To Laos From China by Road
and Water

Bus, Boat and Border crossing information

China-Laos by Road

Lao overland entry points from China are at its northern provinces (Phongsaly, Luang Namtha, Oudomxai) where the two countries share a border. However, only Mohan/Boten (Mengla in Yunnan province / Luang Namtha province) border crossing point is an international crossing where travellers can get Lao visa on arrival.

Bus from China: There are daily buses from Mengla (Kunming) to Luang Namtha, Udomxai and Vientiane and vice versa. The Kunming-Vientiane bus departs Kunming station at 5:00pm local time (1 hour ahead of Laos) and arrives at Northern Bus Station in Vientiane the next morning. Arrival time varies from 5:00 to 8:00 or 9:00am depends largely on how many goods the bus is carrying. The bus carries quite a lot of trade items and it makes several stops along the way.

The road between Kunming and Vientiane is around 1,600 km long, of which some 900 km are located in Yunnan.

The bus fare is around 400 CNY (China Yuan Renminbi) which equivalent to 600,000 KIP (Lao KIP). For information on the Lao-China route, contact the Northern Bus Station in Vientiane at (856-20) 685 5558.

Note: Chinese citizens holding the Sino-Laos Border Permit can only go to Phongsaly Province, Luang Nam Tha Province, Oudomxay Province and Bokeo Province. To go further than these province mentioned a valid passport with Lao entry visa is required.

China-Laos By Water

It is also possible to travel to Laos by boat from Kunming or Xishuangbanna, China, through the Mekong river straight South to Xieng Kok river port in Luang Namtha province.

At this stage Xieng Kok river port checkpoint does not issue Lao visa on arrival. I'd recommend you get visa for Laos from the Lao embassy beforehand if you plan to enter Laos at this checkpoint.

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