Hanoi to Bangkok via Laos: 10–14 days by air and rail

Eight hotel nights and a night train, with the long journeys kept separate

The ten-day outline has eight hotel nights and one night on a train. Hanoi’s evening departure leaves two full Luang Prabang days. For day 6, the C95 option below reaches Vientiane before noon on its operating days; choose a start date that fits it. Day 7 ends at Khamsavath station for the through train to Bangkok.

For twelve days, keep Hanoi 2 and Luang Prabang 3, increase Vientiane to 2 and Bangkok to 3: ten hotel nights plus the train night. For fourteen days, add one further Hanoi night and one further Luang Prabang night: Hanoi 3, Luang Prabang 4, Vientiane 2 and Bangkok 3, twelve hotel nights plus the train night. These additions leave the same sequence of cities.

Route advice, read on 16 October 2026: UK FCDO advises against all but essential travel to Xaisomboun. Germany’s Federal Foreign Office advises avoiding trips into Bokeo and Sainyabuli provinces and trips that lead near the Cambodian border strip. France Diplomatie advises against the Myanmar-border area except for compelling reasons. This route avoids those areas and uses Hanoi–Luang Prabang by air. It also stays outside this site’s excluded Thai southern provinces, Myanmar-border areas and the 50 km Cambodia-border strip; it includes no Thailand–Malaysia or Thailand–Cambodia land crossing. Read your own government’s advice and insurance terms before booking.

• Day 1: arrive in Hanoi, settle into the Old Quarter and walk beside Hoan Kiem. Hanoi night 1.
• Day 2: Temple of Literature, then the guild streets and a bun cha lunch. Hanoi night 2.
• Day 3: a final Hanoi morning, then Noi Bai for Lao Airlines’ direct evening flight to LPQ. Luang Prabang night 1.
• Day 4: Wat Xieng Thong, Manda de Laos tasting lunch, the National Museum and Phousi. Luang Prabang night 2.
• Day 5: Tiger Trail’s Pak Ou and Kuang Si excursion, returning to town for dinner. Luang Prabang night 3.
• Day 6: road transfer to Luang Prabang station, the booked LCR service to Vientiane and a separate ride to Ban Mixay. C95 is the named before-noon arrival option on its operating days. Use the afternoon for the old-city temple pair and riverfront. Vientiane night 1.
• Day 7: check out and spend the day in Vientiane: COPE, Patuxai and That Luang. In the evening, take a LOCA or hotel-arranged ride from central Vientiane to Khamsavath station for SRT Rapid 134 to Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal; TAT describes it as an evening departure. Night 7 is on the train.
• Day 8: TAT describes the Rapid 134 arrival as the next morning. Transfer to Banglamphu, rest and have dinner. Bangkok night 1.
• Day 9: Grand Palace and Wat Pho, with a Chao Phraya boat ride if the dated service fits. Bangkok night 2.
• Day 10: breakfast, an unbooked city morning if the flight allows, then the separately booked departure-airport transfer.

Hanoi, then the direct evening flight

Use Hoan Kiem Lake as the start of the walk: residents gather for exercise early, and the streets north of the lake lead into the Old Quarter. Vietnam Tourism points to Hang Bac for silver, Hang Ma for religious goods and decorations, Hang Gai for silk and Lan Ong for traditional medicine. Their different shopfronts make a better introduction than trying to visit every named street. On weekend evenings, the lake-side road closures and Hang Dao night market change the atmosphere.

The Temple of Literature gives day 2 a quieter centre. Vietnam Tourism dates its construction to 1070 and describes it as Hanoi’s first university from 1076, with records of successful scholars. Its official site listed daily 08:00–17:00 and standard adult admission VND70,000, checked on 3 October 2026. Pair the visit with lunch, then return to the Old Quarter instead of adding a distant day trip. Use Hanoi guide: Old Quarter, temples, street food and stays for longer city options.

Noi Bai (HAN) uses Terminal 2 for international flights. The airport lists bus 86 linking Hanoi Railway Station with the airport at VND50,000 per trip. Vietnam Tourism describes the centre–airport journey as about an hour. Get the outbound boarding stop and departure from the bus service before relying on it for the evening flight. Budget separately for the outbound airport ride.

Lao Airlines QV314, in its 25 October 2026–27 March 2027 timetable, flies HAN–LPQ 19:15–20:25 on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, and 18:50–20:00 on Wednesday, Friday and Sunday: 1 hour 10 minutes on each listed service. Book directly with Lao Airlines. The one-way airfare needs a dated airline quote; round-trip offers are not a one-way price.

At Luang Prabang International Airport (LPQ), Tourism Luang Prabang places the taxi ticket counter by the exit and the town 4 km away. It lists LAK50,000 per group, checked on 15 October 2026; buy for your exact hotel and party at the counter. LOCA is another app-booked pickup option. The published airport distance is the useful planning measure; there is no operator journey-time promise.

Two full days among Luang Prabang’s roofs, rivers and caves

Choose the peninsula, around Ban Vat Nong or the National Museum end, for returning to the same room between visits. Villa Chitdara’s Superior double is the room used in the cost model. Three nights here give you one town day and one excursion day after the late flight arrival; Luang Prabang: four nights, temples, Kuang Si and Pak Ou supplies the slower extension.

At Wat Xieng Thong, look at the low sweeping roof and the glass-tile murals before moving back towards the former Royal Palace. The National Museum combines Lao and French architecture, with Ho Pha Bang in the grounds and a royal car garage whose collection includes a Lincoln Continental, Edsel and Citroën. Phousi supplies the contrasting view: roofs and the Mekong from a sacred hilltop.

Tourism Luang Prabang’s listings, checked on 15 October 2026, give foreign-visitor admission of LAK30,000 at Wat Xieng Thong, which opens 06:00–18:00 daily. The National Museum lists LAK60,000 for foreign visitors and opens 08:00–11:30 and 13:30–16:00, with ticket counters closing 11:00 and 15:30; it closes for cleaning on Thursday at the end of every month. Phousi lists LAK30,000 for foreign visitors and 06:00–18:00, subject to seasonal changes. Cover shoulders and knees at religious sites and leave alcohol out of the hilltop visit.

Tiger Trail’s POKS-1 gives Pak Ou and Kuang Si one clear day. Its programme uses a 40-minute minivan drive to Pak Ou village, then a small boat across the Mekong to the lower and upper caves filled with Buddha images. After crossing back, the drive towards Kuang Si takes 1 hour 30 minutes, with a Whiskey Village stop. Forest, cascades, pools and the bear sanctuary form the afternoon; the operator returns to town in the late afternoon. The upper cave has a longer stair climb, so discuss reduced mobility with the operator before booking.

The operator listed daily join-in departures from US$121 per person, starting at two people, checked on 15 October 2026. Lunch, water, guide, ground transport, boat, admissions, taxes and licence are included; its 3% card fee makes the two-person price US$249.26. Book the date and join-in option on Tiger Trail’s own page and arrange the exact morning meeting there. Follow your guide on boat conditions and local swimming signs at the waterfall.

For optional Sai Bat observation before departure or on an extra morning, Tourism Luang Prabang gives approximately 06:00–07:00 in November–February, and 05:30–06:30 in March–October. Remain silent and at least 5 metres away, and participate only with understanding and respect. The morning is still a religious practice when visitors are watching.

LCR south to Vientiane, with a road ride at each end

Tourism Luang Prabang places Luang Prabang railway station in Phik village, about 15 km or 30 minutes from town. Arrange the transfer from your peninsula hotel to that station, separately from the train. The pickup fare is additional.

LCR Ticket is the Laos–China Railway company’s official booking app. It provides train searches, reservations, online payment, changes and refunds. Download the app published by Laos-China Railway Company Limited. Search Luang Prabang → Vientiane. Lao News Agency’s 28 September 2026 report identifies southbound C95, stopping at Luang Prabang and arriving at Vientiane at 11:47, on Tuesday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday. Match day 6 to an operating day; for example, a Thursday start puts day 6 on Tuesday. Lao News Agency does not publish C95’s Luang Prabang departure time, fare, booking window or station-arrival instructions; LCR Ticket shows them when you book, so set the pickup after booking.

The LCR Vientiane station is in Xaythany district, according to Lao News Agency. It is not Khamsavath railway station. Book LOCA or a hotel-arranged ride from the LCR station to your Ban Mixay address; confirm the ride’s time and fare when you book.

After checking in, pair Wat Si Saket with Ho Phra Keo if the arrival permits. The former preserves painted Jataka narratives; the latter is a former royal shrine that became a museum of Buddhist sculpture and artefacts. Use Vientiane travel guide: two nights, temples and the Mekong for a second city day. Current tickets and visiting hours for these two interiors are outside the priced model.

COPE Visitor Centre, in the Centre for Medical Rehabilitation grounds on Khouvieng Road, explains unexploded ordnance and the rehabilitation work supporting people with mobility-related disabilities. Admission is free; it opens daily at 08:30, checked on 15 October 2026, so make it the morning stop. Its stories give practical context to one country-wide precaution: stay on established paths and never touch unfamiliar metal objects.

Patuxai, the capital’s large triumphal arch, and That Luang, the angular stupa within a high-walled cloister, change the scale after the temple museums. ASEAN’s tourism portal dates That Luang to 1566 and describes it as a national symbol. See Patuxai from outside and give That Luang the time left before the evening train on day 7; their local car and any That Luang admission are additional.

Entry forms and the Khamsavath train

Use Vietnam entry rules: 45 days visa-free, e-visa, passport, arrival card for your Hanoi arrival and departure documents, and Laos entry: eVisa, arrival forms and the right checkpoint for LPQ entry. Match each booking to the entry category in the relevant country guide.

For eligible ordinary-passport holders, the Lao eVisa gives one entry and a stay of up to 30 days. Apply through laoevisa.gov.la. The UK FCDO advises applying at least five days in advance. Normal processing is three working days after a complete application and payment, and it can take longer. The approval letter is valid for entry for a maximum of 60 days after you receive it. Print it and travel with the same passport used in the application, with more than 180 days remaining on arrival. At LPQ, enter the dedicated eVisa lane and present your passport and approval letter to the immigration officer. The portal’s nationality calculator gives the visa fee excluding bank charges.

Complete the Lao Digital Immigration Form within three days before arrival and again within three days before departure when using Wattay, Luang Prabang or Pakse international airport, or Friendship Bridge I. For this route, that covers the LPQ arrival. The sources name the form only for those four checkpoints and publish no railway immigration steps at Khamsavath, so they give no exit-form step for the train. Use immigration.gov.la and retain the registration QR code.

Friendship Bridge I is the Vientiane–Nong Khai road crossing named on the Lao eVisa checkpoint list. No official bus or shuttle service over Friendship Bridge I is documented, so this route does not use it and names no booking channel for a road leg. Book the Khamsavath train described in the last paragraph of this section instead.

For Thailand, use Thailand entry requirements: visa exemption, TDAC and customs to match your passport to an exemption or visa valid for the rail arrival. Submit the free Thailand Digital Arrival Card at tdac.immigration.go.th within three days before arrival, including the arrival date; a new card is needed for each entry. Rapid 134 leaves Khamsavath on the evening of day 7, so for this route the arrival date is day 7, not the day 8 morning when the train reaches Bangkok; submit the card on day 5 or later, before that departure. Use the country entry guide for the visa and documents to carry with the arrival-card submission.

Khamsavath is the station for the crossing. TAT’s launch announcement identifies SRT Rapid 134 from Khamsavath to Krung Thep Aphiwat: Rapid 133 leaves Bangkok in the evening and reaches Vientiane the next morning, and Rapid 134 runs the other way. The train carries 30 second-class air-conditioned sleeper seats, 64 second-class air-conditioned seats and 152 third-class fan seats. Book through D-Ticket, its app or SRT station booths, up to 180 days ahead. SRT’s D-Ticket page lists hotline 1690. Khamsavath is not the LCR Vientiane station in Xaythany; book the evening ride to it with LOCA or a hotel-arranged ride, as for the LCR station. SRT does not publish the Rapid 134 departure and arrival times or the fare in the sources cited here, and D-Ticket shows them when you book.

The night train and Bangkok’s royal city

Rapid 134 replaces the earlier Nong Khai overnight, so this route spends no night in Nong Khai; the Isaan guide below covers it for a longer stay. After the evening departure from Khamsavath, you sleep on the train and arrive in Bangkok the next morning, as TAT describes it. Pack a small bag for the night and keep passports and the printed or saved ticket to hand.

Choose the class on D-Ticket when you book: sleeper seats are the smaller group, with 30 seats in the second-class air-conditioned sleeper carriage. Isaan: Khon Kaen, Udon Thani, Nong Khai and the Mekong describes the northeastern stops this route skips.

For day 7, book Rapid 134 on SRT D-Ticket: search Vientiane (Khamsavath) → Krung Thep Aphiwat Central Terminal. Book the evening ride from central Vientiane to Khamsavath with LOCA or a hotel-arranged ride once D-Ticket shows the departure; its fare and time are not published in the sources. Ask your hotel to arrange the Bangkok station-to-Banglamphu ride; neither ride is in the published subtotal.

In Banglamphu, Lamphu Tree House, at 155 Wan Chat Bridge, Prachatipatai Road, is the Bangkok room used below. Day 8 is for arrival, rest and dinner. On day 9, start at the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaew, whose highlights include Ramayana murals and gatekeeping giants. The royal complex dates from 1782. Continue to Wat Pho, where the 46-metre reclining Buddha, gilded Buddha images and the Epigraphic Archives reward a slower visit.

Bangkok temple prices, checked on 13 October 2026: foreign admission to the Grand Palace is THB500, including Wat Phra Kaew and the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles; the palace opens 08:30–16:30, with ticket sales 08:30–15:30. Wat Pho lists 08:00–19:30 and THB300, with children under 120 cm free. Dress for temple entry and use the palace calendar for ceremonial closures.

For a river view, Chao Phraya Express Boat links the city’s piers. Its tariff effective 6 October 2026 lists the orange service at THB19 and the yellow service at THB24; the weekday orange line runs Nonthaburi–Wat Rajsingkorn. Sathorn Pier connects with Saphan Taksin; Tha Chang (N9) is the palace approach. Use the operator’s dated pier timetable for the chosen day; special royal-barge arrangements can change the service. Boat tickets are additional to this model.

Finish with Bangkok: where to stay, river temples, markets and day trips for a longer stay. For the day 10 flight, Thailand Taxis, operated by Smile Taxi Service, lists a Bangkok-city sedan transfer to Suvarnabhumi (BKK) or Don Mueang (DMK) at THB600 per car one way, tolls included and cash payable on completion, checked on 13 October 2026. Its driving estimates are 30–60 minutes to BKK and 30–50 minutes to DMK, before check-in and airport procedures. Book the airport printed on your flight ticket.

Meals that belong to the journey

In Hanoi, make bun cha a lunch rather than a rushed snack before the airport. In Luang Prabang, the day 4 tasting lunch and three shared dinners put different Lao flavours into the stay; dinner in Vientiane can be a simple shared stew and banana-leaf fish. Bangkok’s arrival evening needs an easy meal close to the room, with the longer food outing on the following day.

The food box below names five local dishes at businesses on this route. Restaurant dishes and tours are separate choices: the cost model prices the named tasting lunch and sets, while a Thipsamai meal is an extra choice. Tell the kitchen about allergies and dietary restrictions; fish sauce, fish, meat, egg and peanuts can appear in sauces as well as in the main ingredients.

Published costs for two, with every missing part visible

Model checked on 16 October 2026: two adults sharing private double or twin rooms for the ten-day route above, with eight hotel nights and one night on the train. These are advertised prices assembled into a partial cost model. Six of the eight hotel nights are priced: Luang Prabang 3 at Villa Chitdara’s “from” rate in US$, Bangkok 2 in THB and Vientiane 1 as a bare “$” quote on its own line. Hanoi 2 has no published rate and is left out of the subtotal; the Rapid 134 fare is not priced.

Hanoi, nights 1–2: Hanoi Little Town’s Superior Double or Twin at 77 Hang Luoc Street has a private bathroom and air conditioning; the hotel does not publish a room rate, so ask when booking. These two room nights are left out of the subtotal. Night 7 is on Rapid 134, and is not priced here.

Luang Prabang, nights 3–5: Villa Chitdara’s rate listing shows its high-season Superior room from US$72 per night for 1 October–30 April, including 10% government tax, 7% service charge and daily breakfast: 3 × US$72 = US$216, from that rate. Vientiane, night 6: Chanthapanya, at 138 Norkeokoummarn Road, Ban Mixay, lists its Superior King/Twin at $50/Night: one night $50, kept on its own line as printed and not added to the US$ subtotal.

Bangkok, nights 8–9: Lamphu Tree House Standard Main Building room for two, THB1,450 per room-night, including breakfast for two and tax: 2 × THB1,450 = THB2,900.

Luang Prabang excursion and admissions: Tiger Trail join-in for two US$242 + 3% card fee = US$249.26, with the day 5 lunch and tour admissions included. Day 4 Wat Xieng Thong, National Museum and Phousi tickets: 2 × (LAK30,000 + LAK60,000 + LAK30,000) = LAK240,000. The arrival airport taxi reference adds LAK50,000 per group.

Specified Lao meals: Manda de Laos day 4 online-preorder tasting lunch 2 × US$36 = US$72; the restaurant’s own menu identifies this currency as USD. Three Tamarind sets serving two cover the three Luang Prabang dinners: Farmer’s LAK450,000 + Set Dinner LAK580,000 + Lao Cuisine Explorer LAK750,000 = LAK1,780,000. Khop Chai Deu’s Vientiane menu lists beef or lam LAK46,000 and banana-leaf fish LAK41,000, plus 10% VAT: LAK95,700 for those two dishes, before rice and drinks.

Specified Thai costs: palace and Wat Pho for two 2 × (THB500 + THB300) = THB1,600. Samsen Street Hotel’s restaurant at 66 Soi Woraphong lists a THB230 Quick Lunch, daily 11:00–15:00, with a main, soft drinks and coffee, and THB280 pasta-and-salad dinner sets: two day 9 lunches THB460 and four dinner portions on days 8–9 THB1,120. The final airport car adds THB600.

Priced subtotals for two, by currency: US$537.26; $50 (Vientiane room, currency not stated); LAK2,165,700; THB6,680. Calculation: US$249.26 + US$72 + US$216; $50; LAK240,000 + LAK50,000 + LAK1,780,000 + LAK95,700; THB2,900 + THB1,600 + THB460 + THB1,120 + THB600. This is not the full trip price.

Not included: the two Hanoi room nights, HAN–LPQ flight, LCR and SRT Rapid 134 tickets, the rides to Khamsavath and from Bangkok’s station, all other airport/station/sightseeing rides, Bangkok riverboats, visa costs, insurance and any hotel or restaurant charges beyond the stated inclusions. Meals outside the listed hotel breakfasts, tasting lunch, excursion lunch, three Luang Prabang dinners, one Vientiane dinner and specified Bangkok lunch/dinners are also additional, as are extra drinks, snacks, tips and shopping.