Travel - Huay Xai

Destination / Name

Arrival		Departure
	-

Show only available hotels

Stars:
Sort by:	Name    City    Stars    Rate

Huay Xai (also Houayxay, Houei Sai, etc) is the capital of the Bok?o. It lies on the banks of the Mekong river, which forms the border to Thailand. More or less a transport stop-over, there is not much to see in this small town, other than to sit on the banks of the Mekong and watch the river flow past.

Geographical position: 20° 16' N 100° 24' E

• Immigration: The immigration office is just a few meters from the ferry on the right and efficiently issues 30-day Visas-on-Arrival (around USD35, depending on nationality, or Baht 1500. The cost in Euros tends to be the same as the dollar cost, with Lao authorities ignoring exchange rate differentials). A passport-sized photo is needed and this can be obtained in Chiang Khong before crossing the river or, earlier, near the bus station in Chiang Rai.

• Money: There's a small bank office offering change for cash and travellers' checks just next to the immigration office. Most guest houses and restaurants in town deal in baht, kip and US dollars at decent rates. There are ATMs on the main road straight up the hill from the immigration office. Turn left and you will come to the Banque pour le Commerce Exterior Lao and, further along, the Phongsavanh Bank. Both are on the right of the road and offer 24-hour service.

Huay Xai's tiny airport has service three times a week to/from Vientiane, plus one flight to Luang Prabang on Saturdays, but none in the other direction.

The 9:30am bus from Luang Namtha arrives at the bus station 2km out of town at around 2:30pm. Tuk-tuks charge 10,000 kip to the border or guest house of your choice in town.

Ferries cross between Chiang Khong, Thailand and Huay Xai for 40 Baht + 10 Baht for luggage. Immigration offices on both sides of the river close at 6PM. The small ferries carry only a few passengers and leave as soon as there are more than a couple of people on board, so you do not have to hang around. The landing point is near the middle of the town center. In Chiang Khong, the ferry pier is at the northern end of town, a 30 baht tuk-tuk ride from the bus station.

The slow boat is mainly used to leave Huay Xai as the journey moving upstream is usually just too long for most people. See GET OUT, below, for details. The pier is one km north of town, where the truck-carrying ferry barges also dock.

Fares depend on where you book:

• in Chiang Khong: 850 baht incl. transport to the ferry pier, ferry to Houay Xay and transport to the slow boat pier

• near the ferry pier in Houay Xay: 800 baht

• at the slow boat pier: 760 baht (depending on your bargaining skills)

Read the warning about speedboats first. The speedboat landing is some 5 km south of town.

• The 9:30AM bus from Luang Namtha arrives at the bus station about 2 km out of town at around 2:30PM. The tuk-tuks charge 10,000 kip to the border or guesthouse of your choice in town.

You can walk the main street. For longer distances take a bike taxi. A one-way fare to the Chinese morning market should cost 10000 kip.

See sunset over the Mekong river from a riverside restaurant. See the view from the temple tower at the top of the hill on the main street, near the border crossing.

• Pay a visit to the market. This is commonly known locally as the Morning Market and the best time to visit is early morning. The market is in the suburb of Ban Muangkeo. To get there, follow the main road south along the Mekong. After passing a hill, there is a turn-off to the left, which you should follow until you reach the place. Ask people as you go, to make sure you don't take the wrong turning.

• On main street, there is the office of The Gibbon Experience[1]. This is a forest conservation project that raises its funds through taking guests into the Bokeo Nature Reserve. Every other day there is a truck covering the 3.5 hours to the last village, where you start your hike to the project. Accommodation is provided in terrific treehouses which are constructed on giant trees over 40 m high. To access the houses, you glide on a cable from the surrounding hill range. There is an extensive cable network being set up to explore the canopy, providing breathtaking views of the scenery.

The most important thing to buy is something to eat & drink for the slow-boat journey to Luang Prabang.

Most of the guest houses also provide simple meals. There restaurant next door to the Gibbon Experience office is home of the ex-pat crowd in town. It has a nice garden restaurant and terrace overlooking the Mekong river.

Along the water, on the main road, about 1km south of border check there is an outdoor restaurant with a big terrace built on the banks of the Mekong. It offers Lao Barbecue, a tasty combination of Japanese Shabu-Shabu and Korean BBQ, i.e., you grill and stew up your own meats and veggies.

The R. Latsuly restaurant overlooks the slow boat wharf and truck ferry and is a nice place to watch the world go by.

There is not much nightlife in town. To have a beer, simply visit a restaurant or get your own stocks of Beerlao at one of the shops.

• BAP Guesthouse has wound up to be somewhat of a travellers' hangout. Unfortunately, the rates are not the cheapest in town and staff are unfriendly and have a reputation for overcharging. Not only overcharging occurs here, there is a real effort by the management to get as much money out of you as possible. Seriously, avoid this place.
• Friendship Guesthouse is a great family run guesthouse located in the central strip of town. Rooms are available as double or single and all have private bath with hot water. The building's tiled rooftop balcony provides panoramic views of the city and neighboring Chiang Khong across the Mekong River, making for a great place to read a book during the day or have a cup of tea at night and watch life pass by, albeit slowly. Room rates range from USD4-7/night. Make sure that you book a room that is close to the street front as the rear rooms lack natural light.
• Gateway Villas. On the right, at the top of the hill leading up from immigration.
• Manirath Guesthouse right next to the soi that goes to the ferryboat to Thailand. Doubles with attached Bathroom from 160 Baht/40000 Kip. Clean and good value.
• Oudomphone Guesthouse 2 has double-bed rooms with spotlessly clean floors and hot-water showers from USD10/night. It's a 3-minute walk north of the BAP guesthouse, on the right-hand side of the road. There is a good, cheap restaurant and a small convenience/souvenir store on the premises.

• Sabaydee Guest House is opposite Oudomphone Guest House and is of a good standard.

At the Huay Xai border crossing a tourist agent offers to help fill out visa forms and make arrangements for the slow boat and hotel in Pak Beng. However, he overcharges and does not really make the reservations he promises.In fact, although paying premium prices at this Huay Xai "Customs" office for a room in Pak Beng, rooms may have no windows and/or no water. There are many many guest houses in Pak Beng. Carry your own gear from the wharf and check out the rooms (and the water) before you commit.

There are now numerous "high-speed" Internet cafés in town. The going rate is 5000 kip for 20 minutes.

If you have a Thai SIM card and have activated some of their Internet packages you can use this service. The signals of all Thai GSM networks reach across the Mekong and the locals often use a Thai number phone number in preference to a Lao one.

• Long boat ferry across the river to Chiang Khong in Thailand is 10,000 Kip. The boat guys are among the most pleasant transport providers in Laos. Be nice to them so it continues.

• A two day (slow) boat ride to Luang Prabang. Arrive early to avoid being stuck in the engine room for the 8 hour ride. The official fare is announced at Immigration as being 70,000Kip but what you pay will depend on where you book:

• in Chiang Khong: 850 baht incl. transport to the ferry pier, ferry to Houay Xay and transport to the slow boat pier

• near the ferry pier in Houay Xay: 800 baht

• at the slow boat pier: 760 baht (depending on your bargaining skills)

• Speedboat to Luang Prabang. There seems to be a real reluctance to take foreigners on the speedboat. You sit there watching as speedboat after speedboat leaves without you on them. The phrases "come back tomorrow" and "just wait, wait", is repeated a lot. If you are in a hurry use your money to kick things into a higher gear and make demands that you leave. This is definitely not a means of transport to be relied on. It is a good idea to work out with your fellow boat passengers to remove the seat dividers in the fast boat which allow you more space to move around as long as you don't mind a bit of contact. It will be better than being jammed in one place for the whole trip. Keep in mind, recently the speed boats have been pulling a scam where you are dropped off 10km outside of Luang Prabang at a small bamboo dock. Refuse to get off here and force them to take you two minutes further down river to the Luang Prabang boat dock. If you are forced to get off before Luang Prabang the tuk-tuk driver may demand $15 or something equally ridiculous per person. Don't pay more than $5 for everyone in your party, but keep in mind this guy is your only ride into town.
• There's a local bus to Luang Prabang, US$14, 12-15 hours. The bus station is 7km from the town. However, if you buy the ticket at the bus station rather than through your guesthouse or agent then the price is 100000 kip (around $12US). You are told the journey is 10 hours but can turn out to be 15 hours, so be prepared.

• A special boat ride for Luang Namtha is also available for around 1,500,000 kip / 6000 baht for the whole charter and can carry between 6 - 10 people (the boat can carry less people in the end of the dry season , when the river is low).

• Buses to Luang Namtha leave in the morning around 9:30AM and there might be a more crowded bus at around 11AM. The bus costs around 95,000 kip / 350 baht from BAP guest house includes a 10 min tuk-tuk ride from the guest house. The journey is 198km and now takes 5-6 hours with one stop for lunch on the way. The road is now completely sealed (except for big sections in the middle which have been churned up by the trucks - this adds time to any journey). However, unexpected obstacles may still occur.

• On the way to Luang Prabang, make a stop over at Hongsa in Sayaboury Province for an elephant ride. Elephant adventures [2] have 2-5 day elephant trekking on retrained logging elephants. These treks are supported by ElefantAsia NGO [3], focussed on elephant veterinary care, educational/environmental awareness and economic viability for mahouts.