Lao Bảo is a small town in Hướng Hóa District of Quảng Trị Province,

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

, located in the North Central Coast region, near the border with

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

. Its population is approximately 30,000. Lao Bảo is the last Vietnamese town on National Route 9, which runs westwards from Dong Ha near the Vietnamese coast over the Annamite Range into Laos. The road was constructed in 1930 by the French colonial administration to connect the towns along the

Mekong River The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth-longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third-longest in Asia with an estimated l ...

to the Vietnamese coast. As route AH16 in Asian Highway Network, the road continues further westwards through Laos and across the Mekong into

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

. It is part of the East-West Economic Corridor that stretches 1,450 km, connecting four Mekong region countries: Vietnam, Laos,

, and

Myanmar Myanmar, officially the Republic of the Union of Myanmar; and also referred to as Burma (the official English name until 1989), is a country in northwest Southeast Asia. It is the largest country by area in Mainland Southeast Asia and has ...

. As Lao Bảo is located in an advantaged area of commerce and border trade between

and Laos, this small town has opportunities to do business and exchange timber with Laos and

for profit. Although it is a small town in the border area, it also provides several jobs for the people there. In comparison with the provincial capital of

Đông Hà Đông Hà () is the capital of Quảng Trị Province, in the North Central Coast region, the Central of Vietnam. As of 2024, the city's population is approximately about 164,228 people. It is located north of Huế and south of Đồng ...

in standard of individual earnings, the earnings of inhabitants of Lao Bao are higher. In Lao Bảo the Sepon River (Vietnamese: ''Sông Xê-pôn'') is the border line between Hướng Hóa and the Savan province of Laos. This river is only 1 meter in depth and its width is about 100 metres. Surrounding the river is a jungle with large, tall trees. Several commerce and trade initiatives with Laos and Thailand have been recently developed in Lao Bảo.

Border crossing

An international border crossing between

and

is located in Lao Bảo and called the Lao Bao International Border Gate. The checkpoint on the Lao side is called the Dansavan International Border Gate, located in Dansavan village, Savannakhet Province, Laos. Besides conventional Vietnamese visas, the Lao Bao International Border Gate is also an entry point for Vietnamese Evisas.

Gallery

File:Cửa khẩu quốc tế Lao Bảo.jpg, The Lao Bảo international border, between Laos and Vietnam. File:Khu cho Lao Bảo.JPG, A shopping mall in the Lao Bảo special economic zone.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lao Bao Populated places in Quảng Trị province Communes of Quảng Trị province Laos–Vietnam border crossings