Laos → Thailand · Verified 14 October 2026
Six crossings link Laos and Thailand: five Mekong Friendship Bridges, the newest opened in December 2025 between Pakxan and Bueng Kan, and the Vang Tao–Chong Mek land border near Pakse.
Search Laos to Thailand routes
Use the crossing nearest your Lao town: Vientiane to Nong Khai (1st bridge), Savannakhet to Mukdahan (2nd), Thakhek to Nakhon Phanom (3rd), Huay Xai to Chiang Khong (4th), Pakxan to Bueng Kan (5th, opened 27 December 2025), or the Vang Tao–Chong Mek land border near Pakse. On bridges 1 to 4 you cross by paid shuttle, not on foot. The Lao visa on arrival is about US$40 in cash.
| Crossing | Connects | Hours | Lao visa on arrival |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge Also written Mittaphab Bridge, Nong Khai Bridge |
Vientiane Capital → Nong Khai, Thailand | 06:00–22:00 | Yes |
| 2nd Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge Also written Savannakhet–Mukdahan Bridge |
Savannakhet → Mukdahan, Thailand | 06:00–22:00 | Yes |
| 3rd Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge Also written Thakhek–Nakhon Phanom Bridge |
Thakhek, Khammouane → Nakhon Phanom, Thailand | 06:00–22:00 | Yes |
| 4th Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge Also written Huay Xai–Chiang Khong Bridge |
Huay Xai, Bokeo → Chiang Khong, Thailand | 06:00–22:00 | Yes |
| 5th Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge Also written Paksan–Bueng Kan Bridge, Pakxan–Bueng Kan Bridge |
Ban Kluai Udom, Pakxan district, Bolikhamxay → Ban Don Yom, Khai Si subdistrict, Mueang Bueng Kan, Thailand | 06:00–22:00 | No |
| Vang Tao – Chong Mek Also written Chong Mek |
Champasak → Chong Mek, Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand | 06:00–20:00 | Yes |
Which town sits on each side, and whether the bridge is a mandatory paid shuttle. Vang Tao is a land border with no bridge, so the table above covers it.
1st Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge
2nd Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge
3rd Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge
4th Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge
5th Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge
If you do visa runs, this changes your year
How long you can stay
Crossing by land
Before you fly in
The land cap is what matters here. Vientiane to Nong Khai is one of the region's busiest visa-run crossings, and a hop over the bridge now works only twice a year. If your plan relied on repeat land entries, get a proper visa. Every confirmed change at this border is in the dated transport updates log.
Open to the public since 27 December 2025, it links Lao Route 13 directly to Thai Highway 244. It is 1,350 m long and 17.4 m wide, with two traffic lanes and a central median. The crossing runs 06:00–22:00.
There is no bridge toll during the initial phase while both countries finalise the arrangements. Thailand's Cabinet approved vehicle tolls of 50 to 500 baht in principle on 18 August 2026; they still need legal review and have no start date, and the scheduled cross-border bus will be exempt.
More bridges are planned but years off: a Mekong bridge at Luang Prabang (funded in September 2026, due around 2031), a sixth bridge between Salavan and Ubon Ratchathani, and one linking Vientiane Province with Loei. None changes how you cross today.
The cross-border bus, since 8 January 2026
The bridges, the buses and the opening hours are the same in both directions. Your visa is not, so this is the part worth reading twice.
For Vientiane to Nong Khai you do not need a through-ticket. City bus 14 runs from central Vientiane to the Lao side of the bridge. After Lao immigration, take the mandatory bridge shuttle across to Thai immigration: it was 35 baht in late 2025.
Doing it yourself can be the safer choice for onward connections: recent guidance notes that some international buses wait only around 30 minutes for passengers to clear immigration before driving on.
For the Thai side of this crossing, including the train between Nong Khai, Vientiane (Khamsavath) and Bangkok, see Thailand Transport Hub's Thailand–Laos border guide.
There are three ways from Chiang Mai or Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang. The bus takes about 20 hours from Chiang Mai and about 16 from Chiang Rai, over the 4th Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge between Chiang Khong and Huay Xai, where the Lao eVisa is reliably accepted. The slow boat takes two days down the Mekong from Huay Xai, with a compulsory night in Pakbeng. A flight takes about an hour, on a thin, seasonal schedule.
Timetables, fares, the boat pier and which one to pick are in Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang by bus, slow boat or flight.
The long-haul option on this border, usually run as an overnight sleeper. Many travellers cover the same ground more cheaply by crossing at Nong Khai and continuing separately on a Thai bus or train.
The busiest hop on this border, and the easiest place to change onto Thailand's onward network, including the overnight sleeper train to Bangkok.
Thailand's Transport Co. (BKS) launched a direct Route No. 2 service on 9 September 2026: an 80-baht, 40-seat second-class coach that calls at Udon Thani International Airport before continuing to Vientiane, one round trip a day. Departs Udon Thani Bus Terminal 1 at 09:00, the airport at 09:30, arriving Vientiane 12:00; returns from Vientiane at 14:00, the airport at 16:30, Udon Thani at 17:00. Not sold online yet; buy at the terminal.
Passes through Nong Khai on the way to northeastern Thailand's largest city, a common changeover point for onward Isaan destinations.
The long way round by road. Many travellers do only one leg this way and take the Mekong slow boat for the other, rather than the same road twice.
Several hours shorter than the Chiang Mai run, on the same road through Huay Xai.
The short final hop for travellers who took the two-day Mekong slow boat down from Luang Prabang.
The bridge shuttle isn't sold online, buy the ticket at the counter after Thai immigration, about 20 baht. Book the onward leg from Huay Xai instead, to Chiang Rai or on to Luang Prabang.
The only Laos–Thailand crossing on this list that is a plain land border rather than a river bridge.
Not sold online at the moment: no bookable seats on any of seven dates checked between 23 September and 4 November 2026, in either direction. The international bus between Savannakhet and Mukdahan still appears on the operator timetable, with departures from 08:15, so buy the ticket locally rather than online.
The crossing where the Thakhek Loop motorbike route begins on the Lao side.
Served by the cross-border bus that launched on 8 January 2026, 100 baht flat, four departures a day each way. Not sold online yet; buy at Bueng Kan Provincial Bus Terminal or in Pakxan.
Laos Bus Tickets
Written and maintained from Vientiane. The people behind this site have lived in Laos for two decades and cross these borders themselves. Routes and visa rules get rechecked whenever something changes, not on a fixed schedule that lets stale information sit for months.