Roving Through Southeast Asia Part I: The Road To Luang Prabang, Lao

Last updated on March 31st, 2024 at 09:05 pm

Part I: The Road To Luang Prabang, Lao

If you live in Southeast Asia for a while, eventually you’ll get the itch to explore the loop: Thailand, Lao, Vietnam, and Cambodia. It’s an addictive notion that slowly eats away at many ex-pats who spend extended periods in the region.

Here’s how it happened us. After exploring much of Northern Thailand from our base in Chiang Mai, we began talking with friends for ideas about new places to see.

One friend asked us “why not go to Luang Prabang?” This triggered our long smoldering notions of making the loop.

But roving the loop involves a little planning. Yes, you can do it spontaneously by entering and exiting countries on 30-day tourist visas. But we don’t recommend this. Why?

You need to plan your enter and exit strategy for Vietnam before you set up plans for Lao and Cambodia. Getting in and out of Vietnam can be a bit tricky depending on your nationality.

Yes, it’s true, you can buy a 30-day electronic tourist visa for Vietnam online. But we don’t recommend doing so. We’ll talk about our suggestions for Vietnam in our post A Quick Trip To Hanoi.

The Trip To Luang Prabang

A trip to Lao from Thailand is a snap. You buy your flight ticket, hop on a plane at Chiang Mai International Airport, and go. Luang Prabang is a pleasant 45-minute trip on a twin-engine turboprop aircraft via Cambodia Angkor Air.

And yes, the nation is called Lao PDR: the LAO Peoples Democratic Republic. The country is under communist rule.

Getting A Visa

Tourist visas are granted on arrival at Luang Prabang International Airport. It’s a no muss no fuss affair. An immigration agent will spend a few minutes examining your passport and then stamp a visa on a page. You won’t get the warm, cheerful welcome you’ll typically get in Thailand. But, you also won’t get the suspicious “why are you here” look you’ll see in Vietnam.

Getting Money

You’ll need some LAO KIP — the local currency — before you leave the airport. But don’t get too much. The KIP is next to worthless outside Lao. The exchange rate is $1 US Dollar to 8,235 KIP! You’ll have a tough time getting a comparable exchange when you exit the country.

Your best bet is to hit an ATM in town when you need to top off with KIP. But, pace your withdrawals. There’s a limit on the number of withdrawals you can make by the week and the month. And this limit changes.

Carry small bills, such as $1 and $5-dollar bills, with you in dollars or the equivalent in Euros. The locals will happily take these for larger purchases where a fee can be “rounded out.” Thus, a tour operator might happily take $5 U.S. for a trip out to the Khang Si Waterfalls instead of 41,413.44 KIP. But you’ll need the KIP for small buys around town: taxis, cafes, and the local market.

Using Credit Cards

You’ll be happy to learn that most businesses in downtown Luang Prabang accept credit cards. Tourism is the big source of revenue for the country.

Our favorite coffee shop, JOMA, got used to swiping our Capital One cards! They’re rated as the #2 coffee shop in town by Trip Advisor and, we certainly agree with that rating. Our advice is to use your credit card wherever possible. We prefer the electronic records of our transactions.

Getting Around By Rental Car

Most visitors get around Luang Prabang via bus or taxi. But we’re rovers and, we always opt for a rental car wherever we can. Yes, it’s more expensive. But we’re travel journalists. It’s the best way for us to get the authentic car cam video we crave to show to you. And it allows us to stop and shoot photos and videos whenever we wish.

We couldn’t reserve a car through our usual source, Economy Rental Cars, so we opted for Avis. We had good luck working with this contact:

Florent LAVABRE
On-site operation manager (North Lao)
RMA Lao
T : (+856 71) 260 423
F : (+856 71) 260 424
M: (+856 20) 9989 1555
E: rmalaosnorth.opmanager@rmagroup.net
Skype ID: flo_say

Rental Car Tip #1

At the time of our visit, rental car companies did NOT have a physical presence at the Luang Prabang International Airport even though Internet-based sites state you can retrieve your car at the airport! We had to call Florent after our arrival to find out his rental office was on the outskirts on Luang Prabang! If you rent-a-car, check the airport website for updated information and Email your rental car agent BEFORE your arrival to find out the physical location of the office and your rental car.

Rental Car Tip #2

We took a taxi from the airport to the Avis storefront. A westerner asked if he could “share a fare” with us. Of course, we said “yes.” On the way, we learned our colleague in travel spent much time in Lao. “Never drive here,” he said. “It’s just too dangerous. These people here have no idea how to operate a motor vehicle.”

Note: We get these hysterical warnings everywhere we go. We’ve yet to encounter a country where we found ourselves unable to handle vehicles effectively in strange environments. Our advice is if you want to rent-a-car, do so, and don’t listen to these naysayers.

Rental Car Tip #3

The roads around Luang Prabang and the Laotian countryside can be rough. Potholes, muddy, unimproved roads and paths abound. Rent a 4WD truck or SUV if available. See our story on renting cars abroad for tips and take a peek at our 4WD truck rental in Lao.

Rental Car Tip #4

Before you drive more too far outside of Luang Prabang, query the embassy or consulate or website for your home nation to find out if there are special rules that restrict where you can drive a rental car. During our visit, it was “illegal” for U.S. citizens to drive a rental car throughout the country without stopping and getting permission from regional government leaders. How far is too far? We don't know. We never tested the system.

If you do rent-a-car be prepared for sudden stops. The locals stop their motorbikes in the middle-of-the-road with no notice, put the kickstand down, and talk on the cell phone when they get a call! They won’t care if you’re sitting on the road behind them. They’ll expect you to find a way to go around them.

This happened to us on the main drag into the French Quarter with a stream of vehicles behind us. There was nowhere to go. Trucks were parked on the sides of the streets. Oxen pulling carts were crisscrossing the streets. It was only when many drivers began honking their horns the motor biker in front of us moved.

Luang Prabang projects a village feel. It is a rural place at heart and, you’ll need to keep this in mind if you plan to drive.

Up Next

In part II of our series Roving Through Southeast Asia we’ll talk about where to go, what to do, where to stay, and communications in Luang Prabang.

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