Hi everyone, I've got two weeks in northern Laos/Thailand and would like to do a three day trek in Nam Ha NP from Luang Namtha and then onto Huay Xai to do the Gibbons experience and had a few questions:

Is it necesssary to book in advance for guesthouses in Luang Namtha?

I read in an old Lonely Planet there are cycling tours to Muang Sing from LM - is this still the case?

Is there anywhere I'm missing out to visit that would fit into the above itinerary? Looking for more active stuff although probably won't be doing any more overnight treks. I was considering going to Nong Khiaw for a few days but not sure it's worth it for all the extra travelling. I've visited Luang Prabang before so will likely be give that a miss.

Thanks in advance!

It is years since I last visited the far north of Laos and I am not sure how much the transport infrastructure has improved (or not). We rarely engage with guides wherever we go, but northern Laos, both times there we did hire one and it was very much worth it especially when visiting and/or staying in any of the minority villages (which would highly recommend)

I dont think we booked anyaccomodation anywhere even in the busier towns like Luang Namtha. We did a few hikes from village to village and if I recall, those were mainly around Muang Sing. Another place we really enjoyed in the north was Phongsali both the town itself and the surrounding villages.

Our nieces spent a month in Laos this year crossing from North Thailand and heading to LP and then overland to Cambodia. They didn't send too much time in the far north apart from the boat down the Mekong but I was quite shocked from following their instagram feed to see how much more touristed it had become. Hopefully the north will not have been so badly affected as the south.

PSThis forum doesn't get much traffic and few people on this forum will have travelled to Laos. You may want to check out the Tripadvisor forum which is much more active

Thanks for the response - yes will be interesting to see how touristy Laos is (north of LP anyway!). Reassuring to hear several people say it's easy to turn up and find accommodation too.