Trip Report, Slow Boat To Luang Prabang, Laos.

[how241]

Great report, enjoyed it. Thanks for the photos.

[lovelaos]

Thanks for the trip report Blether. Very enjoyable reading.

Luang Prabang held a magnetic hold on me for about two months back in 2007.

The following is taken from a journal titled 'In Laos and Siam' by Marthe Bassenne, a French woman who lived there around the turn of the 20th century.

"Oh! What a delightful paradise of idleness this little country protects, by the fierce barrier of the stream, against progress and ambitions for which it has no need! Will Luang Prabang be, in our century of exact sciences, of quick profits, of victory by money, the refuge of the last dreamers, the last loved ones, the last troubadours?"

I think Madame Bassenne would be contented with the way the town has aged so gracefully 100 years on.

Isn't it a shame that the Chinese are moving in and investing hugely in the town recently?

[Ratsima]

Thanks. I've driven all over Lao, but have always wanted to do this boat trip.

[mic59]

I took this trip in 2010. Although I was in Pai when I purchased the trip. Cost of 1800THB included minibus, accomodation the night before the trip and cost of the trip. As theblether said, seats were hard and food was expensive. I was advised to buy a cushion and some food at Pai so I got some food and vegetables from the market, a cheap cushion and a small knife which I forgot about and had confiscated at the airport. No problem, I would have thrown it away anyway. We also did the visa bit although we were more hands on and did it ourselves. Letting go of my passport to someone who is not an authorised immigration officer is something I do not like to do. There were 3 parts of the boat to travel in, the front part with all the seats, a middle part with most of the luggage which was hot and smelly and a small area at the back where the crew ate. I sat in this last area which was pretty open and breezy. Stayed in a comfortable place in Luang Prabang for the equivalent of THB150 and went to a nice restaurant where I had my first taste of Tilapia, a popular food fish in Asia. Very nice. Took a bus down to Vientiane to cross back into Thailand via the Friendship Bridge. Took a bit longer than expected after the bus broke down but we got it sorted at a small town on the way.

For anyone who takes this trip, a good place to go straight to is Nong Khai. Good and very large market, there was a concert at the local hospital when I was there and there is a guesthouse called Mutmee on the banks of the Mekong, one of the best I stayed at in Thailand. Please note that apart from the guesthouse area you may find little English is spoken.

[Card]

You can now get to Luang Prabang from Thailand via Nan. I understand that it involves 1/2 the time on the boat.

The border post at Nam Ngen, north of Nan, is open to international travellers and Nan is a nice place to stay on the way, with new hotels popping up everywhere (I have a holiday home there). There is a VIP bus to Nan overnight from BKK and a minibus service to the border from Nan. You can also fly to nan from BKK in a small plane once a day, I believe. Then an onward bus can be had at the border. I am not sure of the route from the Lao border but I have been told that the whole trip to LP can be done in 1 continuous trip from Nan, but an overnight stay is recommended. I believe this can be done in Hongsa but not sure. There are descriptions of the journey on the web. I intend to do this trip around Xmas time, which is high season, but have been told it is better and less crowded in low season. Probably the same as the Chiang Rai trip.

Edited June 7, 2013 by Card

[isanbirder]

I did this trip 12 years ago. I went with a Thai friend, which circumvented some problems (e.g. overcharging). The seats were hard then, and that doesn't seem to have changed. Pak Beng has changed a lot, though; there seems to be much more accommodation.

Thanks for the pics, blether; they brought back lots of memories. Luang Prabang was idyllic, though it was already becoming overcrowded.

Visas: can't you get them at the border town in Laos? You can at Savannakhet and Pakse.

Beer Lao in the south costs 8,000-9,000 kip (B.32-36) in roadside stalls, and not much more elsewhere. It's good, too!

[Chonburiram]

Nice report/pictures!

One can feel how you enjoyed your trip!

[gerrythepoet]

Excellent information, thanks very much for your time in posting all this.

[phuketrichard]

am heading up to Northern Thailand and back into Laos next month

last year went to Chiang khong an crossed over and will do the same border.

up to Mueng Sing, Luang Namtha, Luang Prabang Vientainne, Savannakhet and than crossed back to Thailand and than on the Cambodia south of Surin.

this time will head to the plain of jars.

I love Northern laos, roads are ok ( average about 40kms/hour :-)) and some fantastic scenery

Visas on arrival at all crossings,$35 for Americans

Summer is a great time as its low season and although might be wet at times its nice

[delh]

Excellent post, info and great pics. Very informative, Thank You Blether. Its on my list now.

[theblether]

Thanks very much gents, and thanks for the additional info and ideas.

[tigergrl]

very lovely photographs

[DerringDo]

Cheers theblether brought back some memories of last October 2012.

There's a second waterfall that's only open to tourists from the middle of September to the middle of November approx. Water is a the same colour but a bit clearer than KuangSi but I can't remember the name of this waterfall. There's no water for a large part of the year anyway.

Remember all those steps of pain to the cave at the top at Pak Ou. Would've been drier if I'd jumped in the Mekong.

Went with the wife and kids and everything is available for babies and toddlers. LP has changed a lot in 6yrs since our first trip. The exchange booths are a lot more common and dare I say it the English is better. Perhaps it was my Thai that was a little better too, which helped us enjoy the local scene more. The French style sandwiches are superb so is the beer.

[theblether]

^^ Absolutely re the steps to the top cave, 250 of them from bottom to top, I thought they would never end

[IsaanUSA]

and many more......back down the steps......yes those one's, no wonder she's looking perturbed.....

She's probably perturbed because the girl going down the stairs is wearing short shorts and a tank top.

[theblether]

Just when you mention that IsaanUSA, I took this photo at the exit of the waterfalls.......

[IsaanUSA]

No suntan

[bentleyboy]

The Mekong is the star of the trip for about the first hour of the boat ride, it sounds fascinating, but it's a tedious way to get to LP, take the plane and a short boat ride when you get there.

[marioc]

Thank you very much indeed theblether !!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Docno]

Fantastic photos. Enjoyed the write-up. Have only flown into Luang Prabang (two times, some years back, from Singapore), and it wasn't cheap getting there. But the that slow-boat trip looks well worth the experience. Thanks for sharing.

[phuketrichard]

Heres my trip

Northern thailand/laos/cambodia by car.

Trip up north

I liked the boat trip to the caves from LP but that 2 hours was enough for me on a slow boat :-)

Also did the slow boat from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh ( 5 hours)

[theblether]

I've just had a look through the photos on your link phuketrichard, excellent stuff.

Just a minor point, the slow boats to the Pak Ou cave are not set up the same as the boats coming down from Huay Xia. It certainly would be a drag sitting on one of those for 12 hours total over a couple of days.

I can see why some people would regard the boat trip as being tedious, it's each to our own. I was fascinated by many of the things that I saw on the way down, the changing landscapes, the changing light, the fishermen, the kwai luxuriating in the Mekong, the villages of all types, the kids playing in the river, the rock formations, the density of the jungle. I was also fascinated by my fellow passengers, the Laos locals going about their daily business. I think it would have been a different experience for me if I had sat staring at the back of some backpackers head all the way down.

It's a trip I will repeat, and the next time I'm hoping to stay in one of the Mekong villages for a couple of nights. To some, that would be hellish, but to me it would be a great experience assuming I don't get bitten to death by a passing cobra or gang banged by a hoard of voracious mossies.

I'll let you know how I get on if I ever get round to it

[zaZa9]

The Mekong is the star of the trip for about the first hour of the boat ride, it sounds fascinating, but it's a tedious way to get to LP, take the plane and a short boat ride when you get there.

Doesnt anyone else find posts like this tedious?

I mean if theblether had followed your advice we wouldnt have had his great trip report.

Hes talking about an alternative way to LP for chrissakes...

How about a TR from you then , with lots of nice piccies of your plane?

Geez.

[theblether]

Talking about aircraft, here we go.......

This was the Bangkok bound A320..............

......and my humble carriage for the flight back to Chiang Mai.......

The flight to CNX is only about an hour, for those that are interested in these kinds of things I thought the seat pitch was better than AirAsia

I had the plane spotting thread in mind when I took the pics. I'm not particularly interested in aircraft, as long as they take off and land I'm quite delighted but I know others are passionate about planes.

I paid $155 to the local travel agent for the flight, I paid cash as the agent wanted a 3.5% credit card surcharge. I'm not overly keen on using my card at random shops and agencies anyway so I was happy to pay cash.

I believe the flight to Bangkok is $162.00, and I did enquire about a flight to Vientiane, and was quoted $90.00.

I could see the logic in someone flying to Luang Prabang, spending a few days looking at the sights, flying down to Vientiane to get a visa extension, then making their way back to BKK either by flight, bus or train from Vientiane. For those that don't know, there is a train service from Nong Khai to BKK.

One of my friends is going to do the boat trip, fly to Ventiane and make his way back to Chiang Mai overland through Isaan, as he hasn't been there before. If you have time on your hands it would be an interesting round trip.

Edited June 8, 2013 by theblether

[soinowinbkk]

Really great story - thanks so much! Been wondering about this for a few years ... gotta try it soon!

Would be great to hear from folks about what I have heard is the "Grand Canyon of Asia", which I have heard is north of LP and accessible but boat or combo of bus and boat, and usually includes overnight stay in a floating guest house/hotel.

Anyone?

[theblether]

I did this trip 12 years ago. I went with a Thai friend, which circumvented some problems (e.g. overcharging). The seats were hard then, and that doesn't seem to have changed. Pak Beng has changed a lot, though; there seems to be much more accommodation.

Thanks for the pics, blether; they brought back lots of memories. Luang Prabang was idyllic, though it was already becoming overcrowded.

Visas: can't you get them at the border town in Laos? You can at Savannakhet and Pakse.

Beer Lao in the south costs 8,000-9,000 kip (B.32-36) in roadside stalls, and not much more elsewhere. It's good, too!

There is a visa on arrival service at Huay Xia, there were two queues at Laos immigration, one for those of us with visas, and the other for those who did not. The queues were really a non issue as there was only one boat load at a time arriving, though a TV member was telling me yesterday that the queues can be quite long when entering Laos at Vientiane, especially the visa on arrival queue.

If you are looking to do a visa run, as far as I am aware you must travel to Vientiane to conduct any visa business in relation to Thailand.

[rosst]

Well, the best thing I have seen on Thaivisa.com, thank you so much, I would love to meet you some time and host you at my village in Ban Nong Kung as you sound like the kind of person who has so much empathy with our Asian cultures. I have wanted to do this trip and you have now energised me, I will do it in the new year. Thanks for the wonderful images, great stuff.

[theblether]

Well, the best thing I have seen on Thaivisa.com, thank you so much, I would love to meet you some time and host you at my village in Ban Nong Kung as you sound like the kind of person who has so much empathy with our Asian cultures. I have wanted to do this trip and you have now energised me, I will do it in the new year. Thanks for the wonderful images, great stuff.

I'm just googling where Ban Nong Kung is

[rhodie]

Well, the best thing I have seen on Thaivisa.com, thank you so much, I would love to meet you some time and host you at my village in Ban Nong Kung as you sound like the kind of person who has so much empathy with our Asian cultures. I have wanted to do this trip and you have now energised me, I will do it in the new year. Thanks for the wonderful images, great stuff.

I'm just googling where Ban Nong Kung is

Great report thanks theblether. Did the trip in 2008. Much the same, but the seats were hard. Laos is very poor. Flew to LP last year instead of the boat as I had someone with me that would never have lasted the distance.

[rogerdee123]

Well, the best thing I have seen on Thaivisa.com, thank you so much, I would love to meet you some time and host you at my village in Ban Nong Kung as you sound like the kind of person who has so much empathy with our Asian cultures. I have wanted to do this trip and you have now energised me, I will do it in the new year. Thanks for the wonderful images, great stuff.

I'm just googling where Ban Nong Kung is

Great report thanks theblether. Did the trip in 2008. Much the same, but the seats were hard. Laos is very poor. Flew to LP last year instead of the boat as I had someone with me that would never have lasted the distance.

Things go better with Sativa