Thai Girl To Laos

[Khun Bob]

Hi - bit surprised this question hasnt been asked before - tried seveal searches with some very open key words and got nothing back...

Just want to know if it is possible for a Thai girl to visit laos - vientianne - who just has a thai id card ?

If so how long can she stay for and what is the cost and the process involved ?

I dont particulary want to visit the laos embassy in bkk and hope that all can be done at the friendship bridge in nong khai.

Cheers

Edited April 7, 2006 by Khun Bob

[chuchok]

It can be done, or I should say that it 'has' been done in the past.Not sure about now.

About 2 years ago, my wife traveled on her ID card to vientianne .She also had a passport, but it was much cheaper to travel on the ID card.It was a 3 or 6 day pass....or something like that.

[sierra01]

My experience of it is much the same as Chuckoks. About 2½ years ago my ex TG and I went to Vientiane, she had to go to city hall in Nong Khai and do the paperwork/photo/umpteen copies of her ID card thing, then the resulting paper gave her a few days in Lao. It didn't really take that long, and didn't cost much either. Using a passport is much quicker and easier but way way more expensive.

As an aside, never never never take your car across into Laos. We did, no problem on the Thai side but over 3 hours, 15 different departments and a silly amount of money in fees/tea money later on the Laos side we drove off to Vientiane. In Vientiane I got stopped for going the wrong way up an unmarked (I checked) one way street, we made out that our passports were back at the hotel, plod refused to return my driving licence until I'd paid a fine, or I could collect it the following week at the Police station. Much to his unhappiness I opted to wait until the following week, little did he know I'd given him a copy of my licence. Never went to collect it and never heard anymore about it. Probably not a good idea but it was one over those corrupt gits!

[Khun Bob]

Thanks for the feedback so far - looks like it is possible then !

A call to the lao embassy in bkk might be necessary so i can get the details and what needs to be provided and the costs.

If anyone has done this recently would be good to hear from you as so far people have mantioned doing it a couple of years ago and i know things rarely change, but sometimes they (people) do.....

Cheers

[Totster]

Thanks for the feedback so far - looks like it is possible then !

A call to the lao embassy in bkk might be necessary so i can get the details and what needs to be provided and the costs.

If anyone has done this recently would be good to hear from you as so far people have mantioned doing it a couple of years ago and i know things rarely change, but sometimes they (people) do.....

Cheers

My wife came with me last year to Vientiane and this year to Savanakhet, both times using her ID card.

The easiest way is to go to an office beforehand that can issue the border passes, there are plenty of places in Nong Khai, just ask someone. You will need a couple of passport sized photos, and the fee is approximately a couple hundred baht (sorry can't be more exact)

The border pass lasts for 3 days.

totster

[Jai Dee]

My missus went there with her family only 2 months ago.

Crossed over the river on a ferry at Mudkahan.

No photos req'd. No passport red'd. No border pass req'd.

Maybe it depends on the checkpoint?

[samran]

You can get the border pass at the aphur muang in Nong Khai. It is valid for 3 days stay in vientiene. The alternative is to just get a passport. Thai's don't need a visa for Loas anymore, so with the passport you can just get stamped in and out on a 30 day visa on arrival.

[sierra01]

You can get the border pass at the aphur muang in Nong Khai. It is valid for 3 days stay in vientiene. The alternative is to just get a passport. Thai's don't need a visa for Loas anymore, so with the passport you can just get stamped in and out on a 30 day visa on arrival.

It's changed since I was last there then. A passport got you 14 days for 1500bt.

[samran]

Thats right, thai's don't need to pay for tourist visas anymore and get visa on arrival for 30 days. Got one myself back in January. Thailand and Loas have had a visa free arrangement for about 18 months now.

[sierra01]

It's more than 18 months since I last went so it has changed! Is it still 1500bt/14 days for farang

[samran]

US$30 I think for farang.

[bmanly]

I paid 1,400 baht for my Laos visa in October last year at the Khon Kaen Laos Consulate. There are 2 systems, 1,200 baht if you can wait 2 to 3 days for processing or 1,400 baht for the priority visa. The guy took about 15 minutes to do my visa. They were very helpful at the Consulate and the guy spoke English pretty well.

Also there was a sign at the counter window in English stating the countries that did not require a visa, Thailand was one of them and as Samran says Thais get 30 days free at the border.

[Khun Bob]

Thanks all for the great information - this is good news for me...

I am in Khon Kaen right now and just wondered where the Laos consulate is as I wont be going to Laos for a few weeks and could save a bit as bmanly has indicated.

Cheers

I paid 1,400 baht for my Laos visa in October last year at the Khon Kaen Laos Consulate. There are 2 systems, 1,200 baht if you can wait 2 to 3 days for processing or 1,400 baht for the priority visa. The guy took about 15 minutes to do my visa. They were very helpful at the Consulate and the guy spoke English pretty well.

Also there was a sign at the counter window in English stating the countries that did not require a visa, Thailand was one of them and as Samran says Thais get 30 days free at the border.

[vinny]

The Consulate-General of the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Khon Kaen

Chancery:

171/102-103 Prachasamosorn Road,

Muang District,

Khon Kaen 40000

Tel: 0-4324-2858

Fax: 0-4324-4918

Office Hours:

08.00 - 12.00 (Monday - Friday)

13.00 - 16.00

[Totster]

Thanks all for the great information - this is good news for me...

I am in Khon Kaen right now and just wondered where the Laos consulate is as I wont be going to Laos for a few weeks and could save a bit as bmanly has indicated.

Cheers

There's not really any money to be saved ... the visa at the border costs $30 which at the moment is about bt1150...

However..there is a difference between the visa issued at the border and the visa issued at an embassy/consulate...

The visa issued at the border will be for 15 days and the visa issued at an embassy/consulate is for 30 days.

So.. you will only benfit from getting a visa at an embassy/consulate if you plan to stay longer than 15 days

totster

[Khun Bob]

Interesting point Totster - I'm not planning on being in Laos for longer than 15 days - so what would be the best thing to do if i dont have easy or cheap access to USD $ ? I have Thai Baht and a credit card which is good for any currency - but i doubt the border takes credit card ?

Cheers

PS Also thanks Vinny for the Consulate info - took a walk the other day to see if i could see the consulate but couldnt find it - will give them a call to ask for directions...

Thanks all for the great information - this is good news for me...

I am in Khon Kaen right now and just wondered where the Laos consulate is as I wont be going to Laos for a few weeks and could save a bit as bmanly has indicated.

Cheers

There's not really any money to be saved ... the visa at the border costs $30 which at the moment is about bt1150...

However..there is a difference between the visa issued at the border and the visa issued at an embassy/consulate...

The visa issued at the border will be for 15 days and the visa issued at an embassy/consulate is for 30 days.

So.. you will only benfit from getting a visa at an embassy/consulate if you plan to stay longer than 15 days

totster

[Totster]

oops...see below

Edited April 17, 2006 by Totster

[Totster]

so what would be the best thing to do if i dont have easy or cheap access to USD $ ?

You can pay in $US or Thai Baht

From memory, I think the fees are locked at $30 or bt1500

totster

[Khun Bob]

Went along to the laos consulate today in khon kaen

Told visa for me is 1400bt good for 30 days and takes 3 days to produce

Guy in consulate wouldnt say cost of border pass for thai girl - just said it is good for 2 nights and 3 days and it can be extended in vientanne - added that extension in vientianne for passport holder is $2 and is cheaper for thai id card holder

Guy said $30 at nong khai - i reckon that is about 1200bt at the mo or less - so i need to buy $30 cheaply in khon kaen or nong khai.

Guy at consulate said that in vientianne thai baht is widely accepted... What exchange rates are used i dont know....

Seems that the guy in the cnsulate didnt want to be commital on prices (i guess due to price corruption fluctuation) and gave me a price of 100 bt more than i expected of 1300bt and mentioned earlier in this post.

If anyone can comment if further detail on the border pass process and costs for a thai id card holder to laos it would be appreciated...

Cheers

[Khun Bob]

Anyone know the best place to buy USD in Khon Kaen with Thai Baht ?

Also is it possible to get a shorter and cheaper visa than 15 days at nong khai (or anywhere else) for a UK passport holder ?

Cheers

[samran]

As far as I know KK is the cheapest place in Thailand for a Laos visa. The Khao San Road travel agencies even courier their clients passports there as it is cheaper than in BKK.

[Khun Bob]

been and done it all now and here is the report

got $30 from bkk bank khon kaen at a good price

got to nong khai and went to the government office that issues thai's border passes - had a copy of the id card and 2 photos - all done quite easily and cost 40 bt - given a peice of paper with a photo on - told there would be no problems for a stay of 3 days & 2 nights.

in nong khai thought i could save some cash by going from the bus station to vientianne for 60 bt - big mistake - buses are not interested if you dont have a visa - but can sell you one for 1800bt !

off to the thai border in a tuk tuk - 40bt for a good distance - seems some tuk tuks charge by the person - this one was 20bt a person..

through thai immigration - no problems - on a bus across the bridge - 10bt a person

on laos side of bridge - not clear at all what to do no explnation or assistance - first thing i did was buy the visa - gave passport, $30, and a photo and sat and waited... Got passport back with visa for 15days and a receipt - note there is a $1 surcharge at certain times !

then off to laos immigration - queued for a while and laos immigration girl saw what i had but was more interested in telling thais where to go - got to kiosk and told i had to fill out arrival card - got one - back in queue and filled it out - through kisok and stamped in for up to 15 days

thai friend came through border pass queue easy and got her border pass back

now about to walk out of laos immigration and go for bus to vientianne, thai friend got told she had to buy 2 entry tickets to laos for 50bt each - she did this and got through ok - was very surprised at this - had a look at the tickets and it is just for border pass holders - so she bought 1 extra as far as i was concerned... But you can sneak out before this as there is a hole in the fence before you get to entry fee point...

got a rickety mini bus to vientianne which is right at the end of all the taxis and tuk tuks - cost 20bt or 4000 kip each - 4000 kip is cheaper and my friend gave 40bt and got 2000 kip change...

now on the way back - i got through laos immigration ok, however my thai friend had to cough up 400bt for 2 days over stay as a stamp was not made on her border pass by the loas immigration on arrival - i really wanted to give the loas official a peice of my mind as it was hardly my friends mistake - she didnt say she wanted to stay for 3 days and 2 nights and got told in nong khai that there would no be any problems for 3 day/2 night stay - seems a few thais go cought out on this as there were several long pauses in the border pass queue...

there is also an exit fee of 20 or 30bt, but this is only payable after 4pm - not sure exactly - thai friend didnt pay this one..

in summary Laos - sh1t local food, expensive, corrupt and cheating as <deleted> - in my opinion the only reasons farangs like it is for the bit that is like france - but you may as well go to the real france as the prices are pretty much the same in both places

and beer lao is no way 5% proof and i dont have a t-shirt to prove i have been there - i'd be ashamed to wear it...

Edited May 23, 2006 by Khun Bob

[Prakanong2005]

"and beer lao is no way 5% proof and i dont have a t-shirt to prove i have been there - i'd be ashamed to wear it..."

I bought a t-shirt

Thanks for the report - I was trhinking about taking the Missus but I do not think I will bother now - when I went last year my Thai friend would not bother.

I know what you say about corruption there. There was recently 4 million USD raised for vaccines for kids in Laos - its all gone into a black hole and no vaccines have been given.

Due to this other sponsorship events have been re-directed from Laos as the money will just dissapear sand efforts are going to other deprived comminuties in S E Asia instead

Its a pity as Laos really needs it but its no doog throwing good money after bad.

[samran]

I'd actually say go and have a look around.

It is a nice place, and yes, you can get a decent steak and some OK wine. And it is a very laid back place, which is why we go.

As for corruption there, well a friend of mine said they aren't as good at it as the Thai's are, so you don't really need to worry about it. It is all small time stuff anyway. Cambodia is the place to avoid if that type of thing gets your goat....

[Roblpl]

I've just got back from Thailand and when I was there I went across to Lao with my Thai girlfriend via Nong Khai. We also went to Cambodia as well and, let me tell you, when they were processing the Visa for us ($20US) the border officer asked for the money for the Visa, which I paid and then said, quite openly "and 100 Baht for me". I tried to play ignorant and asked what this means. He said "for my vodka". Then someone told me 20 Baht for "quarantine" also. It got worse as the 2 days went on. So Cambodia is the place for a rip off.

So, in comparison, Laos immigration was a breeze and although $30US maybe a little steep but I enjoyed Vientiane. A good idea is to get your girlfriend to get a passport which is very straightforward for Thai people. That way she could avoid the very large queue at the Border Control and join the shorter passport queue.

Roblpl

[technocracy]

My mate and his thai girlfriend came visit us when we were back in Laos last month and she came over just using her ID no problems.

Because his girlfriend has to go to one of the travel agencies near the bridge to get her pass they were trying to sell him a 30 day Visa for Laos for $3000 (yes $80) so not only over priced but unnecessary as he can get the 14 day visa for $30 at the Bridge (which I told him).

He told them in no uncertain terms 'no' as he'll buy at the Bridge so they came visited everything ok until there return when his girlfriend was told she had overstayed by 10 days(!) because her pass was dated wrong (12th instead of 21st I think).

So just be careful if your planning do a similar trip and your being harrassed to by a 30 day Visa for Laos.

[technocracy]

in summary Laos - sh1t local food, expensive, corrupt and cheating as <deleted> - in my opinion the only reasons farangs like it is for the bit that is like france - but you may as well go to the real france as the prices are pretty much the same in both places

and beer lao is no way 5% proof and i dont have a t-shirt to prove i have been there - i'd be ashamed to wear it...

Well as far as I'm concern hope you don't come back I get pissed off with the general self opinated or backpacker falang in Vientiane. I bet you spent the entire time in Kop Jai Deu next to fountain like most falang believing Vientiane begins and ends there

Shit local food - obviously not eating truly local food as it's far better than crap that is served up in Bangkok that's for certain.

Expensive - ? ? ? ? How in gods name do you work this out? A big Beer Lao in a bar you shouldn't pay any more than 12,000kip (~45baht) if you buy it by the crate you'll pay 7000kip (yes 26baht! per large bottle). Hows this for a comparison to Bangkok 4 people go ten pin bowling drink and eat as much as they like staying for about 4 or 5 hours. MBK centre over 5000baht - Lao Bowling Centre 1500baht.

Corrupt and Cheating as F***- In 3 days your an expert on this are you? Go on tell us what 'corruption' you've experienced. Sure I've bribe the odd Policeman when I've done some I should (such as turn right on a no right turn junction) but hel_l if you telling me that's huge corruption just what is Thailand? I have NEVER been overcharged in any bar/restaurant/nightclub in Laos.

As for Beer Lao it sure is 5% the reason you probably thinking it isn't is because you didn't get a hangover. . . however the reason for this is that it doesn't contain chemicals unlike most pisswater served in bars in Thailand or the UK.

[lingyai]

I just want to confirm that if a Thai person has a passport then they can enter Laos for free.

Also, anybody go to Luang Prabang lately? How did you get there, mini bus or bus? How was it?

Edited June 6, 2006 by lingyai

[Thaipwriter]

As for Beer Lao it sure is 5% the reason you probably thinking it isn't is because you didn't get a hangover. . . however the reason for this is that it doesn't contain chemicals

Beer Lao rocks, the main reason they dont sell it here is because it would wipe the floor with the thai made brews

My god, even Monochaser would drink beer Lao if he could get his hands on it

[technocracy]

I just want to confirm that if a Thai person has a passport then they can enter Laos for free.

Also, anybody go to Luang Prabang lately? How did you get there, mini bus or bus? How was it?

Yes that is correct. Any Thai citizen entering Laos with a passport get a free 30 day visa.

As for Luang Prabang I drove (being the sucker for punishment I am!) over there last year it doesn't change (well can't really with it being a World Heritage site) it's a good place to spend a few nights or a week that for sure. But don't both going to the Pak Ou caves - I really don't understand why they have such a big must see factor. The waterfalls (name I forget but there is a couple of sites) are far better tip if you decide go for a swim don't both with the top pool walk down the path away from the big fall and there is 3 or 4 pools down here which are deserted and far nicer.

The easiest and without doubt the most sensible way to go to Luang Prabang is fly!! It's either 8 hours by mini bus or 10-12 hours by bus - the road 13 between Vientiane and LP is ok for about 3 hours of the journey from Vientiane. After that it just turns into switchback hel_l over the mountain.

Thaipwriter - that's pretty much the conversation I have everytime may mate comes visit from BKK. That said he has apparently discovered a bar or 2 around Suhkhumvit that serve it!