Hi folks, I hope this is the right subforum. As my planned trip would begin and end in Pattaya, run through Issan and then into Laos, it was sort of hard to decide. Mods feel free to move me if I chose wrong 
So, with the new visa rules, I have to go to Vientiane to get a new ED visa for the next year instead of just getting more extensions here at Jomtien. I have pretty much decided that I really want to go ahead and ride my Airblade up to Issan and hopefully across the border into Laos. Plus, if I have my bike in Laos already, with a Laos visa and and insurance, etc. I may as well kick around and see more of the country than a few blocks near the bus station and the Thai consulate.
I think I have my route planned out, though I may change it up some as I'm getting some feedback that one stretch is a little hairy. No really simple way to route around that part though. any advice on that part would be helpful. Image is a screen grab of my current proposed route laid out on google maps. The hairy bit is where the 304 runs through the National parks a couple hundred Kilometers from Pattaya. Been told it's bad through there, but every other route around that section takes me closer to BKK than I really want to go and seems to have some unavoidable stretches on the big highway. Hoping to stay on small to medium size roads for the whole way.
Really, my biggest question is about riding back and forth across the friendship bridge. A lot of the info I am finding on the web seems a little dated. I guess the bridges were closed to bikes for a while but then the Nong Khai - Vientiane bridge was re opened later, and maybe some of the other spots were re-opened as well. Also some confusion as to whether a small bike like mine is allowed to cross, maybe have to have a truck drive it over the bridge (the height of weird SEA logic there IMO) or even just that they discourage the small bikes so there is not constant traffic going back and forth every day, but as a Falang with intent to stay over on the other side for a while it is not a big deal.
I do own the bike outright and having the proper papers is no issue. I'm hoping someone with recent experience taking a bike across the border and back can chime in. Thanks!
So, with the new visa rules, I have to go to Vientiane to get a new ED visa for the next year instead of just getting more extensions here at Jomtien. I have pretty much decided that I really want to go ahead and ride my Airblade up to Issan and hopefully across the border into Laos. Plus, if I have my bike in Laos already, with a Laos visa and and insurance, etc. I may as well kick around and see more of the country than a few blocks near the bus station and the Thai consulate.
I think I have my route planned out, though I may change it up some as I'm getting some feedback that one stretch is a little hairy. No really simple way to route around that part though. any advice on that part would be helpful. Image is a screen grab of my current proposed route laid out on google maps. The hairy bit is where the 304 runs through the National parks a couple hundred Kilometers from Pattaya. Been told it's bad through there, but every other route around that section takes me closer to BKK than I really want to go and seems to have some unavoidable stretches on the big highway. Hoping to stay on small to medium size roads for the whole way.
Really, my biggest question is about riding back and forth across the friendship bridge. A lot of the info I am finding on the web seems a little dated. I guess the bridges were closed to bikes for a while but then the Nong Khai - Vientiane bridge was re opened later, and maybe some of the other spots were re-opened as well. Also some confusion as to whether a small bike like mine is allowed to cross, maybe have to have a truck drive it over the bridge (the height of weird SEA logic there IMO) or even just that they discourage the small bikes so there is not constant traffic going back and forth every day, but as a Falang with intent to stay over on the other side for a while it is not a big deal.
I do own the bike outright and having the proper papers is no issue. I'm hoping someone with recent experience taking a bike across the border and back can chime in. Thanks!
