Thank you, thursdaysd you're right. I was thinking about the night train too, but I guess its too risky to schedule my flight that day right? So it will take the same two days I might catch it the last night I have in Vientiane in case this is my route.

Crellston, I had indeed thought of this route, but I was afraid of the time it took. Is it worth taking time off the other places? Of course adding stuff to my itinerary looks awesome to me, I'm just scared I'm wanting too much for the little time i got. I think the southern Laos is also more wet in the summer than the northen won't that affect me too much? What time do you think I'd need to get from Vientiane to kratie? (Giving time for me too see a little of the south.)
You say I could take a bus to siem reap from there but what about going to Phnom phen first? Would this be a bad idea?

I saw in travelfish a place in northen Thailand called phu Lang ka, and it looks like its gorgeous. Have any of you guys visited this village?

have read this year alone twelve BK to CM trains 'off the rails'. very poor track beds. i have taken o'nite bus from CM to BK and enjoyed. slept well enough, they gave me a sandwich and bottle of water. arrived 6am at MoChit. plenty of time to see BK. maybe half the price of air

What time would the flight be? If it's an afternoon flight I don't think you would have a problem.

Would like to see some links, jobin. In general trains are much safer than buses, especially at night.

Trip adviser has quite a bit of info on train derailment.

http://www.tripadvisor.com.au/ShowTo..._Province.html

There is more info on the right hand side of the page, click on : FAQ - Train BKK - CM

I heard the scenery was beautiful upon arrival of Changmai but if it's not safe then.......My understanding is wet season makes it much more dangerous. Flying Air Asia is inexpensive.

I had no idea it was that unsafe, thank you mohan and jobin.
I Guess i'll just fly there, its quicker anyway and i dont have too much time.


Now, a budget related question. Do you guys think 2000$usd will be enough for me and my boyfriend?

I have an idea how to get for Vientiane to phnom phen.
What about i go from Vientiane to Kuala lumpur then to phnom phen? I would stay not more than 2, 3 days and since i don't need a visa would be actually cheaper than the direct flight and i would have a little taste of Malaysia.

If you don't mind the extra stop, that does work.

Do taste Malaysia - great food in KL.

my boyfriend is actually an aspiring chef so food will be an important part of our trip!

Mariana, the itinerary I suggested above would leave plenty of time to explore southern and northern Lao but as for the weather, that is anyone's guess these days! It is the wet season at that time of year but that doesn't mean it rains all the time. It is quieter and greener and IMO a pretty good time to visit.

KL is one of the best cities in Asia to experience good food ( on the cheap!) . I am a big fan of KL but do you have enough time?

As for the train statistics, I have travelled many times by train without incident and would do so again without hesitation. What really scares me are the buses and I would try to avoid them wherever possible. Flying is great if you have the cash but you do miss out on a great experience.

As for your budget, you can have a good time on $2000 as long as you don't take to many flights and are happy with hostel type accommodation.