Luang Prabang - Phou Vao
 

I can only get a suite at La Residence Phou Vao and with tax, it's over $300/night. Is it worth it? Is there another hotel in LP with a pool? With kids in the jungle weather, it really is a necessity.

Thanks

What month will this be? It certainly was not jungle weather when I was there in January...

The Maison Souvanaphoum has a nice pool, but is not as luxurious as RPV. It is better located, you can easily walk everywhere.

we looked at the suites....they are on the 2nd floor overlooking the pool....they are decent but not worth the extra....the rooms are plenty big enough to accomodate roll aways too....

would they allow you to reserve a suite and then go to a reg room if one became available??

the villa santi RESORT has a very nice pool....it is out of town a ways.....nice enough

We are going in July.

How about the Grand Luang Prabang? Looks like they just put in a pool. Can anyone offer any comments?

Looks like I might have to suck up the $300/night since it appears the Maison requires for me to take 2 rooms which ends up being a lot more.

I will do as rhkkmk suggested. Good advice -- thanks.

Both the Grand and the Villa Santi resort are quite a way out of town - a about 20 minutes drive.

Villa Santi Resort has a pool and is supposed to be quite charming. Its 23 Deluxe Rooms and 2 Deluxe Suites rent for something in the vicinity of US $170 and US $250 per night, respectively. I haven't stayed there myself to know, but given that others report it to be "way out of town," the US $50 savings per night may not be worth the inconvenience.

A major savings in relation to this hotel choice can be had if/when you book a R/T package on Lao Airlines. The Lao Airlines package includes airfare, a 2-night stay at the Villa Santi Resort, breakfast, fruit basket, tax, service charges and round trip airport transfer for little more than the usual room rate. Other than that, the Villa Santi may not be worth it in terms of location.

Sôhk dee der.
(Goodbye and take care.)

the grand is right next to villa santi actually....they are both quite a ways from town...the grand was the home of a former prince...we did not look at it...it has an older pool

i am mistaken....at the time we went about 3 years ago, they did not have a pool...

Both the Grand and the Vila Santi resort (different from the Villa Santi in town) are new and way out of town. For that reason alone, I wouldn't stay at either.

I wasn't aware that Lao AIr flies non-stop from Bangkok to Luang Prabang... I thought the only non-stop flights are on Bangkok Air. Oh, maybe the Lao Air flights change planes in Vietianne?

does anyone have any experience with The Aspara in LP? Trip advisor rates it #2 with an average price of $65. Far less expensive than the other hotels mentioned. i'm thinking of staying there next february.

It seems to get decent reviews. I'm planning on staying there in December. I don't care about pools so don't know if it has one or not but I don't think it does. What I liked was that it was in the middle of the town so easy to just roam around without having to take transportation. I'm not a resort person and for me location is very important.

Yes glorialf, I agree. In choosing hotels, much as in considering real estate, location is 90% of the equation.

And Kathie, as far as I know, the following Lao Airlines flights between LPQ and BKK are non-stop:

QV633 Daily LPQ BKK 0800 0940 AT7 0
QV643 Daily BKK LPQ 1050 1230 AT7 0

They also service Chiang Mai:

QV635 Daily LPQ CNX 1310 1410 AT7 0
QV645 Daily CNX LPQ 1505 1605 AT7 0

has anyone stayed at the Apsara? It is rated #2 in LP by tripadvisor, with an average price of $65. thinking of staying there next february.

Thanks for the info, Ladyhawk. These flights from BKK must be new. They've been flying CM to LP for quite a while.

I think the Residence Phou Vao is definitely the place to stay in LP. It really is quite magical.

However, do note that Dec and Jan are really quite cold - so not necessarily the best time to visit if your children want to spend all day by the pool! You will need a sweater at least after sunset.

I stayed at the Apsara last year and it was fine. Clean, comfortable, and fairly large bathroom etc. The restaurant is excellent. In addition it is in easy walking distance to the main part of the town. However it does not have a pool and my room did not have a TV if that is important to anyone!

I stayed at Villa Santi Resort for four nights in February 08. We were concerned that it was well out of town but we wanted a pool so decided to risk it.

It is a very nice hotel with lovely grounds. We had very cold weather for the first two days so the pool was no good to us until the end of our stay.

We expected to find taxis waiting outside the hotel to take us into town but there were none. It is too far to walk. We used the courtesy hotel bus into town and were then easily able to get a taxi back - so the only problem was getting into town, not getting back.

I liked the hotel and that made up for the inconvenience of the location. I would stay here again but if it is important to be in a central location you might prefer to stay elsewhere.

We've stayed at the Grand, the Apsara and Villa Santi on past trips to LP (we also went to have a look at Phou Vao and Maison S). Where you should stay definitely depends on the kind of experience that you want to have. We like to stay at luxury hotels in many places, but found the luxury hotels (like Phou Vao and Maison) in LP out of step with the casual/up-scale backpacker feel of the town.

The Apsara is our favorite place (have stayed there on two trips) because it is lovely but still feels local and in keeping with the pace of the town. The Apsara sits in a quiet neighborhood along the river and offers the chance to watch people live their daily lives outside the window. With LP becoming more and more overrun with tourists every day, that connection to local life is getting harder to find. Watching the neighborhood kids splash in the river/play in the street might be a great experience for your own kids.

Just a follow up to my original post. We stayed at Maison Souvannaphoum for 3 days and La Residence Phou Vao for 3 days. Maison was well located, walking distance to the night market and good breakfast. Pool was also very nice and the rooms were fantastic. However, Phou Vao is one of the best hotels I've ever experienced. We've been all over the world and this hotel was a magical treat to find in Laos. The room and balcony was incredible overlooking the Mount Phousi. The bathroom was something out of an architectural magazine. The endless pool was one of the most beautiful we've seen. The spa was amazing. It is a "tuk-tuk" ride away and more expensive but well worth it. I am a Laotian American and was so proud to see my country display such sophisicated hospitality. Just a TIP that you do not want to miss the Kuang Si waterfalls. We hiked all the way to the top and then came back to the bottom to dive off the tree branches into the turquoise pools. You can find a local to get you beer and snacks. On the contrary, Pak Ou Caves and the little village along the Mekong (forgot the name) was dissapointing.