Laos forum

"In my guidebook, it says that Route 13 between Kasi and Vang Vieng is a target of Hmong bandits and insurgents and it also said to take extra precautions on Route 7 between Phonsavan and Phou Khoun"

This warning was relevant about 10 years ago but not these days.

"I have looked into taking a flight to Phosovan"
Check with http://www.laoairlines.com there are sometimes flights to Phonsavan (Xieng Khuang) but depends on season.

Bus from Vang Vieng to Phonsavan run daily and take about 5 hours if roads are clear (very scenic drive). See http://laomeow.blogspot.com/2011/10/xieng-khouang-province-transport.html for buses from there.

If you're going to north Vietnam next, consider to do Vang Vieng then Luang Prabang then Phonsavan, and continue from there into Vietnam via Xam Neua and the Na Meo border.

Don't worry - just watch your wallet like you would anywhere. I agree, the bus ride to Phonsavan has some things to see, but also not wonderful compared to more northern areas of Laos. It was fine for one way, but not sure I'd want to bother with the round trip if I was on a short schedule. However, if you have the time it'll save you a cash to take the bus.

You do realise that this information is about 9 years old, don't you. Perhaps it might be time to invest in a more up to date guidebook?

I did a short loop from Phonsavan up to Sam Nuea for a night. You can then take a (very) long but scenic bus ride across some northern hills to Nong Kiaow . . though from above it doesn't seem as quiant as it was, I still think it was one of my favorite little towns to stay in when I was in Laos. Of course - Of course whenever I stay in any village I don't leave my window open or door unlocked when I'm sleeping. From Nong Kiaow there is a 1 hour boat ride north to Mung Ngoi and that is a nice place to stay for a couple of nights and hike around the local environs.

You can then either head back to Luang Prabang very easily from Nong Kiaow or head further north to Luang Nam Tha and Mung Sing areas - I have not personally been around there but some friends rented a motor bike out of Luang Nam Than and loved crusing around for a few days up there.

As for weather in Laos - it depends on what time of year and I didn't see that in your post. There should be good seasonal information provided on the Laos tab here at Travelfish.

@caseyprich - thanks for the information. I have been talking to some people and they have also been saying the same thing about Nong Kiaow. They love it there. I might chance it and go there; however, make sure that I have a room in a guesthouse that has all the bells and whistles on my doors and windows. We shall see. If I can get a travel buddy, I will feel better about being there.

As for the weather situation, my apologizes for not clarifying my question. I know they post the weather daily for Laos; however, the information that I am looking for is the impact the weather has had on Lao. Since there have been a number of heavy storms that have affected all of southeast Asia, I haven't seen what the impact has had on Laos. I think someone showed that there were landslides in some areas. I want to know if I will have problems getting to places via bus and if there are places that are flooded. Any assistance on that is much appreciated.

@rufus, my guidebook is actually the most current version of Rough Guides. I knew that LP can be fairly outdated so I opted to try a new guidebook.

The Vientiane Times publishes information on landslides and problems caused by flooding on a daily basis. Nothing is "hidden". I realise that this n/p may not be available to everyone.
Regarding Guides. I would use them as a rough guide only, (please excuse the pun). As you can see, the information published even in yours is sadly out of date.