Self Drive Into Laos And To Vn?

[jaideeguy]

Since the Japanese have just finished the 2nd of two new roads that lead from Thai thru Lao and over the mountains then, onto the coast of Vietnam, I've been wondering if a Thai owned vehicle can be driven thru Lao and then VN.[and return] What are the legalities, permits, insurance, etc that one might encounter along the way, not to mention the safety factor??

I would even consider doing it 'caravan style' with other vehicles for support, so if anyone wants to come along, then let's work out a plan. I have a 4wd 4 door pick-up that should be comfortable and roadworthy.

seeking first hand experience on this adventure......

[LivinLOS]

I have been trying the various local SEA countries for entry rules, carnet bonds, etc for a Thai plated car.

Laos seems pretty easy.. They emailed me back with full info and instructions.. Vietnam I keep hearing is not easy and they have not responded to any enquiry to either BKK or London Vietnamese embassys. Please post what you can find.

Cambodia also seems tough.. You can get into the country on a very short term (couple of days) situation but not leave the area close to the border entry point.. I have gleaned this info from sites but another embassy thats tough.. They fail to understand what I am asking I feel and eep sending me cut and paste info about tourist visas.

The Myanmar Embassy simply stonewalls and doesnt respond or reply.

I quite fancy transiting Myanmar and then India / Bangladesh (chitagong national park for tiger spotting) and then Nepal and Khatmandu and back. Its all so close around us but I cant seem to get access through Myanmar. Secondly would be a loop of Laos, Vietnam, Coast Rd Hanoi tyo Ho Chi Min and back through Cambo.. But Vietnam and Cambo seem to not want this.

[davidgtr]

Since the Japanese have just finished the 2nd of two new roads that lead from Thai thru Lao and over the mountains then, onto the coast of Vietnam, I've been wondering if a Thai owned vehicle can be driven thru Lao and then VN.[and return] What are the legalities, permits, insurance, etc that one might encounter along the way, not to mention the safety factor??

I would even consider doing it 'caravan style' with other vehicles for support, so if anyone wants to come along, then let's work out a plan. I have a 4wd 4 door pick-up that should be comfortable and roadworthy.

seeking first hand experience on this adventure......

Vietnam entry is tough without prior approval.

For Vietnam entry you might want to contact Joe Rumble at Asia Vehicle Rental in Vientiane, who does regular 4WD tours Laos / Vietnam / Cambodia / Thailand, but with Laos registered vehicles.

Edited April 5, 2007 by davidgtr

[davidgtr]

I have been trying the various local SEA countries for entry rules, carnet bonds, etc for a Thai plated car.

Laos seems pretty easy.. They emailed me back with full info and instructions.. Vietnam I keep hearing is not easy and they have not responded to any enquiry to either BKK or London Vietnamese embassys. Please post what you can find.

Cambodia also seems tough.. You can get into the country on a very short term (couple of days) situation but not leave the area close to the border entry point.. I have gleaned this info from sites but another embassy thats tough.. They fail to understand what I am asking I feel and eep sending me cut and paste info about tourist visas.

The Myanmar Embassy simply stonewalls and doesnt respond or reply.

I quite fancy transiting Myanmar and then India / Bangladesh (chitagong national park for tiger spotting) and then Nepal and Khatmandu and back. Its all so close around us but I cant seem to get access through Myanmar. Secondly would be a loop of Laos, Vietnam, Coast Rd Hanoi tyo Ho Chi Min and back through Cambo.. But Vietnam and Cambo seem to not want this.

Take a look at this website

Drive Indochina

who claim to be the experts & the ones who organized the official TAT Motor caravans throughout the region.

[LivinLOS]

Both really good leads guys..

Not getting much help from any embassies..

Would be good to gather this info and make a reliable sticky.

[technocracy]

Where did my post go?

In brief it was: Laos bring your can with a car passport drive to the bridge go to the relevant booths for import of car and off you go. It's easy. You don't need insurance in Laos either.

As for Vietnam - as I said before I know people who regularly drive to Vietnam in Lao registered cars and they don't have any issues. But they are Vietnamese - unless the post is deleted like the last I will ask them tomorrow if they have any particular paperwork or the standard car passport.

Oh yeah just to add numerous Vietnamese car are seen in Vientiane so they don't seem to have any problem coming the other way.

But hey delete the post again if you wish .... then I won't be arsed to share any further info...

Edited April 6, 2007 by technocracy

[davidgtr]

Where did my post go?

In brief it was: Laos bring your can with a car passport drive to the bridge go to the relevant booths for import of car and off you go. It's easy. You don't need insurance in Laos either.

As for Vietnam - as I said before I know people who regularly drive to Vietnam in Lao registered cars and they don't have any issues. But they are Vietnamese - unless the post is deleted like the last I will ask them tomorrow if they have any particular paperwork or the standard car passport.

Oh yeah just to add numerous Vietnamese car are seen in Vientiane so they don't seem to have any problem coming the other way.

But hey delete the post again if you wish .... then I won't be arsed to share any further info...

Technocracy

Yeah I too thought I saw your post earlier on & was going to reply but….?

Anyway

You might want to take a look at this previous topic

Taking A Thai Registered Vehicle Into Laos, advice

as there’s some good info I already posted there:

Now you claim that you don’t need “You don't need insurance in Laos either”, this would be totally stupid to drive around there without any insurance, as you are only leaving yourself open to being locked up in the event of any accident, not matter who’s fault it is. So get the insurance & cover yourself as best you can.

Agreed getting into Vietnam with a Lao registered left hand drive vehicle is easy, but it is not the same with a right hand drive Thai registered vehicle.

And in the North of Laos you see plenty of Chinese registered left hand drive vehicles. The Laos’ have got their act together concerning cross border transport, only the Viets & the Chinese are dragging their feet to complicate the issue.

But make sure you’ve got insurance. Take a look at Trouble In Laos

to see what happens when you don’t take out the insurance & cant pay your way out.

[technocracy]

Technocracy

Yeah I too thought I saw your post earlier on & was going to reply but….?

Anyway

You might want to take a look at this previous topic

Taking A Thai Registered Vehicle Into Laos, advice

as there’s some good info I already posted there:

Now you claim that you don’t need “You don't need insurance in Laos either”, this would be totally stupid to drive around there without any insurance, as you are only leaving yourself open to being locked up in the event of any accident, not matter who’s fault it is. So get the insurance & cover yourself as best you can.

Agreed getting into Vietnam with a Lao registered left hand drive vehicle is easy, but it is not the same with a right hand drive Thai registered vehicle.

And in the North of Laos you see plenty of Chinese registered left hand drive vehicles. The Laos’ have got their act together concerning cross border transport, only the Viets & the Chinese are dragging their feet to complicate the issue.

But make sure you’ve got insurance. Take a look at Trouble In Laos

to see what happens when you don’t take out the insurance & cant pay your way out.

Davidgtr,

On the topic of insurance in Laos the problem being that 95% (probably more like 99%!) of all people don't have any! So if you do have an accident it normally sorted out between the parties involved. I live in Laos and have a Lao registered pickup and don't have insurance - it's on the list to do however the excess on the insurance makes them unattractive i.e. $500. So regardless of who is at fault you need to pay $500.

We have Thai Insurance which was a requirement to take the car into Thailand. What I am basically saying in Laos is unlike Thailand it is not mandatory to buy insurance to drive into Laos.

I've already read about the fines etc from police in Laos and to be honest in the space of over 2 years I have been stopped once and it was MY fault as I tried do a sneaky right turn at a left turn only junction but was spotted. Even then I only paid 100,000kip (i.e. $10) - the amounts of money some people mention are rediculous and many are just hearsay.

Anyway I will ask my Vietnamese friend tomorrow regarding what paperwork is required to take a car into Vietnam. Obviously this will be from a Lao perspective BUT in theory it should apply to Thai vehicles also since they have the same paperwork.

[technocracy]

Just read the Trouble in Lao story . . . a very sad state of affairs. Too be honest I've heard nothing of it - although I did get a warning from friends of my wifes family who working in immigration here in Laos that they were going to be cracking down on any foreigners involved in RTAs. I now know the reason behind this.

If you intended to go outside of a city limits I 100% agree insurance is a requirement - regardless - especially if your not that familiar with driving on the right. Although if your just travelling over the border to Vientiane and staying in the city limits I personally don't see a need in paying for it, particularly given the pace and minimal amount of traffic here.

[davidgtr]

Technocracy

Yeah I too thought I saw your post earlier on & was going to reply but….?

Anyway

You might want to take a look at this previous topic

Taking A Thai Registered Vehicle Into Laos, advice

as there’s some good info I already posted there:

Now you claim that you don’t need “You don't need insurance in Laos either”, this would be totally stupid to drive around there without any insurance, as you are only leaving yourself open to being locked up in the event of any accident, not matter who’s fault it is. So get the insurance & cover yourself as best you can.

Agreed getting into Vietnam with a Lao registered left hand drive vehicle is easy, but it is not the same with a right hand drive Thai registered vehicle.

And in the North of Laos you see plenty of Chinese registered left hand drive vehicles. The Laos’ have got their act together concerning cross border transport, only the Viets & the Chinese are dragging their feet to complicate the issue.

But make sure you’ve got insurance. Take a look at Trouble In Laos

to see what happens when you don’t take out the insurance & cant pay your way out.

Davidgtr,

On the topic of insurance in Laos the problem being that 95% (probably more like 99%!) of all people don't have any! So if you do have an accident it normally sorted out between the parties involved. I live in Laos and have a Lao registered pickup and don't have insurance - it's on the list to do however the excess on the insurance makes them unattractive i.e. $500. So regardless of who is at fault you need to pay $500.

We have Thai Insurance which was a requirement to take the car into Thailand. What I am basically saying in Laos is unlike Thailand it is not mandatory to buy insurance to drive into Laos.

I've already read about the fines etc from police in Laos and to be honest in the space of over 2 years I have been stopped once and it was MY fault as I tried do a sneaky right turn at a left turn only junction but was spotted. Even then I only paid 100,000kip (i.e. $10) - the amounts of money some people mention are rediculous and many are just hearsay.

Anyway I will ask my Vietnamese friend tomorrow regarding what paperwork is required to take a car into Vietnam. Obviously this will be from a Lao perspective BUT in theory it should apply to Thai vehicles also since they have the same paperwork.

Technocracy

Agreed that you should always try & sort it out on the spot if possible. But what if (1) your offer is not enough, the police are called & you’re locked up in a Lao police cell until it’s sorted out satisfactorily &/or (2) you hit some little kid who runs out on the road as you pass through a village. Surely having some 3rd party insurance is better than zilch & is going to help. I would also think that the insurance company can negotiate better than you. Get the insurance as you go in!

[bkk_mike]

I know you asked for first-hand info, and this isn't.

But - I was reading World Record Tour about a couple driving their Toyota Landcruiser through lots of countries, and they did Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos just over a year ago.

And one thing they mentioned on the Laos report was that they only got into Vietnam because their Swiss-bought car was left hand drive, as they mention a Japanese person they met who couldn't get his Japanese-bought car into Vietnam for exactly that reason. (i.e. From that, Thai cars that are RHD would be an issue also).

It's all 3rd hand info, but going from their trip, I'd imagine they're more acquainted with getting visas for their car than most people.

[samran]

not first hand info, but a list of agreements and frameworks that should be coming into place shortly

http://www.adb.org/GMS/Cross-Border/annex.asp