Talk to other travelers who’ve visited Southeast Asia and many may have told you that sleepy old Vientiane – the capital of Laos – is boring and not worth your time.
But I say that they didn’t give this chilled out, relaxed city a proper go. Sure, there aren’t hundreds of secret places just waiting to be discovered in Vientiane, and it doesn’t have the beauty of Luang Prabang, but there’s history, culture, architecture, great food, the Mekong River and friendly people spread out across this small, pleasant city.
It’s a great city to detox in, especially if you’ve been exploring Southeast Asia for a while. You won’t find the crowds of other Southeast Asian cities, or the accompanying weariness of tourists that locals have in some places.
So, give it a chance and spend two or three days here on your Laos itinerary – you can easily fill the days with this list of what to do in Vientiane!
Visiting Vientiane, Laos – what you need to know
Before we get stuck into our list of what to do in Vientiane, here are a few things you need to know about visiting.
How to get to Vientiane
You’re most likely to arrive in Vientiane via air or land.
Vientiane’s airport, Wattay International Airport (airport code VTE) is the gateway to Laos. Flights to Vientiane come from other major Asian cities, including Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kuala Lumpur, Singapore, Guangzhou, Nanning, Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. If coming from further afield, you can connect to Vientiane from one of these cities.
The Laos national airline, Lao Airlines, flies into Vientiane, as do Thai Airways, AirAsia and Vietnam Airlines. Flights are generally very affordable. Having said that, it can be cheaper to fly into the city of Udon Thani in neighbouring Thailand and then cross the border overland via the Friendship Bridge (a journey which takes about 1.5 hours).
Wattay International Airport also services domestic destinations, including Luang Prabang, Pakse and Savannakhet. Flying in Laos is a good option if you’re short on time.
To get from the airport to Vientiane (the airport is just under 4 kilometres from the city centre), you’ll pre-pay for a taxi at the airport at a fixed price; the trip will cost you under US$10.
You can also get to Vientiane by bus. There are three bus stations in Vientiane: the Northern Bus Station, the Southern Bus Station and the Morning Market Bus Station, each of which receives buses from different cities in Laos and around Asia. The bus network around Laos is cheap but keep in mind that timetables change often and journey times can take longer than advertised.
Many guesthouses and hotels will also sell tickets to Vientiane via private minibuses which cost more than the public bus system but are likely to be less crowded and more direct.
Check out the perfect 7 day Itinerary for Laos!
Do you need a visa for Laos?
Citizens of many countries will need to get a visa to enter Laos. Thirty-day tourist visas are available on arrival at international airports and most land borders. Some nationalities don’t require a visa. Other nationalities can’t get a visa on arrival so you’ll need to arrange this at an embassy or consulate abroad.
For those that do require a visa and can get one on arrival, expect to pay between US$30 and US$42 (dependent on your nationality) – you’ll need to pay this in cash and come armed with a passport-sized photo.
Check with the relevant embassy to make sure you have the latest visa information before you arrive in Laos.
When to visit Vientiane
With a tropical monsoon climate, Laos has a wet and dry season. Vientiane is warm and humid year-round, but the best time to visit Vientiane is between November and February when the days are drier and cooler. Keep in mind, though, that even then the temperatures are in the high 20s/low 30s (Celsius).
The rainy season starts around May and June and lasts until October. In August and September Vientiane can receive up to 300 millimetres of rain, but it usually doesn’t rain all day long, rather the rains come in quick downpours throughout the day.
Where to stay in Vientiane
Vientiane is home to plenty of lovely guesthouses and hotels and you won’t have an issue finding somewhere to stay for every budget. Hotels in Vientiane are also super affordable! Here are some recommended hotels in Vientiane:
- When we visited Vientiane, we stayed in the lovely Salana Boutique Hotel. Rooms resemble a business hotel but with a Laotian touch – think dark wooden furniture and elegant silk curtains and textiles. The hotel can arrange cultural tours and activities. Book your stay online at Booking.com or HotelsCombined today.
- Located in a gorgeous refurbished Lao house, Lani’s House by the Ponds is a short walk to many of the wats and other Vientiane attractions you’ll read about in this article. As its name suggests, the guesthouse is on grounds filled with lush green gardens and ponds filled with koi fish, providing a retreat from city life. Check rates online now at Booking.com or HotelsCombined.
- Located on the Mekong River, the upscale Lao Orchid Hotel has lovely, spacious rooms with hardwood floors. Some rooms have balconies facing the river – great for watching the sun go down over the Mekong each night. Compare rates online now at Booking.com or HotelsCombined.
- The Champa Boutique Hotel has only 24 rooms and an incredible pool (which you’ll be thankful for with the humid Vientiane weather). It’s also only a quick walk to the Vientiane Night Market where you can grab a bite to eat each night before sitting on the banks of the Mekong River for sunset. Check available rooms at Booking.com or HotelsCombined.
What to pack for a trip to Vientiane
Make sure you have these items when you visit Vientiane:
- A reusable water bottle to avoid using throwaway plastic bottles. You can ask hotels for clean, filtered water to refill it each day. I use this reusable bottle when I travel because it also packs down small.
- Bamboo cutlery so there’s no need to use the plastic knives and forks that you’ll get at night markets and street vendors. I carry one of these bamboo set at all times, and have another one in our car.
- A power bank to keep everything charged on your trip to Vientiane. This portable power bank is a good choice.
- Hand sanitizer to pop in your handbag or backpack to keep your hands germ-free. This hand sanitizer smells good and is made with GMO-free alcohol and pure essential oils. It also has vegetable glycerin and vitamin E to keep hands soft, even with repeated use.
The best things to do in Vientiane
Alright, if you’ve been wondering what to do in Vientiane, here’s where you’ll get your answers! Here are 17 of the best things to do in Vientiane, plenty to fill two or three days in this relaxed city.
Learn about Laos’s history at the COPE Centre
Laos is a country with an interesting but harrowing recent history. Not many people are aware that during the Vietnam war the country became the most bombed country in history as American troops dropped 2 million tonnes of explosives. Up to 80 million of these bombs didn’t explode when dropped and are to this day accidentally detonated by farming activities or by children playing with them, killing or injuring those in close proximity.
The Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE) is one of the organisations that educate the community about the dangers of these unexploded ordinances (UXOs) and helps victims by providing rehabilitation services and prosthetic limbs.
The COPE visitor centre in Vientiane is open to Laotians and tourists to provide education about the war and the effects felt by the country today. Inside is a full replica of a Laotian home, showing examples of household items made from old bomb remains. The centre is also full of great information about the work COPE is doing throughout the country and shows many of the worn out artificial limbs returned by victims in exchange for newer ones.
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Wander through Buddha Park
Buddha Park, also known as Xieng Khuan, is a bizarre place to visit if you have a couple of extra hours to spend in Vientiane. Located 25 kilometres southeast of Vientiane, this small sculpture park opened in 1958 and has hundreds of concrete Buddhist and Hindu-inspired statues of various sizes.
What we appreciate about Buddha Park is the artist Bunleua Sulitat’s whimsical designs and detailed art of gods, animals, and other mythological creatures. You’ll see plenty of Buddhas in the park, including a long reclining one. We recommend visiting the pumpkin statue near the park entrance. You walk into a demon’s mouth and navigate through three levels depicting hell, Earth and heaven. The stairways are narrow yet it’s interesting to see Sulitat’s quirky interpretation of each of the spiritual places. The top of the pumpkin provides an expansive view over the park.
If you’re interested in seeing Bunleua Sulitat’s other artwork, he has a sister site, Sala Keoku, in Nong Khai, Thailand which has more mythical creatures.
If you don’t want to take public transport to Buddha Park, consider this full-day tour which includes a visit to the park.
Recommended by Jackie and Justin of Life of Doing
Discover Wat Pha That Luang
If you like shiny gold things, then you’ll love Wat Pha That Luang. This impressive stupa is covered in gold and is considered the holiest Buddhist shrine in Laos.
It’s believed that the wat was originally built in the third century, but over the years has undergone several reconstructions and repairs following foreign invasions. The most recent upgrades were in the 1930s.
The stupa is just under 150 feet (44 metres) high. It consists of three levels, each representing a part of the Buddhist doctrine. While it looks like it’s made entirely of gold, only the pinnacle of the stupa is covered in real gold; the rest of the stupa is simply painted gold. Nonetheless, it’s still one of the most impressive things to see in Vientiane.
You can go inside to visit Wat Pha That Luang (cost is around 5,000 kip per person) daily between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m.
Participate in the Boun That Luang Festival
As well as being a stunning stupa, Wat Pha That Luang, is the venue for the most important annual religious festival in Laos, Boun That Luang.
For the full moon of the 12th lunar month, monks from all over the country descend on Vientiane. The Lao faithful, many dressed in their best clothing, arrive at the temple before dawn and take their spots in the courtyard. To experience the festival, it’s best to wake up very early and arrive at the temple around 6 a.m. You’ll likely be joined by a few dozen foreigners and thousands of Lao worshippers. You’ll have lots of fantastic photo opportunities, and it’s wonderful just to be a part of such a beautiful ceremony.
As the sun comes up, a monk leads a prayer and chanting session for about half an hour. After that, the Lao begin lining up to give their alms to the monks. These mostly consist of small amounts of money, packets of wafer biscuits, flowers, fruit and of course sticky rice, the country’s most ubiquitous food. Whereas meals in other Southeast Asian countries are usually eaten with regular rice, here in Laos it’s sticky rice, also known as glutinous rice, that reigns supreme.
You’ll notice that many monks have to scoop all the sticky rice out of their bowls into containers behind them to stop the overflow. At the end, they often have so much stuff that they each have to haul it away in large bags!
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Survey Vientiane from Patuxai
In the Laotian language, the word Patuxai is a combination of patu (door or gateway) and xai (victory) and this is exactly what the Patuxai monument is: a victory arch in the centre of Vientiane, similar in look to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.
This one, however, is decorated with Hindu gods and mythological birds such as the Kinnari and a three-headed elephant, making it very definitely Laotian.
Patuxai is in the centre of Vientiane, at the end of Lane Xang Avenue, the road that leads to the Presidential Palace. It memorialises those who have died in past wars.
Climb through the seven floors of the monument, past the souvenir shops and snack sellers to the top where you’ll find five Laos towers complete with motifs of flowers. These towers represent the Buddhist principles of thoughtful amiability, flexibility, honesty, honour and prosperity.
There’s a spiral staircase in the central tower which leads to the observation deck, and there you’ll find stunning views of Vientiane and the Mekong River.
The monument is open seven days a week, from 8 a.m. until 4.30 p.m. Monday to Friday and until 5 p.m. on weekends. It’s free to walk around the park at the base of the monument, but if you want to climb to the top of Patuxai its 5,000 kip per person. Laos is primarily a cash-based society, so be sure to check the easiest way to manage your money in Laos.
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Explore the Night Market
A sea of bright red awnings and the bustle of tourists and locals alike mean you can’t miss the Vientiane Night Market, situated alongside the Mekong River. It’s one of the must-visit places to visit in Vientiane.
Every night this market comes to life, with a myriad of stalls selling a variety of great souvenirs. The night market opens daily from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., but the best time to start your shopping is around 8 p.m.
Take a stroll through the market and you’ll find clothes, crafts and textiles of all kinds. Pick up a Lao skirt, shirt or even some locally crafted footwear! You’ll also find Buddha statues, paintings, handbags and sunglasses. They even have mobile accessories.
Because most of the salespeople can speak Thai, French, and English (as well as Cambodian and Vietnamese for some), don’t worry about communication troubles!
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Eat all the amazing Laos food
After all that shopping in the Vientiane Night Market, make sure to grab something to eat.
While Laos food doesn’t have the global acclaim that Thai and Vietnamese cuisine has, the three countries have actually influenced each other’s gastronomy over the years. Try as many Laos dishes as you can squeeze into your belly when you’re in Vientiane, from laab (a meat or tofu-based salad) to Tam Mak Houng (spicy papaya salad) to Khao Jee (Laos’s version of Banh Mi) and Mok Pa (steamed fish).
There are so many great restaurants, markets and street vendors in Vientiane. Just follow the local crowds to find the best places to eat in Vientiane!
If you want a local’s advice on what, where, and how to eat Laos food, then try one of Backstreet’s great tours. This organization puts tourists in touch with local experts for an authentic experience. Two foodie tours in Vientiane I have my eye on are the Hungry Tuk Tuk tour and the Dinner with the Locals tour – both look like great opportunities to eat your way through Vientiane!
Recommended by Rebecca of Rebecca and the World
Take a traditional Lao cooking class
If you’ve found that you absolutely love Laos food, then join a cooking class in Vientiane as I did, to learn how to make the most popular Laos dishes. You can impress your friends and family by whipping up a Laotian meal when you go back home.
Not far from the city center, you can also find Tang Kin cooking school where you’ll learn how to make Laos dishes in small groups in the teacher’s own home. There’s the option for a market tour beforehand so you can learn more about the ingredients that go into Laos food and meet some of the market vendors. At the end of the class, you receive a booklet with all the recipes.
Another highly-rated cooking school in Vientiane is Lao Experiences, where you’ll learn about the food and culture of Laos. As part of the cooking class, you can do a market tour and street food tasting.
Or check out this cooking class I took where you’ll also visit a market before you begin whipping up your feast in a home overlooking the Mekong River. It lasts four hours and while it’s a little on the expensive side compared to other cooking schools in Vientiane, it is one the best ones you can find. I highly recommended.
Meditate with monks at Wat Sok Pa Luang
Many visitors to Laos see monks walking through the streets each day or accepting alms in the morning, but rarely have the opportunity to interact with them.
But, if you head to Wat Sok Pa Luang on a Saturday afternoon, you’ll be able to spend time with novice monks when they hold an open meditation session. In return, monks have the chance to practice their English with visiting tourists.
Monks share meditation methods and also answer questions about Buddhism and the monks’ lives.
It’s one of the most special things to do in Vientiane, and a way to learn more about the culture and people of Laos.
Explore the legend of That Dam
That Dam, also known as the black stupa, is one of the most unassuming things to see in Vientiane. We actually found it while wandering around Vientiane one day, took some photos and then moved on.
It wasn’t until later that we found out the story behind this stupa. Legend has it that it was once covered in glinting gold and was guarded by a Naga, a seven-headed serpent that protects the citizens of Vientiane. It’s said that Siamese stole the gold in the early 1800s when they invaded the country, so all that’s left behind now is the black stupa that you’ll see sitting in the middle of the roundabout.
Despite that, Laotians still revere the stupa, even if it does look a little unloved and unkempt these days. And, apparently the Naga is still there, keeping watch over Vientiane…
See the Buddha statues at Wat Si Saket
Like any city in Southeast Asia, a list of the best things to do in Vientiane will include many, many wats and temples.
Top of the must-see wats in Vientiane is Wat Si Saket, one of the most popular Vientiane attractions. Built more than 200 years ago, it’s the only surviving temple in Laos following the Siamese invasion. While cities were razed and temples and buildings destroyed, Wat Si Saket managed to endure the attacks.
Wat Si Saket is home to thousands upon thousands of Buddha statues and images, some dating back to the 16th century.
Visit the museum at Ho Phra Keo
Just across the road from Wat Si Saket is yet another wat to add to your Vientiane itinerary.
Ho Phra Keo (also known as Haw Phra Kaew or Hor Pha Keo) is a former temple that today is a museum filled with Laotian artifacts like Buddhist art, urns, scriptures and a golden throne.
The temple was originally built in 1565 to house the sacred Emerald Buddha. The statue is now in the Grand Palace in Bangkok.
Even though the Emerald Buddha is no longer here, Ho Phra Keo is still worth a visit. Its red and gold exterior make it one of the most beautiful buildings in Vientiane, if not in the whole of Laos.
Learn about history at the Lao National Museum
UPDATE: Unfortunately this museum is no longer open as it’s in the process of being moved. That’s a process that seems to be taking a very long time! The new building appears to be complete but I’m yet to discover whether it’s actually now open. If you’ve been, let me know so I can update this post!
The Lao National Museum doesn’t have the fancy displays and interactive exhibitions of other countries’ national museums, and even guidebooks describe it as dilapidated and run down.
But, for those wishing to learn more about the history and culture of Laos, it’s still worth a visit.
In the small French colonial building, you’ll find dinosaur bones, centuries-old artifacts, sculptures, jewelry and information about the Vietnam war. It may be dusty and out of date, but it’s one of the more interesting things to do in Vientiane.
Watch the sunset over the Mekong River
When we visited Laos, one of our favourite things to do in Vientiane was to sit by the Mekong River and watch the sun go down each night. Words can’t describe the swirl of purple, pink, red and orange that fills the evening sky, reflecting off the river’s surface.
The best way to enjoy it is to grab some beers and snacks from the Vientiane Night Market. Then, head down to Chao Anouvong Park to witness the show.
And it’s not just the sunsets that are worthy of your attention. Everyone in Vientiane seems to turn up to enjoy the evening here, so the people watching is fun and insightful.
Bike around Vientiane
Renting a bike or joining a tour of the city on two wheels is a great way to explore Vientiane. I’m not the most comfortable on a bike, but unlike other cities in Asia, I felt super safe and at ease in Vientiane’s chilled streets (there’s no way I’d ride a bike in Ho Chi Minh City, for example!).
Many hotels and hostels rent out bikes, or a local tour guide will show you the sights of the city (including many of the wats and Vientiane attractions I’ve included in this article). This five-hour bike tour covers the main wats, the COPE centre and includes lunch.
If you want to go a bit further out, then this full-day biking tour explores the villages surrounding Vientiane. You’ll cycle through rice fields and even take a ferry down the river.
Recommended by Rebecca of Rebecca and the World
Buy a souvenir at the Lao Textile Museum
Over centuries, Laotians have honed the craft of textiles making. You’ll see exquisite examples everywhere you go in the country.
Vientiane is home to the Lao Textile Museum which showcases the history of this traditional craftsmanship. In a beautiful wooden building you’ll see looms used in the weaving process, learning about textile dying and even pick up your own silk souvenirs in the gift shop.
The museum owners are passionate about sharing the craft and ensuring it lives on for future generations.
The museum is open daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and entrance is 30,000 kip per person.
Book a soothing Laos massage
I don’t know about you, but whenever I’m in Southeast Asia I splurge on massages regularly. And when I say splurge, I really mean parting ways with a ridiculously small sum of money for a ridiculously good massage.
In Laos, it’s no different. The country is known for its massage which combines traditional massage with a herbal sauna. Local plants and herbs are boiled to create a steam room which loosens up the muscles in preparation for the massage.
Wander down any street in Vientiane and you’re sure to find a masseuse ready to relax those travel-weary feet and shoulders. Definitely one of the most relaxing things to do in Vientiane!
Have you been to Vientiane, Laos? What else would you add to this list of things to do in Vientiane to build an itinerary? Leave your tips in the comments below to help other readers!
This is a post written by guest contributor, Rebecca Arnold from the Travel Blog Rebecca and the World.
