Train Service to Lao

Have one take the train to laos, or is this train also only for thais and laos people, same as the vientianne bus. or is it possible to get a laos short time visa in udon thani

wiking wrote: or is it possible to get a laos short time visa in udon thani

As far as I am aware this is not possible in Udon - but can be obtained from the Laos Embassy in Nong Khai..

Oops...sorry I am told it is Khon Kaen not Nong Khai....

Hi,
Wiking, don't know where you get the idea VT buses are only for Thais or L people. Traveled often on them, years ago my first mistake was that i forgot to tell driver, and tip him, that it could take me 10 or more mins to get through customs on the L side, early morning bus so not many people, on return piece of cake, no problems.
Cheers Doug.
By the way the cost off getting into L if you are on a U.K. passport has been 35USD for over a year now. I always like to get USD before i go as the exchange rate at border is rubbish.

because me and some other friends, have ask, where you buy the bus ticket, they told us, if you have no visa, you can not go, therefore, because it would be a lot easier for me

laphanphon wrote:...that 3000 baht cost just to set foot in vientiane is a bit much, especially for just a couple days. 1800 visa fee, 1000 re-entry visa, couple hundred misc taxi.

I am not sure if I understood all that correctly. If you are on a 30 days tourist visa in Thailand, you have to pay of course the 1800 visa fee to enter Laos... but on the way back from Laos, you also have to pay a re-entry visa into Thailand ? Or you just "carry-on" with your "old" 30 days visa ??? You wrote to me Bob on one of my other post that I would get a 15 days visa instead of my "old" 30 days yes ? I would have to pay for it ?

You do not need to pay for the 15 day (I think it is officially called "Visa Exemption") DeNuit.
Indeed, until the middle of next year a free 60 day tourist visa can be obtained from any Thai Embassy. However, obtaining a tourist visa in (for example) Vientiane is a 2 day process. First day to fill in form, hand over passport (between the hours of 10:00 and 12:00 I believe) second day to get passport back with visa attached (between 13:00 & 15:00 I think).
Visa cannot be "re-applied" unless you have a "multiple entry" visa.
LA, when he was writing was correct, the 60 day tourist visa for Thailand was 1,000 baht.
Do not worry DeNuit what you have been told (in response to your questions) is correct. The situation often changes though, so you cannot read old posts and assume that the situation is still the same.

p.s. as far as your visit to Laos I do not (personally) think the train is in any way an option. Refer back to your taxi question for a realistic response as at TODAY!!

Oky doky. Yep train going to a town out of main road did not appeal to me as a good solution for my day trip to Laos (Buddha park and Ventiane) and I will still refer to the answers on my taxi question thread for organising it

So, basically, when a tourist on a 30 days visa in Thailand go over the border into Laos : is thai visa is finished there at the bridge (with the date of departure put on it), he pays an entrance visa into Laos (about 1800 Baht), inter Laos, do his visiting, comes back to the bridge, apply there for an immediate (not two days waiting) visa into Thailand and get for free a new visa but this one is only for 15 days in Thailand yes ?

Hi,
It does not matter what visa you are on in LOS the cost for UK passport holder is 35USD. approx 1200B. for a 30 day visa, min., get USD before as exchange at border is crap. for other countries it might be more or less. Pay scale is posted in window on Lao side of F.B. The max. is 40USD and the cheapest I think is 30USD. I have been doing this run now for years and the most i have had to paid for re-entry to LOS is 100B not 1000B as some people stated. I do not know where they get these figures, Oh. forgot 35B for bus each way from NK.
I would have got a photo of charges but if you have done this run you will find details inside a darkened window and hard to photo. If you want to do a deal with a travel agent LOS side of the bridge he will do it for you for approx 2200B including photos, car etc. and wait for you Lao side to take you back. Or better still why not take a boat trip across the Mekon from NK. if you are only doing a visa run.
Cheers Doug.

DeNuit - yes that is absolutely correct.....
(except the "Tourist Visa" is for 60 continuous days. If you come to Thailand by air, from Europe, they will grant you an automatic "Visa Exemption" of 30 days when you arrive in BKK). As soon as you leave Thailand any visa is finished, irrespective of how long you have actually been in the country. If you have a valid "multiple entry" visa then the rules attached to it will apply. If you have no visa & are entering from Laos then you will get (for free, instantaneously) 15 days stay in Thailand.

Douglas, please take a "chill pill" and re-read the threads.
What has been said, at the time it was said, in the context it has been said is absolutely correct.

Hi - I was wondering about "Train Service to Lao"...???

Can anyone give an account of boarding the train in Nong Khai, getting stamped out, debarking in Lao at Thanaleng Station (I think it's called), getting a Laos visa, then transport into Vientianne?

This would be great info for me and others I know who are wondering about this option, to avoid the "bridge scene", especially during high season.

Thanks for any useful info related to this thread!

BA

Have a look here.

http://www.seat61.com/Laos.htm#Bangkok%20to%20Vientiane