Getting from Muang Sing to Huay Xai

There is a boat option, but it is sporadic, and it may take a day or two to get it organized. We met 3 people in Huay Xai who had waited two days for a boat, and were still waiting. They didn't like the price at all, and were learning that there really is very little bargaining with speedboat prices. It is a 4-6 person speedboat; no slow boats. Most take the bus.

Expect about $120-150 US to boat down the Mekong from Xieng Kok. There should be enough water still in December (there was last year).

A couple hours to Luang Namtha and probably four now to Huay Xai. Reported times always getting faster as the road to Huay Xai gets closer to completion. You would need to be very lucky to do it in a day, bus from sing would need to get to namtha before other bus leaves . I expect more traffic as people begin to realize they no longer need to take the slow cattle boat.

Bus timetables 9 months ago

re fast boat. It's usually a full half a dayby bus to Xiengkok on the Mekong. I thought 4 people was the allowable limit on that section of river? I paid 1200 baht (about $35) but there were others for the first little while whom we dropped off on the way. It sounds like the 3 people in #1 bargained the wrong way for Laos. There must have been a boat as they didn't like the price. No matter how many boats there are you get the next one in line, so be real nice to the pilot. Pushiness earns double pricing. I still think I owe that boat pilot guy some money. I blogged about my trip here.

In a speedboat, we were told it was 4 people maximum up-river, and 6 people max down.

Also, correction to post#1: 3 people were in Xieng Kok looking to get to Huay Xai, not in Huay Xai.

When I checked the first trip to LNT from Muang Sing was at 08.00. Trip time is just under 2 hours, so you are most likely to miss the morning bus to Huay Xai, scheduled at 09.30. However there was a second bus to Huay Xai on the schedule departing LNT at 14.00. Cost was still at 65'000.

To Xieng Kok there were departures at 10.00 and 11.30 (later ones go only to Muang Long), but include some more waiting time if not enough passengers around. About 4 hours drive.
Asking for the speedboat the price I was qouted (by boat driver and by some people I chatted with in the market) 3500 baht per boat, albeit shared was qouted 500-750 baht for 6 or 4 passengers, adding up to 3000 baht in total.

There aren't lots of people queing up for that speed boat in Xieng Kok, so if you want to go there fast you most likely will have to charter the entire boat. Or wait and stay overnight maybe.
In this sense going via LNT is more advisable, if that 14.00hrs bus trip exists you will make it in one day for sure, if not you will have to spent one night in LNT.

Best to check in LNT bus schedule at bus station before going to Muang Sing. I assume you will be coming from Uodom Xai; to get to Muang Sing you will take the bus to LNT anyway and it makes little sense to get off at the intersection off to Muang Sing and hop on the pick-up there as this intersection is right at the edge of LNT itself. Beter go all the way to the bus station, a mere 10 minutes away from said intersection, double check the schedule for LNT-Huay Xay and get a seat in the pick-up to Muang Sing.
Laeving Oudom Xai with first trip at 08.30 to LNT should get you to LNT in time to catch last trip to Muang Sing at 15.30.

Info from six month ago.
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Info as of this morning: Luang NamTha to Huay Xai by bus is 3 and a half hours. It leaves once a day at 9:30 am (schedule subject to change...) 55,000 Kip (about $5 USD).

Wow -- is it really 3.5 hours? LP has the trip as eight hours, so it would be incredible if the roads have really improved enough to cut the trip in half. Anyone know if this is true?

Thanks for the updated info.

Yes, it is true. It is only 3 and a half hours between Huay Xai and Luang Nam Tha because of the newly paved road. We just took it a few days ago from Huay Xai to Luang Nam Tha.

A couple tips on Bus Transport:

- The bus station lists two times for each bus: "Positionment" and "Departure". Positionment means what time they start seating, and Departure is what time the bus leaves

- Both of those times are rough. Don't be surprised if the bus is full or leaves 30 minutes earlier than posted!

- If travelling at the end of a weekend (Sunday) or holiday, you'll want to arrive extra early to get a seat!

- Be sure to buy your ticket at the counter, not on the bus, in order to get a definite seat assignment.

- The bus station is several kilometers outside of town. You take a tuk-tuk/pickup to and from the station for 10,000 kip per person each way.

Why all these tips... our lessons learned from yesterday! If you are curious on our story, here it is: We took the public bus from Luang NamTha to Luang Prabang. The bus station listed the times as 8:30 positionment and 9:30 departure. But we forgot the exact times, so we asked around to several guesthouses and internet cafes in Luang NamTha. Each place and person told us a different time - 7:30, 8:30, 9:00, 8:00, etc, etc... Finally we just decided to go with our first recollection - that the buses board at 8:30 and leave at 9:30. We arrived around 8:15 AM - and the bus was already full! We managed to get the last 2 seats on the bus. The ticket counter lady told us to buy tickets on the bus (it turned out this was incorrect -- but it was probably a misunderstanding due to language barriers). The bus was overcrowded in a short time. In the end, the 45 seat bus ended up holding over 65-70 passengers! Mostly college-age Laos people returning back to the city from a weekend of partying at the Boat Festival and visiting family. People were crammed in every nook and corner of the bus, and the bus floor was lined with huge bags of rice that people used as seats. It was crazy, but yet orderly because the Laos people are very laid-back and don't get upset like us foreigners tend to... The bus left the station around 9:15 AM, with cargo loaded under and on top of the bus, including 4 motor scooters on the roof! The bus ended up looping back through the village of Luang NamTha and even passed our guesthouse (2 hours after we checked out :-)). We finally departed the village around 10:00 am. We made many stops for pee-breaks along the way on the side of the road and arrived in Luang Prabang around 7:30pm. A long day - but what a unique experience!

Cheers,
Kay

Kay, good tips. But I think they are true all the time, not necessarily just on Sundays or after holidays.

The ticket lady probably said you can pay on the bus, which is correct. The guy that came around checking tickets is the driver's second cousin twice removed and can take your money just as easily as the lady at the ticket counter. Your seat assignment is the one you are sitting in, or the one you throw your bag of rice, or jacket, or kid, on.

Welcome to Lao busses.