Vientiane to Vang Vieng - Minibus

We booked the minibus to Vang Vieng through our hostel, Lucky Backpackers Hostel, for 90,000kip with pickup included. We picked the 10am bus with an estimated arrival time of 1pm.

We got picked up at 9.30am by a tuk tuk that was already full which had to squeeze on several more people leaving some standing on the back! We got dropped off at the minibus 15 minutes later.

The minibus is very basic and they kept filling it up with more and more people. They made sure all the aisle seats were down and used. Most of us got on the bus at 9.45 however we didn't leave for another hour until they filled the remaining 5 seats.

When we finally left the driver didn't say anything about times etc and made several stops within the first half an hour; fuel, papers, food... This left a few people making comments from the back of the bus about how many stops we were making! As you read before entering Laos, everyone is very laid back and never in a hurry. This was our first experience of this.

So after making our way through traffic jams in Vientiane, we were on our way at around 12.00. The rest of the trip was fine with a quick 15 minute stop in the middle.

We arrived at Vang Vieng bus station around 2.30pm where if you wait for 5 minutes, a free shuttle will take you into the centre of Vang Vieng.

3 out of 5 

Hanoi to Vientiane - Flight

We made the decision to fly from Hanoi to Vientiane instead of getting the bus. Our main reason for flying was it takes little under an hour whilst the bus would take 24 hours. Of course the flight cost quite a bit more but it was a nice change from long buses and trains.

We found Lao Airlines offered the cheapest flights for the day we were travelling with flights at £79 per person which included checked in luggage of 20kg. It was very simple to book online via there website and no online check is needed beforehand, simply print your e-tickets to take to the airport.

Hanoi airport is easy to reach via taxi, we paid for a taxi through our hotel which cost roughly $15 and took around 30 minutes from the old quarter. Check in at the airport didn't take long and they ask you for seat preference (aisle or window seat).

After that you go through passport and baggage control which doesn't take long. Hanoi airport has a range of small establishments to buy food, drink and duty free products. We personally found it quite expensive. They also have a lot of souvenir shops!

Boarding was swift and the plane itself offered plenty of leg room. During the flight you get a small snack box with a sandwich and carton of water for free. Try and get a window seat as some of the views are very impressive from high up!

Entering Laos you fill in a couple of forms for arrival and applying for a visa. It was straight forward and you need just one passport photo. For UK residents it cost $35, most countries seemed to be priced between $30-40. After this we picked up our backpacks and got a taxi to our hotel. If you arrive at Laos with no currency like us there are plenty of cash machines at Vientiane airport with the standard fees and rates.

Overall experience 5 out 5