Hi,
I’m arriving soon in southern Laos and the 4000 Islands, with plans to head to Cambodia next.
The latest news I got this morning (Paksé, La Boulange) isn’t great—the Cambodian border is also in a latent conflict with Laos for the same reasons as with Thailand...
So, what’s the best site to check for updates on the border opening? Since the situation isn’t stable right now and could change from one day to the next?
There’s absolutely no conflict between Laos and Cambodia—whoever gave you that info is completely wrong. I have no idea where they got that from... As for the Thailand/Cambodia conflict, a ceasefire was signed at the end of December and has held since.
There’s no risk at all in crossing the Laos/Cambodia border, which is, of course, open (and has never closed, despite what your informants in Paksé might say!). From the 4000 Islands, companies offer direct routes to Stung Treng, Siem Reap, Kratie, Ratanakiri, Mondolkiri, or even straight to Phnom Penh.
Safe travels! !
According to the owner of Boulange, the Cambodians have recently taken back a bit of territory from Laos. They’re applying a similar approach to what Thailand does with them, since the border issue is exactly the same.
The Laos-Cambodia border conflict involves disputes over territorial claims and border demarcation, particularly in areas like Stung Treng. Tensions have historically arisen from irredentist feelings and unresolved issues stemming from colonial-era agreements.
So, there’s no "official" conflict, but the situation is very tense and could potentially escalate. Especially since this border isn’t that far from the Thailand-Cambodia border!
No, that’s not true—it’s just Thai propaganda. Back in July, Thai media spread a rumor that Cambodia had attacked Laos (or the other way around, I can’t remember), but it was pure nonsense aimed at the Thai population. Obviously, it was never confirmed by any international media.
Hi there,
no problem visiting Chi Phat, but it's best to avoid going all the way to the border town of Koh Kong, even though the clashes at the border stopped three weeks ago.
For Banteay Chhmar, it's really close to a contested border area, so while everything is probably very calm on-site right now, you never know if or when hostilities might flare up again. I’d recommend waiting for updates from other travelers before heading to Banteay Chhmar.
Have a great Sunday! !
Hello. Laos and Cambodia are two friendly countries, and the 4000 Islands region has long been
conflict-free. While Banteay Chhmar (the province) has experienced some tensions, the temple is far from the border! As for Preah Vihear, which I finally managed to visit two years ago after two previous attempts a few years earlier, you can feel and see the difference. The combat positions are visible as soon as you arrive on-site, and you sense that both countries are keeping an eye on each other and staying on high alert. But if they let you in, it means you’ll be able to visit this magnificent site without any issues.
Just 2 km from the temple, you’ll have already forgotten that this could be a potential skirmish zone.
Back in 1993, I visited Angkor while being cautious of landmines, and the guide determined our route based on the sound of cannons trying to block the last attacks by the Khmer Rouge. Rest assured, both sides take care of tourists. If tensions arise, you’ll be stopped.
This is the ideal time because there are few visitors.
Safe travels!
Eric
Hi there,
For me, Chi Path is quite far from the tension zones and in a remote area—plus, there’s nothing to covet or contest in Chi Path. That said, the site and its surroundings, which I visited in 2014, left a very pleasant memory. I opted for the 5-day/4-night trip, including 2 nights in a hammock in the forest.
Safe travels,
Eric
Hi again,
Back then, I went through a Vietnamese friend who worked at a French agency that no longer exists. However, she worked with the Cambodian agency Hanuman Tourism, which had an office in Phnom Penh and another in Siem Reap.
Company name: Hanuman Tourism Co., Ltd
Year established: 1990
Legal structure (SA, Sarl, etc.): LLC
Staff: 65
Last name: Tan
First name: Sotho
Address: 12, Street 310
City: Phnom Penh
Country: Cambodia
Tel.: +855 23 218 396
Email: info@hanumantourism.com / sales@hanumantourism.com
Website: www.hanuman.travel
Since I had inquired about Chi Path directly, she offered to handle that part separately to avoid Hanuman taking a commission.
Direct inquiries gave precise and very detailed info—all types of treks and number of days, or types of stays. They specified what was provided and what they could supply, like backpacks, sleeping bags, blankets, hammocks for sleeping, water bottles, lamps, etc. There’s a guide and a cook included, and if you want a porter (just a heads-up—you’ll need to carry your own water). There were two of us, so we had 12 bottles and had to boil river water.
At the time: plan for a 2-hour pirogue ride from the village of Andoung Teuk to Chi Path. Important—don’t wait on the village bridge but under it!!
There was no electricity in Chi Path, so everything was paid in cash—plan accordingly.
But that was 10 years ago, and things may have changed! If you run into any issues, I have other contacts for reaching Chi Path that I’d reached out to back then, plus a recent contact from my last trip to Cambodia in 2023.
Access to Prasat Preah Vihear is completely forbidden at the moment, first for security reasons after the recent clashes, and then because of the work that will need to be done since the temple was seriously damaged by Thai artillery. UNESCO will have quite a bit of work on their hands!
As for Banteay Chhmar, I don’t know what the direct impacts of the bombings were (Banteay Meanchey province was heavily bombed by Thai aviation, and Banteay Chhmar is only 20 km from the border). Maybe there were none, but we can imagine that the population—or at least part of it—was evacuated in December, like half a million Cambodians from the border areas.
Hi Erwan,
Thanks for your valuable insights and especially for recent observations. Regarding Preah Vihear, I’ve seen videos and photos of the damage, particularly to one of the temples on the site.
For Banteay Chhmar, I haven’t seen any photos! But let’s hope it’s been preserved—20 km from the border is far, unless there’s been an airstrike. That said, you’re right about the significant displacement of such a resilient and unfortunately often caught-in-the-crossfire population. There are twice as many displaced people in Cambodia as in Thailand, and some villages are even split in two. From afar, it’s hard to separate fact from fiction between real info and misinformation.
I haven’t seen/read about any damage to Banteay Chhmar either. Yet when temples like Preah Vihear or Ta Krobey were damaged, it was all over the national media. So we can assume the temple is intact!
However, it’s possible that villagers fled the fighting near the border as a precaution and only recently returned, but I imagine tourist services are still running.
Thanks Pascal!
This will help future travelers heading to Chi Path. The site has improved—there’s now Wi-Fi and a bit of electricity. Basically, the concept remains the same with à la carte activities for varying durations. For treks, they offer sleeping in the base camp huts. Back in 2014, we preferred sleeping in the open forest with the guide, cook, and porter—it was airier and smelled like the forest!!! The huts aren’t enclosed, so some animals take refuge there between groups of hikers, and let’s just say they don’t clean up before leaving!!
For the campfire evening in the forest, I bought a small bottle of rice alcohol, and the team really appreciated it, even though we drank in moderation.
Thanks for the link—it’s new, but the old one redirects to the new one.
Eric
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Hi,
I’m bringing Seresta, an anxiolytic (tranquilizer) from the benzodiazepine family,
to help me sleep.
I’ll have the prescription with me.
Will this be a problem at customs, and do I need to declare it?
Same question for antibiotics?
Thanks a bunch!
I’m heading to Laos next spring, but I have a question about the Thai arrival/departure form. I’ll be flying PAR-BKK, then taking the train to Laos (so exiting Thailand), and later re-entering Thailand by train to catch my return flight. Do I need to fill out two forms in this case?
Hi there,
I have a 9-seater passenger vehicle that I use for my business in Paris, transporting people.
I’m planning to go to Algeria with my family.
The vehicle registration lists my company as the owner.
Can I get a TPD (Temporary Admission Document)?
Will I need a KBis extract or a power of attorney?!?
Thanks for your help.
Worst case, I can add my personal name as a co-owner on the registration, but that would be a real shame!
Hi,
I’m writing to ask for some info—I’ve heard that you **must** have travel insurance to land in Zanzibar.
What’s the process, and which insurance should I get?
Thanks in advance for your feedback!
Best,
Seb
Hi there,
I’m a French citizen living in Switzerland, and I set up an RV LLC in Montana, USA. Through that, I was able to register 3 vehicles (an RV, a Jeep, and a Harley) with Montana plates.
I’d like to spend 3 months in Mexico, but it seems complicated—maybe even impossible—to cross the border from the US with all 3 vehicles.
Can anyone give me some advice?
Hi, are there any travelers who’ve recently crossed the border between Karakalpakstan (Uzbekistan) and Beineu in Kazakhstan?
It was closed for a while.
Thanks for any info!
I bought a one-way flight (Ryanair) and a return flight (EasyJet) to spend a week in Morocco in April.
My passport expires 3 weeks after the return date.
Some websites say the passport must be valid for 3 months at the time of entry.
However, it will still be valid both on entry and return, but its validity will only be 1 month at the time of entry (and 3 weeks on the return date, everything prepaid).
It's an individual family trip.
The consulate can't give me an answer—they're still looking into it (really!)
Last year, we stayed for 3 months in Thailand, north of Khao Lak, and were able to benefit from the 2-month visa exemption, renewable for one month by going to Takua Pa to validate a 1-month extension (1,900 baht).
This year, it’s a disaster for us—not only were we planning a 4-month stay, adding a visa run in between (which some say is quite risky), but the law is apparently changing in the coming months with the return of the 1-month exemption (plus the usual 1-month option). So, we looked into applying for a 6-month multiple-entry visa, allowing a maximum of 60 consecutive days in Thailand. However, I can’t find anywhere the minimum time required outside Thailand between two stays—do any of you have an idea?
Thanks for the info! If you’d like tips on Khao Lak and the surrounding areas, we’ve got some experience, though things change fast!
Cheers,
Bruno.
My partner, our 8-year-old daughter, and I are going on vacation to Gex.
We’ve decided to spend one day in Switzerland and another in Italy. Will we need ID (national ID card or passport)? Do we also need ID for our daughter?
Hello,
We’ll soon be moving to Madagascar long-term.
As a French national, I need to obtain a short-stay visa that can be converted to a long-stay one. To do this, I have to send the required documents to the Madagascar embassy in Paris.
No issues with that procedure so far.
If I get this visa, once I arrive in Madagascar, I’ll need to provide the same documents to the Ministry of the Interior in Anosy. I’m trying to find an email address or website for the Ministry to check which documents I need to submit (I think they ask for additional ones).
If you have any info on this, I’d appreciate your replies.
Best regards,
M. Buisson Eric
I’d like to know if anyone has already applied for a private visa to Russia with an invitation from a Russian resident.
I traveled earlier this year with an e-visa, but since I want to stay longer, I’ll be visiting my friend who lives in eastern Russia.
For the visa application, does the invitation need to be on an official paper form issued by the Russian ministry? And most importantly, do I need to present the original for the application, or is there an electronic version that can be sent directly to the consulate in France?
Thanks for any info if you’ve gone through this process before!
I filled out the B2 form to apply for a visa, created an account on Atvis to pay the visa fees and schedule a meet-up, but every time I try to pay with my Boursobank Visa 1st card, they refuse the payment with a message telling me to check my details (address), even though everything is correct. Does anyone know why this is happening, or maybe they don’t accept Visa cards? Are you aware of this?
Thanks for your feedback!
Elisabeth
There are rumors going around about the ETA: it must absolutely be on your smartphone in the "ETA" app.
Paper documents might not be accepted.
Is this real or just a hoax?
Thanks, I’m leaving in 3 weeks. My passport is good to go and my ETA is still valid for a year, but I only printed the email I received.
Thanks everyone.
Hi there,
We need to apply for a B2 visa because we visited Iran in 2018. It currently costs $185, but they’re planning an additional $250 fee per person for the same visa—it’s been approved but not yet implemented. Does anyone know when this fee will take effect?
Thanks in advance!
Elisabeth
Hi there,
In November, we're heading off on a 4-month trip. We'll be landing in China and plan to leave the country via a land border into Vietnam.
I’ve read that China may ask for proof of exit within 30 days (flight ticket or other reservation). Since we’d be leaving by land, I’m wondering how this works in practice.
Has anyone here been in this situation recently?
Did the airline ask for an exit ticket before boarding?
Did Chinese authorities require proof upon arrival?
Is a train/bus ticket to Vietnam sufficient?
Is a cancelable or flexible reservation accepted?
Hi there,
Just a question that’s probably been asked before (though usually the other way around for my situation :))
My wife and I are heading to the US.
On her ticket, it only has her maiden name (e.g., Martine DUPOND).
On her passport, it’s written as Martine DUPOND épouse AVRY.
No issues for travel, I hope I did the right thing with the ticket?
Then for the ESTA, is just Martine DUPOND enough, or do I need to include the "épouse AVRY" part like on the passport?
Thanks in advance!
Hi there,
I’m spending a few days in San Pedro de Atacama (Chile) and would like to cross the Argentine border to make a loop toward Salta and then return to Chile to drop off the rental car.
I’ve heard that crossing the border can be tricky!
Is it possible with a rental company’s authorization? Which company, and at what cost?
Thanks for sharing your experiences!
Best regards,
Arnale
I saw on the French Embassy in Peru’s website and the Peruvian Consulate in Paris’s site that the rule is to have a passport valid for 6 months *after the arrival date* (not the return date).
I arrive in Peru on August 13, 2019 (for about twelve days), and my passport is valid until February 16, 2020.
That’s 6 months and 3 days after my arrival date in Peru. In my opinion, I’m good to go.
But could I still be denied entry if they say I don’t cover the return date or that I’m too close to the 6-month mark?
I read on the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs website that it’s possible to apply for a temporary driving permit in China, valid for 1 month.
I’m planning to rent a car (without a driver) to explore part of the country next August, so I was wondering:
Has anyone here already gone through this process upon arrival?
How long do the formalities take on the spot?
Is it possible to handle these steps in advance, before arriving in China?
Hi there,
My departure is slowly approaching, and now that I’ve got my Russian visa sorted, I’m fine-tuning the rest of my trip to Tajikistan. Since the Tajik visa is no longer required for stays under 30 days (for French nationals), I’ll need to visit the Ministry of Interior (OVIR) to register within 10 days of entering the country. No big deal, though, since I had to go there anyway to apply for my GBAO permit. 😉 However, I’ve *seen* several reports from travelers (mostly motorized) mentioning that you need an entry permit for Kyrgyzstan, which has to be arranged in advance at the Kyrgyz Ministry (consulate?) in Dushanbe. Otherwise, you’re *stuck* at the Kyzyl-Art border (with no Wi-Fi, of course, to try and sort it out). The most recent report was from a year ago, so I’d love to know if this is still the case and if it’s indeed at the Kyrgyz Ministry (consulate?) where you need to go for this pre-authorization.
Does anyone have any recent info on this?
Thanks in advance!
Hi everyone.
I’m leaving for almost 3 months in the Philippines (11 weeks total) starting in early May.
I already have my round-trip ticket.
The problem is, I don’t have time to get a 2-month visa because the process takes nearly a month.
From what I’ve read here and there, I need a return ticket valid for less than a month when I arrive in the Philippines to prove my good faith.
After that, I can apply for a 30-day extension at the immigration office.
I’m planning to either buy a fully refundable ticket to the nearest country or a fake ticket.
For 3 months, I’ll need to extend my visa two more times before my return date to France.
My question is this:
Will immigration ask me each time I extend my visa by one month to show proof of an exit ticket matching the new visa extension date?
Is it possible to extend directly by 2 months before the initial 30 days expire?
Thanks in advance for your experiences and tips! 😊
I’ve been to Thailand several times, but it was about 20 years ago…
There’s a new system in place now, it seems.
TDAC – Thailand Digital Arrival Card.
Before arriving, I apply for a TDAC, okay.
If during my stay I cross the border to spend a few days in Malaysia and then re-enter Thailand,
do I need to submit a new TDAC application?
Do I use the same TDAC as when I first entered the country?
Or do I initially have to pay for a Thai multi-entry visa?
Thanks in advance for your insights—I can’t find the answer online.
My partner (Mexican) entered France on January 21st as a tourist. She was therefore entitled to stay for 90 days in the Schengen Area. She’ll be leaving for Mexico on April 16th, so she’ll have “used up” 86 days.
She plans to return to France on July 18th. According to the European Commission’s Schengen calculator, this new stay “may be authorized for a maximum of 90 days.” That’s not very clear ("may be," "for a maximum of").
The text of Article 6 of the European regulation (2016/399) states that for a stay planned in the territory of the Member States, not exceeding 90 days in any 180-day period, one must examine "the 180-day period preceding each day of the stay." That’s not very clear either.
My partner wants to return to France for a 90-day period starting on July 18th. Is this possible?
There are two ways to look at it:
1) The first day she spent in the Schengen Area was January 21st. That day will drop out of the calculation 180 days later, on July 20th.
From July 20th, she’ll get back 1 day of possible stay; on July 22nd, 2 days; and so on. All the days from her previous stay (January 21st–April 16th) need to be outside the 180-day rolling window.
The last day of her stay was April 16th. Looking 180 days ahead, that brings us to October 13th. From that date, she’ll be able to return for a full 90 days.
2) The number of allowed days is calculated for each day of the new stay. In other words: the 180-day window is recalculated every day, not fixed at the entry date.
If she re-enters France on July 18th, she’ll only have a “credit” of 4 days. But with each day of her new stay, one day from the previous stay (January–April) will drop out of the calculation. The rolling window allows her to “replace” days from the previous stay with those of the new stay, without ever exceeding 90 days in any 180-day period.
In this case, my partner could stay in France for 90 days starting on July 18th.
The Prefecture doesn’t provide any information, nor does Air France, and in the forums I’ve checked, opinions are divided. Thanks for any insights you can share!
Hello,
We’re planning to travel to Indonesia (Sulawesi with family) next July and August for a stay longer than a month (about 6 weeks).
I’ve seen that it’s possible to get a 60-day visa before departure, but I’ve also read about people having a lot of trouble getting it (some even didn’t manage and had to leave without it).
We absolutely need to have these 4 visas BEFORE leaving because once we’re in Sulawesi, I’m not sure we’ll be able to go to an embassy to request a visa extension after 30 days.
In short, how can we **100% guarantee** that we’ll get our 4 60-day visas before our trip this summer?
Hello, HAPPY NEW YEAR 2026!
We’re heading back in October for a trip through Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
I have a question: for our route, we’ll need to cross the Zambia and Zimbabwe borders twice each. From experience, I know we won’t have any issues with Botswana.
But for the other two countries, I can’t find a clear answer.
All your tips are welcome!
I’m currently a student on a gap year, and I don’t plan to go back to school right away. That said, traveling really interests me. But I’ve been wondering: does being a student come with any perks when you decide to go abroad? The real question is whether I should re-enroll in a program just to keep that status without actually attending.
hi everyone,
I’m French and live in France, and my Thai girlfriend just told me she’s pregnant—she lives in Thailand. First step, a paternity test to set my mind at ease. What steps do I need to take to recognize the child? Can I do it before the birth or only after? Where do I need to go, and what paperwork is required?
Just to clarify, I want him to stay in Thailand but be able to come to France anytime without any issues!
Thanks for taking the time to read and reply.
