Vientiane Travel Forum

From Bkk, we'll be flying to UT arriving at 530pm. we are Vientianne-bound and that means we gotta spend the night in UT and gonna take the bus to Vientianne early the next morning. btw, me and my wife are travelling with our 9 and 4-yr-old daughters.


- Are there buses that directly service UT to Vientianne? If none, what is the best option?
- Please give details of bus schedules.
- How long will it take the trip inclusive of the clearing time at the border immigration?
- How much is the legal fee they charge when crossing the border? If any.
- Will it be enough for a whole day to cover basic spots in Vientianne? Or a city tour package (offered by agents) would be the best bet.
- Do they accept Baht in Vientianne shops and hotels at a good rate? we are planning to have baht handy instead of the local currency.
- How's the weather in Vientianne in the month of May?

any additional helpful tips would be very much appreciated.

I can't answer most of your questions since my time in Laos was spent rushing through it from Thailand to Vietnam. I can, however, make a suggestion about the currency. There will be money changers everywhere who will exchange Thai Baht or US$ into Lao Kip for you. I forget if the rate was good or bad, but honestly it doesn't matter since everything is so darn cheap in Laos. For example, I think I worked out that the price for a frshly baked French stick loaf of bread worked out to less than one US penny. I believe we paid US $6 each for two 12-hour bus rides, a night at a hotel in Savannakhet, and food for 28 hours.

Important: don't change too much currency into Kip, or if you do, make sure you change it back to Baht before you leave the country, no matter how bad the rates may be. There will be money-changers clamouring everywhere. We didn't like their pushy tactics, so didn't change it. We should have, as no back or changer outside of Laos will exchange Kip. We tried in Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Canada - money changers or banks. We may still have some Kip laying around used as packing materials in boxes.

hi,
I posted somewhat of a similar query recently. You should check the Udan Thani forum, and also the Vientiane forum. Having been to VTE twice, I do know that April is absolutely the hottest month, and can't imagine that May is that far behind. You should check out the climate section in the LP, but I would imagine that, sorry, it's not the optimal time of year.

I'm fairly certain you can use baht for shopping in VTE, am not certain about hotels. I really don't think you need a tour. VTE is small and easy enough to do yourself.

But, really, the forums I mentioned above should answer, at least, you transport questions!

thank you, ellen. will check the thread you mentioned. that would be a pity if it's hot in may. but got no choice, the school break for the kids is on april/may. we got used to it anyway since we got the same weather back home.

my thanks also to SurTra! the currency tip will surely help.

hello kabayan!

il be going to vientiane soon. I'll try to answer your queries as soon na makabalik ako manila by feb.

i'll be looking forward for your tips, carlo.
that would be a big favor for us.

been to the border town of Nong Khai once but was not able to cross to Vientiannne. but that was way way back 12 years ago.

salamat, kabayan!

I crossed from Nong Khai to Vientiane in '98. Details in the travelogues on my Asia page.

a) yes, there are buses from UT to Vientiane. Just tell the taxi or tuk-tuk driver to drop you at the bus station going to Vientiane. The bus station is near the Robinson mall. It will cost you 80 baht per person.

b) you may take the earliest at 8am. There are several buses in the morning and few during the afternoon. From Vientiane to UT the bus schedule is at 2:30pm, 4:30 and another after that. It will also cost you 80 baht or 2,200 kip

c) the whole trip will only take less than 2 hrs... I timed it and it took us 1 hr 50 mins. The traffic is very light and the condition of the road is very good. It will only depend on the number of people lining up at the immigration station.

d) there is a border crossing fee. If i recall it correctly it is just 10 baht per person.

e) Vientiane is a compact city and yes you can cover the basic spots in several hours. Every tourist spot is just a few minutes away from each other by tuk-tuk. 5 rs is very sufficient including lunch and some shopping.

f) baht and US$ are widely accepted in vientiane. No problem if you dont want to change your baht to Lao kip. But I suggest to change some of your $ into kip to avoid confusion in converting everything into baht. If you run out of kip there is no problem as long as you have baht or US$

g)You may rent a tuk-tuk/tricycle in Vientiane to show you around the city at about 100 baht per hour. It can be cheaper but it will depend on your bargaining skills.

I hope you enjoy your trip. People there are very nice to tourists so dont worry.

hey carlo,

as if i got a reconnaisance mission for you. lol! this is awesome and makes me feel assured of a worry-free tour to vientianne. very detailed.

salamat ng marami, kabayan. hope to meet you in the near future!

my big T

my big T

my BIG THANK YOU to everybody for the BIG BIG help here.

the tips and suggestions made our vientianne trip easier.