Top 10 hotels and guesthouses in Vientiane, Laos

Beau Rivage

The flamingo-pink Beau Rivage overlooks the extra wide flow of the Mekong river near downtown Vientiane. Few attractive hotels have riverfront views in Laos’ diminutive capital, but the Beau Rivage has scooped one of the best spots. Its next door Spirit House bar and restaurant is also a popular watering hole for a sundowner: regular burnt orange sunsets spill the length of the Mekong river. Inside, 16 colour-themed rooms decorated with Laos silk wall hangings feature thoughtful touches: duck-egg blue seersucker spreads match blue bulbous wicker bed lamps; and a blue bathroom offers matching coloured slippers. You’ll want the riverside rooms where the double beds look out through the sliding glass doors which frame a view of the Mekong.
Doubles from US$52 including breakfast, free water and bicycle use, +856 21 243350, hbrm.com

Green Park

Sinking into the embrace of the Green Park’s frangipani-fringed pool is the perfect antidote to a day’s sightseeing. Pitched away from the heart of the city, it is a quiet, flower-filled haven. The pool, flanked by small palms and surrounded by sun loungers, is the focus of the hotel, and the smart, stylish rooms overlook the banana plants and other flourishing greenery which decorate the grounds. A spa offers further relaxation for guests, as does the light-filled Dok Dala lounge – the perfect spot for a tea, or an early evening cocktail.
Doubles from US$128, +856 21 264097, greenparkvientiane.com

Hotel Khamvongsa

Colonial-style chic characterises the Khamvongsa, which faces the downtown Buddhist monastery complex, Wat Inpeng. Two-poster beds laid with crisp white cloths sit on dark wood floors; and ceiling fans whirr above plum-coloured blinds and lace cloth curtains. Breakfast, taken on circular tables embedded with old French tiles, includes an appealing choice of rice consommé with chicken or pork, croissants, Swedish waffles or Guatemalan pancake gateau washed down with Lao Mulberry leaf tea. The kind staff also serve drinks and cocktails on the small roadside terrace beneath the dark louvered shutters of the minty-green facade. It’s the perfect spot for some Buddhist monk and tuk-tuk watching.
Doubles from $45 B&B, +856 21 223257, hotelkhamvongsa.com

Le Sen Apartments

Four spacious and light apartments stacked in one of the narrowest buildings in downtown Vientiane offer smart, minimalist warehouse living in this urban hideaway. Laminated concrete floors and bare grey concrete walls envelop beds, sofas, and desks in stylish open-plan living along with contained modern bathrooms with rain showers, and fully equipped kitchenettes. You’ll want one of the top two studios, which boast balconies overlooking the popular Francois Ngin Road with its buzz of cafes, restaurants and bars and ebb and flow of locals and visitors.
Doubles from $200 a week including bills and Wi-Fi, +856 20 77850850, lesen.apartment@gmail.com

Mandala

The Mandala is a striking, secluded 1960s home, once owned by a French family, and surrounded by gardens of mango trees and heliconia. Now a hotel in two parts: the original rooms in the large white modernist main building, and smart new rooms set back behind the main house. The top room choices are those reached by climbing the lacquered ebony black wooden staircase of the main building to the landing decorated with glass cabinets filled with Chinese ceramics. Mostly monochrome rooms feature four-poster beds, desks with brass Anglepoise lights and modern bathrooms. The splash of colour is found on one wallpapered wall rippling in green and silver floral motifs. The teak house restaurant, all white chairs and glass-topped black tables in the garden, offers fusion, Thai and Vietnamese food, as well as cocktails in the sleek surrounds.
Doubles from $80 B&B, +856 21 214493, mandalahotel.asia

Ansara

The Ansara is a beautiful retreat tucked down an alley in the heart of downtown Vientiane. Rooms are set back at the end of the banana and bamboo-filled garden, and overlook a large new pool. Opt for the larger building with balcony views of the garden and pool. The “Savvy” rooms come decorated in Laos silks and complimented by indigo and red cushions; and in-room laptops are offered for guest use. Breakfast is served in the alfresco La Signature Café in the dry season ; the cavernous upstairs restaurant room lacks ambience. The complimentary handmade silk scarf left for guests in their rooms is a thoughtful touch.
Doubles from $149 B&B, +856 21 213514, ansarahotel.com

LV Riverine

This small, smart hotel on the old riverfront road facing a Chinese temple and the new landscaped Mekong River gardens, is a delight. VIP rooms are hidden far back from the road, with four-poster beds scattered with lime green cushions under high wooden ceilings; tiled-floor bathrooms are perked up by unusual elephant sculptures-turned towel racks. Twin rooms have a more contemporary edge with mattresses on raised dais. The alfresco breakfast corner, with a fountain and potted frangipani trees, is an inviting spot for reading and writing post sightseeing; and staff can arrange trips to a herbal sauna for those seeking a soothing treatment.
Doubles from $30 including breakfast and laundry service, +856 21 214643, lvcitylaos.com

Villa Manoly

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Villa Manoly is a rare treat. It’s a charmingly ramshackle French colonial home in manicured gardens which focus on a swimming pool set under the boughs of a mango tree. The rooms and landing in the main house (built in 1961)are scattered with antiques: old sofas, typewriters, 1930s wardrobes, desks, framed old silks and bamboo baskets – making it a museum piece as well as a guesthouse. Rooms, which face the pool in a separate accommodation block, are styled in a mix of old and updated furniture, with en suite modern bathrooms. These rooms also come with wicker chairs at their doors from which to view the delightful pine- and orchid-stuffed garden. Breakfast is served alfresco, or inside, amid the silverware and prints of old Vientiane.
Doubles from $35 B&B, +856 21 218907, villa-manoly.com

Dhavara

At this kitsch Indian palace fantasy in the heart of downtown, guests are greeted by crushed velvet sofas, glass and brass chandeliers, a terrazzo marble floor and huge vases of fresh flowers. The elegant rooms are more subdued in style and spacious with very comfortable beds, iPod docks and speakers, and well stocked minibars. An in-house salon de té offers pizzas and cakes rather than a refreshing hot brew, and the hotel restaurant, where breakfast is served, manages to combine the Indian palace fantasia with the ambience of an Edwardian English drawing room. If you can handle the incongruities, the Dhavara is an excellent choice.
Doubles from $111 including breakfast and airport pick up, +856 21 222238, dhavarahotel.com

Lani’s House

A low-slung French colonial mansion reborn as a guesthouse, Lani’s peers over a gloriously Technicolor wat in downtown Vientiane. Its appeal lies in the rambling nature of the building, the huge rooms and its recent makeover. The vast rooms house carved bedsteads, bold tangerine coloured modern sofas, desks, bamboo chairs and updated tadelakt-style bathrooms. Guests can meet in the communal areas and swap notes on the scarlet sofas amid old chests and Lao sculptures, or chat to the friendly staff. Lani’s is hemmed in behind some attractive French colonial shop fronts and is a stone’s throw from the city’s historic sights and one of its best restaurants, Le Silapa.
Doubles from $45 including breakfast and airport pick up, +856 21 215639, lanishouse.com

Long stay guests may wish to rent historic rooms and buildings through Uniquelaos, run by American Allison Brown. Many of Vientiane’s historic and French colonial buildings are under threat and Uniquelaos is one of the few organisations attempting to save its architectural heritage.

Claire Boobbyer (@claireboobbyer) is the author of Footprint Vietnam, Cambodia & Laos