Private journeys built around the hotels
Tours · Cambodia, Laos
Cambodia & Laos in Slow Luxury, 9 days
Two places, four nights in each, one flight between them. Angkor in the cool mornings with the afternoons at the hotel, then Luang Prabang at the pace it asks for. The shortest route on the site and the one with the fewest moves.
At a glance
- Length
- 9 days, 8 nights
- Party
- Private, 1 party
- Starts
- Siem Reap
- Ends
- Luang Prabang
- Hotel changes
- 1
- Price
- On request
Who this route is for
This is the route for travellers who already know they want Angkor and Luang Prabang and nothing else. It often follows a Vietnam trip, a Bangkok stay or a business week in the region. Eight nights, two hotels, one regional flight. Each stay is long enough that you unpack once and stop thinking about logistics.
The flight decides the shape. The non-stop from Siem Reap to Luang Prabang is scheduled about an hour and a half, and at the time of writing it runs only three days a week. We build your eight nights around one of those days. If your dates fall badly, we move a night from one stay to the other rather than add a connection through another city.
Day by day
Day 1
Arrive in Siem Reap
Siem Reap Angkor International Airport sits well outside the town; the drive to the hotels near Angkor takes about an hour. Nothing else is planned.
Two stays suit this route. Amansara has 24 suites with garden courtyards, in a former residence for the guests of King Sihanouk, about ten minutes from Angkor Wat. Raffles Grand Hotel d'Angkor opened in 1932 and sits in the town itself, a short drive from the park, with shops and restaurants outside the gate.
Day 2
Angkor Wat and the Bayon
The Bayon's faces in the low morning sun
The park opens at 05:00. Your guide suggests either sunrise at Angkor Wat or a later start after breakfast, depending on how you slept. Either way, the visit ends before 11:00 and you are at the hotel for lunch.
Day 3
The temples further out
Ta Prohm and Banteay Srei, or Preah Khan and Neak Pean — your guide picks by the crowds that week. Lunch at the hotel. The 3-day Angkor Pass can be used on any three days within a week, so there is no need to use it on consecutive days.
Day 4
The day the hotel is for
No temples. A pool day, a spa treatment, or the third day of your pass for a late-afternoon visit after the heat breaks. This day is the reason the route has four nights here instead of three.
Day 5
Fly to Luang Prabang
Checkout late morning and the flight north. Luang Prabang's airport is close to town, and the car takes you straight to the hotel.
Two stays suit this route. Rosewood Luang Prabang has 23 rooms, suites, villas and hilltop tents in the Nam Dong valley, with waterfalls running through the grounds; it is outside town and quiet. Amantaka has 24 suites on a garden estate at the foot of Mount Phousi, a short walk from the Mekong; it is in town and you walk everywhere.
Day 6
The town on foot
The alms round at dawn, watched from a distance
A private guide for the morning. The old town is a UNESCO site on the peninsula where the Nam Khan meets the Mekong, with temples and colonial-era buildings on the same streets. The Royal Palace Museum is on the main road; temple visits need covered shoulders and knees.
Day 7
Upriver
A private boat on the Mekong for the morning, with stops your guide chooses. Back at the hotel by early afternoon.
Day 8
Nothing booked
The last full day. If you stayed at the riverside resort, this is the day to walk its grounds; if you stayed in town, to walk the back lanes. A car is available on request.
Day 9
Departure
Luang Prabang has daily non-stop flights to Hanoi, and other regional links. We request a late checkout to match your departure.
Price
| Party | Room level on the quote | Price per trip |
|---|---|---|
| Private, 2 travellers | Entry suite or room category at both stays | On request |
| Private, 2 travellers | Pool suite or pool villa at both stays | On request |
| Private, 3–4 travellers | Two rooms or a two-bedroom unit where one exists | On request |
| Private, 1 traveller | Single occupancy at both stays | On request |
With only two stays, the choice of hotel moves this quote more than anything else. Choosing the town hotel in Siem Reap and the riverside resort in Luang Prabang, or the other way round, changes both the price and the trip. The pricing page explains the other levers; how to book covers the steps.
What the price includes
- 8 nights as listed, in the room category named on the quote, with daily breakfast
- Private car and driver for all transfers and touring days
- Private English-speaking guide on days 2, 3 and 6
- Siem Reap–Luang Prabang flight in economy
- 3-day Angkor Pass
- The Mekong boat on day 7 and entrance fees on guided days
What it does not include
- International flights to Siem Reap and from Luang Prabang
- Cambodia and Laos visas
- Travel insurance
- Lunches and dinners not listed, drinks, spa
- Tips
- Late checkout fees where a hotel charges them
Gallery
Who this trip is NOT for
- Travellers who also want Vietnam on the same trip — see the 16-day Indochina Grand Stays route
- March to May travel if heat is a problem; Angkor is at its hottest then and mornings end early
- Anyone who needs a fixed start date that falls on a day the Siem Reap–Luang Prabang flight does not run and cannot shift by a day
- Travellers who want nightlife or a beach; neither stop offers either
Hotels on this site are named as public facts taken from each hotel's own website, with the date we read it. Naming a hotel does not mean we hold a contract, an allocation or a special rate there. Room rates are not published here; your quote carries the rate available on the day you confirm.
Common questions
Questions travellers ask most
Is four nights in Siem Reap too many?
Not at this pace. Three mornings at the temples with afternoons free uses three days, and the fourth is rest. With three nights you have two temple mornings and no slack.
Can we add Vietnam before or after?
Yes. Hanoi links non-stop to both Siem Reap and Luang Prabang, so a Hanoi stay fits naturally at either end.
Which Luang Prabang hotel should we choose?
Choose the riverside resort in the valley if you want quiet and do not mind a drive into town. Choose the town hotel if you want to walk out of the gate to the temples and the night market.
Do we need visas for both countries?
That depends on your passport, so check each country's official government portal for your nationality. Laos runs an official e-visa portal; apply only through government sites, never look-alikes.
Related
Read next
Tours · Pricing
Pricing
What a luxury quote is made of and which choices change it most.
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Tours · Booking
How to book
The steps from first enquiry to confirmed rooms, and what we need from you.
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Destinations · Cambodia
Siem Reap
Siem Reap: Angkor at the right hours, three or four nights, the pass and the heat.
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Destinations · Laos
Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang: four nights, valley resort or town estate, the dry months and the haze.
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Example journey
Indochina Grand Stays
16 days, five stays, three countries: Hanoi, Halong, Hoi An, Siem Reap, Luang Prabang.
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Plan · Seasons
When to go
One calendar for Hanoi, Hue and Hoi An, the coast, Siem Reap and Luang Prabang.
View this journey
Start planning
Tell us about the trip you have in mind
A month, how many are travelling and any hotel you already want are enough to start. We reply by email with questions or a first draft that names every hotel and room category.