Country Information
Location: Southeast Asia
Capital: Vientiane
Population: 6.8 million
Currency: Lao kip
Language: Lao
Main Religion: Buddhism
Hello: sabaidi
Thank you: khob chai
Dates in the country
End of April till end of May.
We will be storing the truck in Laos whilst we go to Melbourne between 10th – 25th May.
Climate
Laos has a tropical monsoon climate, with a pronounced rainy season from May through October, a cool dry season from November through February, and a hot dry season in March and April. Generally, monsoons occur at the same time across the country, although that time may vary significantly from one year to the next.
Public Holidays
- January 1st New year’s Day
- January 6th Pathet Lao Day
- January 20th Army day
- March 8th International women’s day
- March 22nd Day of the peoples party
- April 13th Lao new year Pi mai
- May 1st labour Day
- May 3rd Buddha’s birthday
- June 1st Children’s day
- December 2nd National Day Laos
VISA
- 30 day visa on arrival – US$35
- Passport photo
- Make sure they stamp the passport
- Always have passport on you for proof of ID
- More infomration: https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/laos/entry-requirements
Medical
Vaccines advised:
- Tetanus
- Polio
- Diphtheria
- Hepatitis A
- Typhoid
- Rabies
- Japanese Encephalitis
- Malaria: Medications advised in the whole country.
Rules of the Road
For driving in Laos, foreign visitors need to have an International driving permit and valid original driver license.
The main road traffic rules:
- Drivers of four-wheeled vehicles must be from 18 years of age
- It is forbidden for drivers to use telephones or watch television while driving.
- The permitted blood-alcohol level is 0.05%.
Additional information:
- Police officers have the right to inspect vehicle documents and driver licenses of any driver.
- In the case of an accident causing injury to a person, the injured person must be sent to a hospital and report the accident to the traffic police. Foreigner drivers who were involved in traffic accidents are barred from leaving Laos before paying compensation.
- Traffic in Laos is chaotic so foreign drivers should be very careful while driving.
- Drive on the right side
- Carnet not required but can be used to in place of a temporary import export document
Places to Visit
Route
A detailed route showing where we went overlanding and exploring. We jotted down the routes we travelled on a physical map which travelled with us from Australia to the UK, then transferred this to a digital form using Google Maps (KML and GeoRSS Layers)
These are exact appropriations, maps differ between brands and converting from paper to digital may lose some details in translation. This should still show in great detail our route.
