Laos: country facts, travel advice and health

Loca: the leading ride-hailing service; pay in cash or by card.Kokkok: book electric taxis and tuk-tuks.LCR Ticket: buy Lao-China Railway tickets with no fee (needs a Lao, Thai or Chinese number).Ezykip: pay by QR code, even at night-market stalls, without a local bank account.Maps.me: offline OpenStreetMap navigation that covers Lao roads better than Google Maps.WhatsApp: the most reliable way to reach domestic airlines.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Cards or cash

Mostly cashMostly cards

Step 2 of 5: Cash is the main way to pay; cards are accepted only in some places.Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Money in Laos

Laotian Kip · ₭ · LAK

Carry US dollars for the visa on arrival; paying in kip or baht costs more.

Change leftover kip before leaving, as it is hard to exchange abroad.

Bring crisp, unmarked banknotes, as changers refuse damaged ones.

Avoid cash advances on credit cards, which stack up several fees.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Collect Laotian Kip in CointryOur sister app for coin and banknote collectors · cointry.appOpen

02Free

Safety today

Germany, the US and the UK publish their travel advice openly. Here is what those that cover Laos say, side by side, checked daily.

German Foreign Office says

No travel warning

Calm ●

Caution

Serious

Don’t go

Source: Auswärtiges Amt
Updated 14 Oct 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

U.S. Department of State says

Exercise increased caution

Calm

Caution ●

Serious

Don’t go

Level 2 of 4

Source: travel.state.gov
Updated 27 Jul 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

UK Foreign Office says

Advises against all but essential travel to parts of the country

Some regions differ, see the official page.

Source: GOV.UK
Updated 13 Aug 2026 · Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Scams to know

Staged motorbike theft or damage

Never leave your passport as a motorbike rental deposit; check insurance covers riding.

Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Bogus accident responders

Only accept help from crews in uniforms marked Vientiane Rescue or Lao Red Cross.

Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Fake ride-app drivers

Book via the app or your accommodation, and check driver and plate before getting in.

Source: GOV.UK · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Countrywise is a summary. The official page is authoritative.

03Free

Health

Routine shots, hepatitis A, B, typhoid; JE, rabies by activity; adult polio booster. Malaria in some areas.

Vaccinations

Be current on routine shots; CDC also recommends hepatitis A, hepatitis B and typhoid for most visitors, with Japanese encephalitis and rabies depending on your activities and a polio booster for adults.

Malaria

In some regions

Talk to a travel clinic 4–8 weeks before you go.

Source: CDC
Checked 24 Oct 2026Official page

Summarised from the CDC’s Travelers’ Health pages. Using them does not mean the CDC endorses Countrywise.

04Travel layer

In the app: the travel layer

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Read a country like someone who’s been there.

What’s different from home, and what’s the lawMust-see places, free entry and World Heritage sites20 words to remember, with pronunciationStrange and surprising factsThe anthem and national symbolsSaved for offline use

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Must-see · 1Luang Prabang

Old royal World Heritage town of temples and a night market

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

Strange & surprising · #1

Laos is the only country in Southeast Asia without a coastline.

Source: Wikivoyage · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

National anthem: Pheng Xat Lao. The lyrics, translated, and the story are in the app. Source: Wikidata · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

4 World Heritage sites in Laos, each with a photo and its story, in the app. Source: UNESCO World Heritage List

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Deep facts

Economy
GDP	≈ $18.3 billionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Per person	≈ $2,325Source: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Top exports	electricity, fertilizers, gold, garments, paper (2023)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Population
Population	7.9 millionSource: World Bank · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Median age	25.8 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2025 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Life expectancy	69 yearsSource: The World Factbook (archive) · 2024 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Religions	Buddhist 64.7%, Christian 1.7%, none 31.4%, other/not stated 2.1% (2015 est.)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · 2015 figures · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Geography
Area	236,800 km²Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Climate	tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April)Source: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Terrain	mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateausSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Government
Type of government	communist party-led stateSource: The World Factbook (archive) · as of 2025/26 · Checked 23 Oct 2026 ↗
Calling code	+856Source: libphonenumber · Checked 24 Oct 2026 ↗

About the data

Written from the sources we link, and checked against them before each release. Countrywise summarises public sources. We are not an official source. For safety and entry rules, always follow the official page we link to.

From your foreign ministry when it publishes its advice openly (Germany, the US, the UK). Otherwise we show those three side by side. Checked daily, with the date next to every entry.

CDC · 24 Oct 2026 ↗GOV.UK · 24 Oct 2026 ↗IANA Time Zone Database · 23 Oct 2026 ↗libphonenumber · 24 Oct 2026 ↗The World Factbook (archive) · 23 Oct 2026 ↗U.S. Department of State · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Unicode CLDR · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikidata · 24 Oct 2026 ↗Wikivoyage · 24 Oct 2026 ↗World Bank · 23 Oct 2026 ↗

Flag artwork from flag-icons (MIT licence).