Cheap Flights to Vientiane in December
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Weather & Crowds in December
Peak tourist season starts in earnest from Christmas onward. Ideal weather with cool mornings and warm sunny afternoons — the city is at its most pleasant and most visited.
Vientiane in December
Peak season arrives Christmas week and doesn't let up. Best weather of the year but highest prices and most visitors. The city stays festive through New Year's Eve with Mekong riverside celebrations. Book everything at least a month ahead for late December. Despite the crowds, it's still calmer than any other Southeast Asian capital at this time of year.
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Quick Reference
Daily Budget in Vientiane
$12 dorm or cheap guesthouse, $15 food (street food and local restaurants, 3 meals), $5 tuk-tuk transport, $10 temple entry fees and 1 activity, $3 Beer Laos
$55 mid-range guesthouse or boutique hotel, $35 food (mix of local spots and one sit-down restaurant), $10 tuk-tuk and occasional LOCA ride, $10 temple/museum fees
$150 Settha Palace Hotel or Don Chan Palace, $45 food (upscale Lao restaurants, wine, French bistro dinner), $15 private driver for half day, $10 entry fees
The Cooperative Orthotic and Prosthetic Enterprise (COPE) Visitor Centre on Khouvieng Road is free to enter and provides the most important context for understanding modern Laos — it documents the UXO crisis from the Secret War bombing (the US dropped more bombs on Laos than on Germany and Japan combined in WWII). Spend 45 minutes here before visiting any temples and you'll understand the country completely differently. Also: the 'Patuxai Monument' (Vientiane's Arc de Triomphe knockoff) sells the best views of the city from its top terrace for 5,000 LAK (25 cents) — go at 5pm when the light hits the boulevard perfectly and most tourists have gone home.
Where to Stay
The historic core of Vientiane clustered around Nam Phu Fountain and Setthathirat Road — walkable to Pha That Luang, Wat Sisaket, and the main restaurant strip. Hotel options range from $30 guesthouses to $120 boutique hotels; Settha Palace Hotel ($150-180/night) is the crown jewel if you want colonial-era luxury on a manageable budget. This is where you want to be for your first trip.
The strip along the Mekong waterfront from the Night Market to the Friendship Bridge direction — tons of cheap guesthouses ($15-30/night), riverside restaurants, and the best sunset bars in the city. Slightly removed from temple sights but the evening atmosphere is unbeatable; grab a plastic chair at any riverside spot around 5:30pm and you'll understand why people love this city.
The neighborhood south of the center where most of Vientiane's expat population lives and works — upscale Lao homes converted to French restaurants, wine bars, and international schools. Less touristy feel, better quality restaurants (try Kualao for upscale Lao cuisine at about $15-20/person), and some excellent boutique guesthouses around the $50-80 range. Good for a 2nd or 3rd day base when you want to eat well without tuk-tuk tourist menus.
The eastern residential neighborhoods near the COPE Visitor Centre (a sobering and essential UXO museum) — heavily local, almost no English menus, and street food stalls that serve the best $1 khao piak sen (rice noodle soup) in the city. Budget guesthouses here run $12-20/night; useful if you want an authentic local neighborhood feel and don't mind a tuk-tuk into the center.
Events & Festivals
Lao New Year runs April 14-16 and turns the entire country into a water fight. Streets are blocked off, water trucks drive through neighborhoods dousing everyone, and locals play traditional games and make offerings at temples. It's messier and more local than Thailand's Songkran — less commercialized, more genuine — and worth building a trip around if you can handle the April heat and pre-book accommodation months in advance.
The most important national religious festival in Laos, held at Pha That Luang stupa over a week in late October or November (timing follows the lunar calendar). Thousands of monks and worshippers from across Laos gather for candle-lit processions, market stalls, and traditional music — it's the equivalent of Laos's national pilgrimage and completely dominated by Lao people rather than tourists. The candlelight procession around the stupa on the final night is one of the most atmospheric scenes in Southeast Asia.
Marks the end of Buddhist Lent (Vassa) with illuminated boat processions on the Mekong and competitive longboat races that draw teams from across Laos and neighboring countries. The riverfront fills with food stalls and thousands of spectators; small illuminated floats (krathong-like) are released on the water at night. Timing follows the lunar calendar — usually October but check the year's exact dates.
The start of the three-month Buddhist Lent, when monks retreat to their temples and many Lao people give up alcohol or meat for the period. The morning merit-making processions at Wat Si Saket and Wat Ong Teu are especially large on this day. For travelers it means some restaurants may have limited menus and the city takes on a more solemn, contemplative vibe — interesting to witness if you're there for it.
Other Good Times to Visit Vientiane
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