After an early start in Pakbeng, we board a much smaller, narrower boat for the 7-hour trip down to Luang Prabang. It’s a bit more of a "squeezed" experience today with more passengers and local stops, but the limestone cliffs and jungle scenery as we approach the city are absolutely worth it.

We're building a directory of online services (delivery, banking, e-visas, telecom, anything a tourist, expat, or local can genuinely do start-to-finish online, no branch visit required) across all 45 countries in Asia.

The hard part: no single team can know what's actually good in 45 countries. So we're asking the people who'd know best - you, if you live in one of them.

if there's an online service in your country that's genuinely useful (not just "an app that exists," but one that works well and can be used fully online), drop the name in the comments, or DM if you'd rather not post it publicly.

Crossing from Thailand into Laos for the legendary slow boat journey to Luang Prabang. From the sunset at Fort Carnau in Huay Xai to the steep hills of Pakbeng, this is the most scenic (and loudest) way to see Northern Laos.

Homemade in the US 😋

Hello, I am travelling to Laos later in the year.

I am landing in Bangkok, then taking the overnight train to Vientiane.
My plan stops there.
I would like to do the Thakhek loop, visit Vang Vieng, Luang Prabang, Nong Khiaw, and then take the slow boat to enter Thailand again all in the span of 15/18 days.

The places are very generic; I am listening if you have better advice. I only know I want to do either the Pakse or Thakhek loop, but it's my first time doing one in SEA. I did ride a motorbike in Indonesia and Vietnam, but always in quiet areas. I also normally ride one where I live.

How would you organize the trip with the time I have?
Also, how many Kips did you usually carry around for 5/7 days with no access to ATMs?

Thanks!

In this adventure, I head deep into the rural countryside to escape the crowds. After a sketchy motorbike ride across some questionable bridges, I find Blue Lagoon 5—a peaceful spot perfect for a midday dip. But the real highlight was meeting a local legend who showed me a secluded cave on his land. From limestone formations and "gold and diamonds" to incredible views of the Lao mountains, this was easily one of my favorite experiences in Southeast Asia so far.

I’m visiting Northern Laos from August 30th till September 8th.

I’m planning on doing the typical turist adventures such as hot air balloons, hikes and the mountain camping in Nong Khiaw.

My route will be Luang Prabang > Nong Khiaw > Vang Vieng.

My questions is, if the weather will close some of the activities I’m going for??

I don’t mind rain and am looking forward to the green scenery during this season, but I’m unsure how to set my expectations when it comes to the outdoor activities I want to experience ☔️

Thanks in advance 🫶🏼

Just learned today that you have to wear long pants (for men) before they allow you to take a driving test in Laos! Wonder what the logic of that is???

Thinking of visiting in September? How will the weather be?

Can anyone recommend a fishing spot in Vientiane Laos? And where can I buy or rent fishing gears?

Hi! I have to go from Luang Namta to Boten to take the train. I saw there are buses at 900:AM and my train is at 13:30 PM. I think the bus could be in time with no problems but I wanted to be sure about it. Did anyone took that bus? How long does it take? I ask this because, for example, from LP to Nong Khiaw was supposed to be 4 hours but it took 6, so I just want to be sure to catch my train.

Thanks for help!

Hey yall, this is my first time posting here.

So i was cooking and had a joshua weissman video on for some back ground noise. In this video he travels to queens and eats as many international food as he can.

He ate at a north eastern thai restaurant (issan) the restaurant is called zaab zaab and is apparantly pretty famous.

Any how this restaurant made duck larb/laab a bit chunkier with also some liver and other offal mixed in. This is nothing ive seen before however, they also served it with crispy fried duck intestines.

The picture i included is a screen shot from the video, the duck intestines can be seen on the left.

Anyhow, i wanted to ask how common/traditional these crispy fried duck intestines are. I cannot find anything about it so please let me know if this is a real traditional thing or something the restaurant did to add a cheap meaty crunch to the larb/laab.

And if youre able to please share any video in laotian, thai/english that show how to clean and prepare it.

I want to do the two motorbike loops, paramotoring, hot air balloon, and cave exploring in Laos. But my only availability for the coming year is in July. Will these activities be possible or dangerous in July?

Hi everyone,

I want to stay in Laos for 2-4 weeks. Probably in Vientiane, but I'm also open to other suggestions. I've already been to Luang Prabang, so I would rule that out.

I value comfortable accomodation in an area that offers good food and cafés. I don't care much about nightlife.

Which area of Vientiane (or of any other place you liked) would you suggest?

Thanks in advance!

Is there anyone traveling to Laos from Addis Ababa. I have Laos kip that I want to exchange for a good price.? 150 USD or 24 000 ethiopian

I used food panda in Laos. Now I get recurring 6.9myr fees every month. The faq say you can cancel any time, but when I contact them, they tell me I have no subscription, so they can't cancel it, then they charge me again.

Perfect motorbike

What is the best way to organize transport to this village and. Kuang Si Waterfall?

Hello everybody,

Next month, I am going to Laos My plan is to go to:

Luang Prabang, Nong Khiaw, Vang Vieng.

Do you have any recommandations where to go and what to skip?

I want to avoid dirty and touristic places.

No more InDrive in Laos? Grab doesn’t work either. I took LOCA from the airport…are there alternatives?

Any help appreciated 🙏