Can We Cross Over The Friendship Bridge Into Laos In Our Own Car And Travel About.

[mogoso]

I have a multi entry visa into Thailand but if I stay in country I'll have an 8 day over stay problem. My dual citizen wife will travel on her Thai passport and I on my US We have a car (wifes name) and like to tour about Laos on our own. Can we take it into Laos and at what cost?

Thank you in advance

[wayned]

Thai/Laos border crossing procedures can be found on this websire. I've never done it myself so I don't know how accurate they are.

http://www.laos-guide-999.com/border-crossing.html#ThaiDepartureCar

[samran]

You'll need to go to the local department of land transport office and get the purple 'car passport' for the vehicle which will allow for your car to be stamped out of Thailand and into Laos.

[hgma]

lao friendship bridge 1(nongkhai)

its a bit of a hussle the car procedure.

mainly because the slow handling on the lao side......

be sure you have at hand

car registration papers (bleu owners book)

car crossborder book(purple)

be sure you mention the period of wanted stay in the country...1 or 2 weeks

please take a car insurence asap as you step on lao soil(border post insurence office)

normal procedure timer 1 hour

rush hour.....(busloads of visa on arrival prospects).can take up to 3 hours

lao friendship bridge 3 (nakhon phanon)

relaxed and quick.

standard 1 month car registration

same documents but 20-30 minutes and your in laos

please remember that on several occasions random checks on vehicles are conducted...(contraband/drugs)and be sure your passport is at least 6 more months valid then the day of entry in laos!

[phuketrichard]

You'll need to go to the local department of land transport office and get the purple 'car passport' for the vehicle which will allow for your car to be stamped out of Thailand and into Laos.

You also need to have the cars license translated into English and have a T sticker on front and back,

I got my english license here in phuket and placed that on my car, it is only the letters/numbers and rather than state the province only says Thailand.

YOu only get 14 days for ur car even though ur visa will be good for 20 and u need insurance.

I have a friend that is up in Laos right now driving around.he crossed over near Chaing Kong ( up north) and his heading up to the Chinese border than down thru Luang Prabang-Vientine and exiting at Nong Khai

[mogoso]

Thanks all with special thanks to hgma for detailed post and trip idea

[noudb]

Also make sure your insurance is fully valid outside Thailand.

[KhunBENQ]

You want to do a car tour in Laos on your own.

Have you been there before and are you aware about the road conditions on the countryside?

As far as I know you should have a robust all terrain vehicle.

[SantiSuk]

All terrain vehicles are not necessary unless you are going off road. In the dry season (December to May) secondary dirt roads will be passable without 4 wheel drive. Maybe you might have problems if you were using secondary roads in the seriously isolated areas in the North and North East - have not been that far up myself.

Of course a robust vehicle is always preferable in underdeveloped territories. Not an absolute requirement though - having one that is easily repairable, like a basic Toyota is probably more valuable.

[phuketrichard]

never had any trouble with my Honda civic in laos or Cambodia except passing is a pain in the ass

Thai insurance is not valid outside Thailand

[Boblui]

Just got back from a trip to Laos with my Thai Pickup. I had no problems, however to answer your questions.........

First you will need the Car Passport. Can't remember what the cost is for the first time (I seem to remember 55 baht). The passport is only valid for the length of your Registration Square (Tax Disc). I just had to renew it and renewal is a heafty 45 Baht...........

My trip was through the Chong Mek Crossing between Ubon Ratchathani and Pakse but I came back over the Second Friendship Bridge between Savanakhet and Mukdahan (Or however it is spelt.)

The process is that you leave Thailand as normal but you show your car passport to customs and they give you a chit. Then you enter Laos and get a Laos visa as you would if you were doing a normal crossing and pay USD35 (36 at weekends and after 1630, I think). At Chong Mek they had a seperate office for getting the car IN and this cost "not a lot". (It was so low I cannot remember. And not having KIP I remember paying in Baht.) Then before you leave the area you have to stop at the Customs Inspection HUT. All told about 30 minutes.

On the return journey over the bridge the process was even easier. The officials were pretty amenable and pointed me in the right direction. Very easy all in all. Now comes the uneasy news;

On entering Laos I assumed I would be approached by touts trying to sell me insurance. Didn't happen. I asked at the office where they registered the car and the lady said the chit she gave me was all I needed. Confused I set off again expecting to be stopped and made to cough-up for insurance but it didn't happen. I was cleared through customs and headed for Pakse. I was not stopped by the police although there were a number of checkpoints betwen Pakse and Savanakhet. I was concerned about the insurance situation but returned fives days later after getting a visa at the Thai consul in Savanakhet. No problems.

So the next question is; What is the state of play with insurance?

I did find a article on the Nation website from back in 2009 that about Thailand, Laos. Cambodia and Vietnam having compusory insurance for their respective countries. Anyone know?

[Boblui]

Me again. Just gone through the chits and reciepts. The fee for a Pick-Up on entering Laos was 25,000 Kip (100 Baht). You have pay a toll for the bridge of 13,000 Kip wich is 52 Baht. I only went one way, though and i assume when you leave Thailand it will be 50 Baht. Make sure you have copies of you wifes Passport (My car is in my name) and Three copies of your Blue Book for the car.......... Take everything, as usual.

Hope this helps............

[Boblui]

Just re-read the thread. I didn't have translated plates, you probably need them for Cambodia but no one seemed to be changing them. A couple fo things I just remembered. As someone said above make sure you tell them how long you are going for and I think it was also important that I told them I would be using a different crossing for the return. Oh! Amd don't forget to drive on the right......... Ha!

By the way you will get T stickers when you get your first Car Passport.

On the insurance point. Is it possible that the four countries i mentioned above have made their standard insurance to include compulsory insurance for the others in the same way as the EU?

[ubonrthai]

I too am interested in the question regarding insurance.

[MeMock]

UbonrThai, you have to sort the insurance when you arrive into Laos. If you are crossing at Chong Mek you can do this while you are sorting your visa. In the same building just around the corner from where you get your visa there are a few offices. Go through door number 8 and ask to buy insurance. It should be 25,000 kip or 100 baht. If you send your wife tell her the price before hand as my wife paid 200 baht. It was worth it though to see the look on her face when I told her she had just been ripped off! She wanted to turn and drive back the 10kms to have it out with them. I just laughed and kept on driving.

[cowslip]

I've crossed at Nong Khai a couple of times and so far no problems. My own vehicle - very easy.

You need to fill in 3 docs at the border - TM2, 3 and 4 , these say who is n the vehicle etc. - The staff will show you where to go next etc. If you can get them you can fill them in in advance.

Your "purple book" - "lem wii muang" or passport for the car - is available at any DLT and costs about 55 baht - takes about an hour to get.

you'll need bring along your own passport, car's blue book, insurance - well just take ALL your car papers!

NB - and maybe a letter of proof of residence - you need to get that from your local immigration....to get that you need a letter from someone "important" who knows where you live....landlord or doctor or teacher....

you'll also need a "T" for Thailand sticker on the back....and even one in the front window....although I've not noticed anyone bothering with that.

I haven't found the Laos side any more difficult than the Thai side - it's all a bit confusing at first so get there early and take our time.

INSURANCE

my Thai insurance company will cover me for travel in Laos - at about 4000 baht a trip. THey give me a number in Bkk to ring if I need them.

You also need to have the Laos insurance sticker which you buy on the border for about 200 or 300 baht......how much cover you get for that is anybody's guess.

The roads in Laos can be in pretty poor shape, and highly changeable so your suspension will get a hammering - I even had to wait for a landslide to be cleared. I must say I felt a lot happier at having high ground clearance and 4WD, but I didn't go anywhere where there weren't 2WD vehicles in evidence as well.

When I was there it was dry and dust was the main problem - I had to have all my filters checked on getting home. I also felt that the roads could be pretty difficult if there was a lot of rain.

Driving itself was fine - it's on the right but not a problem and the traffic levels out in the country are pretty low........ lots of 8 wheeler Chinese trucks to get stuck behind but the roads i was on were easily broad enough and overtaking was usually possible in a relatively short time - a less powerful vehicle might have had more of a problem there.

[Time Traveller]

I'm planning a self drive trip from Thailand to northern Laos later this year, also. Apart from road conditions, are there any other dangers such as highway robbery? I've heard years ago of several reports of buses and cars held up by gangs, guessing the situation has changed?

Edited March 7, 2012 by Time Traveller

[cowslip]

I was told all sorts of horror stories by "know-alls" before I went into Laos, but I think at least for the main routes, you are quite safe.

Laos is a communist country and it is also a bit of a police state, so I wouldn't think it surpassing to find road blocks, checks and military boarding buses.

I was stopped once by the police - in Vientiane - and paid the equivalent of 200 baht to make it go away.

on the road to Luang Prabang, I did make a note of where potential mechanics, re-fuel stops etc might be so if I did break down I'd know where the nearest help might be. (BTW - I did this both ways) - basically between Vientiane and Luang Prabang once you leave the hinterlands there's very little outside of Vang Vieng and a couple of other larger villages.

Laos is the most bombed country in the world and I'm told there is a lot of unexploded ordinance in the East of the country - mostly off the roads though.

Edited March 9, 2012 by cowslip

[cowslip]

<p>My question was moved to the motoring forum - but I'll ask something similar here - </p>

<p>Are there any crossing points North of Vientiane?</p>

<p>I"d like to either enter or exit into Chiang Mai - is this possible?</p>

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[lovelaos]

Regarding insurance:

If you cross at Nong Khai/Vientiane just as you pass immigration on your right there is an AGL insurance office. They are part of the Allianze insurance group. DO NOT travel in Laos without insurance, there have been cases in the past where foriegners have been detained after having accidents without insurance and faced time in the poke hole until it is time to pay.....BE WARNED!!!!

If crossing at other places where there is no office, get to the nearest town and hunt down one of their agents, they are in most locations.

Regarding driving in Laos:

Driving in Vientiane is becoming bad as more and more uneducated, inexperienced people have easier access to purchase cars through hire purchase and bank loans, as a result I would estimate 50% of the drivers on the road at night are pissed and the police don't often work at night. Even if they do, if you are pissed you pay them a very small fine and you are on your way!!!!!

Bear in mind that probably 90% of the drivers on the road have never even had a driving lesson, let alone taken a driving test.

Having said all this, outside of Vientiane is not too bad as long as you have eyes in the back of your head, treat every other driver as an absolute idiot and be aware of the Vietnamese lorry/bus drivers travelling towards you on your side of the road around blind corners.

Have fun exploring this beautiful country and meeting the kind generous people but for gods sake......BE CAREFUL!!!!

[cowslip]

yet another country and another foreign driver who thinks he is perfect and all the "natives" are buffoons. THese paranoid rantings about driving in foreign countries all follow exactly the same rhetoric. It leaves me wondering WHY do they get so hung up about OTHER people's driving? Is it because they are constantly having surprises and near scrapes? .....now why would that be?

[lovelaos]

yet another country and another foreign driver who thinks he is perfect and all the "natives" are buffoons. THese paranoid rantings about driving in foreign countries all follow exactly the same rhetoric. It leaves me wondering WHY do they get so hung up about OTHER people's driving? Is it because they are constantly having surprises and near scrapes? .....now why would that be?

1st sentence answer: Because I am and they are.

2nd sentence answer: Not paranoid but realistic.

3rd sentence answer: Isn't this obvious?

4th sentence answer: There you go....

5th sentence answer: Refer to first sentence answer.

BTW, Why did you pay the police 200 Baht? Were you doing something illegal?

Edited March 9, 2012 by lovelaos

[cowslip]

yet another country and another foreign driver who thinks he is perfect and all the "natives" are buffoons. THese paranoid rantings about driving in foreign countries all follow exactly the same rhetoric. It leaves me wondering WHY do they get so hung up about OTHER people's driving? Is it because they are constantly having surprises and near scrapes? .....now why would that be?

1st sentence answer: Because I am and they are.

2nd sentence answer: Not paranoid but realistic.

3rd sentence answer: Isn't this obvious?

4th sentence answer: There you go....

5th sentence answer: Refer to first sentence answer.

BTW, Why did you pay the police 200 Baht? Were you doing something illegal?

QED

[lopburi3]

Flame removed.

[lovelaos]

Back on topic. To the OP, Please do not pay the police any kind of bribe or fine if you have done nothing wrong or illegal.

Laotian police are not as intimidating or powerful as Thai police and will melt under the slightest confrontation. The military rule over here, not the police. If you are legal you have nothing to fear.

[Lickey]

My friend has just arrived here with a 3month tourist visa, hired a pick-up in BKK, came to us near Udon Thani, he wants to travel in Cambodia and Vietnam, he doesnt have International driving permit, just UK license, what must he do do to take truck into these countries?

Help much appreciated, Thanks, Lickey..

[lopburi3]

Nobody can take a hired vehicle across boarders that I am aware of so unless that is pickup and owner do not believe it will be possible.

[cowslip]

<p>

</p>

<p><br />

My friend has just arrived here with a 3month tourist visa, hired a pick-up in BKK, came to us near Udon Thani, he wants to travel in Cambodia and Vietnam, he doesnt have International driving permit, just UK license, what must he do do to take truck into these countries?<br />

<br />

   Help much appreciated, Thanks, Lickey..<br />

</p>

<p> </p>

Taking vehicles into Cambodia and VN is not really a viable proposition yet. (ASEAN says you can, reality says you can't)

Cambodia only allow vehicles into the province they enter - which makes travelling about a bit dodgy. There are some people who drive in regularly - I'd start a new thread to get their experiences.

Vietnam - vehicles are allowed in....but they should be left-hand drive..........

There are some Thai companies that organise "holiday convoyst; through these countries -so if you trail in a group all the paperwork etc. can be sorted on your behalf.

I vey much doubt if a car-hire company would be prepared to let you take their vehicle though.

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Edited March 10, 2012 by cowslip