16 Best Hotels in Luang Prabang, Laos

This small hotel punches above its weight in style and charm, with six rooms named after local fruits and exploding in unique colorful touches. Families will love the hotel's intimate feel, the small but well-kept swimming pool, and convenient location---it's a short 5-minute walk to the night market. Breakfast offers a choice of Western style, healthy, or even local street food. The cozy restaurant area also doubles as the hotel bar.

Situated around UNESCO-protected ponds, Maison Dalabua is a peaceful escape, while still in the city. With a deceptively modest entrance that blends into the neighborhood, the property opens up into an expansive complex teeming with foliage. Decorated in fine Lao textiles, the comfortable rooms are equipped with bathtubs and verandas. Breakfast is served on a pond-side deck. The hotel's restaurant, Manda de Laos, is also highly recommended. 

Formerly a prince's residence, this century-old property has been refurbished and expanded into a series of French colonial homes surrounded by pools and gardens and is one of Luang Prabang's best-kept secrets. The owner, a serious collector, has furnished every nook and cranny with fine-art pieces, paintings, and antiques she's come across during her global wanderings. The rooms and suites are spacious and decked out in superior wood furniture, with poster beds and writing desks. All accommodations have either terraces or garden views. In the spirit of keeping modern touches to a minimum there are no TVs, though they are available upon request, and Satri House has excellent Wi-Fi throughout. Other amenities include two swimming pools, a spa, and a well-regarded French-Lao restaurant. The hotel is a member of the prestigious Secret Retreats boutique lodging collection.

This complex of historical mansions stands under official UNESCO World Heritage Site protection, thanks in no small measure to the efforts of the former owner to retain its weathered but handsome look. The vintage Citroën parked out front, original wooden floors and clay tiles, and the use of dark wood, silks, and homespun local fabrics in the large rooms enhance the colonial setting. You can buy the fabrics in the hotel shop, along with Lao teas, coffee, and spices. Some rooms have four-poster beds. Deluxe Room 6 has a balcony like that of the executive suite, ideal for watching the morning alms procession of local monks. The 3 Nagas Restaurant on the lobby terrace is a longtime favorite for its fine food and elegant surroundings and the Nagini bar in the French colonial building serves cocktails with class.

The queen of resorts in Luang Prabang, this gorgeous and tranquil oasis occupies the old French colonial hospital and is surrounded by leafy gardens and shaded verandas. The spacious suites, which have claw-foot tubs and private patios, are clustered around an enormous courtyard and huge pool. Lao and French cuisines are served in the colonial dining room, and there's a well-stocked library, state-of-the-art fitness center, and self-contained spa specializing in all types of relaxation packages. Best of all, this serene haven of exclusivity is a 5-minute stroll from the center of town, near all the wats, markets, and restaurants. Attention to detail and personal service are the hallmarks of this temple of opulence. Be prepared to blow the bank, though, as this is one of the most expensive accommodations in Laos.

The former residence of Prince Souvannaphouma, prime minister in the 1960s, has been transformed into one of Luang Prabang's top hotels. The colonial-style mansion contains the reception area, an open-air restaurant, a bar, and, upstairs, the suites; the regular rooms occupy a newer building alongside the main building. All the accommodations are large, bright, and attractively furnished, with small balconies overlooking tropical greenery. Ask for a room at the back, away from the busy street, for more peace and quiet, or opt for the prince's bedroom suite, which is spacious, elegant, and romantic. The hotel has a decent swimming pool, a nice spa, and guests have access to free bicycles.

With its white facade and balustrades and riverside location, this former shophouse complex is now a trendy boutique hotel. The reasonably priced rooms have floor-to-ceiling windows that face east, so you can catch the sunrise over the nearby mountains. Rooms 1 through 5 on the second floor have the best river or mountain views.

For those looking for something glamorous and exclusive, this sister property of The Apsara, across the Nam Khan River, has a swimming pool, private verandas, and a free 24-hour shuttle-boat service to take guests across the river. The nine boutique rooms are in a villa decorated with fine contemporary Asian art. The hotel is a stone's throw from town, but its private position across the river makes it feel secluded.

Its prime position on Phou Vao (Kite Hill) gives this sumptuous hotel the best views in town. Traditional Lao touches are everywhere, creating a sense of exotic luxury in the rosewood-furnished rooms. In the evening you can relax over cocktails at the Dok Champa Bar and soak in the restful garden surroundings. The restaurant is among Luang Prabang's best, serving authentic Lao food and rich French dishes. Seven different therapies are available at the spa; stay a full week and you can try a different treatment each day. The hotel provides a free shuttle service into town for its guests. The hotel is very expensive during the high season, but substantial discounts are offered during slower periods.

Fronting the Mekong and just down the street from Wat Xieng Thong, this small hotel was resurrected from a ruined mansion built by a Portuguese merchant in 1904. Four guest rooms upstairs open onto a colonnaded veranda to views of the river and the hills beyond. The two rooms on the lower floor, each with three beds, are larger and have private terraces, but are a bit dark. Because of the hotel's small size and popularity, it's highly advisable to book ahead November through April or ask about the owner's similar properties nearby.

Family-run guesthouses are common in Luang Prabang, but this one stands out for making patrons feel right at home. The Rattana sisters, Somsanith and Somporn; their mother; and their adopted daughter are extremely knowledgeable and helpful (one sister works for an established tour operator, the other is a doctor). Rooms are bright, clean, and comfortable. Rooms 101 and 102 have small balconies; note that 102 has a detached, though private, bath. There's no restaurant.

Situated outside the city by a pleasant waterfall, the Rosewood is a romantic sanctuary, that takes its decor cues from the heritage architecture of the city and traditional Lao art. Rooms vary from riverside and pool villas up to luxury tents on top of a hill with panoramic views. There's also a spa and the hotel operates its own river cruises.

Spotless and super cheap, this place in the center of town is the ideal Luang Prabang guesthouse. Rooms are basic but have TVs and private bathrooms. Best of all, it's near several bakeries: the Croissant d' Or is next door, and the Luang Prabang Bakery and Scandinavian Bakery are just across the road.

Though some say this elegant hotel was a French governor's mansion, in actuality it was the colonial-era prison (complete with guard towers); regardless, it's now one of Luang Prabang's most exclusive resorts. Slightly hidden away on a quiet side street, the hotel's historic buildings stand amid lovely courtyards. One building is a spa, one is a cooking school, and there is a swimming pool along with a sunken seating area with a bonfire for chilly nights. Rooms come with poster beds and have either hot tubs or plunge pools. The restaurant serves fantastic farm-to-table Lao and French cuisine.

The final residence of Laos's royal family has been renovated into one of the Old Town's most luxurious addresses. Perfectly situated next to Wat Xieng Thong and fronting the Mekong at the quiet northern end of the peninsula, this hotel evokes Luang Prabang's heritage but also pampers guests with an au courant spa and a sterling riverside restaurant. Some rooms have private plunge pools.

The last Crown Princess's son-in-law converted this 19th-century royal residence in the heart of Luang Prabang into a boutique hotel. The old building on Sakkarin Road has been renovated and houses the Royal Suites, as well as the hotel restaurant and swimming pool, while the newer wing, around the corner, has quiet rooms a short stroll from the Mekong River. The open-air terrace restaurant serves Lao and international cuisine.