Bus times – Siem Reap to Luang Prabang

By public bus it takes 32 hours 30 minutes to travel 1,509 km from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang via Krong Stung Treng and Pakse. The journey time includes a stop in Preah Vihear, a stop at Krong Stung Treng, the time it takes for everyone on the bus to pass through immigration, and a 2 hours 30 minute break in Pakse where you change bus.

Travel Times To Luang Prabang

There is 1 daily direct bus service from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang which you can book online.

• Transport type: The first parts of the journey are by 12 seater minivan. On arrival in Pakse passengers transfer to a sleeper bus with reclining seats and an on board WC.

Buy Tickets to Luang Prabang

Use the Search Box below to buy your tickets from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang.

Most nationalities can apply for a visa when they arrive at the border with Laos for a fee of $35 USD or 1,500 THB.

Siem Reap ATV Bus Stop

• The ATV bus stop in Siem Reap is located at Hup Quang Street Central Market 579, Krong Siem Reap, Cambodia.

Luang Prabang AVT bus stop

• Bus services from Siem Reap terminate at Luang Prabang Northern Bus Station on Highway 13.

About Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang’s old town is now listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and with the introduction of better transport links Luang Prabang has become a very popular tourist destination. Before the improvements in the road to Luang Prabang, and an increase in the number of low cost regional air links, Luang Prabang was difficult and sometimes dangerous place to get to with the intrepid few foreign tourists who made it there enduring either the slow boat or a risky journey in a fast boat.

Luang Prabang has changed as a consequence of impreovments in transport infrastructure and the town now has a range of expensive and very comfortable hotels and restaurants alongside the cheaper accommodation, and even cheaper places to eat and drink. Luang Prabang is not a ‘party town’ but it has lost a lot of the atmosphere of peacefulness that made it so popular with foreign visitors in the first place. This said, Luang Prabang is still a very special place and a must see destination in South East Asia, which pretty much explains why it is no longer such a peaceful place.

Luang Prabang used to be a regional capital and a royal city until in 1975 the Lao Prathet Communist Government decided that Laos should no longer have a king. The royal palace in Luang Prabang is now a museum of the one of the places you should go to on a visit to Luang Prabang. For the best views over the city climb Phou Si hill, which rises 150 metres above the old town of Luang Prabang, the most popular times to vosit are at sunrise or sunset.

There is no shortage of temples in Luang Prabang, there are everywhere as are the Buddhist monks who famously collect alms in the town centre every morning. Arguable the most important temple in Luang Prabang is Wat Xieng Thong. Until 1975 Wat Xieng Thong was the place where the Lao Kings would go to be crowned. Initially constructed in 1560, Wat Xieng Thong is the oldest temple in Luang Prabang and since the initial construction additional building shave been added under the patronage of the Laotian royal family including the Tripitaka library in 1880 and a drum tower in 1961. Wat Xieng Thong also contains a very old reclining Buddha which is sacred to Laotian Buddhists.

Outside of Luang Prabang popular day excursions include the Kuang Si Falls, Tat Sae Waterfalls, and Pak Ou Caves. Watch out for leeches at the waterfalls.