Cycling in Laos

What is it like? Can you go cycling in Laos? I get that question once in a while. Of course you can cycle in Laos. And Laos is a very good country to bike. Backpackers know already for many years how nice and relaxed Laos is.

Since the borders opened, some 10 years ago, more or less, Laos started to develop quickly into a new backpackers paradise. Once the backpackers had paved the path, organized up market tourism found quickly it's way. But cyclist suffered a bit. At that time cycling in Laos wasn't really that pleasant. However cyclist could sometimes go where busses couldn't. And, of course, it is still that way.

Although cycling in Laos is nowadays easy to do, it wasn't all too easy in the recent past. For example, the National Highway from Vientiane to Pakse, around 800 km, had not been finished until about 5 years ago. Before that, you were on a sort of dirt road, sometimes good, sometimes less.

During my second my second visit, when I was cycling in Laos (my first visit was backpacking), I pitied the bus travelers who were in busses like the one below traveled either north or south. We cyclist had an easier job I thought. Of course this is arbitrary, but since I am a cyclist myself and I have been backpacking too, I have some authority to say so. The bus in the picture below was the one I traveled with some years ago.

However, when we speak about the on going roads the bad days for the main roads are all over. The road from Vientiane to Pakse (highway 13) and going north to Luang Prabang and Muang Xai are now in good condition, even if you travel by bus. For cyclist there's a lot more interesting possible, roads which are still no more then dirt paths which leads to unknown little villages where few foreigners ever go.

What to think of the road that leads from Luang Nam Tha to Huay Xai at the border of Thailand. It makes a good circle in Laos possible (Vientiane - Luang Prabang - Luang Nam Tha - Huay Xai without the need to come back the same way. Or go into north east Laos for some real challenges.

View over the Mekong River in South Laos

Preparations for cycling in Laos

So, what do you need to prepare when you want to go cycling in Laos? Laos is an excellent holiday destination. If you have only a 3 week holiday and still want to cycle exotic, this is a good option. But if you're a long distance cyclist, your options are numerous.

And if you have 3 weeks, you may want to fly in into Vientiane. There's a good and modern airport 15 km just outside the city center.

Visa

Virtually everybody who is not a citizen of one of the Asean countries need a visa. You can arrange a visa in your own country but it's as easy to do it in Bangkok. If you have the time, save $10 and get the visa in the Lao embassy in Bangkok. See my additional page about via requirements for Laos.

Bicycle preparations

Laos doesn't contain many descent bike shops. You may be able to get some material at Top-Cycle-Zone which is located at:047 Dong Palan in Vientiane (telephone:021263871).

The best advice is to check your bicycle at home, then come to Laos. When you're on the road for awhile, you probably come either from Thailand or China. Bangkok has Probike while in Kunming in China you will find the Xiong Brothers.

Clothes

Laos is a tropical country so you don't need much. Summer is usually wet and hot, winter is dry and slightly cooler. In north Laos the temperature can be even as low as 5°C higher up in the mountains. However, daily temperature from November to February is rarely Below 20-25 °C.

Buying clothes can be a little difficult since the bigger sizes are not widely available. Vientiane and Luang Prabang will be good places to pick up some clothes. You may try your luck in Pakse or Savannaketh but don't count on it. Shoes are always a problem for us "big feet" in Asia, bring from home if your size is 42 or bigger.

Some good routes to cycle

Cycling in Laos is a real pleasure. South Laos is mostly flat with the exception of the Bolovan plateau and the roads leading to Vietnam. North Laos is challenging but not impossible, even for inexperienced cyclist.

Find some ideas about south Laos here and more about north Laos on this page. If you want to go bicycling in Laos for 3 to 4 weeks, it may be a good start to start in the south and work your way north. However, many cyclist skip the south or do it in a different trip. Indeed there's not much to see in between Pakse and Vientiane but it's a pleasant ride.

North Laos is much more visited. It's not for nothing. Vang Vieng is a tourist spot (though personally I think there are much better places to visit in Laos). Luang Prabang is good place to hang our with lots of guest houses, restaurants and hotels. The Plain of Jars near Phonsavan is something special. And if you are interested in the Lao minorities, there's no better place then Muang Sing near the Chinese border.

Accommodation

Hotels in Laos can be dirt cheap but they're not always good too. Vientiane, as the capital and Luang Prabang have a range of mid range hotels offering a very decent price for what you get. See our hotels in Vientiane page for details.

The best hotels, some can be crazy cheap if you have time to go around, in south Laos (4000 islands) can be a problem as they are often full. Best is to book in advance. Our south Laos page recommends a few of these hotels on the islands.

North Laos has less mid range and top end hotels but the hotels available are sometimes very good. See our Hotels in Luang Prabang page for idea where to stay in the world famous UNESCO Heritage City.

I have separated north, central and south Laos.

• North Laos

• South Laos
• Central Laos

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