Non-B Trip, Vientiane, Private University

[jetsetjones]

Flew via Air Asia, DMK, Bangkok to Vientiane (Recommend flying from Swampy instead - traffic to and from Don Muang is a real pain).

 

Vientiane immigration: fill in Laos arrival/departure card on plane, fill in visa on arrival form before immigration, hand over passport and forms/card, pay $35, collect passport/Laos visa. Proceed to passport control, obtain entry stamp.

 

Paid for taxi to hotel at desk $7 although the taxi drivers who stand next to the desk may try and strong arm you for $10 as they want to be guaranteed their tip - handle as appropriate...

 

Booked into Douang Pra Seuth Hotel, 1 night (straight across from Thai consular section). 

 

Photocopied some docs (see list below) in the hotel (1000 Kip per page).

 

Queued at consulate on Tuesday, 8am. Not busy at all. Went inside, sat in the seated queue, had basic format of documents checked by (who appeared to be) a few Thai University students sitting at a table, and had to fill in their new application form. Stuck on photos (Pritt stick supplied!), proceeded to queue at application submission window, all papers were rapidly checked and acknowledged as being in order and a queue ticket for the following day was issued - done in 30 mins.

 

Booked into Mali Namphu (quite good value), 50,000 Kip on tuk tuk to the hotel, and relaxed - not much to do in Vientiane unfortunately, but a place to relax.

 

Next day, back to the consular section by tuk tuk.

 

Visa pickup is straight forward: be there before 1.30pm, numbers are called, stand in queue, pay 2000 baht,  receive passport and leave - 50,000 Kip again back to hotel. Next day,  7-10 dollars to airport by tuk tuk.

 

Submitted docs: for private University lecturer:

 

Certified Copies:
Passport, Thai exit stamp, Laos visa, Laos entry stamp, Laos departure card, degree certificate, academic transcript.

 

Certified Originals: employer invitation letter, institution ID card, various other papers all in Thai.

 

2 passport photos and 2000 baht.

 

Quite straightforward!

[mikebell]

9 hours ago, jetsetjones said:

not much to do in Vientiane unfortunately, but a place to relax.

Thinking of a tourist trip to Laos.  Which city/town do you recommend with things to do?

[BritTim]

7 hours ago, mikebell said:

Thinking of a tourist trip to Laos.  Which city/town do you recommend with things to do?

The must see place in Laos has always been the old royal capital of Luang Prabang. It was truly magical when I first visited in 1989. Mass tourism has, sadly, greatly changed its character since, but it is still well worth a visit. The good news is that transport links from Vientiane (which were very difficult in 1989) are now excellent.

 

If looking for something a little adventurous, there are old tourist routes from Luang Prabang, rarely used since the 1950s, but open again in the last decade or so,. The easiest option is a comfortable international bus to Chiang Mai (about 18 hours iirc). I believe this is now quite safe, and the roads not too atrocious. Except possibly during the dry season, you should still also be able to take a boat up the Mekong through Pak Beng and Huai Xai into Northern Thailand. That is a scenic, but not too comfortable option taking a couple of days, probably only suitable for those used to traveling rough. Some even less traveled routes are possible.

[mikebell]

Thank you Brit Tim.