Short trip to Laos - could we have trouble re-entering Thailand?s
Hi everyone!
My partner and I arrived in Thailand on September 19 on single-entry tourist visas, with permission to stay until November 19. We already have flights home from Bangkok on November 13.
We recently booked sleeper train tickets from Bangkok to Nong Khai for November 6–8. We’re planning to cross into Laos via the **Nong Khai–Vientiane Friendship Bridge border crossing**, just to experience the train and explore Vientiane for a bit.
But after buying the tickets, we realized that such a short trip might look like a border run, and now we’re a little worried about getting back into Thailand... we only have 1 night in Vientiane, we thought it would be enough to sightsee because we arrive in the morning and leave the next day in the evening..
For context, I’ve visited Thailand in 2023 and 2024 for 2-3 weeks, and last year we stayed in Thailand for 2 weeks, travelled SEA for 1 month and then came back to Thailand for 2 weeks (last november).
We’re both from Slovenia (EU), so we should be eligible for the 30-day visa exemption when re-entering Thailand from Laos.
We have our return flights and hotel bookings as proof that we’re leaving Thailand on November 13.
**Do you think we’ll have any issues re-entering Thailand from Laos through the Nong Khai border? Has anyone done something similar recently?**
Would we be fine re-entering Thailand visa-exempt, or would re-entry permits be safer?
Also, is there any way to prove we have sufficient funds without carrying a large amount of cash? We have more than enough money in our bank accounts, and since we’ll only be spending another 4–5 days in Bangkok before flying home, with our hotel already paid for, we’d rather avoid withdrawing so much cash unnecessarily.
Thanks!
**Edit:** We’re coming back from Koh Lanta on November 5 and still want to do some shopping in Bangkok before flying home. We’ll halso be leaving most of our luggage at our hotel in Bangkok. We’re worried that staying only one night in Vientiane might look suspicious, but we don’t really have time for a much longer trip.