Luang Prabang to Hanoi, Vietnam: Best 3 ways to travel - 2023 Travel Guide

Luang Prabang and Hanoi are 2 destinations that many foreign travelers choose to visit because of many reasons. Firstly, Luang Prabang which is the capital of Laos was recognized by UNESCO as World Cultural Heritage. Buddhist monks walk on the streets in the early morning, which becomes a cultural characteristic that many travelers are interested in. Laos is the country with the highest number of temples in the world and its beautiful architecture is preserved very carefully.

On the other hand, Hanoi was recognized by UNESCO as the "Peace City", which met the criteria including equality, urban construction, living environment preservation, caring for civic education and the young generation. Besides, Hanoi has a unique architecture mixed between Western and Oriental architecture. Being the capital of Vietnam and also a city with a long-life tradition, history, and culture; the old town’s beauty attracts tourists with the typical street and the outstanding relics such as Quoc Tu Giam - Temple of Literature. As such, traveling from Luang Prang to Hanoi has raised concerns by many travelers. Fortunately,   transportation between 2 countries is very convenient so travelers are easy to visit 2 destinations if they visit the South East Asia area.
 

I. Getting from Luang Prabang to Hanoi by plane - The fastest way

Travel time: 2 hours

Cost: VND 1,600,000 - VND 5,300,000 plane ticket

          VND 8,000 - VND 350,000 transfer

Normally, the airport is located far from the center of the capital to guarantee traffic circulation. As such, to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi, your trip will divide into 2 routes: from Luang Prabang International Airport to Noi Bai International Airport by plane and Noi Bai International Airport to Hanoi Capital by taxi, the specific car of Noi Bai International Airport or bus.

If you want to know what vehicles using popularly in Laos, you can access the official website LuangPrabangTimeless

1. How to book the plane tickets from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

There are 4 airline brands you can choose: Vietnam Airline, Lao Airline, Bangkok Airways, and Cambodia Angkor Air.

a. Vietnam Airline - The most popular airline in Vietnam

Vietnam Airlines is not just the first airline but the most popular airline in Vietnam. Many travelers choose this airline because of its service and well-trained staff. There are two ways to get more information about this airline as well as ticket assistants: Agency’s office and online website.

To purchase tickets online or get more information about your flights, you can access the website vietnamairlines.com

Another way, you can book the plane tickets in some offices in Luang Prabang as follows

b. Lao Airline - The Civil Aviation Company

Lao Airline was found in 1976 as the Civil Aviation Company. To upgrade the quality of services, this airline imported the new European aircraft produced by Avions de Transport Regional in France. At present, the Lao Airline network is extended to 12 international destinations and 6 local destinations.

To get more information about this airline, you can access the website laoairline.com or call directly to its hotline: (+856) 2151 0040

Another way, you can go exactly the offices’ address as follows to book the ticket

c. Bangkok Airways - The first private airline in Thailand

Bangkok Airways is the first private airline in Thailand established in 1968. Because of the growth of the tourist market and the investment in Thailand, air transportation plays an important role in the national economic growth and its infrastructure development will become a vital tool to connect with other nations in the world. To meet the demand of the customers, Bangkok Airways extended its syllabus flight to over 20 different flights in Thailand as well as other countries including Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, Singapore, China, and Japan.

To get more information about this airline, you can access its website bangkokair.com

Another way, you can go exact address in Luang Prabang as follows to book the plane ticket

d. Cambodia Angkor Air – The national flag carrier of Cambodia

The representative symbol is the Angkor Wat temple and the bird’s wing expressing the power and beauty of the temple, the agility, and the speed of birds. These two parts complement each other to implicit the quality of safety and efficiency that any traveler expects in the airline. It brings not only a good image representative of the Khmer people but also a special spirit of the company. Cambodia Angkor Air always puts customer’s safety as their top priority and built up a  close relationship with their consumers and staff. Besides, this airway has good dealing with Jetstar – the first low-cost airline in Vietnam and other partners such as Metfone, Mastercard. As such, the network of this airline increases intensively over the world and it gains more the customers’ belief.

To get more information about this airline, you can access its website cambodiaangkorair.com or call directly to its hotline (+855) 236 660 330

Another way, you can go exact addresses in Laos as follows

2. How to travel from Noi Bai International Airport to Hanoi Capital

The distance between Hanoi and Noi Bai International Airport is about 30 kilometers – it is quite short. So you have several ways to choose: taxi, specific car or bus

a. Using the taxi to get to Hanoi from Noi Bai International Airport

Travel time: 30 minutes

Cost: VND 280,000- VND 350,000

You should know that the price can be changed depending on the day you book and the number of people in your group. To make sure that you won’t be tricked, please negotiate with the driver before getting in the taxi.

Some prestigious taxi brands you can choose

b. Using the specific car to get to Hanoi from Noi Bai International Airport

Travel time: 50 minutes

Cost: VND 40,000

Noi Bai International Airport has 3 specific car routes: NB01, NB02, and NB03. This form is similar to the bus so the car is quite crowded and it has no much room for your luggage. You need to go early if you don’t want to miss your turn.

To get more detail, we would like to give the schedule of this means of transportation

c. Using the bus to get Hanoi from Noi Bai International Airport

Travel time: 70 minutes

Cost: VND 8,000 – VND 9,000

As soon as you leave Noi Bai International Airport, you are very easy to catch the bus to go to Hanoi. There are many choices for you, you can get on any bus with number 07, 17, 90 or 86

d. Comparison among 3 means of transport to get Hanoi from Noi Bai International Airport

For each vehicle, it has both advantages and disadvantages. For this route, we want to give all of you the brief summary of 3 vehicle

3. Advantages and disadvantages of the plane when traveling from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

To get an overview of this means of transportation, we would like to give a summary of the advantages as well as disadvantages

4. Must-know tips when using the plane to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

• If you have any difficulty in choosing a suitable brand, you can access some prestigious websites such as Traveloka, Agoda, or Booking.com to get an overview and compare the price among the 4 brands that we mentioned above.
• To purchase the cheapest tickets, you should book the tickets as soon as possible.
• For each airline brand, it has some differences in regulations, you should read carefully before choosing any brands.
• Please arrive at the airport at least 2 hours earlier to complete your procedures  

II. Getting from Luang Prabang to Hanoi by shuttle bus - The cheapest way

Travel time: 25 hours

Cost: VND 1,000,000

1. How to book the shuttle bus ticket to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

Actually, the distance between Luang Prabang and Hanoi is 800 kilometers. Travelers must take 25 hours to travel. Few travelers choose this means of transportation because of its time-consuming. As such, the route Luang Prabang – Hanoi is not considered to develop. There are 2 shuttle bus companies providing this service including HTX 27-7 and The Sinh Tourist.

We will give a brief summary about 2 brands in case you are interested in this means of transportation.

Sinh Tourist

Founded in 1993, but now Sinh Tourist is proud to be one of the leading travel companies in Vietnam with offices throughout the country. In order to meet the relentless demand of customers, Sinh tourism services have been enhanced and developed. The most prominent feature of Sinh tourist is the travel program departing daily and does not depend on the number of guests. Many travelers choose these brands because of the well-trained staff making Sinh Tourist have a competitive advantage in East Asia areas.

HTX 27-7

HTX 27-7 is one of the companies with the highest reputation in international tourism services. The company was established in November 2003 (called 27-7 Tourist Transport Co-operative). The initial number of cars was modest (50 cars) and most of them were used cars. Until now, HTX 27-7 brand (over 2,000 cars, 90% is new luxury cars) appears in most of the domestic routes including Ho Chi Minh City, and neighboring provinces. The company's services are increasingly improved, as such, customers increasingly trust in this service. Therefore, you can trust completely this brand when traveling.

Note: The price can be changed depending on the day you book.

2. Advantages and disadvantages of the shuttle bus when traveling from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

Every means of transportation has both advantages and disadvantages, the shuttle bus from Luang Prabang to Hanoi is not an exception

3. Must-know tips when using the shuttle bus to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

• Booking the shuttle bus ticket as soon as possible to make sure that you start on time and follow your schedule.
• Vietnamese is the key factor in making your trip easier. Actually, the salesman or the driver cannot understand your language. Learning the global language will help you a lot when booking as well as traveling.
• Prepare your luggage carefully including your clothes, money, and so forth.
• Actually, the travelers on the shuttle bus are quite crowded. Besides, the travel time is relatively long, about 25 hours. As such, you should notify everyone beside you and put your important documents into your handbag to avoid being lifting.
• Because of a long journey, the toilet is concerned by most of the travelers. If you want to keep the toilet clean, please never forget to press the water button before leaving.
• The Long journey definitely makes you feel hungry. Therefore, don’t forget to bring with you some snacks. You should prepare your foods before getting on the shuttle bus to protect your health.

III. Getting from Luang Prabang to Hanoi by private car

Travel time: 13 hours

Cost: VND 4,000,000- VND 6,500,000 (round-trip)

1. How to rent a private car to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

Actually, there are many kinds of cars you can choose such as premium cars, people carriers, and SUVs

The easiest way to find a good car is by asking the hotel receptionist. If not, you can consider some popular website: carrental.com or sixt.com

Note: The price can be changed depending on the day you book and the negation between 2 parties.

2. Advantages and disadvantages of the private car when traveling from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

3. Must-know tips when using the private car to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

• Check your car carefully before starting to guarantee that your trip always in your hand.
• Make a detailed contract with the car owner to make sure that you won’t be tricked after returning.
• Bring some important documents such as an identity card, passport, and driver license to prove your identity.
• Learn Vietnamese Traffic Law as well as Laos Traffic Law to make sure that you won’t waste time and money in some cases such as breaking the law, accidents, etc.
• Learning Vietnamese and Laos can make your trip become easier and more fun, you not only have more opportunities to learn new knowledge from both Vietnam and Laos but also can require the local help if you are in some difficult circumstances such as getting lost, running out of gasoline, puncture or a flat tire.

IV. How to choose suitable transportation to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi

1. What is your budget for traveling from Luang Prabang to Hanoi?

Finance is one of the main factors to help you make a suitable decision. For instance, if you don’t have much money, the shuttle bus and the private car should be considered. If you have a lot of money, you can choose any vehicles depending on your interests. The airway is the popular way that most of the travelers choose.

2. Who do you go with from Luang Prabang to Hanoi?

Your partners are also a key factor that you should concern. If your team has children or pregnant people, both the shuttle bus and the private car are not considered. You should notice about their health instead of your interest. If your team has an interest in adventures, the private car is highly considered, you can have private time and place with your team. Some travelers choose this means of transportation because of their mobility. You can stop anywhere you want to take a photo or even enjoy the fresh atmosphere in new places. If your team has a dynamic person who has good language ability, you can choose a private car to travel. This is a good idea because you can have more opportunities to gain more experience and knowledge from many places including minority ethnicities.

3. How much luggage do you bring along from Luang Prabang to Hanoi?

Although travel by plane has the highest cost, in my opinion, you should choose this means of transportation for many reasons. Specifically, your luggage will be protected and your journey becomes easier than others. The long journey will make your luggage be at risk if you choose the shuttle bus. The number of travelers on the shuttle bus is quite crowded, hence, you have difficulty in controlling your luggage. Although your belongings will be put into a specific place, you still have to pay attention to it all the time to make sure that your luggage won’t be lost. If you have a lot of luggage, you should choose the plane to travel because it will be safer. If you have a few luggage, you can choose any means of transport that your team interested in.

V. A summary of all means of transportation.

Last but not least, we want to give you a  summary of all vehicles that you will have an overview of the way to travel from Luang Prabang to Hanoi. For each means of transportation, it has both advantages and disadvantages. Depending on your team’s interest, health, and finance, you can choose the suitable one. We hope this article will help you a lot and make your trip easier.