Author: Lonely Planet
Category: Nonfiction
Go to read content：https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/lonely-planet/page,17,460391-lonely_planet_laos.html
Lithavixay GuesthouseGUESTHOUSE$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %081-212175; Rte 1; r 70,000-150,000K; aW)
A long-time traveller fave, with a large lobby and a cosy breakfast and internet cafe. Although some rooms look tired, they include TVs, couches and homely touches. Old showers suffer from slow drainage, and recently service has dropped a little. It's close to the old bus station and very central.
oCharming Lao HotelBOUTIQUE HOTEL$$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %081-212881, 020-23966333; www.charminglaohotel.com; r incl breakfast US$50-150; paiW)
An unexpected treat for Udomxai, this hotel offers tastefully furnished rooms right in the centre of town. Extra touches include flat-screen TVs with cable, coffee-making facilities, safety deposit boxes and contemporary bathrooms. The complex includes a spa and a disappointing branch of Pakse's Cafe Sinouk. Staff are eager but speak little English.
Villa KeoseumsackGUESTHOUSE$$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %081-312170; Rte 1; r 130,000-220,000K; paW)
Udomxai's best guesthouse is set back from the road in a handsome Lao house with large, inviting rooms. They come with crisp linen, decent fittings, springy beds and varnished floors. Hmong bed runners, TV, free wi-fi and a communal reading balcony finish them off. There's even complimentary toothbrush and toothpaste.
5Eating
oSouphailin RestaurantLAOTIAN$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; mains 20,000-40,000K; h7am-10pm)
Don't be fooled by the modest bamboo exterior of this backstreet gem – easily the tastiest Lao food in the city is served here. Friendly Souphailin creates culinary magic with her mok pa (steamed fish in banana leaves), láhp, perfectly executed spring rolls, beef steak, fried noodles, and chicken and mushroom in banana leaf. Everything is fresh and seasonal. Check out the great barbet out back.
Meuang Neua RestaurantLAOTIAN$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; mains 30,000-40,000K; h7am-9pm)
Festooned with lanterns and Che Guevara graffiti, this hole-in-the-wall is a 10-minute walk from the main drag. It's worth a visit for the fresh spring rolls, pancakes, juices, pad thai and noodle soup.
Ban Thin MarketMARKET$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; h6am-5pm)
Among the noodles, vegetables and fruit expect a few appearances from songbirds, squirrels, tree frogs and rats. Cooked.
Cafe SinoukLAOTIAN, INTERNATIONAL$$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; www.sinoukcafe.com; Charming Lao Hotel; mains 45,000-60,000K; h7am-9pm; aW)
Offering a level of aesthetic sophistication largely lacking in the city, Sinouk has a fusion menu of barbecued pork, steamed fish, papaya salad, pasta variations and breakfast. Staff, however, speak little English and international dishes can end up as curious hybrids – carbonara with carrots and hot dog was a first for us! The garden features live music at weekends.
6Drinking & Nightlife
Ming KhouanBAR
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; h11am-11pm)
This is where it's at in Udomxai, a lively wooden and bamboo beer garden that draws a young crowd to quaff Beerlao by the crate. The central fountain is a bit of a diversion, but good Lao food is available, including barbecued skewers. It's near the airport.
8Information
Internet Access
Most guesthouses and hotels now offer free wi-fi to guests.
Money
BCEL ( GOOGLE MAP ; %081-211260; Rte 1; h8.30am-4.30pm Mon-Fri) Has an ATM, changes several major currencies and accepts some travellers cheques (2% commission).
Tourist Information
Tourist Office Has masses of information about onward travel, accommodation and local sights. It has free town maps and sells GT-Rider Laos maps. There are 11 different tours on offer, including the two-day/one-night tour to an impressive local cave, and three-day/two-night treks and homestays with local ethnic villages.
8Getting There & Away
Air
Lao Airlines ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %081-312047; www.laoairlines.com) flies daily to/from Vientiane (US$79) to Udomxai's airport ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ), while Lao Skyway ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %020-23122219; www.laoskyway.com; Udomxai Airport; h7am-5pm) flies to Vientiane as well (US$73) on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Tickets are also available from Lithavixay Guesthouse.
Bus & Sŏrngtăaou
There are two bus stations in Udomxai: the old Northern Bus Station ( GOOGLE MAP ) in the centre of town, and the newer Long-distance Bus Station, aka Southern Bus Terminal (%081-212218), 5km southwest from the centre. There is some crossover of routes as some of the same destinations are serviced by both minivans from the Northern Bus Station and buses from the Southern Bus Terminal.
Sŏrngtăaou to Muang La (20,000K) depart when full at around 8.30am and 11.30am from the Meuang Say Transportation Centre ( GOOGLE MAP ).
BUSES FROM NORTHERN BUS STATION
Destination Price (K) Duration (hr) Departures
Bokeo 85,000 8 9am, 1pm
Boten 50,000 4 8am
Dien Bien Phu (Vietnam) 95,000 5 8.30am
Luang Namtha 40,000 2 8.30am, 11.30am, 3.30pm
Muang Houn 30,000 2 noon, 2pm, 4pm
Muang Khua 35,000 3 8.30am, 11.30am, 3.30pm
Muang La 70,000 4 8am
Phongsali 75,000 9 9am
BUSES (LONG-DISTANCE) FROM SOUTHERN BUS TERMINAL
Destination Price (K) Duration (hr) Departures
Luang Prabang 60,000 6 9am, noon, 3pm
Muang Hongsa 110,000 7 12.30pm
Nong Khiaw 45,000 4 10am
Pak Beng 40,000 4 8.30am, 10am
Pak Mong 30,000 3 1pm
Phonsavan 130,000 12 10am
Vientiane 170,000 14 11am, 2pm, 4pm, 6pm
Vientiane (sleeper) 190,000 14 8pm
To China
An 8am minibus to Mengla, China leaves from the Northern Bus Station. The Kunming-bound bed-bus from Luang Prabang bypasses this station but makes a short snack break at the China Restaurant ( GOOGLE MAP ) at around 11.30am. Booking isn't possible but the bus takes extra passengers if space allows.
8Getting Around
Lithavixay Guesthouse rents decent bicycles (per half-/full day 20,000/50,000K) and mountain bikes (per day US$10). The tourist office rents bicycles for 50,000K and motorbikes for 100,000K per day. Both can help arrange chauffeured minivans from US$100 per day.
Tuk-tuks ( GOOGLE MAP ) cost 15,000K per person per hop within city limits, if you can find one.
Around Udomxai
Hop on a decent motorbike and head out in any direction and you'll quickly find attractive scenery and plenty of rural interest.
Nam Kat Waterfall , a picnic site 23km from Udomxai, is best reached on a decent motorbike. Turn right in Ban Fan, continue to the parking area then walk the last 30 minutes through protected forests (about 2km). Alternatively, hike 13.5km over 'red cliff' Phou Pha Daeng, which you'll need a guide for. The last 500m climb is the only testing section of the track and affords terrific views at the top. The falls themselves are 20m high and make for a chilled bucolic spot.
Chom Ong Caves ຖ້ຳຈອມອອງ
Udomxai's top tourist attraction, the extensive cave system of Chom Ong Caves (ຖ້ຳຈອມອອງ) burrows more than 15km beneath a forested karst ridge near the Khamu village Ban Chom Ong, 48km from Udomxai. Often as high as 40m within, it's a veritable cathedral of a place whose first 450m have been lit with solar-powered lamps. Over millions of years the time-worn stalactites have been coated with curious crusts of minerals and sometimes studded with gravel from later wash-throughs. To gain access you'll need to borrow the gate-key and engage a guide (40,000K) in Ban Chom Ong, from which the cave entrance is an hour's walk.
The village's simple, unmarked 'guesthouse' is a purpose-built local-style longhouse with roll-out bedding and the relative luxury of a tap and porcelain squat in the outside shared toilets. Note that the village has no electricity and that very little English is spoken. Udomxai is better for travellers to use as their base to return to.
As there are no rest
aurants or shops, organising food as well as the guide and key will require some spoken Lao, Khamu or plenty of gesticulation. We recommend arranging your trip through the tourist office in Udomxai, which involves a homestay.
The main problem with getting here is that the uncomfortable access 'roads' are almost entirely unpaved, impassably muddy after rain and improbably steep and rutted in places.
Two- and three-day tours, including meals, an English-speaking guide and ample time to observe typical village scenes can be organised through the tourist office in Udomxai, but transport is by excruciatingly uncomfortable jeep-sŏrngtăaou. Two-day/one-night trips start from US$100 per person with a minimum of four people.
THE LEGEND OF THE PRA SINGKHAM BUDDHA
Inlaid with precious stones, the 200kg gold-and-bronze Pra Singkham Buddha statue has an interesting history. It is said to have been created in Sri Lanka, spending time in Ayodhya, India before arriving in Laos in AD 868. In 1355 it was reputedly one of five great Buddhist masterpieces sent out by Lan Xang founder Fa Ngum to inspire the faithful at the far reaches of his new kingdom.
However, the boat carrying the statue was sunk in a battle. Later found by a fisherman, Pra Singkham was dragged out of the water amid considerable tribulations and thereupon became the subject of a contest between residents of Muang La and Muang Khua regions. The sneaky folks from Muang Khua, downriver, suggested that the Buddha should choose for himself and set the statue on a raft to 'decide'. However, the seemingly hopeless contest went Muang La's way when the raft magically floated upstream against the current, 'proving' it belonged in La.
Kept initially in the Singkham Cave, by 1457 it had found a home in a specially built temple around which today's town of Muang La is now ranged. Like almost everything else in rural Laos, the temple was bombed to oblivion during the 20th-century Indochina wars. However, the statue had been rehidden in the Singkham Cave. By the time a new temple was consecrated in 1987, the Buddha had turned a black-green colour, apparently due to sadness at the destruction. But today he's once again a gleaming gold.
Muang La ເມືອງຫລາ
%021
Scenic Muang La (ເມືອງຫລາ), just 28km from Udomxai towards Phongsali, offers a charming rural alternative to the 'big city'. This Tai Lü village sits at the confluence of the Nam La (La River) and Nam Phak (Phak River), attractively awash with palm trees. Its central feature is a classically styled temple that hosts one of northern Laos' most revered Buddha statues, the Pra Singkham Buddha.
1Sights
Pra Singkham BuddhaBUDDHIST STATUE
(ພະເຈົ້າສິງຄຳ h8.30am-5pm)F
Want to get rich? Afraid you might be infertile? Don't worry, just ask the Pra Singkham Buddha and your wish will be granted. Legend claims it was cast in Sri Lanka just a few generations after the historical Buddha's death, and reached Laos in AD 868 via Ayodhya in India. Kept initially in the Singkham Cave, by 1457 it had been housed in a specially built temple.
Singkham CaveCAVE
(ຖ້ຳພະເຈົ້າສິງຄຳ )F
The Singkham Cave where the famous Pra Singkham Buddha statue once rested is 3.7km west of Ban Samakisai, halfway between Udomxai and Muang La. In Samakisai ask 'Khor kajeh tham noy?' ('may I have the cave key please?') at the second hut south of the bridge. Then cross the bridge and take the second rough track west – just about passable by tuk-tuk or motorbike. This terminates at a collection of huts from which it's just three minutes' walk to the cave. Inside is a replica statue.
4Sleeping
Lhakham HotelHOTEL$
(%020-55555930; [email protected]; r 100,000K)
Nestled on a river bank, the Lhakham Hotel offers some of the best-value rooms in northern Laos. Furnishings are tasteful, the bathrooms include a rain shower and the river views are pretty, adding up to a steal. There's also a restaurant here. It's about 1km from the bus station.
Muang La ResortBOUTIQUE HOTEL$$$
(%020-22841264; www.muangla.com; 3-night package per person from US$691)
The memorable Muang La Resort hides an elegant rustic refinement behind tall, whitewashed walls. It accepts neither walk-in guests nor visitors, so you'll need to prebook a package of two nights or more to enjoy the stylishly appointedhalf-timbered guestrooms, sauna and creatively raised open-air hot tub, all set between palms and manicured lawns.
8Getting There & Away
Buses to Phongsali and Muang Khua pass through Muang La around an hour after departing Udomxai. The last bus returning to Udomxai usually rolls through at around 5pm. There's no bus station, just wave the bus down. Additional sŏrngtăaou to Udomxai (20,000K) depart at around 7am and 11am if there's sufficient custom.
Boten ບໍ່ເຕນ
Pop 500 / %086
Boten (ບໍ່ເຕນ) is the only Laos–China border open to foreigners and makes for an easy short excursion while en route from Udomxai to Luang Namtha. This frontier border outpost is a spectacular case of boom to bust and has become a ghost town since 2011 after China banned its citizens from gambling here, rendering Boten's hotels, casinos, malls and karaoke parlours redundant.
While there are places to stay, it's best to move on into real China or head south into Muang Sing or Luang Namtha. You'll find a few Chinese and Lao restaurants here, though most have closed down. Since the closure of the casinos most places in town have shut down and there is no nightlife at present.
At the top (north) end of the market on the main street the Lao Development Bank (h8.30am-3.30pm Mon-Fri) changes major currencies, but for effortless yuan–kip exchange at fair rates use the supermarket across the road.
Although Boten taxi drivers try to persuade travellers otherwise, there are regular buses to/from Luang Namtha (25,000K, two hours) plus assorted China–Laos through-buses. Chartered taxi-vans charge about 160,000K to Luang Namtha and around 80,000K to Ban Na Theuy.
GETTING TO CHINA: BOTEN TO MóHāN
Getting to the border The Lao immigration post at the Boten (Laos)/Móhān (China) border crossing (7.30am to 4.30pm Laos time, 8.30am to 5.30pm China time) is a few minutes' walk north of Boten market. Tuk-tuks shuttle across no-man's land to the Chinese immigration post in Móhān (Bohan) or it's an easy 10-minute walk.
Alternatively, take one of the growing number of handy Laos–China through-bus connections such as Udomxai–Mengla, Luang Namtha–Jinghong and Luang Prabang–Kunming.
At the border Northbound it is necessary to have a Chinese visa in advance. On arrival in Laos 30-day visas are available.
Moving on From the Chinese immigration post it's a 15-minute walk up Móhān's main street to the stand where little buses depart for Mengla (RMB16, one hour) every 20 minutes or so till mid-afternoon. These arrive at Mengla's bus station No 2. Nip across that city to the northern bus station for Jinghong (RMB42, two hours, frequent till 6pm) or Kunming (mornings only).
On the Lao side minibuses shuttle regularly in the morning from Boten to Luang Namtha.
Luang Namtha (Namtha) ຫລວງນ້ຳທາ
Pop 21,000 / %086
Welcoming travellers like no other town in northern Laos, Luang Namtha (ຫລວງນ້ຳທາ) packs a powerful green punch with its selection of eco-minded tour companies catering for trekking to ethnically diverse villages, and cycling, kayaking and rafting in and around the stunning Nam Ha NPA.
Locally there's bags to do before you set out into the boonies, such as exploring the exotic night market, or grabbing a rental bike and tootling around the gently undulating rice-bowl valleys to waterfalls and temples. In the golden glow of sunset distant mountain ridges form layered silhouettes, and while it's not the prettiest belle architecturally speaking, the friendly vibe of Luang Namtha will grow on you.
Luang Namtha
1Sights
1Luang Nam Tha MuseumA1
2Activities, Courses & Tours
2Discovering LaosB2
Forest Retreat LaosA2
3G
reen DiscoveryB1
4The HikerB2
4Sleeping
5Amandra GHB3
6Manychan Guest House & RestaurantA2
7Thoulasith GuesthouseA2
8Zuela GuesthouseA2
5Eating
9Bamboo LoungeB2
10Manikong Bakery CafeA1
11Manychan Guesthouse & RestaurantB2
12Minority RestaurantA2
13Night MarketB2
6Drinking & Nightlife
14Chill Zone Beer BarB3
8Information
15BCELB2
16Lao Development BankA1
17Provincial Tourism OfficeB1
Transport
18Bike ShopsA2
19District Bus StationB3
20Lao AirlinesB3
1Sights
Luang Nam Tha MuseumMUSEUM
(ພິພິດທະພັນຫຼວງນໍ້າທາ MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 10,000K; h8.30-11.30am & 1.30-3.30pm Mon-Thu, 8.30-11.30am Fri)
The Luang Nam Tha Museum contains a collection of local anthropological artefacts, such as ethnic clothing, Khamu bronze drums and ceramics. There are also a number of Buddha images and the usual display chronicling the Revolution.
Ban Nam DiVILLAGE
(Nam Dy; parking fee bicycle/motorcycle/car 1000/2000/3000K)