Young adult daughter travelling to Hanoi this week from Laos via Cau Treo border crossing. Her passport is slightly damaged, so if she gets denied entry to Vietnam then can she get a bus at the border back to Vientiane in Laos? Worried about her being stranded there alone. Thank you.

The chances are she will be fine. I have crossed more than a few land borders in SE Asia and they are not without their problems. These usually involve border officials asking for "special admin fees" aka bribes. Usually only $1-5 US annoying but not the end of the world. Vietnamese border officials have always seemed more honest than many other countries but they are sticklers for following the rules. If the damage is to the photo page then she may have a problem as they would argue that it could have been tampered with. If any other pages she should be OK.

IME Laos officials are more likely to cause problems. We got pulled over at Luang Prabang airport one time because we had only got 3 of the 4 stamps required in our passports (allegedly) ! They wanted a $200 fine or we had to travel two days back to the border where we entered to get another stamp. I said i only had $20 which they accepted . Asked for a receipt and they just laughed. Unlikely though that at damaged passport would be challenged coming OUT of the country.

Much may depend upon your daughters nationality, which type of visa she is using - eVisa , 15day Visa free, full visa etc.

If challenged, my advice would be to look lost and plead with the official. If there are a few booths at the border post wander off and re-try with another official.

Good luck and let s know how it goes.