Entering Lao via the Friendship Bridge

I always enter Lao (vientaine) and most times return via the Friendship Bridge. The huge benefit is saving a lot of money flying direct from Bangkok.

If you are coming from Bangkok, you’ll need to take a flight to Udon Thani with either Air Asia, Nok Air or Thai Air

Air Asia is the cheapest if you can book in advance followed by Nok Air. Nok Air offer business style seats at an extra 700B which is well worth the extra money if you want to treat yourself.

When you arrive in Udon Thani, collect your bag and make your way outside. You will notice a row of booth style shops, the one at the end closest to you is the company that offers a mini bus service to the Friendship Bridge. It costs 150B. Sometimes you may need to wait for the next flight (normally under an hour) if there are not enough people to cover their costs.

It takes around an hour to reach the Friendship Bridge. Here you’ll find the last ATM machine. Note: There are no ATM machines in Lao that accept forign cards so make sure you have enough cash on you from here on.

You’ll need to pass Thai immigration and buy a ticket for the bus that takes you to the other side of the bridge. The bus ticket costs 15B, 20B after normal business hours. The Friendship Bridge is open between 6am to 9.30pm

The bus is normally full, double the amount of people as there are seats, this can be a pain if you have a large bag! The journey across the bridge takes 5 to 10 minutes. You will get dropped off near the Lao immigration check point. Here you must go to the tinted windows and collect a Lao Visa application form and an Immigration card. Fill these out at the near by tables and hand them back to the office clerk. Visa fee’s differ upon nationality, for UK (I think US aswell) citizens $35 (1,700B) Yes, you can pay in both currencies… US dollar and Thai Baht. You also have to pay an extra $1 if you do not have a passport sized photo, but if you have one, then pass it over with your Visa application form. You’ll need to wait 5 minutes or so then the office clerk will call you with your passport and change.

At this point you need to write your Visa number on your immigration card, you’ll find the number on the left side of your visa sticker. Head over to the immigration booth and hand over your passport and immigration card. Once you have cleared this point, you need to pay an entrance fee of 20B. Once you reach through the gate you will be welcomed by 10 or so taxi and tuk tuk drivers. Lao and Thai’s pay 40B to the city centre, however unless you are with a Lao or Thai national, you’ll need to pay between 200 to 250 for a tuk-tuk and a little more for a taxi.

The road to the city has got a lot better over the last year, with only one little stretch that is unpaved. You’ll know when you have here at you’ll feel the dust settle on your lips. The journey takes just under an hour to the city centre.

Once you have checked into your hotel, I recommend heading out for a well deserved ice cold bottle of Beer Lao, Lao’s national beer (the best beer in the world, in my opinion!)