thailand. The driver just took all passports for stamping in and out of Thailand.
The big advantage was that had I wanted to bring in loads of duty free, which I would have had I known this, there was no hint of the minibus being checked and we were waved through when the passports were stamped.
Also I noticed a que of about 100 "do it yourself" people waiting in line in full sun at Thai immigration coming back in as we were being waved through. that alone was worth the extra money for my part.

[Rigger]

Originally Posted by racefan

Firstly, their driver is well known to the immigration officers on both sides and apart from getting the Lao entry visa we didn't have to leave the minibus when leaving and re entering Thailand. The driver just took all passports for stamping in and out of Thailand. The big advantage was that had I wanted to bring in loads of duty free, which I would have had I known this, there was no hint of the minibus being checked and we were waved through when the passports were stamped

I use the same type of service but just go over and straight back. Done it many times and never once did they search the car. But they will now that we told everyone on the net

[Marmite the Dog]

Originally Posted by Dick Rangerous

Good question on the duty free front for all the Beerlao fans in Thailand. Seeing as the Thais beverage economy would be F**ked if such a great beer was ever sold in Thailand (aside from the opportunistic expat bars) I wonder how much you can take back with you back across the border?

It's actually the Laoatians who are holding back on that one as their don't want their market ruined by lots of Thai beer. Most Thais wouldn't know a good beer if they drowned in it, so ....

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by onuk

Did anyone used this Train already?

It's still being tested and not open to the public yet.

[lounger]

I am amazed at how many people manage to impart so little information.

Here are a few questions from someone who doesn't know what you are all talking about.

Is the Laos visa for UK nat $35 or Baht 1,000 or either~?

Does a UK passport with retirement extension for Thailand have to pay the same?

THis character ( me) doesnt need to go on a visa run. Therefore it would be a booze run. So the Thai immigration arent interested in whether I got a Laos stamp. Right?

If I'm shopping in No mans land surely I dont need a Laos visa. Right?

Is the booze cheap in no mans land?

How much drink can you legally bring into Thailand from Laos?

Can you take your own car easily. (It sounds like this would be a bad idea if doing a booze run as has been pointed out the guide vans get through immigration without any checks)

Finally I have seen at Thai border posts a window for people only going to no mans land. What is that all about?

I reckon if I had the answers to all these qestions I would find that all the options alternatives in previous posts would seem to be true... including the one about not needing a visa..






If the

[dirtydog]

Originally Posted by lounger

Does a UK passport with retirement extension for Thailand have to pay the same?

Why would that make any difference to the Laos immigration, or Russian immigration or Spanish immigration?

Originally Posted by lounger

If I'm shopping in No mans land surely I dont need a Laos visa. Right?

No mans land is just a big long bridge that they don't let you walk on, duty free is after you enter Laos.

Originally Posted by lounger

Thai border posts a window for people only going to no mans land. What is that all about?

It is just another immigration booth that farangs think only Asians are allowed to use, anybody can use it though.

Originally Posted by lounger

I am amazed at how many people manage to impart so little information.

I am amazed at some of the dumb questions asked by some people.

[Sparky]

^ Lounger Did you go to school with Tony Blair ???

[Mr Pot]

How much from BKK > Nong Khai return via train or bus? Can I come in on a free tourist 30 day entry stamp?

thanks in advance

[dirtydog]

Train time tables and prices here.