Laos-China railway was officially opened today

[Moses]

From south of China to Vientian via whole Laos. 160 km/h, modern trains. Now is very easy to reach Luang Prabang's historical and natural reserve area from Vientian.


https://youtu.be/e7BjOt3KEGw

[dinagam]

Three generations of the Lao people will be paying for the debt incurred as a result of the Chinese hegemony over poor neighbours.

[Moses]

Three generations of the Lao people will be paying for the debt incurred as a result of the Chinese hegemony over poor neighbours.

As per my sources present "generations" from Luang Prabang are very happy with this railway - it will bring much more tourists to area. Means it will bring more money.

[goji]

I'd be a customer if Laos would open the borders to tourists. Preferably during the sweet spot when China still has severe restrictions on returning tourists, therefore limiting their numbers.

[a447]

As per my sources present "generations" from Luang Prabang are very happy with this railway - it will bring much more tourists to area. Means it will bring more money.

And like goji, I'd also like to go to Laos, perhaps as a side-trip from Thailand.

I've been twice and although I'd probably give Vientiane a miss I'd go back to Luang Prabang.

The first time, I flew on a shakey old ATR-72 turboprop - I was sitting right next to the propeller. Had I known it was not going to be a jet aircraft I would never have flown.

Now that there's a train, it means I can go back. I just wonder why the train is so slow, as bullet trains in Japan, China and South Korea travel at 300 kph. Did the Chinese use last generation technology?

[goji]

The first time, I flew on a shakey old ATR-72 turboprop - I was sitting right next to the propeller. Had I known it was not going to be a jet aircraft I would never have flown.

I once took a domestic flight from Paakse to Vientiane, having confirmed they run "western" aircraft and was expecting an ATR. My bag was weighed on a scale with a pointer and the baggage handling system carried it out of the door on his back.
As I walked out to the plane, I realised it was a Chinese Avic. Thankfully it got us there, unlike an ATR which ended up in the river a few months later.

On an earlier trip, my journey to Liang Prabang was overland. Six hours from Viang Vieng in a minibus, on twisty mountain roads. Spectacular views. The most spectacular of all was 3 lads taking a roadside shower, presumably fed by a mountain stream. Totally naked, so some of these mountain dwellers were far less shy than the lads from the city.

[latintopxxx]

hopefully the Pattaya of yesterday will be reborn ...

[christianpfc]

I saw the construction sites in Luang Phrabang and along the road to Vientiane in 2018. Now just a gap of about 20 km is missing to connect it to Thailand rail network. But in China they use railway tracks 1435 mm, and in Thailand 1000 mm. It will be a while until you can go from Bangkok to Kunming.

[latintopxxx]

...why...??? just hop onto another train

[dinagam]

Now there is only one railway station in Vientiane at Thanaleng across the Mekong from the Nong Khai railway station where passengers from the Thai railway alight for onwards transfer by road to the city. For the time being there is no rail connection between the new Vientiane station to existing line going across the Mekong to Thailand.

[goji]

If COVID restrictions were abolished, I guess it would now be possible to go all the way from London to Bangkok by train, except for the 24km between the 2 railway stations in Vientiane.

[christianpfc]

Except for the gap from Vientiane to Thanaleng. The track width in Russia is different from Europe, so that is not an issue. It seems different widths are in different colors in the map.

11958

[vnman]

The track width in Russia is different from Europe, so that is not an issue. It seems different widths are in different colors in the map.

11958

Indeed, I saw a youtube video not too long ago about this. It was a trip from Paris up to Russia. Somewhere along the way, they changed the wheelbase of the train.

[RonanTheBarbarian]

There are few different options for long-distance train journey using this new link.

I guess if one wanted to start in the United Kingdom, the longest possible journey would be to start at the Kyle of Lochalsh station (opposite the Isle of Skye), which is the terminus of one of the Scottish Highlands rail lines, from there travel to Edinburgh, London, Moscow, Beijing, Kunming, Vientiane, Bangkok, and then down to Singapore.

I think you would be able to do such a journey with just changing trains within train stations, apart from in Vientiane, where you would have a bit of a cross-town trek. I have the Kyle of Lochalsh in my head because I remember about 10 or 15 years ago reading an account on a blog of somebody that went from the there to Singapore almost entirely by train. I think they went from over the Trans-Siberian, and on to Saigon. They had to do the Saigon to Bangkok portion by bus and then back on rail to Singapore.

At the time they were hoping to eventually be able to do the trip again when trains connected Saigon to Bangkok via Phnom Penh, and do it all by train this time.

Back then, like most other people, I suppose the blogger did not anticipate that the growing economic strength and power of China would lift to Laos up ahead of Cambodia in the intercontinental train stakes.

I am imagine that such a journey from the Kyle of Lochalsh would be slightly shorter though, then the one suggested on the posted map, going from the south of Portugal to Singapore via Moscow. I wonder how many days of travel on a train that would take you?

[gerefan2]

[SIZE=4][FONT=Garamond]

I guess if one wanted to start in the United Kingdom, the longest possible journey would be to start at the Kyle of Lochalsh station (opposite the Isle of Skye), which is the terminus of one of the Scottish Highlands rail lines, from there travel to Edinburgh, London, Moscow, Beijing, Kunming, Vientiane, Bangkok, and then down to Singapore.



Actually, you could add 100 miles to that trip by catching the train at Thurso (the most northerly station in the UK).

It would be a bit like practicing bleeding though!

[mr giggles]

I guess if one wanted to start in the United Kingdom, the longest possible journey would be to start at the Kyle of Lochalsh station (opposite the Isle of Skye), which is the terminus of one of the Scottish Highlands rail lines, from there travel to Edinburgh, London, Moscow, Beijing, Kunming, Vientiane, Bangkok, and then down to Singapore.

I think you would be able to do such a journey with just changing trains within train stations, apart from in Vientiane, where you would have a bit of a cross-town trek. I have the Kyle of Lochalsh in my head because I remember about 10 or 15 years ago reading an account on a blog of somebody that went from the there to Singapore almost entirely by train. I think they went from over the Trans-Siberian, and on to Saigon. They had to do the Saigon to Bangkok portion by bus and then back on rail to Singapore.


The English Channel might put a stick in your spokes.

[Nirish guy]

Someone’s never heard of the Channel Tunnel rail link obviously then …….

[latintopxxx]

all that giggling has jarred the few brain cells it possesed

[gerefan2]

Someone’s never heard of the Channel Tunnel rail link obviously then …….

It’s been open a quarter of a century, so well after Giggles lost his marbles!

[Uranus]

Three generations of the Lao people will be paying for the debt incurred as a result of the Chinese hegemony over poor neighbours.

This goes to prove that president Xi is nothing but an old fashioned Chinese loan shark.