Cold River

The people running the place are very nice, but I can't recommend it for a relaxing trip. The room got cold when evening temperatures dropped to 15 degrees Celsius, and the AC had no heating function. The bathroom was in bad shape, with a constant mold smell, a terrible electric water heater, and no curtain or glass, so showering soaked the whole room. The walls are paper thin, so you hear everything the neighbors do. There weren't proper curtains either, and the room couldn't be made dark.

The owners were lovely, the rooms clean and nice, and the location was great. The area is very quiet, with a super nice front yard, and breakfast was included for us and was absolutely the best part. We had been scammed at the first hotel we checked into, but you can feel confident that won't happen here. We had the best stay at cold river and can absolutely recommend this lovely hotel.

I worried the room might feel claustrophobic because it was listed with no window, but there was an internal window and some natural light. I still needed the lights on, but didn't feel trapped. The decor was lovely and everything was clean. There was a kettle with tea and coffee, plus a hall water dispenser, which I appreciated for avoiding plastic bottles. Breakfast was excellent and generous: eggs of your choice, fruit, yogurt and muesli, a crepe or pancake, and baguette. It's a nice location, a short walk from the main tourist drag. The laundry service was great too, line dried rather than tumble dried, so clothes get better care. I also made friends with a lovely cat. My only small gripe was that the pillow was too firm and large for me. Definitely recommend staying here.

The hotel has a lovely river view and sits on a quiet street, but it's also well placed for walking around Luang Prabang. Breakfast was nice, and filtered water fountains around the hotel offered free water. The rooms could use some TLC: the AC's heat setting didn't work, some room locks and bulbs were broken, and missing screws at the toilet base let a sewage smell into the room. Expedia hadn't made it clear that our standard double balcony room had a wet room instead of a bathroom. That was annoying, since after showering we had wet feet every time we used the bathroom.