Friendship Bridge

[rayabk]

Anyone know what time immigration opens here. I will be heading there on Monday morning.

Cheers.

[cali4995]

Anyone know what time immigration opens here. I will be heading there on Monday morning.

Cheers.

the 1st international bus to cross over the friendship bridge leaves at 08:15? i'm not sure if they open too soon before that? i got to the bus station about 07:15 and just walked up to the counter, asked and purchased a ticket(45baht one-way). not long after the tour buses started to show up so buy your ticket early and there's also a good number of lao merchants making the trip(standing room only, total circus). there's a really good thread a few pages back on this savannakhet trip you might want to read. staying ahead of the group tours so you don't get trampled by the herd seems to be the main challenge. i'm really not sure if it's possible to take your own tuk-tuk to the thai immigration station? would be a heckuva lot quicker than waiting on the bus? you may find the answer to that question in the savannakhet visa run topic.

[cali4995]

Anyone know what time immigration opens here. I will be heading there on Monday morning.

Cheers.

rayabk, i think the savanna consulate has a webpage? http://www.thaiembassy.org/savannakhet?

i can't seem to open it now but it might have information on the chinese new year/holiday? yes, the group tours provide a service but it comes at the expense of the individual traveller. when we went to pick up our passports the following day a thai man stepped in front of me at the line with a stack of about 50 receipts. i was incredulous they would give back passports to anyone but the original owner. in some sort of twist of poetic justice the consular official told him he would have to wait (sometimes they really do the right thing) good luck

[Badbanker]

Anyone know what time immigration opens here. I will be heading there on Monday morning.

Cheers.

The bridge openas at 8am! I suggest that you go directly to the bridge and not to the bus station in Mukdaharn as Monday is a hel_l of a day for visa applications at the consulate!

Get on the first international bus leaving from the Thai side of the bridge going to Savannakhet at about 8.30 am. Don't worry if you don't have a seat or a ticket as the bus driver will happily let you stand up and take your 50 baht and deliver you to the bus station in Savannakhet.

Once there take a 20 baht shared tuk tuk to the consulate and submit your application.

Oh don't forget to come back and give us all a nice report on how the trip went.

Badbanker

[lampard10]

You get your tickets from about where that car is in front of the bridge