By bus the journey from Vientiane to Thakhek is scheduled to take from 5 hour 30 minutes to 12 hours depending upon which service you use.
Bus Times from Vientiane to Thakhek
There are currently 4 bus services a day from Vientiane to Thakhek available to book online.
Vientiane | Thakhek | Cost | Company |
11:30 | 17:00 | $15 USD | Soutchai Travel |
13:00 | 20:00 | $13 USD | Chit Prasong |
18:00 | 06:00 | $22 USD | Soutchai Travel |
20:00 | 06:00 | $20 USD | Chit Prasong |
Buy Tickets from Vientiane to Thakhek
Use the Search Box below to buy your bus tickets from Vientiane to Thakhek.
Vientiane Bus Station
Soutchai Travel bus services to Thakhek commence with a pick from any hotel in Vientiane city centre.
Thakhek Bus Station
Bus Services from Vientiane to Thakhek terminate at Thakhek Inter Provincial Bus Station.
About Thakhek
Thakhek is the closest town to the Third Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge which is the border crossing to Nakhon Phanom in Thailand. Thai Immigation is 17.9 km by road from Thakhek Inter Provincial Bus Station so you need to take the Thai-Lao International bus service which departs frequently from this bus station throughout the day and terminates at Nakhon Phanom bus station. Travellers are not permitted to cross the bridge on foot.

With a population of around 85,000 permanent residents Thakhek is one of the larger towns in Laos. Thakhek is not a tourist oriented town, however, it does attract a steady stream of foreign holiday makers and as a consequence has a small collection of hotels, guesthouses, bars and restaurants near to the river which cater to the needs of these international visitors. Amongst the attractions in Thakhek for foreign visitors are:
- Konglor Cave: A 7 km cave with a river running through it. To access the interior of the cave you need to take a boat tour, stopping off at various points to explore rock formations on foot.
- Tham Nong Pafa Cave: Also known as Buddha Cave, is located 14.6 km by road to the North East of Thakhek Inter Provincial Bus Station.
- Tham Nang Aen Cave: Located 16.9 km by road from Thakhek Inter Provincial Bus Station.
- Thakhek Loop: A 3 to 4 day motorbike route on poorly maintained roads with foreigner friendly guesthouses to stay at on route. There are plenty of places in Thakhek which rent motorbikes to foreign visitors who come to Thakhek specifically to travel this route.