Wind in and out of nature on dirt and sealed roads, meet minorities going about their day's work, have delicious locally sourced coffee and tea and see some epic waterfalls.
TRAVELING AROUND LAOS
Travel around Laos:
Coming into Laos from Vietnam we were really sure what to expect travel wise. Typically we try not to take any flights, except for the first one into a country, but with Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand boardering each other you can do this without any flights at all.
Buses:
We found bus travel in Laos to be significantly more expensive than in Vietnam given the condition of the buses and distance. The roads and infrastructure are not as built up as they are in some of the neighboring countries so it's good to prepare for long days of travel and give yourself plenty of time.
Expect to make many many stops on each bus journey, they will stop to pick up ladies selling sticky rice, bbq and mangos to everyone on the bus, then dropping them back off again down the road. Some bus journeys may include a voucher for lunch somewhere along the way, but regardless you will make stops for the toilet and food. It's good to come prepared if you can with some snacks and water as it's always more expensive at the bus stops. Be prepared to pay 1,000-2,000 kip to use the toilets as well. If there's one thing we learned in Laos is that they charge for everything!
Motorbikes:
We met many travelers who bought motorbikes in Laos, Vietnam or Cambodia and used them to travel around all three countries. If you are doing this make sure you get the right papers so you do not run into issues crossing the boarders. Of course you should be a fairly skilled rider as the roads are not always in the best conditions especially in the non-touristic areas.
In hindsight, this is an option we should have explored seeing as it's fairly easy to sell your bike to other travelers, but we were not prepared enough in our planning to do so.
