China to Laos overland

The Boten border has been the only international crossing point for years. Easy sealed road through there and 55km further to Luang Namtha, or there are a few basic guesthouses just past the border until the turnoff at Na Teuy.

As of July 2012 the border checkpoint at Ban Lantouy was still just for locals, but it may have opened up more recently without fanfare. See http://www.rideasia.net/motorcycle-forum/general-information/2051-phongsaly-things-see-do.html

Report back if you find any news ;-)

Hi,

I was in Laos on the road that heads to Lantouy in September (I didn't actually go to the border itself), and at least one of local told me that the border was open to foreigners. However, foreigners are very rare in that part of Laos, and I've never met anyone international who's actually crossed it. It may be open to foreigners, but if you attempt it, you'll be a bit of a guinea pig. I'm also not sure of whether visas are available here; if you want to attempt it, you'll probably increase your chances by getting a Laos visa in advance.

The Boten crossing is the main international crossing, and is very straight-forward. I'm also British, and I passed through here in September. I was charged 37 USD for the visa (2 USD more than the price ought to be...). Try and have USD for the visa if you come through here. The main road from Kunming all the way to the border is a fancy expressway that didn't look particularly bike-friendly to my eyes. Presumably some of the older roads linking the south of Yunnan to Kunming still exist, but expect a lot of hills.

Boten. Lantouy is not officially open to anyone but Lao and Chinese citizens.

The $2 "extra" fee is common, and is expected (even listed) for weekend crossings. Weekdays the $2 is not supposed to be charged, but are you can tell a man with a gun he doen't get a Beer Lao that afternoon?

Yep, agree with above posters, Boten is the go. Maybe other posters can confirm, but I got held up there for a short while until it reached 4pm, then they "officially" could charge their $2 "overtime" money. Or maybe they were just out drinking their $2 bonuses. Luang Namtha is a nice backpacker friendly little town with a nice vibe. It has ATM's if you need to withdraw a wad of Loas Kip.

make sure you pay for VOA in $'s cash only some ie swiss and russian get 15 days visa free as said after 4pm its $2 extra

Easy to cross. I've crossed this border in february 2009. I've arrived to Mongla, collect my bicycle, get an exit stamp. Make some meters by walking, cause a soldier say that forbidden to ride by bicycle. After 100 meters when he lost in view I sat in paddle and start cycling to Laos immigration post. Small wooden buliding. I get a stamp after 20 minutes, because a big line of chinese workers every morning.

Not sure if Lanteuy has opened to foreigners yet or not, so if an official in that region said yes, then likely it did open recently "without much fanfare" as has already been mentioned.

A number of sources suggest that this crossing is already open or will open soon: Lonely Planet's Laos guidebook suggested sometime in 2012 based on a rumor, while a Lao map of Indochina I saw in Luang Prabang shows the Lanteuy crossing being designated as an international crossing alongside Boten. The map was only in Lao (which I can read) and so the best way of knowing whether it's open or not is to see if you can cross (best with a visa for both sides, unless you don't need one like in the case of Swiss, Russian, Luxembourg, Japanese and ASEAN nationals entering Laos for example). It would be best to do this with your own transport and if you are already travelling in the area as otherwise it's a long trip back down to Boten (on the Lao side) but if coming from Jiangcheng in Yunnan you could make a stop in between Pu'er and Yuanyang.