How to get from Sapa to Luang Prabang

The journey from the mountains of Sapa in Northwest Vietnam to the Buddhist and French mix of Luang Prabang in North Laos is a very scenic and interesting journey if covered over land. A lot of people think that the border crossing through the mountains is very difficult, but I wish to let you all know that it is one of the easiest and most scenic border crossings in South East Asia.  You can see more Travel Indochina Vietnam
You can get a sleeper bus from Sapa that arrives in Dien Bien Phu at around 5.30am – just in time to immediately catch another bus which leaves Dien Bien Phu to the Laos Border and then onwards to Muang Khua where a boat can be taken to Muang Ngoi, or even Luang Prabang. But if you have the time on your hands and want a more comfortable journey why not stopover in Dien Bien and have a decent night’s sleep? It’s ideal for those who aren’t fans of long bus journeys or are less keen on the idea of trying to sleep on a bus whilst it meanders down the winding roads from Sapa. Vietnam travel packages



 Sapa to Dien Bien Phu The bus from Sapa to Dien Bein Phu is 250,000 VND. It’s a mini-van. The journey is a little over 300km and can take anywhere from eight to 12 hours. Luckily my trip only took about eight hours (I’m still getting the racecar-driver-wannabes.) We had to take an unexpected stop while we waited for earthmovers to clear a landslide off the road, but we must have gotten there long after it happened as they were almost done clearing it.
 Dien Bien Phu is one of the last towns before the border to Laos. Guest houses are about $7/night and are generally rundown joints – which is okay, because the bus to Muang Khua, Laos leaves at 5:30 a.m. Don’t expect hot water, AC or soft beds. You won’t be staying long. But Dien Bien Phu was one of my most positive Vietnam experiences. I shared a room with a Chinese girl so we could cut down on costs. It ended up being 75,000 VND ($3.50) each. I went into town and found the market. Here I had a bowl of Pho – a recurring meal for me in Vietnam – for a jaw dropping $1 and listened to an old man play the flute. The lady who served me my meal kept talking to me in Vietnamese, and while I couldn’t understand a word I could tell she was friendly and enjoyed life. Actually, this is what I found of most people in the town. A stroll through the market affirmed this as nary a soul shouted at me to buy something. No “hey lady” or “you buy from me.” Aahhhh. There’s not much to see in the town besides some war museums and sites of the Indo-China war and Vietnam/American war, so after a brief Internet catch-up I went to bed by 8 p.m. and fell soundly asleep.
 BIEN PHU TO LAOS
 Buses leave Dien Bien to Muang Khua daily at 5.30am with tickets costing 115,000 dong if you purchase them directly from the bus station. You can also buy tickets from Dien Bien to Luang Prabang or Oudomxay. Travellers to all are put on the same bus until after the Laos border where those travelling to LP and Oudomxay switch buses for a longer journey. It takes around 2 hours to reach the Laos border but the journey can be shorter or longer depending on how many extra goods and people are picked up and dropped off along the way.