LD
Lea DMy booking said that I'm going to be dropped off in nong Khiaw. However I got dropped off at muang xai, without knowing where to go. They only told me to go to the bus station and get a bus to nong khiaw. There was no bus, so I had to go to another city, pak mong, instead and had to get a tuktuk from there. There was no help provided, I had to organise the whole trip alone and also had to pay extra up to 25€ on my own account.
Please clarify where you are dropping people off, so they now beforehand and can organise, also a bit of help from the driver would have been appreciated. As he didn't seem to care at all.
De Hanoï à Nong Khiaw, Bus VIP Cabin 20 + Minivan, Laos Easy Go Travel, 16 juin 2026
A
Adriana I booked a trip from Hanoi to Nong Khiaw and it was honestly a nightmare. The communication and service was really bad. I had to ask what platform the bus is departing from and which company because even one hour before departure I had no information except for "My Dinh" which was on the ticket. The night bus to Dien Bien Phu war perfectly fine, no complaints there. When we arrived in the morning, someone came to the bus and told us to follow to go to Lao. I had to trust that this was intended as I again had no further information about the driver next bus company. I confirmed it via text during the ride. So I was on board this little van to the Vietnamese-Lao border for about one hour. We arrived at 9.30 in the morning. For some reason - nobody explained it to us - the bus was pulled out for inspection and was not allowed to pass the border. We ended up waiting for 3.5 hours until another bus came. At this point I was the only one who was not Vietnamese or from Laos and no body spoke English. I tried to get information from the company, but they didn't tell me anything except that it takes a long time because of the amount of vehicles. There was literally nobody leaving Vietnam that day until the next bus came 3.5h later except for some solo travelers on bikes. I knew they were lying to me, but there was nothing I could do. I also informed them that I would not be able to contact them once I enter Laos as I didn't have a SIM card yet. After about 4 hours at the border we were able to enter Laos. The were then on the road for 5 more hours, finally reaching Muang Xay. I luckily found another passenger who gave me a hotspot so I could call the company. They informed me I would have to stay overnight and ignored me saying that I have a hotel and tour booked in Nong Khiew. Somebody brought me to a hotel. At this point we hadn't stopped anywhere where I could exchange currency or got to an ATM. So it was almost 7pm and I had not eaten any meals (just some snacks), was now in the middle or nowhere with no money, food or water. They didn't care, they just told me "we got you a hotel room". (The room was okay. It was a private room with bathroom, so no complaint there.)
I was told by the company that I would be picked up by the driver at 8am the next morning and sat waiting in the hotel lobby for more than one hour. The bus station was only 5min walking, but as I needed someone to speak Lao language and buy my ticket, I couldn't just go on my own. While waiting I called the bus company and they told me he was on his way. At around 9am they suddenly told me he would pick me up at 11. Three hours later than what they had told me before - and I had already checked out of my room.
Luckily he did arrive earlier than that and arranged for me to go to Pak Mong. (They told me at the station next bus going to Nong Khiaw would leave at 5pm.) Using the station wifi I asked the company what I should do and they said they would arrange for someone to pick me up to go to Nong Khiew if I get to Pak Mong. The driver paid my ticket and I got on the van. Luckily there was some other tourists that changed 5 USD to Kip for me so I could get some food and use the toilet. The ride to Pak Mong in the van was comfortable, but we already left with half an hour delay, so it was later than expected that we arrived. Now in Pak Mong nobody spoke English and nobody had Wifi. The drivers there offered to take me to Nong Khiew for 200000 Kip but I didn't want to pay for the ticket double so I tried to show them my ticket and ask for internet. One of the drivers at the station called someone else who spoke English. I explained the situation to her and she called to my company and the driver took me to Nong Khiew on the back of his truck. It was a very bumpy ride on dusty dirt roads with plenty of stops on the way where he bought stuff. I arrived to Nong Khiew around 2.30pm - so 21.5h hours later than planned and mostly due to my own initiative. If I had know how unhelpful the company was I would have not booked the ticket with them, but just bought the sleeper bus and arranged from there. Then at least I wouldn't have been to dependend on them the whole time. It was really just 2 days of hell.
De Hanoï à Nong Khiaw, Bus VIP Cabin 20 + Minivan + Train, Laos Easy Go Travel, 3 févr. 2026
KK
Katarina KThe sleeper bus was good, you get your own pod. It's very cold and bumpy, so take a hoodie and some anti sickness pills if needed. The van drivers were nice but spoke little english, most of the time you have no idea what is going on or what vehicle you are supposed to be on, but they delivered us to our hostel so all good in the end. Very long and bumpy ride.
De Hanoï à Nong Khiaw, Bus VIP 20 + Van, Sapa Discovery Travel, 14 juin 2025
