Vietnam/Cambodia/Thailand Border crossing

[alabou]

Hi,

My plan is to buy a bike in Hanoi and cross the country with it. Probably a 100-110 cc Honda. It will not be registered to my name but I will (should) have some papers coming with it. I hope to pay around 300$ USD. If everything is going as I wish, I will consider the bike paid for after about 45 days. I will still be in Vietnam then. I have a 3 months C1 visa in my passport (lucky me).

Since my flight back home is from Bangkok I would like to use the bike up to there. I have a lot of time to do that.

What are my chances to be allowed in Cambodia and then Thailand with this bike. No question of carnet here.

If there is a chance, I will try it but if not, I will sell the bike in Saigon for peanuts if I have to.

One question that is troubling me very much is what happen if I am allowed to get out of Vietnam but not allowed to get in Cambodia. My vietnamese visa would be obsolete, it is a single entry. Will I have to spend the rest of my life there[]. Will they let me come back in Vietnam or will I have to drop the bike in the no man's land and enter in Cambodia on my Cambodian visa?

Thanks for any thought!

Alain

 

[JimCA2]

you might be better off selling the bike in vietnam. you can buy a bike in cambodia and its no problem getting into thailand however you will be put on computer and responsible for getting the bike out with you when you leave, or else pay a good portion of what the bike was worth.
might be better off renting in cambodia then renting again in thailand, the guys in thailand would have a better idea of what happens there. leaving the bike in cambodia wouldnt be a problem however.

 

[jimoi]

I have crossed the borders several time with my VN bike and $300 is pretty low for getting a reliable bike in Hanoi. If you have any mechanical skills, I suggest getting a Minsk or Bonus in Hanoi from Cuong's Motorbike. Consider selling the bike in BKK or just leaving it to a farmer along the way or better yet, another person that wants to do the return trip, just keep the export papers from VN. Another option is to rent the bike in Hanoi and pay for the return of the bike by train to Cuong and then fly to BKK or PP and get another rental.
Safe ride

 

[oren]

Hi Alain
I'm planing to do the same rout as you ( vietnam - cambodia - thiland )
I plan to buy a minsk (I heard that it is the best for this erea )
I'm in china now and planing to cross the border to vietnam very soon , when are you starting your trip ?
I don't have any information about the paper work that needed in order to pass the borders , if you (or anyone alse ) have spesific information - I will be very hapy to get it .
cheers
oren