Driving to Cambodia and Vietnam?

[Brampton]

Myself and a mate are considering a road trip from Thailand through Cambodia to Vietnam and I would be very grateful for some feedback on the viability.

I live in Thailand and hold a UK and Thai driving licence, my mate is coming out from the UK and has a UK licence but will ensure that he has an international licence too before arriving here.

My understanding is that will allow us both to drive in Cambodia, does anyone have any information on that issue?

I have also been told that you need to be the owner of a non Cambodian registered vehicle to take it across the border, which would prevent us renting a suitable Thai vehicle and taking it over, can anyone confirm either way?

I have also heard that driving in Cambodia is just an unpleasant experience with extremely poor roads and terrible driving disciplines, has anyone experienced it?

Can anyone give me any information on the issue of getting behind the wheel in Vietnam?

If it is possible I would love to take on the trip and have a great adventure, however from what I have heard from various sources I do wonder if it would more enjoyable than hassle.

Any information would be appreciated!

[phusingpete]

Hi, I cannot be of much help to you, but a friend of mine recently wished to drive into Cambodia to Siem Riep.

He lives in Thailand and has a Thai licence, he bought a passport to take his car into Cambodia, but on the day

he was not allowed to take his car across the border. No real explanation given. They suggested he leave his car

on the Thai side and take a Taxi to Siem Riep, he declined this offer.

I feel that cicumstances change depending on the state of relations between Thailand and Cambodia, which can change

in a few hours.

[khwaibah]

Check these threads out. Lot of excellent info. Yes you can drive into Cambodia but you can not drive into Vietnam.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/forum/186-cambodia-travel/

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/680998-travel-to-siem-reap/

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/682125-rulesprocedures-for-driving-a-car-inotout-of-cambodia/

[phuketrichard]

check links above, i drive at least 2x /year.

There are ONLY 2 border crossings u can use form Thailand into Camboida without advance planning, Koh Kong ( down south) an Osmach ( south of Surin)

There some pretty bad roads ( the route Siem rep to Phnom Penh gets worse daily) an some great roads up north.

The Purple passport for the car is ONLY required for going into Laos

Note ur Thai insurance is not valid an you can not buy insurance ( as one can for Laos and Malaysia) So if u have an accident ur F#@ked

[rreddin]

Hi, I cannot be of much help to you, but a friend of mine recently wished to drive into Cambodia to Siem Riep.

He lives in Thailand and has a Thai licence, he bought a passport to take his car into Cambodia, but on the day

he was not allowed to take his car across the border. No real explanation given. They suggested he leave his car

on the Thai side and take a Taxi to Siem Riep, he declined this offer.

I feel that cicumstances change depending on the state of relations between Thailand and Cambodia, which can change

in a few hours.

It is very doable with proper planning. Two of my daughter's friends drove from Plymouth, Devon, to Hulaong Bay, Vietnam via amongst many other countries China, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia. For the record, they had two cars, one was 1993 Chevrolet Corvette and the other was a 1983 Rolls Royce. The Royce was sold to a hotelier in Luang Prabang. The 'vette needed a service and new back tyres when it gt to Udon Thani, but made it all the way to Hulong Bay. I believe it was driven from 'Nam to Singapore to be shipped back to the UK.

PM me and I will contact the 'vette driver if you would like.

[phuketrichard]

would love to know how they got the vette into Vietnam

[Brampton]

Many thanks for all of your replies and links, they have been very helpful.....appreciated!!

[khwaibah]

would love to know how they got the vette into Vietnam

Teeeeeeeea Money...

[Tomtomtom69]

Hi, I cannot be of much help to you, but a friend of mine recently wished to drive into Cambodia to Siem Riep.

He lives in Thailand and has a Thai licence, he bought a passport to take his car into Cambodia, but on the day

he was not allowed to take his car across the border. No real explanation given. They suggested he leave his car

on the Thai side and take a Taxi to Siem Riep, he declined this offer.

I feel that cicumstances change depending on the state of relations between Thailand and Cambodia, which can change

in a few hours.

It is very doable with proper planning. Two of my daughter's friends drove from Plymouth, Devon, to Hulaong Bay, Vietnam via amongst many other countries China, Laos, Thailand and Cambodia. For the record, they had two cars, one was 1993 Chevrolet Corvette and the other was a 1983 Rolls Royce. The Royce was sold to a hotelier in Luang Prabang. The 'vette needed a service and new back tyres when it gt to Udon Thani, but made it all the way to Hulong Bay. I believe it was driven from 'Nam to Singapore to be shipped back to the UK.

PM me and I will contact the 'vette driver if you would like.

It used to be easier to enter Vietnam, but a RHD vehicle entering in the past required prior approval and an escort for the ENTIRE time whilst driving in Vietnam - in July 2012 I observed a convoy of Thai vehicles driving north of Mui Ne with a police escort.

Since December 25, 2013 it is no longer possible to bring a RHD vehicle into Vietnam under ANY circumstances. No amount of begging, offering bribes or trying to obtain permission from official sources will help - Vietnamese law now bans all instances of temporary import of RHD vehicles, meaning Thai vehicles are excluded from entering Vietnam.

Even LHD vehicles brought in from other countries now need advance permission and an escort - there is an article from TTR weekly from November which I posted a thread about back then, do a search and you'll find it. I met a local Cambodian in Koh Kong (he is actually a Khmer Krom who was born in Vietnam) who had previously driven his Cambodian car into Thailand and Vietnam. He previously drove to Vietnam 2 times with no problems but on this latest occasion (late last year) he obtained permission from the Vietnamese consulate in Sihanoukville and tried to enter Vietnam at Ha Tien in the south. The answer was a flat out NO, so he had to turn around and go back to Koh Kong.

The single exception to driving into Vietnam exists with Lao registered vehicles it seems. I've received reports that Lao registered vehicles still don't require an escort or special permission to enter, especially if the registered driver is a Lao national. I am still awaiting confirmation about whether foreigners or Vietnamese have been able to successfully enter Vietnam with a Lao registered vehicle - in February 2012 I used the Attapeu/Bo Y crossing and was able to enter with a Lao vehicle, at the same crossing in October 2012 I was refused because no one in my party was Lao; even my Vietnamese driver's license and my Vietnamese friend didn't help.

If it's any consolation, Vietnamese cars generally can't enter other countries either. Only Laos allows Vietnamese cars to enter without special permission - Cambodia makes it very difficult and expensive and China basically flat out refuses entry to any Vietnamese registered vehicles.

[Tomtomtom69]

would love to know how they got the vette into Vietnam

Teeeeeeeea Money...

No longer possible nowadays. I tried it at Bo Y coming from Laos and still got refused despite driving a Lao vehicle (this was in 2012). The Vietnamese are very serious about the rules prohibiting RHD vehicles and nowadays they only allow Lao registered vehicles to enter without permission, but they might still make a stink if the driver of the vehicle is anything other than Lao (as they did in my case). However, different checkpoints seem to interpret rules differently. I'd say that Lao Bao would have probably been trouble free, but a small crossing like Bo Y could be problematic as they generally only see trucks entering and exiting.

In general a Lao car is a good thing to have as it allows fairly trouble free travel to neighboring countries.

[phuketrichard]

having a laos registered car is the best, you can go to China, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia an soon possible Burma and dare i say India.

A bit off topic but a great report

Enfiled Bullet from India to Rangoon!!

http://ridingtorangoon.com/blog/