The French used to say that the Lao people were relaxed enough to "listen to the rice grow." We felt like locals, with our daily routine and home at the Apsara. By the end of our week, we were ...

very good Lao beer (there is a new Lao dark, as well). Another restuarant, L'Elephant, also gets high marks for food. The rooms above the Apsara restaurant are all lovely, though slightly funky ...

Enjoy life on the other side at The Apsara Rive Droite ... by taking a ride around the local area to see how the real Lao live, away from the gentrified centre of Luang Prabang.

From hilltop havens to royal residences and luxurious stilt houses, here are some of the best hotels to stay in Luang Prabang ...

To explore Laos’s less-travelled northeast countryside, you can easily hire a car and driver. The Apsara arranges ours by way of a cheerful chap called Sit with a fondness for 1980s ballads.