Trip to Vientiane in Laos

[TomNorway]

Hi friends,
I plan to spend two days in Vientiane/Laos in July. Anyone who can give me some recommondation where to stay and what to see for a limited stay of two days? A recommended place to stay should be GF :-)

[LivinLOS]

Vientiane has a real problem with 'GF' Laos girls get in BIG trouble if caught in a room with a foreigner.. While I was there a few years back there were even curfews at a certain point at night after which you couldn't be out.. Of course money could solve that but taxi prices rocket after the cut off.

I had a Laos girl sort a hotel out that were tolerant and enjoyed a couple of days there as an experience but it wasnt a party place IMO.. Great wine food and bread though. Wide open boulevards and quite a pleasant if slow place.

[mars]

It's against laos law for a local girl to out with a foreigner and if remember correctly you need to have a guide with at all times or be in an organised party.

Think you need to do a bit more research before you go there!

[TomNorway]

Ok, thanks. Sounds like I need to do some investigation before I a go. I heard it was a bit more strict then LOS, but never this much. Any other BM's that can share some experiences will be appreciated.

[wylos]

i really like vietianne as a city,really laidback and small.
they do some good food to as LIL says,try there baguettes,found on a few street corners.
i stayed around the waterfall area,not to far from market,and theres a few good bars around there...kop jai deu........translates into 'thank u very much',is great,beer lao flowing,sure it was around 60baht for a 3 glass jug happy hour,great place to grab a bite,and its pretty well known,so a good meeting place.
i found the nightlife really good,defintely a lot more busy on weekends,but u can party all night,just dont expect much of a selection, the clubs i went too was spot on,one i remember vaugley, im sure is only open weekends,its on top of a really big hotel,open air ,roof top club,and lovely women.
defintely gotta be a bit careful with the girls,no so much hands on,but just follow the girls cue and u wont go wrong.
not so many GF hotels,my info is a year or so old,but u can strike deals...$$$$,but may mean turfing out early hours before boss arrives for duty..5555.
its fairly chilled for a city,and u can see a fair amount in 3 or so days,as there is not a great deal to see,so a few days break is fine IMHO.
enjoy.

and if ya dont mind company of a few backpackers,hit vang vien....one of the best things i done whilst travelling was going there and riding the river on big rubber rings......u float down a pretty shallow river and get pulled into numerous bamboo bars getting p1ssed up (loa khow=danger)and throwing yerself of drops and zip wires,so good i went back and showed my pals,it was a must.great laugh.

[TomNorway]

Thank you, wylos. I plan to go there for 3 days in July and I definitely will do now. Thanks for sharing your experience. I will start off in Patong, go a couple of days to Bangkok and then Laos. Was then thinking of going back through Siem Reap to se the Anchor What. I heard that it is also is very much worth seeing.

[t0rn]

Going from Bangkok you can easily get to either Luang Prabang (Bangkok Airways) or Vientianne.

Luang Prabang (haven't been for almost 2 years) is sleepy little town on the banks of the Mekong, fairly touristy with lots of backpackers and cheap guesthouse accomodation.
Very pleasant, relaxing town with some nice river tours and a couple of largish waterfalls where you can swim/bath.
No worthwhile P4P - definately a place to bring your own or hook up with another tourist.

Vientanne - a few of the hotels have 'clubs' attached where girls are available. Have stayed in Anou, US$20ish/night where the club is inside the hotel and Lane Xiang, US$33ish/night where the club is outside the hotel. Was also offered a 'sexy lady' by the floor guy in the Lane Xiang (despite being with my GF) - Lane Xiang has a pool. Rates quoted are walk-in.
Also FL's available aroung Fountain Circle and in the discos - all of this is at night.
As others have said the food is very good and retains some French influences, recommend Cote D'Azur in Vientianne for dinner (it's on the river front road) and pretty much everywhere for baguettes with a variety of fillings.
Would recommend Happy Garden for (legit)massage, near Anou Hotel and much cheaper than the places around Fountain Circle.
Well worth a few days visit but not a huge amount to do.

Have fun ....

[t0rn]

Originally Posted by mars

It's against laos law for a local girl to out with a foreigner and if remember correctly you need to have a guide with at all times or be in an organised party.

Think you need to do a bit more research before you go there!

Technically it is against the law, not aware of it being enforced though.

No need for a guide.

There is a curfew in Vientianne, you will be asked (told!) to go back to your hotel - has only happened to me once at around 2am and was no big deal really - I was heading back anyway.

[wylos]

Originally Posted by t0rn

Technically it is against the law, not aware of it being enforced though.


No need for a guide.

There is a curfew in Vientianne, you will be asked (told!) to go back to your hotel - has only happened to me once at around 2am and was no big deal really - I was heading back anyway.

there was defintely some curfew business in luang prabang,but never heard of it in vietianne,i was partying through the night,and also there is a 24 hour bowling place i heard of,maybe u were unlucky.

[TomNorway]

I am definitively still eager to go. I have heard that a boat trip on the Mekong is also something that could be nice.