Thailand forum

never heard of any public buses stopping at the Chiang Khong immigration office.

buses from Chiangrai deposit passengers at the market at the south end of Chiang Khong, simply cos that's where the 'bus terminal' is. think the buses from Chiangmai & BKK terminate near an ESSO gas station just across the road from that market. from there, a 20 baht (maybe more now) samlor ride to the border crossing at the north end of town. scam-free.

also, thought the buses from Chiangmai Arcade bus station to Chiang Khong are run by Green Bus company (www.greenbusthailand.com), which issues computer printed tickets even for the ordinary rickety non-AC buses...nothing handwritten by ticket sellers. did you buy your ticket from the bus station or through an agent?

Chiang Khong map: http://hobomaps.com/CKhongHuayXaiMap.htm
Captain Bob's photos from 2008:
Chiang Khong samlors - http://www.iantaylor.org/0808_chiangkongphayao/0808_chiangkong045a.jpg
boat & bag fee - http://www.iantaylor.org/0808_chiangkongphayao/0808_chiangkong059a.jpg

ic, that makes sense. the public bus system also has direct AC Chiangmai-Chiangkhong services, & VIP buses (although not on this particular route; they come with 26 spacious seats on what is usually a 40-seat bus).

those photos aren't mine, they're Captain Bob's photos taken back in August/Sept 2008. the Thai words says 'khon la 30 baht' (30 baht per person), while the English version appears to have a '4' written over the '3' (or the other way round).

someone's report from Feb 2009 on the transport from the GH to the Chiang Khong immigration provided as part of some agent's package:
http://www.travelblog.org/Asia/Laos/West/blog-369883.html
wonder if it's the same GH you encountered...do you have the name of the GH?

Thanks for the great info

This info about being taken to the immigration office is nonsense (and old). You basically have two options for getting from Chiang Mai to Chiang Khong: private minivan (usually operated by Namkong Travel who own the Namkong Guesthouse in central CK), or public bus from the Chiang Mai Arcade bus station (Best option is the "Green Bus" with non-AC buses at 06:30 and 13:00 for 231 baht or standard AC bus at 08:30 for 292 baht). None of the above are going to drop you at Thai Immigration. The vans go to Namkong GH and the buses go to the "station" on the southern edge of town which is 1.6 km from the passenger boat ramp.

^^EdSue there's no airport in Chiang Khong. The bus ride is hilly after you leave the Chiang Mai area for about an hour, then flattens out again until near Chiang Rai where buses usually then go via Phaya Mengrai or Thoeng and the road gets more windy and bumpy (but not hilly) up until Chiang Khong. Take the direct Green Bus at 830am it's the smoothest option. Row 3-4-5-6 in the middle is least bumpy.