Crossing Laos in Our Campervan Wasn't So Simple 11 Days to the Chinese Border 🇱🇦 | S1E9

We’re overlanding Laos in our self-built campervan, driving north from Thailand towards the Chinese border as part of our multi-year overland journey from Malaysia to Scotland. Getting our New Zealand-registered campervan, It Zwibble, into Laos was the first challenge. Our planned border crossing didn’t offer visa on arrival, forcing us to divert to Nong Khai and the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge. We got ourselves stamped into Laos… only to discover that getting our campervan through customs was another matter entirely. Once we finally got moving, we headed north through Vang Vieng, made a few roadside modifications to It Zwibble and tackled the mountain roads towards Luang Prabang. Along the way we crossed the 9 km mountain pass, visited Kuang Si Falls and the Tat Kuang Si Bear Rescue Centre, and parked up for almost a week in Luang Prabang before continuing north. And that’s when the roads got interesting. Our final drive towards Boten and the Chinese border brought some of the roughest roads we’ve encountered on our overland journey so far, slowing our progress and eventually forcing us to stop for the night before making the final push north. This is overlanding northern Laos in our own campervan: border bureaucracy, vanlife, mountain passes, spectacular scenery, Luang Prabang, seriously rough roads and the reality of taking a foreign-registered vehicle across Southeast Asia. Next stop: China. 🇨🇳 Chapters: 0:00 Crossing the Laos Border 07:32 Campervan Modifications in Vang Vieng 10:10 The Mountain Road to Luang Prabang 16:05 Kuang Si Falls & Bear Rescue Centre 17:43 Vanlife in Luang Prabang 25:06 The Slow Road North 29:03 The Final Push to Boten 32:01 Preparing to Cross into China ▶️ WATCH NEXT: Our campervan crosses into Thailand →    • We Drove Our NZ Campervan into Thailand 🇲🇾...   🇱🇦 MORE FROM LAOS:    • Laos 2026   🚐 START/FOLLOW OUR OVERLAND JOURNEY: [   • The global odyssey!   ABOUT US We’re Megan and Darryl, two Kiwis who interrupted our lives to drive our self-built campervan, It Zwibble, from Malaysia to the top of Scotland. We’re taking the long way there, travelling overland through Asia, Central Asia and beyond. We share the border crossings, costs and logistics of international overlanding, the realities of vanlife on the road, and the places and people we encounter along the way. 📱 FOLLOW THE PETERSON ODYSSEY ▶️ YouTube:    / @thepetersonodyssey   📸 Instagram:   / thepetersonodyssey   🎵 TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thepetersonod... 📘 Facebook:   / thepetersonodyssey   🌐 Website: https://thepetersonodyssey.com 🌏 OUR TRAVEL RESOURCES 💳 Wise We use Wise to spend money overseas and avoid expensive bank fees. If you sign up using our referral link, you’ll receive a free international transfer (up to NZ$900) or a Wise card (where available) once you meet the referral requirements. It also helps support our channel at no extra cost to you. https://wise.com/invite/ilpc/meganaimeep 📱Airalo eSIM We use Airalo to stay connected as we travel between countries. Use our code MEGAN0527 to receive NZ$5 off your first eSIM purchase, and we’ll receive NZ$5 too. Thanks for supporting our journey! https://www.airalo.com/ Referral links may give you a benefit and may also give us a benefit at no additional cost to you. Using them is one way you can support The Peterson Odyssey. 🎥 Filmed on Sony a6400 and iPhone 15 Pro 🎵 Music from Epidemic Sound New long-form overland travel episodes every Sunday, plus our What It Really Cost and How We… series on Wednesdays. 👍 If you're enjoying the journey, we'd love you to subscribe and come along for the next stage of The Peterson Odyssey. Filmed in Laos | July–August 2026 #OverlandingLaos #LaosTravel #Vanlife