Tourist Visa In Vientiane - Report Re. Bus From Udon To Vientiane

[daeng1212]

I made my semi-annual trip to Vientiane two weeks ago to get a new Tourist Visa. Everything went well, except that I wasn't able to get the Express Bus from Udonthani to Vientiane. They are now refusing to sell tickets to anyone who does not already have a Lao visa. Since (as far as I know) the Lao government is no longer issuing visas in Bangkok, and only sells them at the border, this means that no non-Thais/Laotians can use this bus (unless you can somehow get a Lao visa before you go to Udon). It's a shame because this bus is convenient and time-saving - just two hours from Udon to the Morning Market in Vientiane. I assume that the reason they're only selling tickets to holders of Lao visas is that they don't want their bus to get held up at the border waiting for you to get your Lao visa. So here's what I did instead: I was already at the old Udon Bus Station (I had taken a #7 songtaew from the new Udon bus station to the old station), so I caught the Rayong-Nongkhai AC bus, which stops at the old Udon bus station, to Nongkhai. Then I took a took-took to the Thai border at the bridge, a van from one side of the river to the other, and another van from the Lao border at the bridge to the Thai consulate. More complicated and more expensive, but if you can catch all four legs of this trip without any long waits, it only takes a couple of hours and can get you to the Thai consulate on time (before 11:30).

[sjaak327]

As far as I know, you can still obtain Lao visas in both Bangkok and Khon Kaen. It also depends where you come from, as when arriving in Udon by plane, the bus straight to Vientiane will not save you any time (you need to go to the UT bus station first) , when arriving from the Airport, it's much better to take the minibusses that will bring you straight to the bridge.

[sniffdog]

Or stop being a cheap charlie and fly directly to Wattay Airport for 7,000+ baht ....

I remember that the TAT in Nong Khai specifically states that the bus won't wait for people who have to get visas.

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CROSS-BORDER TRAVEL BY INTERNATIONAL VISITORS

Foreign visitors holding valid visas and travel documentation will be able to travel by public transport buses back and forth across the border.

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http://www.tatnews.org/latest_update/detail.asp?id=2151

Edited March 31, 2008 by sniffdog