Vietnam border crossing
 

Hi All,

Has anyone recently crossed into Vietnam from Laos or Cambodia with a European bike/car?

Thanks - Jen ?c?

Please search HUBB for Vietnam and you will find that it's not possible, with the exception of one small area near the S coast.

Laos Cambodia Vietnam border
 

Hello ,
On 13 November 2012 me and three friends of mine had passed Laos Vietnam in Chaio border and got 20 days into Vietnam ,and it was not possible between Cambodia nand vietnam :in 2 border Vietnam custom send us back. We are driving 4 italian registred motorbikes.No carnet de passage is required.No Vietnam license is required.
Have you a nice trip.

Laos-Vietnam crossing
 

Hi! We are in Thailand with my partner and our next stops will be Cambodia and Laos. We are glad to hear that Laos-Vietnam border crossing is possible with our own motorbikes that have European plates, so that we can add Vietnam in the itinerary. ;) Is there anything else specific we need to know? any extra payments on the border? From which check point did you cross? Thanx!

Are your motorcycles a low cc?

Thanks for the information! I actually read your border info but somehow I just realized I wrote the same question again unwittingly :innocent:

Our bikes are 650 and 800 cc. So would that be ok?

You will have to ask Vietnamese customs about that. They decide.

It has been a problem for a long-time. I was once in a group of 8 falangs riding Thai-plated scooters (115cc), and we tried a total 5 times from Cambodia&Laos, no success. BUT we came very, very close at least once, had the customs main man's permit and all, were unluckily halted & turned back on the last moment. Also our group was too big to 'fly under radar'. That was 6 years ago, but at least back then there were often rumours, that under 175cc=ok. They were false.

I do believe, that occasionally somebody makes it, it's Asia afterall, so if it's your lucky day you can do anything. Also some have arranged entry with a tour operator, at a price.

So far I've not heard of any major policy change by the Vietnamese on this. But I must admit, that lately I have not followed the situation very closely, so will be happy to get corrected, if I've missed the news.

Vietnam Laos border
 

Sorry for late!,
We had 3 big bikes Honda xr 650,Africa twin and Guzzi quota 1000.
We passed Chaio border between Laos and vietnam,driven to Hanoi and MUST leave Vietnam in same border,not possibLe change.I don't know the reason .
Enter in Vietnam no fee or money are required.No Cdp.No met any tourist bikers.
Bye bye. Robertos

Awesome news. I guess as Pecha says its hit and miss. I'll give it a go if we get that far.

Need to try this border also!
Would be great to ride in Vietnam with own bike!

hmmmm will be following this very closely and will give it a go ourselves .Brisbane2Bristol

.
Hi Roberto,

Can't find "Chaio" border between Laos and Vietnam.

Where is it? is it number 5 in the list below?

The one's I find~~~~
Vietnam - Laos

From Vietnam, travellers can cross border at these seven (7) Vietnam - Laos border crossing points.
http://www.laos-guide-999.com/image-...checkpoint.jpg

1. Tay Trang- Sobboun (Laichau, Vietnam to Pongsaly Province)
2. Nameo - Banteui (Thanh Hua to Huaphanh province)
3. Namkan - NamCan (Nge An to Xiengkhuang province)
4. Keoneua - Namphao (Hatinh to Bolikhamxai province)
5. Chalo - Napao (Guangbinh to Khammoun province),No VA
6. Lao Bao - Dansavanh (Quang Tri prov to Savannakhet prov)
7. Bo Y - Phukeua (Kon Tum prov to Attapu prov)

Vette

Your best resource for this is GT-Rider: Laos / Vietnam Border Notes | GT Rider Maps

.
.
Hi Beddhist,

OK,

vette

Vietnam Laos border
 

Hi, driving south to north on road n 13 in Laos you get Pakse (big Laos town) .
Go on till Thakhek and keep on right road n 12 till to lao-vietnam border.
Some time instead of Chaio is written Cha-Lo
If you don't will find it I can send gps point tomorrow .
Bye Roberto

Yes Vette ,number 5 in the list

Here on OpenStreetMap.
http://osm.org/go/4csL1Ab-

Laos vietnam border
 

Yes Vette ,it is n.5 in the list .
In this border I got enter but I must exit (Ended my trip) to Laos in the same border.It was not possible change,but you can try to ask again because rules are not so strong.
Happy new year. Robertos

Hi Robertos,

When you returned to Laos, did you get your visa from the border or did you arrange it somewhere in Vietnam?

-Hemuli

Hi all and greetings from Vietnam,

Update to the Vietnam border crossing what Robertos mentioned:
Laos side, Visa on Arrival is available there (I had prearranged Laos visa from Phnom Penh and then tried to get one VA from Cambodia - Laos border (which was impossible because (according to the border officials) I cannot have 2 valid visas at the same time).

Vietnam side border crossing:
Walked in to the office, first immigration went easily (no visa needed for me because I am staying less than 15 days in Vietnam).
Bike: Handed over Carnee and officials started to put information to the computer (english speaking officials). One person regretted that this process takes such a long time because it was their first motorcycle process (which is not the case, but in any case).
Took something like 15 minutes to get all things filled out (they filled all information for me) and then they asked to take the bike to the customs.

At the customs, there was around 10 people there and one of them asked if I have any illegal items in my panniers. I answered, no and quickly told what I have (did not even need to open any bag or pannier!).

After this "check" was time to take photos :) I was posing with several people and then after handshakes, I was free to ride to Vietnam :thumbup1::D

Whole process at the Vietnam side took around 30 minutes, Laos side around 15 minutes (because I was making sure that I can get visa to Laos from that border).

Both borders, several people spoke english and were really nice (I was offered coffee and tea at the Laos Customs :))

Vietnam border crossing
 

Well done Marcos

Road conditions
 

Hi Robertos & Hemuli

Congratulations - this is exciting news .. :thumbup:

Can you tell us about the road condition east from Thakhèk - Route 12 - to the Vietnam border? Is it tar-sealed .. or dirt, or a combination? What about the Vietnam side?

See, I’m 2-up, crammed with all the luggage. I don’t mind a bit of dirt + pothole dodging .. but I do know my limits! :unsure:

Thanks

Keith [& Ellen]
.

Hi Keith and Ellen,

Road #12 is in a really good condition (paved all the way).
Same thing in Vietnam side (only smaller roads from Ho Chi Minh -road seem to be potholed).

I have a friend passing soon. I will let you know how it goes for him.

Hi all,

Short update for coming back from Vietnam to Laos via same border:

Whole process on Vietnam side took around 30 minutes (guys did not know what to do with the Carnee, but after showing where to stamp things went smoothly). No problems at all, once again, many customs guys wanted to pose next to the bike.

Laos border:
Visa on Arrival is available. Really quiet border, so no waiting needed.
Things worked out really nicely. Got stamp for my carnet without any questions.

I really liked this border. No-one asked any "stamp fees". Visa on Arrival at Laos side cost me $30 (for comparison: Laos - Cambodia VA fee is $36 and Lao visa in Phnom Penh $40).
Guys at the border are really helpful. Many of them speak english and smile every time. Carnee seems to be a bit new to them, but with friendly advice I got all the stamps.
Remember: Lot of smiles and handshakes :)

Other from Vietnam:
I managed to get through my trip without any stops by police (on road #1 there are police checkpoints all the time), so I do not know what would be the feedback from them if u get stopped.

Try to avoid road #1. It´s damn busy, polluted and boring. There are also lot of police along this road.
Instead ride Ho Chi Minh highway. It´s in good condition, quiet and much more things to see there.

I am not sure how officially your bike is in Vietnam, so if you get stopped by a police, I do not know what will happen. When I arrived to the Vietnam, I got temporary import permit paper, so if police would have stopped me, I would have shown this white document.

Trying to get to Vietnam in the next month
 

This are really great news that someone managed to get to Vietnam on his own bike! Well done Marco! Inspired by these news I might try the same border crossing within next month. I'm in Cambodia at the moment, I have already finished touring Laos but because cambodia-Vietnam border crossings are rather impossible, I will go back to Laos and try my luck. Is there anyone else planning to do this crossing sometime soon?

Sylwiak, please keep us posted on your progress of accessing Nam as I am monitoring this for my future trip. This is why I subscribed to the thread.

Yes we plan to give this one a go in about 3 weeks...Thanks for the info Marko, you rock. Hope to catch up with you down the line;)

Hi,

That's really good news!! We are currently in Thailand for a visa run, but are planning to go back to Laos any time soon to do our second month in Laos.

When we saw this thread about taking our own bikes to Vietnam, we got really excited to try it as well. We'll probably try the same border crossing as mentioned here in about a month...

For all the others trying the coming weeks, please let us know how it went. We will keep you updated about our attempt as well!!

Safe travels ya'll! Maybe we'll catch up on the road :-))

Cheers,
BigTom & Cuki

I'm in Vietnam on my big F650GS!
 

Hi guys,
Just a quick update for all of you that plan to enter Vietnam soon. This border crossing really works and today I succesfully crossed it on my BMW F650GS.

As I'm a polish citizen and I cannot obtain the visa on the border like some of the nationalities, e.g. Finish, I have applied for Vietnamese visa in advance in Sihnoukville in Cambodia. The 30-day one entry visa was issued at the same day, really quickly for $60 fee.


As for the border crossing:
- lao side really quick but I had to ask them especially to stamp out my carnet de passage

- vietnamese side: little bit more tricky, I think I spent there 1-2 hours if not longer. They stamped my passport no problem but they didn't know what to do with carnet de passage. I explained them how it works and they looked and looked, they were making some phonecalls etc. One guy suggested that I should leave the bike on the border and go by bus for which of course I didn't agree and finally one friendly lady who spoke good english has sorted me out. She gave me some temporary import document for the bike and carnet de passage wasn't stamped at the end. I had to promise that I will exit at the same border crossing (they said I might not be let out on another border crossing) and I was waved off by something like 50 people wishing me good luck.

So here I am in Vingh in Vietnam, really happy to be here!

One advice: it is good to fuel up in the khaek or short after it as later on there are no petrol stations (only the bottles)

Woo hoo! Outstanding. Armed with our Vietnam visas we easily got same day in Bangkok we will give this a go in about a week:) greetings from Huay Xai, Laos & hope to meet up with you soon...

Nice work Sylwiak!

I wonder if the lady at Vietnam border was a same girl as during my crossing. She also spoke really good english :).
I had to do the same posing over there :).

Enjoy Vietnam!

-Hemuli

Hi niello8,

Already in 1 week you plan to go to Vietnam?
You are really storming through the SE Asia? :)
Maybe I will see u in KL in few weeks :D

-Hemuli

Hi Marco,
That lady was perhaps the same. She seemed to be the only one that knew what to do.
All I can say it is fantastic feeling to be in Vietnam on my own bike. It rained all day long today, I was never as dirty as today arriving at hotel, my bike change its colour from yellow to black- but who cares. I'm in Vietnam and it is wonderfull!
I had a pleasure to ride road 1 today but you were completely right about it- it is just horrible, lorries everywhere, no gaps to overtake.


Niello- I think it might take you a longer than a week to come from Hua Xai to ThaKhek. Northern Laos has many beautiful places to see and there are many nice, curvy mountain roads to pass. Not as fast as Thailand.

Greetings from Ninh Binh in Vietnam
Sylwiak

Just a thought: it might be a good idea to listen to the border staff's advice and not try to leave at another crossing. The fun may well come to an end as soon as head office finds out what is going on at this crossing. :oops2:

Yeah Laos is fantastic. So many roads & caves to explore! We may have to linger a bit...

Exactly what Im thinking bro!! After doing Vietnam on a chinese copy of a win110, I would love to get back there on a blacked out 690 in early 2014. And see local friends I met along the way

I hope everyone thats gets through obeys the lady and exits via the same border please don't wreck it for the rest of us by trying to get out else where PLEASE!!! , This could be fantastic for us!

I for one would give that special lady a large Dong for her troubles ok maybe just a big tip

Now that I look at it Im almost sure where that border road meets the HCM hi-way Vietnam there is a gas station with friendly folk and great rice wine, I pulled in for gas and left with a glow on and a full belly haha I wanna go back so bad!!!

Great news!
I'm currently riding though Vietnam on a Yamaha YBR 125 that I bought here. I'd like to ride through Cambodia as well. I'm hearing that it's hard to get across the Cambodian border with a bike from Vietnam?

Would going through this border crossing and into Cambodia and back be my best option?

I'm open to any and all suggestions! I just spent a month riding through the north.

Thanks,
Eddie

Good Morning Vietnam!!
 

We also got into Vietnam, riding a Honda XL650V Transalp from Laos, via the same crossing, the Cha Lo border gate - the one that Hemilu and Sylwiak recently went through - at the eastern end of Route 12.

Similar sort of experience for us too: totally straightforward on the Laos side, but long-winded and a little tense on the Vietnam side. We had the distinct feeling that the Vietnamese border officials really wish we hadn’t turned-up!

No carnet needed, but there was discussion of an 'International Vehicle Permit' (IVP) requirement. I was shown an example of a trucker’s IVP, which is a green-coloured log book about the same size, maybe a little bigger, than a passport. There were several trucks and buses passing through when we were there, so the English speaking lady VN border official*, probably the same person that dealt with Hemilu and Sylwiak, grabbed one of these IVPs and suggested that I really should also have one. I didn’t of course, and so the conversation moved on to the usual lightweight interrogation:'‘What’s the purpose of your visit' -'where are you going in Vietnam?' - 'do you intend to work there?' etceteras.

* @ Hemuli and Sylwiak: was the lady border official that dealt with you quite young (around 30’ish) and slim, wearing glasses, softly spoken, polite and quite competent in English? If so, then this was the same person that dealt with us.

After about an hour of uneasy to-ing and fro-ing, we were eventually granted a 15-day (only) temporary import permit for the bike .. on the strict condition we return and export within that time frame back through the same border crossing.

Today - Thursday, April-11 - is our third day in Vietnam. We are near the South China Sea coastline in the cultural city of Hué on the banks of the Perfume River (Song Huong). The temperature is a lot cooler - a good 10°C less - than anywhere else we’ve been in SE Asia. You notice the change in climate as soon as you pass over the mountain range at the border; it’s an instant drop in temperature. And yesterday we experienced our first rainfall in the region for six weeks, a real downpour. But my word, this makes for a very green country indeed. All the padi fields are full to the brim with healthy growing rice. Nothing like west of here (Laos, Thailand etc) where the fields at this time of year are all dry and mostly barren.

Glad we came - although 15 days is far too short a period to explore this enigmatic country in any great depth of course.

Sức khỏe tốt .. :thumbup1:

Keith [& Ellen]

So glad you and Ellen are enjoying Vietnam! Most of you probably heard Jeff and I went down on road 1E in Laos. We are hanging out in Thakhaek until his foot is better & if it doesnt take too too long we may still try to get into Vietnam. But yes I want to echo the earlier comment, whoever tries this lets all make sure we conform to their requirements & come back out the same border. (& no dong for the lady! dont want to get her in trouble...just some profuse gratitude) K&E hope to see you when you come back into Laos:)

Hi Keith & Ellen,

Yes, around 30, glasses, hair a bit over shoulders and good english. Really a polite person.
Good that you made it there.
Seems like they wonder now where all these bikers are coming from :D
I got through really easily, no questions asked.

-Hemuli

hi Keith1954,
I'm glad you made it to Vietnam. Thanks for mentioning that the temporary import permit for the bike is only for 15 days. I didn't know that but now after reading through it my one is expiring tomorrow...Opps I'm completely north now in Sapa and it will take me few days to get back to the border...I wonder what will that mean...
Marco did they check your temporary import permit by exit?
Sylwiak

Hi Sylwiak,

I had to give my temporary import permit back during the exit.

-Marko

Marko, did you hand back your permit to the lady border official personally, or to some other person, or simply just handed it in over the counter? See, when I went through there was some doubt, in the lady border officer's mind, that you actually returned via the Cha Lo crossing at all!

We - the lady border officer and I - had quite a discussion about all this during my entry application process on Tuesday [read: it was a bit awkward for me at the time .. :(]

just sayin'

Keith

Thanks for that Marko- so I have to change all my plans now and head back for the border as quickly as I can. And this northern mountain loop looked so nice...Strange that my visa is for 1 month and this permit only for 15 days. Anyway I will be late by 1 or 2 days so I just hope they will not fine me for that...
Sylwiak

Hi Keith,

I walked in to the the immigration/customs office which was different than on my way there (other end of the same building) and did not see this girl there.
So, I handed my temporary import permit to the guys behind the counter.
I would have liked to see the girl again and thank her about the possibility to visit their country.

I maybe should have asked her on my return to the same border...

-Marko

Thank you for clearing-up that point Marko.

I won't be hanging around in Vietnam much longer as unfortunately I don't have enough time. I expect to be going back to Laos over the Cha Lo border gate around next Sunday-14 or Monday-15.

I'll make an absolute point of handing my import/export permit back to her personally.

Moreover, if you tell me when (the exact date) you handed back your permit I'll make sure she knows about it. This should clear-up any misunderstanding she might have about the validitiy of your return.

cheers

Keith

Hi Keith,

Might be good to hand it over to her.
I crossed the border back to Laos on 24th of Feb (Same border).
If you see her, give my greetings to her and give my apologies that I missed her on my way back.

Ride safely!

-Marko

Hey everyone! Sending greetings from Thai Hoa, Vietnam;) border was very quiet & chilled out...the nice lady was sweet as pie. she made noises about some transportation department letter but it was pretty halfhearted. we got the import doc & zipped through (with the 800gs) promising to return to the same place. aaah its very beautiful here.

YAY! .. YAY! .. and thrice YAY!

well done guys ..:clap:

K&E

Hi Niello & all,
Looks like we are the next in line. :) We fetched our Vietnam visas in Pakse, but had a stop over in Thailand for the Songkran festival. We are scheduled to cross Cha Lo border on May 1st, as this is the first day on the Vietnam visa for us.
We are hoping to obtain a 30-day permit as we expect a visit from home mid May.

Sylwia, if you are still around it would be great to meet you around Thakhek within the next couple of days. Did you have any issues at the border as you obviously have been a couple of days late?

Please everyone cross fingers that we make it as well. :)
PS: You can track our SPOT GPS messages on bigtomsride.com or FB page: BigTomsRide

BigTom & CukiMoto

I think you have no problems. Just hope that this friendly girl is at the duty at that time. I think she is wondering where all these bikers are coming from :D
30-day permit might be difficult, but let us know if it´s possible.

Ride safely!

Today I crossed the cha lo border back to Laos and now I'm in ThaKhek. I was expecting to be just 1 day late but due to an unexpected incident with a cow I was 10 days later... I needed this time to bring myself and my bike back in working order :-) Anyway, my plan was if the customs start to make any noises that I'm so late, I had a certificate from hospital that I was treated there. But there was only one guy at the customs (no nice lady), I gave him my temporary import permit back, he looked through it, asked me if I could wait till 1 o'clock, I said I would prefer not to because I'm in a pain (showed him my arm with a dressing) and he said I could go. So actually exiting Vietnam was easier than entering it.

I'm pretty sure Tom that if you ask the customs for a longer time on your temporary import permit than 15 days, they would give it to you. It is worth trying, I regret I didn't do it because I wanted to see more places in Vietnam.
Good luck to you!

And please mind the vietnamese cows...my one didn't survive our meeting....

I have a feeling that in few months there will be queue of overlanders up to ThaKhek on this border crossing...

Really glad you are ok, patched up and on the mend! Better the cow bites the dust than you.

Oddly enough we were on Cat Ba island in Ha Long Bay (thank you Sylwia for the advice:) and we met a biker there who lives in Hanoi. He was riding a 450cc BMW that he had managed to import. That wasn't as weird as the SIX big bikes we passed riding through the middle of the island. There was a CBR and a Ducati in that mix...

Xxoo from Hanoi

Quick update...We exited Vietnam at Cha lo on 4/25 and as before the border was pretty quiet. Everything went smoothly, the lady was not there but the other guys knew what to do. The main building you go to is double sided so this applies to entry & exit. Go in the front, get your passport stamped then get the vehicle import white paper in the same room. after that go around the outside to the middle of the right side of the building and have the paper stamped by the guy in the small office. There are also the usual gate checks but thats it.

Bumped into Big Tom back in Laos! :)

Happy riding and greetings from Cambodia

Hi HUBB community!
First the good news: We also crossed the boarder at Cha Lo successfully on May 1st, 2013. Laos exit is super simple and easy, as usual. We arranged our Vietnam Visas in Paksé, Laos, 1 of 4 points you can obtain the Vietnam Visa in Laos.
Immigration on Vietnam side also quick and simple. As for our big bikes (BMW 1200GSA and Honda Transalp), custom first sent us to lunch as they made some phone calls. On our return, we were brought back to the same room where the passports got stamped and a lady with glasses (not speaking English) started to fill out the "temporary import forms". We were not asked for Carnets. My international motorcycle registration with many import/export stamps from Cambodia and Laos were helpful, but also the regular English registration documents from the Honda Transalp went ok.
Previous travellers received a 14 day "permit" on the import form. As we plan to stay the max duration of our Visas (30 days), I pointed that out multiple times and the correct day was written down. Yeah!
Everything went smooth until a higher ranked guy showed up and checked the documents over and over again. He stated that we miss the driver's license, which we could only obtain in Hanoi. Both of us carry the International drivers license (translation of our regular EU licenses in a grey book) with us, so we presented it to him and was fine with it in the end.
Then he suddenly made the lady change the duration of our import forms to 9 days. I explained our Vietnam itinerary to him and that we'll have a visitor from Europe and at the end he made the lady change the date back again. Huh, that was a shocking moment.

IMPORANT: We were reminded multiple times that it is MANDATORY to exit Vietnam on the same border in Cha Lo. It goes without saying that also we'll follow that order.

Nota bene: Due to a heavy truck accident 25 km down the road, we needed to get back to the border as there is the only accomodation available. We met some border officials at dinner who were delighted to see us again. One guy spoke good English and he pointed out, that it is (still) NOT officially allowed to enter Vietnam with BigBikes. A special permit from Hanoi would be required. He wanted to do us a favor and let us pass through, under the condition that we exit on the same border.

He also stated that I shall tell that to my friends!

Bottom line: The few of us, who made it from Laos to Vietnam via the Cha La border can be very grateful. Officially it is still not allowed to enter Vietnam with BigBikes without special permit from Hanoi.

We are very thankful that this opportunity is given to us and that we can explore Vietnam on our bikes!

BigTom & CukiMoto

BigTomsRide.com
FB page: BigTomsRide
FB: BigTom ADV

Hi BigTom,

Good to hear that you made it through.
Interesting also hear that officially entrance with big foreign bikes is still not allowed!
I agree, we have been really lucky to enter Vietnam with our bikes :thumbup1:
Enjoy Vietnam and keep the rubber side down.

We arrived sound and safe in Sa Pa! The last week has been amazing! Vietnam is so beautiful and we enjoy the cooler climate.
We have posted a photo story on FlickR.
Enjoy!

BigTom & CukiMoto

I'm glad that you have managed to get through and visit on your own bikes.

I'm keeping my fingers crossed that everything keeps running smoothly and that I can enter...I'll be entering from China at Muc Nam Quan Border Crossing and hoping to exit into Laos

I'll be on a 750cc with all fingers and toes crossed

Bad news, I just heard from a friend riding a Singapore registered bike. He tried to enter this same border a few days ago and they wouldn't let him in. The nice lady was there but she fetched her boss who refused. Bummer!

anyone tried this border again lately?
i'm off soon and thinking of trying to enter Vietnam on malysia 125cc. it will be registered in my name and would be nice to enter on my own bike.
thanks for any info

From the beginning of this, it was really strange, why only one border station worked, while others did not. There should be the same rules for every one of them. Putting one border back in line probably takes only one phone call from Hanoi, unfortunately.

shame that :thumbdown:

how hard is it to buy a Vietnamese bike and take it around the other countries? thai, laos cambd etc

The border gate on hwy 8 and hwy 9 from Laos to Vietnam impassable. No way. But 9 looks better. I've been asked a special permit in Lao BVao. It looks like a Carnet. Fake or original one should be useful. Some pictures of the papers here http://rubtsov-alex.livejournal.com/47181.html

Alex

Hi all, I will try this border crossing in a few months. Anybody been through lately? Seems like the success stories stopped 1 year ago - very sad about it, if its not possible anymone :(

updates of bikes xssing at Chalo border?
 

does anyone have recent reports of bikes crossing at Cha Lo border?
thanks

how did it go at border?
 

did u cross on your bike there ?thanx

No I didnt, and I havent heard of anybody crossing lately.. Sorry :(

Special Permit from Hanoi??
 

I want to take my Thai Honda Phantom into Vietnam. I have seen references about a special permit from Hanoi. Anyone ever tried to get such a permit? I thought I would drop by the Vietnamese Consulate in BKK to enquire...

cheers

vietnam permit
 

can anybody tell me where to get that permit to temporary import your bike into Vietnam? I am working on crossing border at Taytrang in the North of Laos
I do carry a carnet

Here is how the only traveller I met who succeeded, did it: gab-enroute

If I understand it correctly, he had to write a letter, undertaking to take his vehicle out of the country and get his signature certified by his embassy in Saigon. This was in 2008 and at another border, so things may pan out differently...

Crossing into Vietnam
 

Hi all
We are in Malaysia heading to Thailand and eventually Vietnam. I hear of possible routes from Laos but this seems to have been some years ago. I want to ship my bike home from Vietnam and a shipper there is happy to d9 this. But how the hell can we get into Vietnam in the first place. BMW 1200 GS

When I took my bike to Vietnam through Laos border (couple years ago), they really insisted that I need to return back through the same border.

Of course they cannot do anything if you ship it out (if it is possible), but it could make further border crossings a bit more difficult for other riders...

HI all.
For information. I crossed the border from Laos to Vietnam by road №7, on my motorcycle KTM 690. Used carnet. I do not think it's right, I just got lucky.
https://lh6.googleusercontent.com/-f...5_100612_s.jpg

Congratulations! And :welcome: to HU!

Laos to Vietnam route 7
 

Ho just got turned away at the border to Vietnam from Laos on route 7. They told me I need a permit from Ministry of transport to cross but didn't know how I would go about this. I have now sent an email to UK Vietnamese consulate for help. The Carnet is not valid in Vietnam so good look to anyone who has managed to get away with it, we had a really unhelpful guy who said no and then would even listen to me.

Update
 

I've been trying to get paperwork in place for 6 wks now. I spoke with the Vietnamese Consulate and contacted the Ministry of Transportation. Thus far i'm just chasing my tail. In the meantime, I'm just completing 1 month in Cambodia and will be heading to Laos soon.

This Vietnam restriction is very frustrating!

we are flying in, leaving bikes behind and renting there.easiest and most effective way around..gave up long time banging my head on the border red tapes... :mchappy:

Hi I've heard that recently (like this year) Vietnam has relaxed its rules about big bikes into their country, has anyone done this yet? If so how did it go and which board did you cross?

I'm going through contact the Vietnamese embassy here in NZ next week to discuss, I will post their response,

Cheers

Hi Bazza and others,

I am also very interested about self-driving in Vietnam. We plan to cross by 4x4 from China to Cambodia at the end of 2017 and it's very difficult to find reliable and up to date information on rules and reg for foreign vehicles entry in VN...

I also contacted the VN embassy in France, waiting for their response. Would be really nice to get your feedback!

And if anyone as more :clap:

Best,
Hugo

When did China have a border with Cambodia? :oops2:

Since he's asking about driving in Vietnam I'm sure he's referring to getting from China to Cambodia via Vietnam...:mchappy:

Indeed Caltow, I am talking about crossing Vietnam coming from China and getting out to Cambodia.

If anybody has information on self-driving and temporary importation of foreign vehicules in Vietnam I would be super ineterested!!

Thanks!

Is it possible to Boarder Cross / Ride into Vietnam on your own bike ?
 

Bump ..,
Question : Is it possible to Boarder Cross / Ride into Vietnam on your own bike ?


Hi Guys, just bumping this same old question - as all the info is rather old and more current questions have run stale.


2017 - There seems to be no one confirming if it is possible to ride overland into Vietnam or not ?


.., nor does there seem to be anyone confirming a successful dealing with the Vietnamese Ministry of Transport
> who Overlanders are apparently required to contact for getting the required permission for entering Vietnam with your bike (AFAIK) ?

I'd love to include Vietnam on an overland trip while visiting the other surrounding countries on my own RTW bike .

It'll be a shame to bypass Vietnam

vietnam
 

Not sure it will help you but we crossed the border into laos and back without any problem this month (bike is a Viet bike) anyway they didn't even look at the bike or taf , just paid the fees and that was it , same easy way when we came back a month later at another border .

Bumping the thread to see if there was any positive experience crossing into Vietnam with your own bike... Check around the web, GT Rider, ADV Rider etc. Not much luck finding any update.

I guess it's not possible, or might be but only for 1K$ minimum and a guide?

Still, never hurts to ask :rolleyes2:

I think there are some more recent reports on the RideAsia.net forum.


However, since Thailand having caught the CCGD (Chinese compulsory guide disease) the point is moot. With Burma, China, Thailand and Vietnam now requiring guides you can basically scrub SE Asia off any overland itinerary.


As travelHK mentions above, VN plated bikes are a different story. You can take them to Laos and Cambodia, but not China and Thailand.

I have followed a few facebook groups and a few local forums for some time and there have been a few reports about riders with foreign plated bikes that had been able to enter Vietnam without guides and permits. However these are the exceptions and not the general rule. One guy tried all 9 bordercrossings between Cambodia and Vietnam and after been denied entry on the first 8 bc on the 9th and last bc he was let in. A few other had simply sneaked in. Parked their motorbike out of sight, gone through Immigration and got their passport stamped - and then jumped on the bike and ridden in. This if of course not an advisable way to do it at all.
Also a thai woman on a thai plated bike have posted a vlog on Youtube where she entered Vietnam without any permits or paperwork done in advance and got her papers stamped at the border and was let into Vietnam without much hassle. It was the second Vietnam bordercrossings she tried to enter as she wasnt let in at the first. But it was a rare happening I think as thai plated bikes normally have exactly the same problems entering Vietnam as european/american/aussie plated bikes. This is her vlog episode when she entered Vietnam: https://youtu.be/hoMG_ZztxLo (its texted in english)

And this is a facebookgroup for overlanding Vietnam: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3135...799/?ref=share

To sum it up - its still almost impossible to enter Vietnam on a foreign plated vehicle (except on Laos and Cambodian plates) Theres reports of a very few lucky riders that have been able to enter Vietnam without permits and guides but - they are however very few and in general its not possible.

Are there any new experiences in the meantime? Has anyone recently traveled to Vietnam by motorcycle?

I was confused by the many reports and have therefore contacted the ADAC , the German automobile club. There they tell me:

"For the temporary import of a vehicle in Vietnam, you do not need any special documents. At the border you will have to fill out a Temporary Import Permit.
However, to enter Thailand, you will need an entry permit from the Department of Land and Transport."

Can anyone confirm this as it is?

I just received an email from the Vietnamese Embassy in Switzerland. They wrote "You are welcome to enter Vietnam by motocyle. You just need the visa."

I think it is therefore clear. There should be no problems with the border crossing.