Laos - Southeast Asia without the tourists

We’ve spent about 15 days in Laos, split into two cities: Vientiane (the capital) and Luang Prabang.

Like most of you, we went in with zero expectations. We had no idea what Laos was about, as its close neighbors, Thailand, Cambodia, and Vietnam, are so much more popular.

Apps & Arrival

I’ve done some upfront research on the basics: where to get money, how transport works, and how to get food to our apartment (we often spent entire days exploring, so it’s nice not having to look for a restaurant).

Loca

Laos has its own transportation app called Loca, which you will need if you want to get from A to B without driving on your own, as neither Uber, GoJek, nor Grab are available here.

I’m glad Loca exists, but it’s also terrible in many ways. First, it doesn’t use Google Maps for its location service but its own—no big deal, you say?

Well, half the streets here aren’t even named and the address codes from Google don’t work – so you better improve your navigation skills before your trip!

FoodPanda

You use FoodPanda, the only app available to order food and groceries. It’s easy and works like all the other apps you use.

Visa

You will need a Visa to enter Laos if you’re coming from Europe.
We’ve used the e-Visa, which is about $100 for two people ($35 per visa + $30 “Service fee”).

Vientiane

We booked an apartment outside the city to have some calmer days between our city trips (we came from Bangkok and headed to Singapore next).

We had a phenomenal host who helped us with various things – from finding the location in the first place (the taxi driver dropped us off at the wrong location) to “How the hell do we get this helmet compartment unlocked from the Scooter?”

We spent some calm days and also rented a Scooter to do some more extended trips:

Laos - Southeast Asia without the tourists 2

Laos - Southeast Asia without the tourists 3

We didn’t go crazy in terms of exploring – I had to get quite a lot of work done and also had two calls (mastermind and my coaching) scheduled in the middle of the night 😅

However, we took an extensive trip to a place called Buddha Park:

Laos - Southeast Asia without the tourists 5

Laos - Southeast Asia without the tourists 6

The train

We took the train from Vientiane to Luang Prabang because it seemed the easiest, most accessible, and cheapest option.

While the ride was comfortable and quick, getting inside the train station was more challenging than most security borders at Airports.

I spare the details; I don’t want to get into too much detail here and give a wrong impression, as the people of Laos are one of the loveliest and friendliest people I’ve ever met.

Let’s say the train station is very different from the rest of Laos, and don’t expect the bare minimum of communication in English.

Luang Prabang

We finally made our way to the next city, which was very different from the capital. There were more tourists (90% of the French), but there was still no comparison to other Southeast Asian countries.

The vibe here is much like I would imagine in Bali 30 years ago before every twenty-something started to either party all night or do yet another yoga retreat.