Xayana Guest House: Decent Hostel in Luang Prabang, Laos
There are tons of hotel options for the tourists in the tourist-oriented Luang Prabang old town. Accommodation options vary from villas to river facing bungalows, heritage French bungalows to simple hotel rooms and hostels to budget rooms. During my stay at Luang Prabang, I stayed at the Xayana Guest House for 3 nights. Below review is based on my recent stay here.
1) The Xayana Guest House is an old French building that has been done up into a guest house with dormitories and private rooms. The place has a classic touch with wooden flooring, wooden walls and carpeting.
2) For 40,000 kip, they offer a bed in an air-conditioned dormitory. The bed is comfortable and the room is large enough too. The only thing missing is a private reading lamp for each bed.
3) Free wi-fi is provided and there is good reception all through the guest house. They even have computers to get onto the internet.
4) They have both mixed and ladies only dormitory with shared bathrooms. There were only 2 shower rooms and one toilet for my 6 bed dormitory, but we never found it to be a problem.
5) The problem with the guest house is their carpeting, which I guess hasn’t been vacuumed in a long while. People who have allergies to dust, like me, will have a hard time there.
6) Sometimes the reception of this place are good. At other times, they can be a bit rude.
7) They do not provide a towel, breakfast or free water like the other hotels in Luang Prabang. However, you can get all for a price.
8) The one thing I missed the most is a free safety locker. One has to pay a 30,000 kip fee to get a locker and that too all the lockers are in the ground floor. As far as I knew, the basic thing about hostels is that they offer a safety locker.
9) Since the guest house is located a little inside from the main road, there is hardly any disturbance.
10) They have a common sit out for those who like some sun.
11) They do not provide laundry services, but there are quite a few laundry services right opposite the guest house.
12) One of the best things about this guest house location. It is close to the Mekong river, the night market, the Royal Palace, the Mount Phousie, all the good restaurants and other attractions.
Even though this hostel is not top notch, it offers good value for money. It’s beds and dormitories are really good for the money paid. And when compared to the other hotels in the old town, it doesn’t seem too bad.
1) The Xayana Guest House is an old French building that has been done up into a guest house with dormitories and private rooms. The place has a classic touch with wooden flooring, wooden walls and carpeting.
2) For 40,000 kip, they offer a bed in an air-conditioned dormitory. The bed is comfortable and the room is large enough too. The only thing missing is a private reading lamp for each bed.
3) Free wi-fi is provided and there is good reception all through the guest house. They even have computers to get onto the internet.
4) They have both mixed and ladies only dormitory with shared bathrooms. There were only 2 shower rooms and one toilet for my 6 bed dormitory, but we never found it to be a problem.
5) The problem with the guest house is their carpeting, which I guess hasn’t been vacuumed in a long while. People who have allergies to dust, like me, will have a hard time there.
6) Sometimes the reception of this place are good. At other times, they can be a bit rude.
7) They do not provide a towel, breakfast or free water like the other hotels in Luang Prabang. However, you can get all for a price.
8) The one thing I missed the most is a free safety locker. One has to pay a 30,000 kip fee to get a locker and that too all the lockers are in the ground floor. As far as I knew, the basic thing about hostels is that they offer a safety locker.
9) Since the guest house is located a little inside from the main road, there is hardly any disturbance.
10) They have a common sit out for those who like some sun.
11) They do not provide laundry services, but there are quite a few laundry services right opposite the guest house.
12) One of the best things about this guest house location. It is close to the Mekong river, the night market, the Royal Palace, the Mount Phousie, all the good restaurants and other attractions.
Even though this hostel is not top notch, it offers good value for money. It’s beds and dormitories are really good for the money paid. And when compared to the other hotels in the old town, it doesn’t seem too bad.
