FR
Federico ROverall a good experience, but it’s not for everyone. For slow boat boarding, you need to be fit and have good balance — you'll walk across a wooden plank, and if it’s raining, it gets slippery. There were better and worse moments during the trip. From Chiang Rai to the border, everything was smooth and easy, though communication was lacking. After I contacted them, they told us pickup would be between 5:00 and 5:30 a.m., but the van arrived at 5:45.
Border crossing was easy but very slow. The staff always made sure you were guaranteed your next ticket and connection. Visa management felt a bit sketchy. In total, you’ll need to pay a Laos entry fee of 20 Baht and a visa on arrival, which costs either $40 USD, 1,800 Baht, or 1.2 million Kip. My advice, based on current exchange rates, is that USD is much cheaper — try to exchange in Chiang Mai or Chiang Rai the day before departing.
After the border, the next bus takes you to the pier for the slow boat. At the pier, they give you a sandwich and offer a Laos SIM card for a good deal. The boat is crowded and the chairs are horrible — but you’ll survive. After 7 hours, you land in Pak Beng. Be smart and book a room in advance; it’s a very small but nice village.
The boat on the next day is a million times better — comfy chairs, even tables, kind of like a floating train. Over two days on the river, you’ll see beautiful landscapes, though visibility can be poor when it rains. The river looks like chocolate and is full of floating plastic.
Once you arrive in Luang Prabang, you’ll cross another plank to disembark. The pier is far from the city, close to the airport, and crowded with thirsty tuktuk drivers looking for prey — they charge 50,000 Kip per person. My advice is to set up a Loca app account (Laos’ version of Uber) in advance and skip the tuktuk. A Loca ride from the pier to the city costs around 140,000 Kip.
Honestly, I think it’s way more fun than taking the train and cheaper than flying — but it’s slow and will test your patience and resilience. If you’re lucky, you’ll make friends during the trip, which is a great way to pass the time and socialize. Luang Prabang is truly beautiful.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Jun 30, 2025
RR
Robert RThe transfer was from Thailand to laos, the part in chiang rai was very good, everything was on time, except the fact that we couldn't contact the provider to ensure that everything was ok, the problems started on the laos side, they charge 40 use, if you have older notes than they don't accept them and after you can change them in a very low rate, if you pay in baht or lak kip than they charge more money, there's a two day ride in a slow boat, each for about 7-8 hours, it's owful , it's not comfortable and there's not much space, stay one night in a small village and the next day continue to luang prabang for another 8 hours, than you take a took took to the city
That journey is for the strong spirit and mind
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Jun 25, 2025
AG
Adam GFirst day on slowboat was great. The second day was a different boat with less seats which led to many people sitting on the floor. This made it hard to access the bathrooms and shop
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), May 4, 2025
HB
Hayley BEverything smooth and on time. Guys helped at border crossing and we got free sandwiches before the boat.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Apr 21, 2025
ML
Maria LOn the Thai side pretty smooth. After crossing into Laos and clearjng immigration, a lot less smooth.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Dec 12, 2024
RH
Ross HThe 2 day slow boat was a real highlight of our trip. The boat was full but what we expected.
The stay in Pak Bang was great, a small little town on the river that comes to life with the boat arrival.
Note the you need USD 40 per person to cross the boarder. We had an issue being about to withdraw lao kip. USD wasn't available at all but they only accepted USD. The tour company helped but did charge a large commission.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Dec 9, 2024
MA
Maria AVery good experience, everything came on time and felt very organized. Only thing, remember to keep your boat ticket for both days or you will have to pay again on the second boat.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, JTTT Travel (JTTT Travel), Nov 13, 2024
SW
Sam WSmooth journey with K Buddy, minibus was comfortable and better quality than many in Thailand, process was easy with their help
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Oct 20, 2024
MH
Martin HK Buddy was excellent. Good communication, and an excellent driver in a clean vehicle. He had everything in place for a smooth trip and border crossing.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), Oct 11, 2024
M
Matthew Great experience travelling on the 2 day slowboat from Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang. All connections went smoothly and there was great communication from our driver all the way through until we arrived in Luang Prabang. The company doesnt advertise that you get a free sandwich when you arrive at the slowboat on day one. A nice touch. By far the cheapest option for this trip we could find and it was as smooth and simple as possible. 100% recommend.
Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang, Bus Taxi + Bus + Song Taew + Slow Boat, K Buddy (เค บัดดี้), May 14, 2024