kingbonza

I am looking at travelling through Laos for about 1 week in January next year. Starting at Houy Xai on the Nagi of Mekong and travelling to Luang Prabang. I want to go through the plain of jars, in one day on the way to Vientiane. Can anyone give me advice on hotels in Luang Prabang and Vientiane and whether it is best to get a guide/driver to take me from Luang Prabang to Vientiane. How many days would I need at both places?

fuzzylogic

You want to visit the Plain of Jars on the way to Vientiane in one day - maybe with a private car though I think the distances and roads preclude that. In other words, look at a map.

You want to know whether it is best to get a guide/driver to take you from LP to Vientiane - well that depends on you. There is a perfectly good bus. But if you prefer a private car, why not?

How many days in both places? Vientiane has less to offer but is still worth a couple of days. Luang Prabang - your call - do you want to 'waste' time just being there? Do you want to hire a bike and just wander? Do you want to take side trips to the waterfalls, or go up the river to Pak Ou with visits to villages on the way? Do you want to spend an hour or two at the Royal Palace (Musuem) and the most famous wat - or is 30 mins enough? Do you want to shop? Or sit for a couple of hours over lunch?

Is this a 'cram as much as possible into the shortest timeframe? Do you want to visit those places or just say you have been there?

I'm not entirely sure why I have written all this. But in case it's of use I might as well hit the button.

Kathie

I loved LP and spent a week there. Part of what is special about LP is how slow it is, and how you have to slow down to its speed to experience it. There are plenty of things to do, such as the waterfalls and Hmong villages and Pak Ou caves, but there is also wandering the streets, sitting silently in the wats, talking with monks and novices, and those long lunches on the balcony of the Villa Santi.

We didn't make it to Vientiane, but it's certainly worth a couple of days.

I'd love to see the Plain of Jars, but the logistics are a bit difficult. It certainly isn't on the way between LP and Vientiane. You can take a bus from LP to the Plain of Jars. When I was in LP a few years back, the bus was scheduled to take 8 hours one way to the Plain of Jars, but many said it might take 12 - the roads are not good. The roads may be better now, but it still isn't a day trip. You can fly, though that has its own hazards. The Lonely Planet guide has good info on options for visiting the Plain of Jars.

kingbonza

Thanks for your help once again Kathie. I was all enthused after watching a Lonely Planet Documentary on Northern Thailand and Laos and thought I would incorporate this at the end of my next Thailand holiday. I looked at the map and it looks like about 400KMs from Luang prabang to Vientiane but if the roads are bad it will definitely take more than 1 day. Thats why I thought it might be better to hire a driver to stop at places along the way. I have noticed from other postings that it is best to stay in Luang Prabang than the hotels outside the city. You obviously recommend the Villa Santi. Once again thanks.

crellston

We are due to leave for Laos on our 3rd visit next month. We are spendng a couple of days in Northern Thailand and will pick up our boat at HouayXai for the trip down river to Luang Prabnag, stopping over night at Pakbeng. Upon arrival in LP we go to the Lao Spirit Resort about 15k outside of LP, spend 1 night there follwed by 3days trekking, stying in minority villages and 1 final night at Lao Spirit. This was arranged through http://www.laos-adventures.com/travels/index.asp?
We then move on to LP for 4 nights at the 3 Nagas - Kathie has totally captured the reasons for staying in LP! In total we are spending 10 nights in Laos which could probably be reuced to a week by cutting out som time either in LP or the trek.

Our first visit to Laos involved a few days in Vientienne and LP follwed by a trip by car and boat to the far south to the Cambodian border including some time in the Bolavens Plateau which is definitely worth a look. My least favourite place in Laos is Vientienne, although some would certainly disagree with me.

Our last trip in 2003 was to the north when we flew in to LP and took a boat/car upriver visting Muang Sing, Phongsali, Oudoxamai before taking a boat back down to Houy Xai to cross back into Thailand. This area of Laos is really undeveloped with some very basic accomodation and food, but if you are prepared to rough it for a few days then it is very rewarding, the peole and landscape are amazing. Part of the joy of visiting Laos is the travelling, particularly by boat (some of the scenery is real "Heart of Darkness" stuff!"My advice really is not to try to visit too many places.
I haven't been to the Plain of Jars so can't really comment except to say that it is a very long way which realistically would take a couple of days out of your trip and I would question whether it is worth it in a weeks visit

eurotraveller

I am also a big fan of LP. It is soooo relaxing! I thoroughly enjoyed just wandering around town, strolling by the river and dining in the riverside restaurants.

There isn't much night life as everything closes down at midnight. There are a few good bars along the Nam Khan, one being the Hive Bar. It is a beautiful bar.

There is also a nice fairly new wine bar near the Mekong. I think it may have been called Lemon Grass but I could be wrong. I enjoyed the service and the wine there.

I found a student to take me around outside of town on a motorbike. We explored several villages and also visited two waterfalls, one that we ended up swimming in.

Enjoy your trip but my advice would be to spend at least 3 full days in Luang Prabang.

Cheers!