With the Nam Song River at its feet and monolithic mountains filling the horizon, the Riverside Boutique Hotel in Vang Vieng blends elegant design with rich Lao heritage.
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Vang Vieng in northern Laos – about an hour from the capital on the new fast train – has long had a reputation for being a backpacker haven which began in the late 1990s and grew to its breaking point. But things are changing here.
At its peak in the late ‘00s, the town’s tourism boom drew hoards of revellers until the government finally shut it down in 2012.
Vang Vieng had developed a reputation for a crazy, anything-goes party town. Cheap booze flowed as fast as the stony Nam Song River, which carried thrill-seeking drinkers down to waterside bars on inner tubes (aka tubing) for shots and all-night hooleys.
And people were willing to stay in the cheapest most squalid accommodation for the experience.
But since the 2012 crackdown, Vang Vieng has diversified its tourism offerings.
You can still bob down the river in kayaks and inner tubes, but the waterside bars offering drinking games, hooch and — ahem — other consumables have all but gone or have at least cleaned up their acts.
Instead, Vang Vieng has brought focus back to the natural beauty and culture that attracted visitors in the first place — before things started getting out of hand.
The Riverside Boutique Resort is a gleaming example of this change.
Vang Vieng’s Riverside Boutique Resort
On the banks of the fast-flowing Nam Song River, the aptly named Riverside Boutique Resort is a low-key place with a pool, lush gardens, a lounge bar, restaurant and day spa.
From the hotel, views over the stony river follow the Nathong Valley and the magnificent towers of karst mountains that fill the horizon.
Meanwhile, its main entrance opens onto a little unsealed laneway, far from the main street and any traffic noise.
The rooms at the Riverside Boutique Resort
The resort has 34 rooms and suites, which means the grounds and facilities are never too busy.
Our room – a double deluxe on the first floor – is modern, but with plenty of traditional Laos styling. In fact, the rooms here are named after and separated by eight of the 49 recognised ethnic groups of Laos: the Akha, Hmong, Katu, Lanten, Lao Lum, Tai Daeng, Tai Lee and Yao.
We’re in one of the Hmong Rooms, named after Loas’ third largest ethnic group, and the decor and fabrics reflect this people’s culture.
Batiks on the fabrics are all handmade in Hmong style, and the ink drawings are by renowned artist Mick Saylom from Vientiane. The drawings show typical Hmong village life within the landscape of Vang Vieng.
I suppose the only let-down of the room is the shower, which is in a bath and has a shower curtain. For some reason, I find shower curtains in hotels unsettling.
Otherwise, its a lovely room and very comfortable.
The rest of the resort
The hotel’s restaurant has the illustrious sounding name of ‘Restaurant du Crabe d’Or’ — though in English, the Golden Crab Restaurant feels more Sponge Bob coded. The name, however, comes from one of the area’s most famous caves.
We don’t have chance to try the resort’s menus while we’re here unfortunately. There are just too many places in town to check out, but it looks nice enough inside.
The hotel bar is downstairs and there’s seating by the boundary wall overlooking the river’s edge — the perfect spot for a happy hour cocktail.
As the sun starts to set, hot air balloons come into view, sailing low over the Nathong Valley across the water.
It’s a beautiful spectacle, seeing balloons so close and the sun setting low over the mountains, though we’re not sure how safe it is as some almost touch down on the river or barely scrape the resort roofs as they float by.
In the morning, we head back to the Golden Crab for breakfast.
There’s plenty to choose from, including western options like bacon and chat potatoes in clay pots, but there’s also more local options including laab, fried rice and even dumplings.
We sit on the veranda, enjoy a well-made cappuccino and take in the dramatic views that Vang Vieng is so famous for, well set up for a day of adventure.
