Best option for SETV?

[sbaker8688]

Currently living in Bangkok.  My visa is about to run out in a couple of days, and it snuck up on me so I have little time to get this figured out.  I've never done a visa anywhere but my home country (used to get multiples, can't anymore), so this is my first time attempting it over here.

 

From Bangkok, what would be the quickest, easiest, most convenient option for getting a SETV?  I absolutely hate flying (don't trust airlines over here), but give me flight options, and if possible, overland options using something like a nice train if that option exists (hate buses).

 

I appreciate it.

Thanks.

Edited October 19, 2017 by sbaker8688

[tubby johnson]

You will hate the trains too.

 

Hate planes, hate buses ...  Good grief, in that case your only options are to take a train to Penang or Vientiane.

 

Have you done the 30-day extension at Immigration yet? In that case, take a  bus  taxi to Chaengwatana.

[ubonjoe]

From Bangkok you can take a train to Nong Khai then cross the bridge to Vientiane Laos to apply for a single entry tourist visa.

The best is an overnight sleeper in a lower berth.

You can check the train schedules and buy the tickets online here (select Northeastern) https://www.thairailwayticket.com/eTSRT/Default.aspx

[JackThompson]

Be aware that the Train may arrive late, so you may need to spend another night in Vientiane.  To mitigate this, be sure to arrive with an extra "Thai-Consulate Open" day ahead, so you won't get stuck over a weekend. 

 

They quit serving beer on the train in 2014, so it's not as much fun/sociable as it used to be - but at least you can lay down fully in a proper bunk.

 

I find the 3-seat-across VIP buses overnight from MorChit to Nong Khai (border to Vientiane, Laos) to be tolerable.  I sleep through almost the entire trip.  The "government bus" is the cleanest, but Chan Tour is cheap, and has 220V outlets at every seat to keep gadgets charged.  Choose one of the seats by-itself if traveling single.

 

 

Edited October 19, 2017 by JackThompson

[sbaker8688]

Ostensibly, the Vientiane option sounds perfect.  But I'll need a lot more details, such as maps, walkthroughs (where to go, what to do, how to do it), hotel recommendations, etc.

 

Is there a thread on this site which gives details on the 'Vientiane option?'

 

Thanks guys.

[JackThompson]

2 hours ago, sbaker8688 said:

Ostensibly, the Vientiane option sounds perfect.  But I'll need a lot more details, such as maps, walkthroughs (where to go, what to do, how to do it), hotel recommendations, etc.

 

Is there a thread on this site which gives details on the 'Vientiane option?'

 

Thanks guys.

Old, but mostly accurate:

Ignore the part about agents getting your visa for you if you have too many, or picking it up for you the next day - no longer applicable.

Also, when going by train, I always took the little train across the bridge to the Lao side, from Nong Khai station, which is timed to the Thai train's arrival, and went through Lao immigration, there.  VOA is available.  Take USD for significant savings on the VOA.  On the return, I did not use the return train across the bridge, preferring to return to Nong Khai immediately and wait in a comfortable coffee-shop until time for my train/bus back to Bangkok.

If you take the bus, it is the same process - only you will take a bus or tuk-tuk to the bridge from the Nong Khai bus-station.

 

Note that tuk-tuks in Lao are a rip-off, and will try to not give you your change.  Food is around 2x Thai prices for the same portions, also.  Be prepared for this.  Some folks rent bicycles to avoid using tuk-tuks for travel.

Edited October 19, 2017 by JackThompson

[heroKK]

I advice you to use Thai sawadee visa run service to Laos, they are affordable and the package includes accommodation and transportation to the embassy and assistance to obtain the visa.

[sbaker8688]

Once in Nong Khai, how do you ask a taxi or tuk-tuk or whatever to take you to the border crossing?  I doubt they understand the words 'border crossing'?  And once you walk over, is the Thai consulate right there, in walking distance, or do you have to travel to it?  If you need to travel to it, would you just say "Thai consulate" to the taxi driver in Laos?

[sanemax]

7 minutes ago, sbaker8688 said:

Once in Nong Khai, how do you ask a taxi or tuk-tuk or whatever to take you to the border crossing?  I doubt they understand the words 'border crossing'?  And once you walk over, is the Thai consulate right there, in walking distance, or do you have to travel to it?  If you need to travel to it, would you just say "Thai consulate" to the taxi driver in Laos?

Nong Khai is quite small, the border is a walk away from the train station . Once in Laos, Vientiane is 20 K's away, 20 Baht by local bus or 2-300 Baht by taxi .

   If you arrive at NK train station , there are two trains per day to Vientiane , you can get stamped out of Thailand on the train platform and get stamped into Laos on their train platform , conveniently bypassing all the commotion at the road border crossings , although Vientiane train station is quite far from the city center

[sanemax]

You need to go to the Embassy consular section, which is a few K's away from the main  Embassy

This hotel is across the road from the consular section "Douang Pra Seuth Hotel, Vientiane, Laos"

  If you arrive and make the application before 1130  am you can collect the PP the next day at 1 30 PM .

   You need two PP photos, the smaller ones , and you need to write your full Thai address down on the application , visa fee 1000 Baht

    The Laos visa is 1500 Baht, or US$35 , which is about 1150 Baht

[sbaker8688]

1 hour ago, sanemax said:

You need to go to the Embassy consular section, which is a few K's away from the main  Embassy

This hotel is across the road from the consular section "Douang Pra Seuth Hotel, Vientiane, Laos"

  If you arrive and make the application before 1130  am you can collect the PP the next day at 1 30 PM .

   You need two PP photos, the smaller ones , and you need to write your full Thai address down on the application , visa fee 1000 Baht

    The Laos visa is 1500 Baht, or US$35 , which is about 1150 Baht

Do you recommend this hotel?  Does it have internet?  Does it have a website so I can call and make reservations?

 

Most important:  CAN YOU 'PHONETICIZE' the name of that hotel, so I can speak it correctly to a taxi?

 

Sorry for the bother, but I have to get these things 'right' or you'd be amazed at how unsmoothly and disastrous it can unfold. 

[sanemax]

1 hour ago, sbaker8688 said:

Do you recommend this hotel?  Does it have internet?  Does it have a website so I can call and make reservations?

 

Most important:  CAN YOU 'PHONETICIZE' the name of that hotel, so I can speak it correctly to a taxi?

 

Sorry for the bother, but I have to get these things 'right' or you'd be amazed at how unsmoothly and disastrous it can unfold. 

Can you do a websearch to get that info ?

Download a map with the hotel location and show the driver

 

[sbaker8688]

1 hour ago, sanemax said:

Can you do a websearch to get that info ?

Download a map with the hotel location and show the driver

 

 

I had already done a websearch before you posted this, and found the hotel, but having said that, I still didn't know the information before I made the post, and I figured he (or whoever) would know the information.  I wasn't asking for anyone to do a web search for me, I was simply asking for people to provide information if they happened to already have that information in their brains and were already posting in this topic.

 

I can't download a map with hotel location and show driver anything.  I'm just not set up for that.  So I'd like to know how to verbally communicate with these people, if people have helpful information in that regard.

 

Edited October 20, 2017 by sbaker8688

[sanemax]

1 minute ago, sbaker8688 said:

 

I can't download a map with hotel location and show driver anything.  I'm just not set up for that.  I'd like to know how to communicate with these people, if people have helpful information in that regard.

 

Its quite straightforward, many people doing visa runs do that journey everyday .

When I go there, I just wander around trying to find a place to stay, Vientiane is small enough to walk around . Lots of hotels in the center and the Embassy is about a 40 minute walk

[JackThompson]

5 hours ago, sbaker8688 said:

Once in Nong Khai, how do you ask a taxi or tuk-tuk or whatever to take you to the border crossing?  I doubt they understand the words 'border crossing'?  And once you walk over, is the Thai consulate right there, in walking distance, or do you have to travel to it?  If you need to travel to it, would you just say "Thai consulate" to the taxi driver in Laos?

On the Thai side, you will find that tuk-tuks do know the English words "border" and "border Laos" and "bridge Laos."   They also know "bus station" and "train station."

On the Laos side, the tuk-tuks will definitely understand "Thai Consulate Visa" - which also gets you to that hotel (across the street).  They would probably also recognize your mis-pronunciation of the hotel-name (since their word-sounds do not exist in our alphabet), but 100% sure they know where the "Thai Consulate for Thai Visa" is.

 

If arriving in the afternoon, they may try to warn you "No visa now - tomorrow..." and then try to get you to go to their buddy's hotel (for which they get a commission).  But you can say, "No - Thai Consulate Please."

Edited October 20, 2017 by JackThompson

[sbaker8688]

Great info.  Thanks all.

[sanemax]

49 minutes ago, sbaker8688 said:

Great info.  Thanks all.

The Embassy will be closed on the 26 th (maybe the 23 rd as well ?)

Mondays are usually quite busy and if you go on Friday, you will have to wait until the following Monday to get your PP back

[sbaker8688]

I'll be there on Monday - hope it is open.

 

Anyway, is there a convenient place near the Thai embassy in Laos to print passport photos from a thumb drive, and also copy the passport page?  If so, I'll do it there.  If not, I'll have to spend several hours schlepping around Bangkok trying to find a place.

 

Also, I guess the hotel only accepts Laos money?  I should get some in Thailand before I go?

Edited October 20, 2017 by sbaker8688

[sanemax]

22 minutes ago, sbaker8688 said:

I'll be there on Monday - hope it is open.

 

Anyway, is there a convenient place near the Thai embassy in Laos to print passport photos from a thumb drive, and also copy the passport page?  If so, I'll do it there.  If not, I'll have to spend several hours schlepping around Bangkok trying to find a place.

There is an office within the Embassy that does photos and photocopying, just ask them to make photos from your thumb drive or just get some new photos done.

   In Laos itself, you can spend Baht everywhere, but you get a better exchange rate if you change your Baht into Kip at a bank 

[ubonjoe]

6 hours ago, sbaker8688 said:

I'll be there on Monday - hope it is open.

It is closed on Monday the 23rd for King Chulalongkorn Day.

Embassy calendar does not show that it will be closed on the 26th. http://vientiane.thaiembassy.org/en/embassy/calendar.php

Edit: Just found that a visa run company has updated their site stating the embassy is closed on the 26th.

Edited October 21, 2017 by ubonjoe

[sbaker8688]

Just found out that check-in to that hotel is 2pm.  But I arrive there at what, 5am or 6am?  What am I supposed to do for 8-9 hours?  How do you guys handle this?

[KMartinHandyman]

I would try showing up asking for an early check-in as you have nowhere to be and negotiate a partial payment. It works in reverse when we leave Thailand on a late evening flight and check out is 11am. My wife kindly asks if we could stay until 6pm for a partial fee.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BritTim]

2 hours ago, sbaker8688 said:

Just found out that check-in to that hotel is 2pm.  But I arrive there at what, 5am or 6am?  What am I supposed to do for 8-9 hours?  How do you guys handle this?

Go to the hotel, and see if you can check in early. If the hotel is not full, it is usually no problem (and there is rarely a charge for this). Popular hotels, however, very often are full. In that case, leave your luggage and spend your time pleasantly in sightseeing, eating, reading, and whatever else you enjoy doing.

[JackThompson]

11 hours ago, sbaker8688 said:

Just found out that check-in to that hotel is 2pm.  But I arrive there at what, 5am or 6am?  What am I supposed to do for 8-9 hours?  How do you guys handle this?

If you arrive at the border very early, you still won't get to the hotel until later due to 2x Immigration (Thai and Lao, including getting your Lao-VOA).  I think the earliest I got there was just before 8AM.  BritTim's response has you covered from there - just drop off your bags at the hotel. 

 

If the Embassy is open the day you arrive (not sure, based on discussion, above), then your next stop will be the passport-application process, including getting your pictures, copies, etc.  Then return to the hotel, and likely someone has checked-out early - but if not, it's probably at least 10AM - getting close to time for lunch, anyway.  Wifi should be provided at any restaurant / coffee-shop, which will help kill the time. 

 

One bit I would add, is having a good-sized battery-bank to keep your phone charged.  Also, I usually have some "books on tape" plus other stuff to watch / listen-to, to kill any time on the bus, train, etc.