Litthavixay Guesthouse
Once the best budget place in town
More on Udomxai
For years Litthavixay Guesthouse was the reigning top pick for budget guesthouse in Udomxai and it is where we would always throw down our pack when we rolled into town, but on our last visit, everything was looking a bit too tired and worn out.
Travelfish says:
First, the positives. The location doesn’t get more convenient than this. It is smack dab in the middle of the main street, equidistant to the tourism information office and the northern bus station, both about a 450 m walk away. It’s also right at the foot of the stairs to Wat Phu That hill. The lobby has some tables and chairs, a guest computer, drinking water dispenser and hot water with free tea and coffee. Litthavixay Guesthouse is also a Lao Airlines ticketing agent and can help with other travel arrangements. The owners know enough English to communicate the basics. They are accustomed to independent travellers and everything is well set up for it.
Rooms on the ground floor don’t receive natural light so we recommend heading upstairs. The rooms come with private hot water bathrooms and Western toilets, flatscreen TV with cable channels, a desk and a chair, large windows that can be opened, beds with clean sheets and fast WiFi. Bathrooms show the most wear and tear. They are small, with cracked tiles and the water pressure for the hot showers are a little weak. This is the disappointing part as the owners normally make an effort to keep everything neat, working and maintained. We noticed they had put up a for lease sign. They’ve seen the writing on the wall with tourism in Udomxai: fewer and fewer backpackers are visiting the town.
Litthavixay is not as reliable a pick as in the past, yet it still has enough going for it to attract the independent traveller needing a place for a night or two, especially if wanting to stay easy walking distance to the northern bus station. Look for the bright green building beside the ostentatious gated mansion.
Contact details for Litthavixay Guesthouse
Address: Route 13, middle of town on main road, Udomxai
T: (081) 212 175;
Email: litthavixay@yahoo.com
Coordinates (for GPS): 101º59'12.6" E, 20º41'14.76" N
See position in Apple or Google Maps: Apple Maps | Google Maps
Room rates: Under US$10
Room rates
What we were quoted as a walk-in.
| Dbl fan private bathroom | 70,000 kip | 70,000 kip |
| Dbl air-con private bathroom | 100,000 kip | 100,000 kip |
Reviewed by
Cindy Fan
Cindy Fan is a Canadian writer/photographer and author of So Many Miles, a website that chronicles the love of adventure, food and culture. After falling in love with sticky rice and Mekong sunsets, in 2011 she uprooted her life in Toronto to live la vida Laos. She’s travelled to over 40 countries and harbours a deep affection for Africa and Southeast Asia. In between jaunts around the world, she calls Laos and Vietnam home where you’ll find her traipsing through rice paddies, standing beside broken-down buses and in villages laughing with the locals.