EMS/Thailand Post - Bangkok-to-Vientiane. Road, Rail or Air?

[Barns]

Hi,

 

Does anybody have any idea if a package couriered from Bangkok to Vientiane using Thailand Post / EMS comes by road, rail, air or maybe even carrier-pigeon? I don't think EMS has its own dedicated planes like DHL so maybe they do just deliver it by road...

 

The ECO has made a decision as to my wife's visa and the tracking site says it left Bangkok at 1:30 am yesterday morning, i.e. 29.5 hours ago, but has no further updates. However, of course, this could just be a bad tracking system...

 

While I am, admittedly, being as over-eager as I'm sure most people are in this situation, I'm also interested to know since my annual business visa expires on Saturday and, instead of paying for a whole new year, I was planning to just do a border run for a month's tourist visa, but only if the visa application was successful obviously. I also live in the countryside so was hoping to combine the run into town to pick up the passport with the possible trip to the bridge for the border run.

 

I realise it's probably not a question people readily know the answer to, but thought I'd ask.

 

Thanks in advance for any help.

[wayned]

I think that it would most likely go by air as it has to enter laos at a plce that has postal customs inspection. Thai EMS will stop tracking once it leaves Thailand so if it left Bangkok on the Thai post site it  might already be in Laos but the Thai Post site will not show that.

 

Try putting the number into the Laos post tracking system, here's one https://www.aftership.com/en/courier/lao-post.  

 

 

[Barns]

Thanks a lot wayned, I would never have thought of that! I would have thought a "tracking system" would mean end-to-end on the same system rather than it having to switch tracking systems at the border...seems a very strange way of doing things to me!

 

I tried that site and, while the tracking code was recognised, it just said " Please try again later, we are awaiting tracking info from the carrier." so I guess I'll just have to wait and see.

 

I also re-checked the original tracking site and it did say it departed from Suvarnabhumi so, presumably, did go by air, unless they send out their drivers from the airport sorting depot! Doh!

 

Cheers

Edited November 3, 2016 by Barns

[Thanyaburi Mac]

Package sent via Thai EMS to Vientiane, correct?  I'll be interested if it arrives, please update later.

 

Wife Lao?

 

And, you're in Thailand.

 

FYI, what I've done in the past for sending packages to Vientiane from Bangkok area is to send them to Nong Khai post office:

 

Post Restante, Post Office Nong Khai
Tamboon Nai Muang
Ampher Muang
Jangwat Nong Khai
43000

 

There also seems to be similar at the Vientiane post office, altho I've not tried that one:

 

Poste Restante main post office
Vientiane, 
LA

[Barns]

1 hour ago, Thanyaburi Mac said:

Package sent via Thai EMS to Vientiane, correct?  I'll be interested if it arrives, please update later.

 

Wife Lao?

 

And, you're in Thailand.

 

FYI, what I've done in the past for sending packages to Vientiane from Bangkok area is to send them to Nong Khai post office:

 

Post Restante, Post Office Nong Khai
Tamboon Nai Muang
Ampher Muang
Jangwat Nong Khai
43000

 

There also seems to be similar at the Vientiane post office, altho I've not tried that one:

 

Poste Restante main post office
Vientiane, 
LA

It's my wife's passport, hopefully with the UK visa in it, coming back from Bangkok.

 

We live in Laos and she's Lao. It should hopefully be being couriered to my PO Box in Vientiane and they will then ring me to say it's arrived. That's what usually happens with registered/couriered post to my PO Box.

 

Why do you say you'd "be interested if it arrives"? It makes it sound as if it's likely not to arrive!

 

I know other packages to Laos have gone "missing" in the past, some being my own, but I presume a couriered passport is unlikely to do so. You've got me slightly worried now! :)

[Thanyaburi Mac]

You said Thai EMS "couriered," I wasn't aware that they had this service.  Thought the Thai post stuff went sort of normal, via air, truck, or rail, then humped across the bridge if not by air.  To me, couriered implies a warm bod with a bag, real special handling.

 

I've mailed letters to Laos via Thai post but not EMS, had to pay first class air postage, which made me think they might indeed, have gone by air.

 

Mac

[Barns]

2 hours ago, Thanyaburi Mac said:

You said Thai EMS "couriered," I wasn't aware that they had this service.  Thought the Thai post stuff went sort of normal, via air, truck, or rail, then humped across the bridge if not by air.  To me, couriered implies a warm bod with a bag, real special handling.

 

I've mailed letters to Laos via Thai post but not EMS, had to pay first class air postage, which made me think they might indeed, have gone by air.

 

Mac

I may have been mistaken and, having read their home page, it does seem like they offer more of an express registered postal service than a dedicated couriering service.

 

I presumed that because we had to pay for the service and there was a special, thick plastic bag for the documents etc and that we got a receipt that it was "couriering".

 

Actually, I just glanced at the receipt and it says at the top "EMS INTERNATIONAL COURIER THAILAND" so I think it is at least the equivalent of couriering, just maybe not to a home address, but to their own offices around the world.

 

As I say, the tracking service does say it left Suvarnabhumi so I think it did go by air. The trouble is, three different tracking sites still do say pretty much the same, either just "Departed Suvarnabhumi", "On Route"(sic) or "We are waiting for details from our partner". It's a good 36 hours now...

 

Oh well, this is Laos and things usually take a while so I'm not panicking yet! Probably tomorrow morning. :)