On a whim, I decided to fly to Luang Prabang from nearby Bangkok, knowing next-to-nothing about the city or surrounding country of Laos at all, really. I am super glad to have made that decision because Luang Prabang introduced me to Laos, which became one of my top 5 favorite countries in the world. The city’s rich, well-preserved cultural sights, stunning scenery, and authentic atmosphere will awaken your imagination and beg you to stay longer. Here’s what you should check out while you’re visiting!
How to get there:
Luang Prabang has a tiny but adorable international airport with connections from many nearby Asian countries. There are also insufferably long buses from other Loa cities like Vientiane and Vang Vieng, and from major cities in Vietnam, Cambodia, and Thailand. Alternatively, there is a long boat ride that takes 2 days from Bangkok to Luang Prabang, which would be a fun and memorable experience if you have the time! Flying was considerably more expensive but was a much faster and more comfortable option for me. Take a cheap tuk-tuk or a bus to the city center which is only about a 10 minute drive from the airport.
Getting around:
Luang Prabang is a very small town, perfectly suitable to walk around on foot. There are tuk-tuk drivers on pretty much every street that you can use if you don’t want to walk, but there’s no real reason to because it’s so small and quaint.
Night market views with Wat Xieng Thong temple in the background
Where to stay:
Given it’s small town nature, you can’t go wrong with where you choose to stay since you’ll be close to everything anyways. I stayed at Downtown Backpacker’s Hostel for around $7 a night for a dorm room, and definitely recommend that to other budget travelers.
What to do:
I arrived in the early evening, just in time for the famous Night Market to begin. On the one main street, local vendors set up tents, tables, or just blankets on the ground to sell their hand-made goods – ranging from hand-woven clothes, carved wooden bowls, painted coconut husks – you name it, they have it. It’s colorful and charming, and was the perfect welcome to the city. The night market goes on every single night, rain or shine, from roughly 5:00pm-10:00pm, by which time Luang Prabang is essentially shut down – it’s a quiet, sleepy town.
Night Market
There are also famous temples and cultural sights for you to visit in Luang Prabang. Wat Xieng Thong temple, or translated meaning “Royal Temple,” off of the main street is a must-see (and kinda hard to miss in any case). Ornate and intricately detailed, this golden temple is a beautiful way to introduce yourself to Lao culture. It stands on the same lot as the Royal Palace, which serves as a history museum for the country. 30,000 kip or roughly $3.50 USD entrance fee, a worthy price to learn about the history of Laos.
Next, don’t miss a visit up to Mount Phousi. It’s a moderately easy hike up to the summit, a long staircase most of the way, which offers both sweeping views of the city + surrounding environment and awesome cultural gems along the way. There’s lots of temples and statues as you make your way up, and 30-ish minutes later you are rewarded with an incredible perspective of life below. Even better, go for sunset and watch the sky change colors from above. 20,000 kip or roughly $2.50 entrance fee.The view you’ll be rewarded with at the top!Lots of ornate statues on the walk up to Mount Phousi
Another of my favorite moments was taking a stroll along the Mekong River., a beautiful and developmentally important river that runs through much of Southeast Asia. Here you can see Buddhist monks cross the old, creaky, bamboo bridges over the river – or venture out on them yourselves for a little adrenaline rush.
Hand made wooden bridge 🙂
Finally, Kuang Si Falls is an absolutely glorious waterfall located about an hour’s drive away from Luang Prabang. You can likely organize a driver/group tour to get there through your accommodation, or check out one of the many tour agencies that are located off of the main street in the city. I wrote a whole guide to Kuang Si Falls where you can learn everything you need to know about visiting.
Kuang Si Falls
Overall, my favorite part about Luang Prabang was just the authenticity that the city exudes. I love Thailand, but mass tourism has somewhat degraded the genuine feel of the culture and turned it into a land of drunk backpackers and partying. Luang Prabang, though arguably the country’s biggest tourist draw, retains its authentic and unique culture, not influenced by the throngs of tourists who flock to see it, but unphased instead. I saw communist flags everywhere and chopped up SNAKE (that’s right) being sold in street stalls. Other major tourist destinations might have done away with those unique and eclectic aspects of the culture to make it ‘prettier’ and more ‘pleasant’ for its visitors, but that’s what made Luang Prabang so rare and one-of-a-kind for me.
Other facts:
Laos uses the Lao kip as currency. Contrary to other blog posts that I read, there are ATMs and exchange offices all over Luang Prabang. You can easily find meal options for well under $5 here, it’s ridiculously cheap!
Hope this guide helped you plan (or reminisce) on your trip to Luang Prabang!
