Slow Boat 2-Day 1-Night Chiang Rai to Luang Prabang

This is the quickest way to do the Mekong slow boat from Chiang Rai. You leave early, cross into Laos at Huay Xai the same morning and spend two days drifting downriver to Luang Prabang, with one night in the small river town of Pakbeng in between. It suits travellers who want the river journey without the extra night at the border.

On the first day a van collects you from your hotel in Chiang Rai before dawn and drives about two hours to Chiang Khong. You stamp out of Thailand, take the shuttle bus over the Friendship Bridge and stamp into Laos at Huay Xai, where the visa on arrival is issued. From there it is a short ride to the pier and onto the boat. The first day on the water takes around seven to nine hours, passing forested hills, sandbanks and small villages, and you arrive in Pakbeng in the late afternoon. The town is basically one street of guesthouses and restaurants above the pier.

The second day starts around nine in the morning and is another seven to eight hours on the river, ending at the slow boat pier just outside Luang Prabang in the late afternoon. Tuk-tuks take you into town from there.

The boat is a long wooden riverboat with simple seats and a toilet. Nobody serves meals on board, so bring food and water. This is a transport package rather than a guided tour: staff get you to the right van, through the border and onto the boat, and you look after yourself on the river.