Totster Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 I have said I am not sure of the price of Lao Visas on arrival The Laos VOA costs bt1500 or $30 - this price remains fixed. totster Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuban Posted January 21, 2007 Share Posted January 21, 2007 I think it was about two years ago I went over by boat, the fare was 50 Baht (return I think). Laos Visa on arrival was 1,500 Baht... >....you will need a passport size photo and bt1500. I didn't have a photo so the immigration office gave me a stern look and said I had to pay a fine, which was 50 Baht. :-) I only popped over for a few hours, GF was getting her hair done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted January 21, 2007 Author Share Posted January 21, 2007 I think it was about two years ago I went over by boat, the fare was 50 Baht (return I think). Laos Visa on arrival was 1,500 Baht... >....you will need a passport size photo and bt1500. I didn't have a photo so the immigration office gave me a stern look and said I had to pay a fine, which was 50 Baht. :-) I only popped over for a few hours, GF was getting her hair done. Oh the Good Old Days! Visa runs to Penang in 1988 and time for a couple of days on the beach in Samui. Sad isn't it that things must change but that is the only thing that seems to be constant! Change that is. I also remember getting 15% interest on my Thai baht saving account in Bangkok back then. Make a bad banker cry it would. Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sriracha john Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 I have said I am not sure of the price of Lao Visas on arrival The Laos VOA costs bt1500 or $30 - this price remains fixed. totster Fixed only in the sense that it's the same amount no matter where you apply. The amount, however, is dependent upon the country that the passport holder is from. It can range from a low of $8 for Malaysians to a high of $42 for Canadians.. http://www.bkklaoembassy.com/consular%20service/visafee.htm ========= sorry, Canadians... guess you guys have been deemed to be the richest people in the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PREM-R Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 Visa on Arrival for Laos is now 35USD or 1700 Baht for British and American visitors, therefore take US Dollars as 35 Dollars is just 1,231 baht. Use the savings to buy the wonderful Lao beer at 25 baht per large bottle! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulmw Posted January 22, 2007 Share Posted January 22, 2007 I have said I am not sure of the price of Lao Visas on arrival The Laos VOA costs bt1500 or $30 - this price remains fixed. totster Fixed only in the sense that it's the same amount no matter where you apply. The amount, however, is dependent upon the country that the passport holder is from. It can range from a low of $8 for Malaysians to a high of $42 for Canadians.. http://www.bkklaoembassy.com/consular%20service/visafee.htm ========= sorry, Canadians... guess you guys have been deemed to be the richest people in the world. On one of the last ferrys Mukdahan to Savanaket who got charged Brits 1700 Canook 1700 French 1500 German 1500. Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted January 22, 2007 Author Share Posted January 22, 2007 Visa on Arrival for Laos is now 35USD or 1700 Baht for British and American visitors, therefore take US Dollars as 35 Dollars is just 1,231 baht. Use the savings to buy the wonderful Lao beer at 25 baht per large bottle! Thanks for the suggestion! I do wish someone would give us the benefit of their experience and let us all know if the Lao Immigration will accept the USD 35 instead of the 1700 baht. My experience on multiple occasions with the Lao and Khmer border is that they want Thai baht because they can make more on the side from taking it than the exact amount of USD! As we all know the Baht is extremely strong at the moment;) On multiple occassions when I have been applying for my Khmer visa at Poi Phet Consulate after you exit Thai immigration and seen a number of backpackers sitting there waiting for more than one hour to get there Khmer visa. The Khmers officers have openly said in Thai to me they don't like accepting USD because (perish the thought) it all goes to the government! I have this funny feeling the Lao are also going to do this. I mean why refuse the extra 500 baht when you can put it in you pocket and make the stupid farang wait an hour or so if he won't cough up the full 1700 baht. I mean as a bad banker I most certainly would! Not what you want if you are in rush to get to the Savannkhet Thai Consulate before the witching hour. From reports that I have had come back from Savannakhet, it seems the best days to go and apply are Wednesday or Thursday, as these day there seems to be only 100 people applying for visas. Monday and Tuesday are hel_l with nearly 300 appying and of course Friday will get you a visa on the following Monday so you get to spend the weekend in lovely Laos drinking Lovely and Wonderful Lao Beer at 25 baht per LARGE bottle. Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PREM-R Posted January 23, 2007 Share Posted January 23, 2007 I can confirm that the Lao immigration at the Bridge Nong Khai/Vientiane accept US dollars, I have been over there many times in the last 4 years and they have always accepted US Dollars without question and I have never had to wait more than 10-15 minutes to collect my visa, even when it has been very busy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted January 23, 2007 Author Share Posted January 23, 2007 I can confirm that the Lao immigration at the Bridge Nong Khai/Vientiane accept US dollars, I have been over there many times in the last 4 years and they have always accepted US Dollars without question and I have never had to wait more than 10-15 minutes to collect my visa, even when it has been very busy. Thanks for the confirmation on the price of a Lao Visa at the Vientiane bridge. Please read quote from URL below "I have payed $50 on the border - more expensive than from the travel agents in Bangkok" "See http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...ic=100877" Unfortunately the new Savannakhet bridge and the Lao Immigration Officers there are still settling in and the new immigration officers are trying new things on people every day. The bridge only opened on the 8th of January for vehicular traffic. Traffic at the Savannakhet Thai Consulate has been a maximum of 50 per day till about 4-6 weeks ago. Now it is bordering on 200+ and my contacts are saying that Lao Immigration Officers are looking at ways of maximising their new found revenue stream. When I crossed on the 15th of Jaunary 2007 everyone was asked for 20 baht. Many people refused to pay and this wasn't a problem. Actually I don't have a real problem with 20 baht to help some poor Lao Immigration Officer. The only trouble is that yesterday Lao Immigration Officers were charging 40 baht per person and were very unhappy if you did not pay for this. One Thai person refused to pay, unless he got a receipt and this caused a serious scene and delays for all people on that buses' international passenger manifest. As the province of Savannakhet is much larger than Vientiane and so far from there, we still don't know if they will accept USD as it seems they ARE greedy! If anyone has a confirmation that the Lao Bridge at Savannakhet accepts USD please tell us all, as it will save 500 baht, better spent on Lao Beer at 25 baht per BIG Bottle. This is 20 bottles not something to be needlessly thrown away! Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cali4995 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 I can confirm that the Lao immigration at the Bridge Nong Khai/Vientiane accept US dollars, I have been over there many times in the last 4 years and they have always accepted US Dollars without question and I have never had to wait more than 10-15 minutes to collect my visa, even when it has been very busy. Thanks for the confirmation on the price of a Lao Visa at the Vientiane bridge. Please read quote from URL below "I have payed $50 on the border - more expensive than from the travel agents in Bangkok" "See http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?sh...ic=100877" Unfortunately the new Savannakhet bridge and the Lao Immigration Officers there are still settling in and the new immigration officers are trying new things on people every day. The bridge only opened on the 8th of January for vehicular traffic. Traffic at the Savannakhet Thai Consulate has been a maximum of 50 per day till about 4-6 weeks ago. Now it is bordering on 200+ and my contacts are saying that Lao Immigration Officers are looking at ways of maximising their new found revenue stream. When I crossed on the 15th of Jaunary 2007 everyone was asked for 20 baht. Many people refused to pay and this wasn't a problem. Actually I don't have a real problem with 20 baht to help some poor Lao Immigration Officer. The only trouble is that yesterday Lao Immigration Officers were charging 40 baht per person and were very unhappy if you did not pay for this. One Thai person refused to pay, unless he got a receipt and this caused a serious scene and delays for all people on that buses' international passenger manifest. As the province of Savannakhet is much larger than Vientiane and so far from there, we still don't know if they will accept USD as it seems they ARE greedy! If anyone has a confirmation that the Lao Bridge at Savannakhet accepts USD please tell us all, as it will save 500 baht, better spent on Lao Beer at 25 baht per BIG Bottle. This is 20 bottles not something to be needlessly thrown away! Badbanker just returned from savannakhet, i was at the thai consulate on monday, january 22nd. i went as an independent and paid 1500 baht for my on arrival visa however i did notice the thai guide for one of the groups had a wad of american bills, presumably for the reason you mentioned, that you can save 10$ this way. i guess mondays are heavy traffic it was very chaotic at the consulate. myself and a fellow behind me were literally the last two applications accepted before 12:00. to their credit the consular staff are doing an admirable job, they are working out of a 2 x 3 meter room at the back of the building,one large office desk and four staff members sitting around it stamping and writing with a big pile of passports and applications between them. there are apparently a few group tours now, you move a herd of 60-70 people and it does create a logjam. badbanker was kind enough to provide us all with a guide so i will offer one more useful piece of information. i took the v.i.p. bus from pattaya to mukdahan, somewhere around 1am near roi-et, we stopped at a military checkpoint, soldiers got on and as i was the only falang on the bus asked to see my passport, my visa was still good and i don't think this guy even knew what he was looking at but i thought this curious. then, on the way back, not far from mukdahan again, only this time it was police checking passports. i'm not trying to scare anybody, i'm just stating what happened to me, if you were one of those unfortunate few who for whatever reason overstayed 1-2 days you might want to give some thought to your route. i sure would not want to be the sad falang that someone chose to make an example of. be careful and good luck to all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jovi Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 So just to clearify things.. You cannot get a visa to Laos on the same day as you come to the border unless you pay the extra 200 bahts for express visa service? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tijnebijn Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 Oh it's allright CALI49,the police ot the millitary just check mostly for illegals....asians........they just check the farang to see that you are really you.So nobody as to be scared about anything about this,they are not immigration or are able to look at your stamps. I even are sure they do not know something like overstay,or whatsoever.It's just normal practise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 The post above is totally false and could be dangerous. The police can and do check for overstay and when they find take them directly to jail. They do not have to be immigration police to check your ID. Any travel to a border crossing on overstay is very risky. If overstay you depart from the airport. Below is Caps and in RED on front page of Aranyaprathet Immigration web site - it is there for a very good reason. Please note that if you are on the way to the border, police or immigration officers can check your passport, and if you are found to have overstayed your visa they will arrest you and send you to the nearest police station, and then to court. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Couthy Posted January 24, 2007 Share Posted January 24, 2007 The post above is totally false and could be dangerous. The police can and do check for overstay and when they find take them directly to jail. They do not have to be immigration police to check your ID. Any travel to a border crossing on overstay is very risky. If overstay you depart from the airport.Below is Caps and in RED on front page of Aranyaprathet Immigration web site - it is there for a very good reason. Please note that if you are on the way to the border, police or immigration officers can check your passport, and if you are found to have overstayed your visa they will arrest you and send you to the nearest police station, and then to court. lopburi3 - yes, you are correct technically. However in 14 years of going to Laos, sometimes for visas, sometimes because I just want a rest from BKK and I love Lao folks. Every single time on return overnight be it train or bus there will be a checkpoint and passports will be checked. They have never to my knowledge checked a visa - the logic being that you must have one from where you are arriving from. Sure, they check your face re the passport but it has to be said that they are normally looking for Asians. I returned on Monday night after another week in Laos, Savankhet Consulate folks were nice and very polite on the Friday (having entered via Chong Mek,) to Mudkahan then the bus back here to the smoke. Bus is stopped - the plod does not even come near me - that is the Officer's job and that is what he did. The only other non Thai/Lao / Indian/ Bangli on the bus was a US citizen (really nice guy by the way), and after advising him of the state of play and that this is normal he produced his passport and was smiled at. NO VISA CHECK. Photo Check. I would surmise that the problem is leaving Thailand - not arriving and no doubt folks will be shortly having their passports checked in Ubon, Nongkhai, Mudkahan - places near border crossing points as they leave for Laos. It is logical to assume that the days of the multi - multi 30 day stayers who enjoy the delights of Poipet / Aranyaphratet are numbered and will know that proper visas are not the most obtainable things in Phom Phen and, will therefore find Laos the easiest (and friendliest place to go). And it will tighten and tighten and tighten: The wind, I believe is blowing that way. Thanks, Couthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted January 24, 2007 Author Share Posted January 24, 2007 So just to clearify things.. You cannot get a visa to Laos on the same day as you come to the border unless you pay the extra 200 bahts for express visa service? Let me try to clarify it for you! You can get a visa to enter Laos in about 15 mins at the Lao Immigration control on the Savannakhet side of the new bridge. People from ASEAN countries do not need a visa to enter Laos! The cost for non-ASEAN national is around about 1,500 to 1,700 baht! Some would like to only pay the official 35 or so USD which is about 1200 baht and save the roughly 500 baht money for a worthy endeavour drinking Good Lao Beer at 25 baht per Big Bottle. It is now not possible to get a Thai visa of any shape or form (except in a case of genuine emergency or if you are Lao National*) in one day unless you are Lao. The process of getting a Thai Visa at the Savannakhet Thai Consulate involves you applying between 8.30 and 12.00 on day one and collecting the visa on the following day after 2.00pm thereby taking 2 days to complete the application. Please see the attached photo! Hope this gives some further clarity Badbanker *At the embassy on the 15th there was one Dutch guy who had come with his Thai wife and his son to Savannakhet to apply for a visa. In Mukdaharn the child got sick and they got to the Thai embassy and requested a rush visa so he could take his child back to Thailand for treatment. In this genuine emergency his visa was issued in 2 hours! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visarunner Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 Only in extreme urgency this consulate issue Visa within same day. No Express Visa Service or similar exist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jinjok Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 2nd class fan sleeper to hat yai is about b650 taxi to penang b220 and even 2ncl a/c is decent value still. you pay that for a visa to lao. malaysia is orderly and penang is a known quantity when it comes to visas. i applaud the fact that someone on this board did something else though - and on the ground no less!! well written report. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted January 27, 2007 Share Posted January 27, 2007 Thursday, in SavannKhet now and Lao border officer asked baht 40 (not 20?). 8:15 am bus from Mukdahan "fully booked" said the guy from the ticket counter (booked by a travel agent) so no choice than to get the 9:15 am bus and arrived consulate about 10am. Only about 100 applicants this morning so no hassle and officer said we can get visa tomorrow afternoon (2:30pm). All in all no problem. I only told it like it happened to me! 20 baht and 3 officers in a both to get things done quickly. There is going to be a problem in Savannakhet as the office is just not big enough and they are going to want to issue 300 visas per day shortly. I am not sure that the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs is up to arranging a better facility. Actually they have the garden space to make a better facility it is just if they can and willdo it to cope with requirements. The buses are going to be a problem as so many organised tours have pushed in cause they can't use their own vehicles as yet. Maybe the Lao people will get wise and allow the tour groups to take their buses across. Would certainly make things easier for everone in that industry. Badbanker There seems to be a much more likely result: Thai government will stop them issuing the visa's.... Its nice to publishing a new way to do things but I think we can predict it will not last long... Much cheaper to cut down then to spend money to expand especially as the government wants to get rid of illegal workers.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tracer Posted January 27, 2007 Share Posted January 27, 2007 The post above is totally false and could be dangerous. The police can and do check for overstay and when they find take them directly to jail. They do not have to be immigration police to check your ID. Any travel to a border crossing on overstay is very risky. If overstay you depart from the airport.Below is Caps and in RED on front page of Aranyaprathet Immigration web site - it is there for a very good reason. Please note that if you are on the way to the border, police or immigration officers can check your passport, and if you are found to have overstayed your visa they will arrest you and send you to the nearest police station, and then to court. Added, some immigration and police try to get you in their hands lets say 20-50 km before the border as you cannot really argue to much about fines charged.. Overstaying is stupid, you can get kicked out. If it is what you did, pay the fine at local immigration office so you can prepaid get out... Or use airplane. Remember in addition that local small border places may take 30 minutes to fill in paperwork... I asume the whole mess going to Laos is suitable for people in the north etc as I cannot imagine that having to pay a Laos visum and Thai visa and other costs saves any money on going to Kolok or Penang.. Or as happened to me at an unmentioned Embassy some years ago when they stopped issuing tripples to a local friend of mine: Lets asume they are corrupt, ask your friend how much extra. He ended up with a tripple for a 1000 baht extra... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted January 27, 2007 Author Share Posted January 27, 2007 2nd class fan sleeper to hat yai is about b650taxi to penang b220 and even 2ncl a/c is decent value still. you pay that for a visa to lao. malaysia is orderly and penang is a known quantity when it comes to visas. i applaud the fact that someone on this board did something else though - and on the ground no less!! well written report. Last time I tried to get to get a 2nd class sleeper to Penang they said sorry all aircon now. You can get a less than 500 baht aircon bus each way to Mukdaharn and cut the price back, all up to about 3,800 baht. Applying for visa in Savannakhet is orderly and it is a lot easier and a lot closer than Penang. In 12 hours after leaving Bangkok you are applying for your Thai visa. Every hour I travel is more tiring and difficult. Savannakhet is a very well kept secret! Many people have got visas in Savannakhet for a number of years! I am the first one that has taken to time to lay it out clearly and de-mistify the location. It is also nice to have change after doing Penang so many times. Nothing to do in Penang and the same goes for Savannakhet. Except the very GOOD Lao Beer at 25 baht per BIG bottle! Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevc Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 [Non Imm Type "O" 2 passport photos 1 filled out Thai visa application with the photos stuck or stapled to the form 2 photocopies of the front page (your photo page) of your passport signed by you 2,000 Thai baht 1 copy of your marriage certificate accompanied by the original certificate 1 copy of your wife's ID card signed by her and you 1 copy of your wife's House Registration Certificate signed by her and you Do they return your original Marriage Certificate, as the original translation I put in at Penang last time was not returned to me. and it's hard to get another original UK Marraige certificate out here. I Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimTang Posted February 6, 2007 Share Posted February 6, 2007 (edited) I just came back from a Savannakhet visa run. The one thing that really P*ss'd me off was the International Bus. I arrived at the bus terminal shortly after 6:00am, so I had a couple of hours to wait. By the time the ticket booth opened there were only 3 other people waiting in line ahead of me so I thought, great, should be no problem getting to the Thai embassy on time. To my surprise and disappointment each of the 3 people had a stack of passports about 1 foot high. They monopolized the counter and filled the first 2 busses and a good portion of the 3rd. Needless to say I didn't make it to the embassy on time so I ended up staying an additional 3 days because I arrived on a Thursday and ended up having to leave on Monday. The people operating the Bus seem to cater more to travel agency rep's than lone travelers, none of them speak English so you're on your own to figure out the system. Having had to wait an extra 2 hours I had the opportunity to watch the chaos get even worse as time went on. Lone travelers arrived and stood around stunned trying to figure out what was going on. The ticket booth is surrounded with people and they don't seem to go away. Unless you barge into the window and push people out of the way you could be standing there all day. Hopefully the Bus company will come up with a better system but for the time being, being polite or timid will get you no where. Edited February 6, 2007 by TimTang Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted February 6, 2007 Author Share Posted February 6, 2007 [Non Imm Type "O"2 passport photos 1 filled out Thai visa application with the photos stuck or stapled to the form 2 photocopies of the front page (your photo page) of your passport signed by you 2,000 Thai baht 1 copy of your marriage certificate accompanied by the original certificate 1 copy of your wife's ID card signed by her and you 1 copy of your wife's House Registration Certificate signed by her and you Do they return your original Marriage Certificate, as the original translation I put in at Penang last time was not returned to me. and it's hard to get another original UK Marraige certificate out here. I For a non imm O visa it is important that you make copies of your genuine documents and have them signed by your wife, if they pertain to her and by you, if they pertain to you. I think my wife and I both also signed copies of our Thai wedding certificate. If it is not a Thai Wedding certificate you may need to get a thai translation that makes it easier for the Consulate to understand. Your signing of the copied certificate/documents is a sign and a guarantee by you that the document you are presenting is genuine. I understand that once you have signed a document you will be legally held for its autheticity under Thai Law. They will want to see and carefully examine the Original Marriage Certificate/Child's Birth Certificate and compare it with the copy you have signed to make sure it has not been altered. Of course once they have verified it is a true copy of the original they return it to you. Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bonzie Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 Maybe of use to those doing the Savannakhet run. Instead of messing aroud on the International bus from Mukdaharn to Savannakhet, why not try the boat ? If it is still running. I was there 4 or 5 months ago and had been many times. I used to take the boat over the Mekong. From the bus station only 30 or 40 baht in a tuk tuk/samlor. The boat ticket is 50 baht, and the journey takes about 10 mins. The first boat leaves at 8;30 or 9am. From the other side it's a 5 min walk to the Embassy. Going back the 4pm boat was good to take, collect visa and get straight on it. I always remember same day issuance of visas there, things must have changed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TimTang Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 Maybe of use to those doing the Savannakhet run. Instead of messing aroud on the International bus from Mukdaharn to Savannakhet, why not try the boat ? If it is still running. I was there 4 or 5 months ago and had been many times. I used to take the boat over the Mekong. From the bus station only 30 or 40 baht in a tuk tuk/samlor.The boat ticket is 50 baht, and the journey takes about 10 mins. The first boat leaves at 8;30 or 9am. From the other side it's a 5 min walk to the Embassy. Going back the 4pm boat was good to take, collect visa and get straight on it. I always remember same day issuance of visas there, things must have changed. Rules for the boats have changed. Only Thais and Laos can use the boat and there is no visa control on either side. Apparently they've erected a sign to notify Falangs but I haven't seen it. I ran into 2 Falangs that submitted their visa application and the Embassy staff noticed there was no exit stamp from Thailand and no Lao visa in their passport. They were sent back to the bridge to complete their exit from Thailand and entry to Laos. They said they took the boat and there was no passport control so were unaware they did anything wrong. Now all exit and entry must be done on the bridge. Acquiring a Visa is definitely a 2 day process. You can cry, beg, even throw furniture around it won't make any difference; that's the rule and the Embassy staff stick to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visarunner Posted February 7, 2007 Share Posted February 7, 2007 Only LOCAL Thai's and LOCAL Laotians can use the boat. All other have to use the Bus. Normally the bustickets can not be booked/purchased in advance, but some Vietnam bound Thai Tour Companies are able to get Tickets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Badbanker Posted February 7, 2007 Author Share Posted February 7, 2007 The problem for us normal people that are going to arrange a Thai visa in Savannakhet is that it seems the likes of Jack Golf and their ilk are making it difficult for independant travellers. With stories now filtering back to me about Visa Agents/Tour Groups getting in line for the International Bus about half an hour before the ticketing booth opens at 7:30. Then submitting large amounts of passports totally booking all the morning international buses. More than 200 passports are being submitted on peak days which effectively means you have to get the 10:15 or 11:15 International Bus if you are lucky from Mukdaharn to Savannakhet. If it is Monday or Thursday this will mean a 3+ day visa run, as not getting the early morning bus to Laos will mean that you can't submit your visa application on that day before 12 noon and will have to wait for the next morning to submit you application! As the boat is now closed for anyone that is not a Thai or a Lao I think we need to think of other strategies! Strategy 1 When your bus arrives at 6am from Bangkok, camp at the bus ticket window until they open and demand you be served first! I am sure people will catch on to this and more independant travellers will get in line. I would not allow the Jack Golf People to jump the line and force in 150 passports. If they do raise hel_l and the Police if necessary!!!!!!!!!! Strategy 2 The International Bus trip is only about 10-15 min to Thai immigration at the Bridge. I don't think it will be very expensive to take a Tuk Tuk or taxi from the Mukdaharn Bus Staton to the bridge. If there are enough people hire a Song Taw to get to Thai Immigration and stamp out of Thailand. From experience "MANY" people do get on the bus (standing up) at the exit from Thai immigration that did not buy a ticket and ride to the Savannakhet Bus Station. You may have to pay a little money to the bus driver in the form of a fare but he won't say no. I have seen him collecting money a number of times from people that got on the bus at Thai Immigration. Again it is only about 15-20 mins trip from the Lao border to the Savannakhet Bus Station. Once there you can get a Tuk Tuk to the Thai Consulate for 20 baht per head. From my memory there are Lao tuk tuks and other vehicles parked there at the exit from Lao immigration on the bridge. I think if you go and find that you are going to have to spend an extra day in Savannakhet because of some bullying tour groups I would look for a way around things! One of these strategies may work. Someone give it a try and see how it all goes! Nothing ventured nothing gained. Badbanker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visarunner Posted February 9, 2007 Share Posted February 9, 2007 (edited) Badbanker, you are overestimating the numbers . Are you camping out there? From my own experience in Mukdahan most of the tour companies are Thai/Budhist relatet Tours. The VisaRun groups never had any (big) impact. BTW there are still other Consulates which are close to Thailand . Anyone tried Khota Bharu? Edited February 9, 2007 by visarunner Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sriracha john Posted February 10, 2007 Share Posted February 10, 2007 (edited) Badbanker,you are overestimating the numbers . Are you camping out there? From my own experience in Mukdahan most of the tour companies are Thai/Budhist relatet Tours. The VisaRun groups never had any (big) impact. BTW there are still other Consulates which are close to Thailand . Anyone tried Khota Bharu? Obviously, the visa running businesses are making a huge impact on Mukdahan. Prior to their "runs" the only people using the consulate was the quite rare, adventurous, and intrepid traveler going it alone. Now, every major visa-run company has a bus going there, when previously, NONE of them did... and by repeated reports, not just Badbankers, this can involve up to several hundred of people going daily, when previously there was perhaps a small handful in a week's time. I won't be surprised if in some way or another, the whole system there doesn't collapse on itself and things as they are now, stop, either from the Thai's side or the Lao's side... something's gotta give. Edited February 10, 2007 by sriracha john Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visarunner Posted February 11, 2007 Share Posted February 11, 2007 the max that they have handled was about 100pax per day. When I was there they had prepared numbers up to 100 and they told us , no more. Based on Jacks own Message board they had a group of 66pax on15/16Jan(combined for 2-3 weeks), so the figures you are trying to establish(hundreds) are way over the top. The place has already lost the main advantage,namely that the visa had been issued within same day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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