I spent a month in Vientiane, which was enough to explore its nightlife.
If you expect Vientiane to be a boring town, you are only partially right. After night falls, it isn't long before all shops and restaurants close, and by 10PM most streets are desperately deserted. At this time, even finding street food can be challenging.
If you go to the right places though, you'll discover some much more happening areas. As I realized, you can party every night in Vientiane until at least 3AM, well past the official midnight curfew.
If you go to the right places though, you'll discover some much more happening areas. As I realized, you can party every night in Vientiane until at least 3AM, well past the official midnight curfew.
Nightlife Areas in Vientiane
Most of the bars, restaurants and nightclubs listed in this article are in the tourist area, which starts at the north of the Chao Anouvong Park (location of the night market) and goes until Fa Ngum Park/Statue. Almost every visitor will stay there and you probably should too. It is an interesting part of town, near the Mekong riverside, and with beautiful colonial architecture.
There are many more small bars in restaurants in the tourist center, particularly on Setthathirath Road, Samsenthai Road and the riverside street (Fa Ngum Road). Many of these places are owned by foreigners married to a Laotian. They will rarely have more than 15-20 guests at once.
You can start at Wind West, then explore the area by foot. The map above should help you (click here to enlarge it).
These are some recommended hotels nearby:
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Crowne Plaza (150$ per night)
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Salana Boutique Hotel or Dhavara (80$ per night)- ⭐⭐⭐ Sunbeam Hotel (30$ per night)
If you continue to the west, along Setthathirath Road, you will reach a more upscale and local area, less touristy. This is where rich Laotians hang out as well as some expats.
The nightclubs in Vientiane are not in the tourist area. They are in various locations all around the city. This is not so convenient as you'll need a taxi to get there. More information about these below.
👉 Renting a motorbike: I was using a motorbike to get around in Vientiane. It costs about 80,000-100,000 kip per day (less than USD 5) and it will save you the trouble of negotiating with tuk-tuk drivers every time you want to go somewhere (and to explain where you want to go). The police do not seem to hunt tourists and the absence of traffic jams makes driving relatively easy. Still, it remains dangerous and you should make sure you are properly insured. You can read my Travel Insurance Guide for more information (it's about Indonesia but it applies to Laos as well).
Best Bars and Clubs in Vientiane
You will find plenty of small restaurants, cafés and beer gardens selling alcohol in Vientiane. They will almost always be recognizable by their yellow and green neon sign (paid by Beerlao, the largest brewery in Laos).
If you are looking for slightly more happening nightlife venues, you can try any of these:
If you are looking for slightly more happening nightlife venues, you can try any of these:
An old, European-style pub serving food and cheap beer. If it were another city, I would never recommend it, but for Vientiane it is among the best for meeting people. Pool tables and foosball. Pop and rock music. Close at 2AM.
Beer garden with live bands and cheap prices. Most customers are young students from the middle-class. Laid-back and friendly vibe.
This is the most modern and luxurious nightclub in Vientiane. Almost no foreigners go there, so you can expect a very local vibe. The music is extremely loud and fast-paced EDM, similar to Thai or Vina House, which is popular with Lao-Chinese. Not a place to visit solo but with a group (minimum charge for a table starts at 1,5 million kip or USD 70). I suspect that some of the customers are using drugs. It also has a KTV (male-oriented) and sexy dancers.
If you like this kind of place, you can also visit Dplus which is very similar in concept and crowd.
Not your typical Irish Pub. Tully is more like a local beer garden with an Irish theme. It is often packed, especially on weekends or when there are football games. Cheap beer, decent food, and they also have live bands. On the menu, you'll find about 50 kinds of Scottish and Irish whiskies.
If you like Tully, you can also check the beer garden Relax:
A massive nightclub that targets Lao people. The atmosphere there is pretty wild as they have constant entertainment (singers, DJs, dancers) and a young crowd. It is more suitable for groups as almost all the dance floor is occupied by tables and sofas.
Also spelled Mark 2, it is an upmarket beer garden and live music club popular with upper-class Laotians. In the beer garden, the bands will normally play soft and romantic songs while in the club they will play pop/rock. Giant screen with sports. It also serves food and they have karaoke rooms (where you can "rent" lady companions). Walking distance to Mercure Hotel.
This is a rather upmarket venue with expensive imported draft beers (probably the largest choice in Laos). They also sell cigars.
If you are a beer lover, then you should also visit Corebeer Brewhouse. They make their own craft beer, from stout to pilsener, for reasonable prices (around 45,000 kip for a glass).
This is more of a café/beer garden. Popular with older travelers. Nice setting but a bit expensive. The only reason I put it here is because it is normally quite busy and because it serves good food.
Hard Rock Café
