Traveling south to north

I%26#39;m going on a backpacker trip april 2009.

I want to see as much of Laos as possible.

I%26#39;m going to enter Laos from Cambodia in the south.

How long time will I spend going to Vientiane from the very south of Laos?

Whats the best way of travel northbound on a budget?

What cities are worth a visit on the way to the capital?

Many questions - hopefully some of you will be able to answer some of them.

Traveling south to north

If you%26#39;re entering Laos from northen Cambodia, then you%26#39;ll need a Lao visa in advance since, presently, no visa upon arrival is issued.

Well, you could actually get from Don Det or Don khon to Vientiane in one full 24 hours provided you leave in the early morning, get to Pakse and take the overnight VIP or VIP sleeper bus to Vientiane which arrives around 6pm.

BUT you%26#39;d miss quite a bit of southern and central Laos which has quite a bit to offer.

Perhaps, if you%26#39;re not in a rush, take a week to 1.5 weeks, spend a few days on Det or Khon, then visit Wat Phu just south of Chamapasak before hitting Pakse. Then from Pakse rent a motorbike and do a 4-6 day tour of the Bolavens (Tad Lao, Tad Fane/Paksong, Sekong and especially Attapeu) before returnig to Pakse to take the overnight bus to Thakhek for the Kong Lor Cave areas. This area alone is worth 3-4 days and you%26#39;re within 5 ours of VTE.

Traveling south to north

Hi - if you want to see more of laos than the standard Vientiane- VangVieng - Luang Prabang trip that most visitors seem to do, you should allow a month at least, maybe 2 weeks for the south and the same for the north. The previous poster had good recomendations but I would also stop in savannakhet for a couple of nights, between pakse and thakhek.

The ';VIP'; buses are good and run between all the main towns on your route, and are cheap (especially by norwegian standards!) - for example Vientiane-Savannakhet overnight aircon bus about $15. (The local buses are half the price and run more regularly but take twice as long).

pimple