The Souvannaphoum Hotel I knew I was going to love this place when the slightly rumpled bellboy showed me to its only suite. 'Er, there's no television,' I pointed out. 'Correct, sir,' he replied with a smile. And why would you need one when you can sit on a spacious, bougainvillea-draped verandah with an icy bottle of Beer Lao and watch the world go by at the soporific pace for which Luang Prabang is famous? The high ceilings were alive with a wriggling fresco of geckos, the furniture was authentically colonial, but best of all, this was the very bedroom of Prince Souvanna Phouma who served twice, briefly, as the country's prime minister, and who in the 1950s was the Lao ambassador to France. The hotel was once his private villa and it's still steeped in charm and intrigue. The suite costs about $800 a night (Phothisalat Street, Ban Wat That, tel: 856 71 212200).
San Nam Khan Guest House Many of Luang Prabang's classic buildings are in the throes of renovation, and none has been refurbished more charmingly than this lovely colonial pile on the Nam Khan riverbank. The rooms are fairly basic in terms of amenities, but they are spotlessly clean and the view will distract you from the lack of luxuries. This is a place to soak up the true flavour of Luang Prabang: its ambling monks, its timeless ambience, its profusion of rambling teak homes. There are 14 rooms to choose from and you should ask for one with river views. But even if you end up on the other side, where the rooms look over the town, you can laze around on the downstairs balcony, which is perched above the river. Bring cash - they've never heard of plastic; $195, or $273 for a river-view room (Kingkitsarath Road, Ban Wat Sene, tel: 856 71 212976).
L'estranger Literary Salon Okay, so you can't actually stay overnight here, and the name might be a tad pretentious, but this is Luang Prabang's coolest bar. And if you become so relaxed you have a little kip on the padded mat on which you're reclining, the amiable staff won't complain. This little oasis perches on the second floor of a gorgeous teakwood shop-house overlooking the Nam Khan River in Kingkitsarath Street. Paper lanterns cast a gentle glow over cushions scattered invitingly on the polished wooden floor as a mixture of funk, lounge and trip-hop filter from the speakers. Browse in the second-hand bookshop downstairs or marvel at the vast collection of National Geographic magazines lining the upstairs walls. The staff gave me a business card with the bar's phone number, but somewhere between the fourth and fifth daiquiri I managed to misplace it. Just look for the sign.