Changes

Arriving in Laos, the border officials ''might '' come up with any number of reasons to squeeze an extra dollar or two out of you.

A Lao visa on arrival costs about 30 US dollars, depending on which passport you carry. There is also an additional 2 US dollar fee for this service as noted on a large sign.

There is a large duty free shop with official money changer on the Lao side on the left before the customs and immigration area. The building has a sign saying it's open until 10.30pm, but it seems to close earlierthe money changing service actually closes at 6pm. There are also black market money changers on the Chinese side.

On the '''Lao side''' there are a couple of supermarkets, restaurants, and street food. Prices are in Chinese yuan and are not inflated. The Lao food seems to be cheaper than the Chinese food. A delicious bowl of noodles is 8 RMB.

If you need to sleep here there are cheap hotels for 60 to 80 from 70 Chinese yuanwith aircon, Wi-Fi, and hot water. It's very easy to haggle the price down an extra 10 RMB. There is a former casino several large hotels in various stages of completion which have all been were (semi) abandoned for a few years. It would not be hard and it was feasible to find a place in here there to camp the night for free. Some parts But there is once again lots of building going on here as of some mid-June 2017 and most of those buildings are being worked on or are housing the buildings seem workers. There seems to be used for prostitution, and perhaps gambling, etc. Try to stay safe if you decide to sleep in this area.