| Laos conjures images of simple, rustic life, conical hats | | | | restaurant, Three Nagas by Alila has long been the |
| and misty temples, but it's increasingly catering to a | | | | first word in style. The larger suites nearest the river |
| more sophisticated boho crowd on the lookout for | | | | are divinely chic with swallow-you-up four posters and |
| boutique hotels - getting down and dirty by day, | | | | Bedouin-style mosquito nets. |
| reclining in Indochinese elegance by night. | | | | Shopping in Vientiane |
| Stylish boutique hotels in Laos are now blossoming, | | | | In Laos' sleepy capital, even locals refer to the market |
| making some of those more intrepid trips seem | | | | off Rue Mahosot as the Morning Market though, in |
| tenable. Let's face it, after a day's trekking, who wants | | | | fact, it's open all day. Start here anyway, like diving in |
| to sleep on a mat when you can be swallowed in | | | | the deep end. Clean but rather toasty, the rows and |
| Egyptian linen and goose feathers? Where better to | | | | rows of silk weavings are enough to drive even an |
| escape to than a land of chic hotels, quirky | | | | aficionado dizzy. |
| guesthouses and cuisine that might have been swept | | | | Mixay Boutique, 053/55 Nokeokoummane Street, Ban |
| off a Parisian table for a tenth of the price? | | | | Mixay: Stop by for adorable stuffed elephants and |
| Beautiful Boutique Hotels | | | | monkeys covered in Day-Glo antique textiles that little |
| Inthira Hotel, Rue Annou, Thakhek: Converting a couple | | | | ones will love, plus easy-to-pack silk sleeping bags that |
| of colonial-era trading houses, Inthira has created the | | | | make the perfect gift for the adventurous traveller |
| most fashionable haunt in town, the centrepiece of | | | | who likes a little luxury. |
| which is its New York-style bar and restaurant. Well | | | | Camacrafts, Nokeokoummane Street, Ban Mixay: The |
| placed too, with a street cafe opposite the handicraft | | | | founder, Kommaly Chanthavong was nominated for a |
| night market. | | | | 2005 Nobel Prize for creating silk weaving |
| Hotel Beau Rivage, Fa Gnum Rd, Vientiane:The place | | | | opportunities in this struggling country, but the high |
| to stay for sophistication and escapism combined. Its | | | | quality items would be worth buying even without this |
| fabulously bespoke rooms - decked in oriental screens, | | | | tender tale. House wares abound, from simple |
| exposed brick and terrazzo floors - are beautiful, with | | | | potholders to festive holiday ornaments shaped like |
| riverside views and a sanctuary out back that is great | | | | candy canes, but the most charming items are baby |
| for reading. | | | | bibs that come in the shape of elephants, penguins and |
| Three Nagas by Alila, Sakkaline Rd, Luang Prabang: | | | | cuddly bunnies. |
| With its wood-blade fans, elegant bar and ambient-lit | | | | |