A stab in the dark, a lucky dip, a winning scratch card. That’s how I stumbled across Kounsaven Guesthouse. Scrolling through the options on Hostelworld I was not in the mood to search Luang Prabang in depth and booked Kounsaven Guesthouse. No one I had met yet knew about it and word on the street was Spicy Lemon was where we should be staying. But the price was right, location decent and it was last minute and I was too lazy to search further before jumping in the minivan from Chiang Mai to the Thai/Laos border.
After a long journey my group who had followed suit and booked the same guesthouse grumbled as they climbed down out of the tuk tuk. That’s definitely another story! Uncertain as to what we would find at the guesthouse my first survey was one of pleasant surprise. The check-in process was simple and informative and the staff were all warm and incredibly helpful and friendly.
The eight bed dorms have large beds and enough space. There are also four bed dorms available and, for those who are flash packing, there are private rooms in an adjacent building where breakfast is served to the room and all the other backpackers look on with jealousy of the luxury. However, the bathrooms are well designed and gender mutual. And the shower! Oh, the shower! A beautiful, powerful, warm stream of water from a waterfall shower-head. If someone has disappeared at Kounsaven Guesthouse, you will surely find them in one of the roomy showers not realising that they’d lost track of time and place. A true luxury in SE Asia.
Breakfast is a choice of eggs cooked in your favourite style with a fresh chunk of bagguete or pancakes. Tea and coffee is complimentary 24/7 in the indoor common area/reception where breakfast is served. The outdoor area is a great place to meet people and hang out. Literally. There are tables and chairs set up with many hammocks hanging from under an awning. You’ll often find late comers sleeping in the hammocks after arriving on a night bus, waiting for reception to open and hoping that there will be a bed available.
The staff are more than willing to give you local area advice, book you a day tour to Xuang Si waterfalls or to your next destination. We booked our minivan down to Vang Vieng through the guesthouse. However at some point they changed our booking to a VIP bus which took over double the time of the minivans and was less comfortable. Whether this was a miscommunication or standard process I do not know, but we did get there in the end.
At all times the hostel was kept in top condition. The bathrooms were always immaculate and the rooms were cleaned daily. A perfect example of a well run hostel/guesthouse.
Booking ahead to stay at Kounsaven Guesthouse during peak seasons is advised as every day we were in Luang Prabang the guesthouse was completely booked out.
All opinions are subjective to the writers personal travel experience. The writer travelled at her own expense.