The Best of Cambodia & Laos

If you go by road it takes about 3 hours from Luang Prabang, and buses leave twice
daily ($3.20). Taking the boat takes twice as long but it is the journey that is the reason
to be heading this way. Boats to Nong Kiaow leave infrequently from the ferry pier in
Luang Prabang ($12).
There are a number of caves near Nong Kiaow worth a visit. One was the scene of
tragedy during the last Indochina war when a bomb struck, incinerating all those sheltering
inside. The village temple is also worth looking at since it is 250 years old, making it
one the oldest surviving wats in the region.
One of the best things to do here is take the boat tour up the Nam Ou past Moung
Ngoi to the canyons. Boat tours can be easily set up riverside.
WHERE TO STAY & DINE
All the accommodations and restaurants in Nong Keaow are clustered around the bridge
over the Nam Ou where the boats arrive and depart. The Nong Kiau River Side
(& 020/570-5000; www.nongkiau.com; 320,000 kip double) is the best place in town.
It has comfortable rooms, great views, and wireless Internet. The Chan-a-Mar Resort
(& 071/253-939; www.greenheartfoundation.org; $100 double) offers luxury bungalows
(at a rather inflated price), in a private setting, surrounded by breathtaking views of
five mountains and two rivers. This combined with gourmet Lao cuisine, happy hour
cocktails, informative local tours, and an optional traditional Baci ceremony to welcome
you, creates a real Lao experience unmatched in northern Laos. The Sunset Guest House
(Riverside; & 071/600-033; 200,000 kip double, 100,000 kip single) is an excellent
option. It is tastefully decorated. A large balcony restaurant overlooks the river serving
traditionally prepared Lao food. The Sengdao Guest House (& 071/600-001; 80,000
kip bathroom, 30,000 kip shared bathroom) offers small and basic bungalows with
diminutive balconies overlooking the river. Each room has mosquito nets, electricity all
night, a small fan, and a towel supplied. There is also an atmospherically lit restaurant.
It may not be luxurious but it is a bargain given that it offers the best views in town.
3 MUANG NGOI NEUA
This is a pleasant, sleepy town with no road access. The lack of motorbikes and pickups
gives it a very ethereal feel. Limited electricity means that the day starts at sunrise and the
town shuts down by 9 or 10pm at night. No phones and no Internet add to the feeling
of being constructively lost. In fact there is no infrastructure at all, so make sure you
bring everything you need. It is a taste of what much of northern Laos was like only a
decade or so ago. Although it is smaller than Nong Kiaow, Muang Ngoi offers more to
see and do and some guesthouses offer trekking, walking, boating, or caving trips.
Almost all guesthouses have hammocks on their balconies, and indeed hammock swinging
is an activity approached with relish in this town. Historically Muang Ngoi was part
of the Ho Chi Minh Trail so it was quite heavily bombed during the war, and locals often
lived in caves to avoid the falling fire from the sky. Some of these caves can now be visited.
Accommodations here are basic. There is a series of guesthouses offering simple
bamboo huts for between $2 and $5 a night. They are all very much the same and they
all serve food. The Ning Ning Guesthouse has hot showers, which makes it “luxury” in
this neck of the woods. Muang Ngoi Neua can be reached by boat from Nong Kiaow
($1.80, 1 hr.).
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LUANG PRABANG & NORTHERN LAOS 13
MUANG NGOI NEUA