What to see and do in Laos: on a boat from Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua (Video)

What to see and do in Laos?
What to see in Muang Khua?

Taking a boat on the river Nam Ou, how much is it?

The north of Laos is authentic and wild. The small villages and tribes with their clothes and tradition, are one of the main attraction in this part of the Country.
Luang Namtha and Muang Sing are definitly the best places to get in touch with the local culture.
In the north, but on the east side, an unmissable experience is to take a boat on the wild Nam Ou river.
Two are the main steps of the jorney..
The first one from Nong Khiaw to Muang Ngoi and the second one from Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua.
Here all the details of the second part of the journey.

From Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua – sailing the Nam Ou river: timing and costs

The shared boat that connects Muang Ngoi with Muang Khua leaves every day at 12/12:30.
We recommend to arrive earlier because the boat comes from Nong Khiaw and leaves earlier if there is no one waiting.
The ticket costs 120.000 KIP (updated March 2018) and includes also the tuk-tuk to cross the dam built along the river.

From Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua – sailing the Nam Ou river: where to buy the ticket

Tickets are for sale half an hour prior to departure of the boat at the stall near the Lattanavonga guesthouse. There’s a sign that says “boat ticket”.

From Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua – sailing the Nam Ou river: useful info

The boat is very “rustic”. You’ll be sitting on wooden planks and after 2 hours this can become a nightmare. On the boat it’s better to move as little as possible. There is a carport that repairs from the sun or (partly) from the rain.
The boats are low and you’ll be seatting close to water, so in case of rapids, it is easy to get wet. Better remember a k-way and waterproof covers for backpacks.

click on the pic to play the video

From Muang Ngoi to Muang Khua – sailing the Nam Ou river: lenght of the journey and what to see

The total length of the journey is 4 hours. After one hour you’ll have to get off the boat with all your bags and take a tuk tuk that will drive till the other side of the dam. The journey lasts 10 minutes and it is included in the boat ticket. 

The second boat will take 3 hours to get to Muang Khua, including frequent stops to get people on/off.  The landscape here is really amazing, with very few villages built in the middle of nowhere.

It’s an incredible journey even if it is really tiring.

PLANNING A TRIP TO LAOS? HERE ARE INFO

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3 Comments

  1. Grazie per i vostri consigli. Oggi ,i avevano “spaventato” in Luang parabang dicendomi che c’era una diga quindi niente viaggio in barca…sono fiducioso dsto che l’avete fstto appena qualche mese fa, domani vado in bus a Nong Khiaw e vediamo se tutto va bene…grazie e buon proseguimento di viaggio

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