Muang Ngoi has a lot of guesthouses for its size. There were not any ultra-luxury accommodations in Muang Ngoi. However, there were many options for budget travelers. You will have no problems finding a room here and could pay as low as 20,000 Kip for a double. Don’t bother going with the touts on the dock; just walk around a bit and find a place you like on your own.
Here are some accommodation options in Muang Ngoi:
Ning Ning Guesthouse
Ning Ning Guesthouse is Muang Ngoi’s most upscale option and before it was built, the lack of modern guesthouses would prevent some travellers from staying overnight, instead opting to visit on a daytrip from Nong Kiaow.
Ning Ning Guesthouse would also win the town’s award for best view—it is terrific and obviously so, since anyone who arrives to Muang Ngoi by boat will see the rooms just to the left of the landing, perched high on concrete stilts along the river’s edge. The row of seven rooms have sliding glass doors and a balcony that faces the water and mountains, the view with zero obstruction.
Address: Immediately on the left after walking up from the boat landing
Room rates: US$20 to 50
Lattanavongsa Guesthouse
This is also a good choice in Muang Ngoi.
Lattanavongsa has two plots, a single building with four rooms at the top of the boat landing stairs (immediately on the lefthand side) and another behind it on the main street, a spacious property replete with 12 semi-detached bungalows, a courtyard, neatly manicured garden and picnic tables.
The fan-cooled bungalows are clean, have solid wood floors, reasonably soft beds topped with white cotton linens including a duvet cover, as well as window screens to keep out mosquitoes and other creepy-crawlies. Each bungalow has its own bathroom with Western toilet and hot showers.
There are no river views here, but porches with chairs and the green space provide plenty of room to find privacy or congregate.
Address: On the left after walking up from the boat landing
Room rates: Under US$10
Lerdkeo Guesthouse
Lerdkeo Guesthouse (also spelled Lertkeo) was the most surprising find in Muang Ngoi. The property doesn’t look attractive as you approach from the back, but the row of bungalows facing the river are all of a modern construction and finer than your average place.
There’s wooden floors and elegant wood furniture. Concrete walls have been softened with crisp white paint, white cotton linens, an extra blanket in the cold season and wooden wainscoting. Bungalows have fan, windows with curtains, mosquito net and a spacious bathroom befitting of a bricks and mortar guesthouse rather than a bungalow, equipped with a Western toilet and hot shower. Each room has its own balcony and a view over the verdant riverbanks to the water and mountains, with a chair and table to park yourself in and enjoy it all. This solid accommodation with a view does come at a price.
Address: From top of boat landing stairs, turn right
Room rates: Under US$10
Nicksa’s Place
Nicksa’s Place is a standout from all the other bungalows along the river’s edge in Muang Ngoi.
By the village standards, the property has a generously sized piece of riverfront and that means the bungalows boast a wide open, unobstructed panoramic view of the Nam Ou and the peaceful mountains. In fact, when compared to other accommodation, it offers one of the best views, second only to pricey Ning Ning Guesthouse.
The cheapest are basic and weathered buildings, more like a shack with bamboo thatch walls, metal roof and attached concrete bathroom block equipped with an electric heated shower and bucket flush toilets.
For a few more dollars, the newer wooden bungalows are of a sturdier construction, more spacious and slightly brighter in feel. The concrete and tile bathroom is also bigger—no showering over the toilet—and it has a regular flush toilet, a hot shower and cold bucket shower.
Address: Head right on the main street after walking up from the boat landing
Room rates: Under US$10
Rainbow Guesthouse
Rainbow Guesthouse is one of the more popular places to stay in Muang Ngoi.
The guesthouse is conveniently close to the boat landing—just right of the stairs after Saylom Guesthouse. Unlike the majority of Muang Ngoi accommodation, it is not a wooden bungalow set-up but a solid two-storey building with a bricks and mortar ground floor and a wooden upper floor boasting a communal balcony complete with bamboo loungers and a view over their restaurant rooftop to the mountains. This is probably Rainbow Guesthouse’s main selling point.
Inside, the rooms are run of the mill basic Lao guesthouse, with the bonus of clean white sheets on the bed including a top sheet. There’s mosquito nets, a row of hooks on the wall, a bedside table and fan. Toilet paper, towel and little bar of soap is provided. The decently sized wetroom bathroom has a Western flush toilet and electric heated shower.
Rainbow Guesthouse fits the bill for the traveller who wants a room in a solid building close to the boat landing.
Address: Right of the boat landing
Room rates: Under US$10
Suan Phao Guesthouse
Within Muang Ngoi’s small crop of accommodation, Suan Phao Guesthouse’s six bungalows hover in the middle of the pack.
It’s not as modern or fancy as Lerdkeo’s solid buildings but it’s not flimsy or basic.
Six wood-clad raised bungalows form a U-shape around a restaurant terrace. Each has a porch with a hammock and clothesline. Walls are covered in white drywall, unlike the unfinished wood planks usually found. Beds are topped with clean linens and white cotton duvets cover. There’s also mosquito net, fan and curtained windows with security bars, meaning windows can be safely opened at night for fresh air. The tiled bathrooms are also noteworthy. They are more befitting of a bricks and mortar guesthouse building than riverside bungalow. It’s a reasonable size and has a Western toilet, electric heated shower and towel rack.
Address: It’s located at the end of the main street. That’s only 350 metres from the main boat landing. At the top of the boat landing stairs, turn right.
Room rates: US$10 to 20
