There is a province bus station in the town offering many bus services to Luang Prabang, Nong Khiaw, Pak Beng, Meuang La, Phongsaly, Vientiane. Buy your ticket an hour in advance.
Beside that, just opposite the Sinphet restaurant, there are international bus from China plying the route from Kunming to Luang Prabang and Luang Prabang to Kunming. Time is around 12.00 p.m. The international bus will stop around 15 minutes for lunch at the Chinese restaurant just opposite Sinphet restaurant.
Bus all the way to Kunming leaves at about 11:30 and takes 3 hours to the border and after immigration further 11 hours. Cost June 2012 - 350,000 kip.
Be aware that buses will only leave on scheduled routes if there are enough passengers. During the low season this leads to frequent cancellations and may mean you need to amend your itinerary or spend another night in town.
