What's so great about Luang Prabang?

[edwardandtubs]

It's supposed to be a 'must visit' place in Southeast Asia but I can't see why. Judging from videos and photos it looks nice, laid back and everything but hardly worth the airfare or long bus ride. The architecture looks quite nice I suppose but nothing amazing. The local beer is alright. A market. Is that it?

[lopburi3]

I have not been there for about 40 years but even then it was unique and a delight with the mountains and rivers coming together.

[craigt3365]

I was there about 10 years ago. Loved it. Getting up early to feed the monks, sitting on the river having a beer, visiting the many temples, seeing the waterfalls, visiting the various local villages. Fantastic place to visit. Great if you combine Vang Vieng.

But to each his own. Some will love it, some won't . But you won't know until you visit there. Unfortunately!

[Lancelot]

I enjoyed my visit there, the old colonial French architecture, the river and associated trade and travelers. Nice glass of wine and a baguette. Smiling polite locals Worked for me

[edwardandtubs]

You can do all those things in other parts of Southeast Asia. Sounds like a nice little stopover if you're travelling by land from Thailand to Vietnam but is it really somewhere you'd want to spend a couple of weeks? I'm thinking of doing that but I can just see myself saying 'Is this it?' and getting bored after a couple of days. It seems places in Thailand like Nan, Pai and Lampang have more to offer.

[craigt3365]

Depends on what you are looking for. It's a fantastic place to visit. I couldn't stand Pai for more than a few days. To each his own.

LP is a great place to visit for 3-4 days, head down to VV for a few days, Vientiane for a few days, then around that northern part of Thailand for ????. It would be a fantastic trip.

[phuketrichard]

If your into a temples and hanging out its a great place,, good food, nice people, the river,

Been 3 times in past 2 years and love it,

Some places are just places you want to kick back an watch the river flow.

I would imagine thou in the high season i would hate it

Agree with Craig Pai blahhhhhhhhh

so many better places within 200 kms of there.

[edwardandtubs]

How is Luang Prabang for double pricing and scamming? In Northern Thailand you get charged a 200 baht farang price just to see some crappy little waterfall. Is it the same in Luang Prabang? Is there a tourist entrance charge for all these charming little side trips around LP?

Edited June 20, 2014 by edwardandtubs

[anotheruser]

I enjoy LP but 3 days is enough for me there. There is not much to do there and the town is pretty small.

[craigt3365]

I've heard a fun way to get there is by boat from Thailand. Not the speed boats, but the slower ones. Suppose to be beautiful.

[phuketrichard]

2 days/1 night from Chiang Khong

u stop in Bakbeng on the way to sleep

Agree 3 days is plenty; 2 days for town and hanging out,1 day for the river trip up to and back to the caves

Edited June 21, 2014 by phuketrichard

[anotheruser]

I've heard a fun way to get there is by boat from Thailand. Not the speed boats, but the slower ones. Suppose to be beautiful.

Slow boat looked pretty miserable but the luxury boat I took was pretty good. The ride is less scenic than you might imagine however.

[willem1946]

I've heard a fun way to get there is by boat from Thailand. Not the speed boats, but the slower ones. Suppose to be beautiful.

I did the slowboat, its an expierience, 100 people on a boat for 2 days with 1 toilet, but I still liked it

[Trentham]

I cannot wait to go back there. I would like to live there. No scams, genuine people and the smile is for real.

[Loles]

LP is a nice place, but only for 3-4 days.

And I have found many places with lot of garbage around.

I was arrived by slow-boat from north on Mekong river, and this was a really attractive.

[hanno]

I go once or twice a year. Mostly just to drink beer by the river and wonder around town. As it is a World Heritage site, the center is protected and the architecture is great. Probably one of my favorite towns in SE Asia.

[bkkden]

Try to go to see Bagan in Myanmar as well if you can.

Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect Thailand

[JCauto]

Love LP. I would say you can make a week out of it easily enough. Two days of waterfalling (the two main ones are very different, one is great to swim in with many different levels and hiking up the stream, the other with a zipline), two-three days of wandering around town chilling out, visiting temples and the night market, and two days of renting a motorcycle and hitting the open road around the province. Didn't care much for the boat trip to the cave.

I would be curious as to what you might do that you find enjoyable in Pai or Lampang? Those places are like LP in some respects, minus the great scenery around them, the world heritage site old town, the amazing temples and the waterfalls.

[kennypowers]

It's hands down one of the most amazing places to chill in SE Asia. If you need to constantly be drunk and surrounded by hookers to avoid listening to the voice in your head, you won't like it.

[mikeoxwelling]

Well it already sounds like you have made your mind up, no need to bang on about it. If you're not interested in the place then why come here asking for people to try and sell it to you? go and Google some other places that interest you more and go there instead.

[sanuk711]

It's supposed to be a 'must visit' place in Southeast Asia but I can't see why. Judging from videos and photos it looks nice, laid back and everything but hardly worth the airfare or long bus ride. The architecture looks quite nice I suppose but nothing amazing. The local beer is alright. A market. Is that it?---edwardandtubs

Yer do not bother to go there ed & Tubs---stick with Pattaya, --Patpong & the really amazing Bic Biro & ping-pong balls.

I guess if I made a list of memorable places in SE. Asia -it would come a close number 2 behind Angor Watt -- its going to have to change, just glad I saw it before it does.

[Searat7]

I have been there 4 or 5 times over the past 12 years but this year was different because the airport is new and expanded to handle jets...so now full planes of tourist groups arrive from China ! Previously the airport handled only smaller prop planes. Still it is a place you should see at least once...there are 2 waterfalls there and it's a nice town with good restaurants and a large night market. Make sure to stay in Old Town.

[ericjt]

There's just something about some places that are neat. LP is one of them. All the nice things said about it are true, IMO. Wife and I spent 10 days there 10 years ago and still want to go back. Wonderful scenery, wonderful restaurants, friendly people, the Mekong River flows right through town, good prices, no price gouging that we saw. Just a neat place in the mountains with friendly, gracious people. Try it, you'll like it. And maybe take a boat ride back to Thailand on the Mekong River. It's an overnight trip and you get to sleep on an island in the middle of nowhere. They serve a wonderful candlelit dinner.

[WitawatWatawit]

I wouldn't mind chilling out there for a few days, but at some point I would need the internet for 3-4 hours to do my contract work. Anyone know if the net connection in LP is any good?

[thejcb]

I was there about 10 years ago. Loved it. Getting up early to feed the monks, sitting on the river having a beer, visiting the many temples, seeing the waterfalls, visiting the various local villages. Fantastic place to visit. Great if you combine Vang Vieng.

But to each his own. Some will love it, some won't . But you won't know until you visit there. Unfortunately!

Get up early and feed some monks ? Drinking beer on a boat ?

More temples and waterfalls ?? boring villages with nothing there ?

Don't you have a life ?

[Trentham]

I wouldn't mind chilling out there for a few days, but at some point I would need the internet for 3-4 hours to do my contract work. Anyone know if the net connection in LP is any good?

I used the internet in an internet cafe almost every day. No problems.

[hanno]

I wouldn't mind chilling out there for a few days, but at some point I would need the internet for 3-4 hours to do my contract work. Anyone know if the net connection in LP is any good?

Good internet all over the place.

[hanno]

"Feeding" the monks is actually the thing I hate most about LP, it is like a zoo.

[dao16]

Not sure what to make of the framing of your question. The first thing that pops into my mind when you ask this question, though, is where else are you going? If you can't enjoy Luang Prabang, I'm not sure if the rest of Laos (or SE Asia) will be very attractive either (unless you are looking for fast, easy women or one of those things--if so, get thee to another spot).

I went there about 8 years ago and absolutely loved it. That was part of a month-long trip through Laos from the South to the Border of China. I have been to Laos a dozen times or so after that, as well. I liked a lot of towns, but Luang Prabang was just idyllic and we rode bicycles (you could do motorbike, too) around town and outside of town. The temples are gorgeous, as is the scenery (don't remember the name, but one of the most beautiful waterfalls I have ever been to is there). I have not experienced or heard of any scams there, but I live in Thailand, so I am always hyper aware of what people are doing after all these years. The River (Mekong) is beautiful and we used to get up and have breakfast right by it and get ready for the rest of the day. The market has some pretty stuff and the architecture is nice. Lots of antiques around and we visited some museums.

I don't know why you are so skeptical about it. I understand if you are dubious about flying out from BKK just to see it for a few days, but if you are already travelling in the region and it is within a half days journey some where on your route, I think it would be foolish to miss it.

EDIT-- Oh, and decent French food, if you have been eating Thai/Laos food and miss eating something different.

Edited June 23, 2014 by dao16

[craigt3365]

"Feeding" the monks is actually the thing I hate most about LP, it is like a zoo.

I was the only farang doing this. Hardly a zoo. But this was some 12 years ago. Things might have changed now. I'd probably not do it again, but back then, it was a really neat thing to do. Especially as a newbie to Asia.