commune with nature and be up close and personal with elephants”

We loved our two night stay at Mahout Lodge in a spacious deluxe cabin (aircon) overlooking the lovely Nam Khan river. We wanted a nature experience (no tv or internet) after being in Luang Prabang and wanted to stay at a Loa-owned elephant lodge. It was a perfect quiet retreat with the added bonus of being able to hang out with the nine elephants without riding them or doing a mahout course and without lots of tourists around. Mimi is a fantastic host and a highly knowledgeable mahout who made us feel very at home and taught us so much about elephants. We were the only guests staying at the lodge so the menu in the restaurant was a bit limited but the food was fresh, delicious and cheap. I doubt there are many places in the world where you can wake up and see from your veranda several elephants come out of the jungle and cross the river!! A very memorable experience!! cabins are rustic, but clean, comfortable and good value, compared to the overpriced German-owned Elephant Village.

Surprising bungalow close to elephant camp”

Very beautiful place if you like nature. Our bungalow was in front of the river and early in the morning we could see elephants going to bath in the river. The staff was very cool and the restaurant was OK. As it is quite far from Luang prabang, you will miss all activies in the city in the morning and at night but it is a very charming place. So it may be a good idea to stay there but only a part of your trip in Luang Prabang.

lovely place to stay”

loved the property .so nice to hear birds and see the elephants. The pool was lovely. Staff were excellent .Wish i could have had more time there.Nice peacefull compared to other places i stayed in luang prabang,I would certainly recommend to stay at mahout rather than in the city

Remote and idyllic”

The lodge is located just outside Luang Prabang and is a great remote escape. The hotel is reasonably priced and they have activities that you can undertake. The villas were large, spacious and clean. Patchy mobile network connection and no wifi makes it remote. The only criticism is that the staff did not seem as keen to prioritise you when they discovered that you would not be partaking in elephant riding or other activities offered by the hotel.

Great hotel with some downsides”

First of all the location of the hotel is beautiful. Right in the jungle outside of the city along the banks of the river. Walking through jungle at night on the path lit by oil lamps is amazing. Because the bungalows are surrounded by forrest you might share your room with some woodland creatures such as huge spiders, some mosquitos, gigantic geckos and other reptiles. We were quite used to this so that was not a problem for us, the thing that bothered us was the condition their elephants live in. In the morning you can see the mahouts riding the elephants with big chains around their necks right in front of the bungalow. Then they have tourists riding on their backs all day long. We don't know if or how the employees of the hotel trained these elephants, bit you could clearly see the scars of bullhooks on the animals heads and backsides. (Elephants are usually tortured with bullhooks in order for them to learn tricks and obey their mahouts and tourists). If you want to see elephants please visit them at a sanctuary. Also one of the things the hotel offers is a shuttle service from and to luang prabang. These vans leave at certain times of day, but if you need to be somewhere in time you better leave far in advance. The vans rarely leave on time and sometimes it seems like the drivers intentionally take alternative routes all around the city before dropping you at the right destination.

Unique Jungle Adventure”

It was a unique experience. The food was good and we were never hungry. The room was basic but beautiful and the setting made for a memorable experience. All staff were very friendly and we really enjoyed our stay. We also did the Elephant Experience offered by the Lodge and it was definitely worthwhile.

Nice for a night - not so great for longer”

This whole place seems to revolve around its Elephant treks. All of which is fine but we booked for 5 night stay and it wasn't really set up to deal with us. The main thing was the food. We're not picky eaters - in fact we dashed back into LP when we could and dined on all manner of streetfood which was all fabulous - but the food at Mahout was the worst food we ate the whole trip. Chicken with basil was served with celery leaf instead, sweet and sour chicken was chicken in ketchup, water and sugar. Even a simple cheese toasted sandwich came with unasked for onion complete with skin. A baked fish came back still uncooked in the inside. On another occasion we asked for stirfy and heard the microwave ping. Food would be fine for refuelling on a day trip but by the second day we were going back into town to eat when possible. That said the cabins themselves are gorgeous and the staff were very accommodating. I'm not sure how the Lodge can claim to be eco - too many lights left on, plastic bottles used and trees felled for that to be accurate. We had asked about the elephant trekking but were put off when the 30$ half day trip turned out to be just for an hour. I'd also like their website to be a little clearer as to where the elephants come from. Anyway, like I said, beautiful spot - such potential but really it's treated as just a stop over for people on two day treks. Seems a waste. I should also point out that we also had problems with our pick up (they didn't turn up till we called them) and also claimed that they had no evidence of our booking until we sent them through a copy of our Agoda form. So we didn't really get off on the right foot.

a very peaceful landing into Laos”

we stayed at Mahout on arrival after a long trip; really enjoyed our space in the cabin by the river watching elephants and fishermen going about;staff were all very nice to us. The swimming pool was non functioning(stagnant water,no filtration)

Great views and lovely lodges”

great river views from every lodge and you can watch the elephants in the river. the access in and out is across the river in a leaky boat. the lodges are basic and do have mossie nets and a fan but bring insect repellent as the lodge is semi open especially the bathroom. the food in the restuarant was terrible even when you selected using the picture it came out completely different.there is nowhere to go once you are at the lodge as it is across the river quite a distance from luang prabang so evenings are spent in the restuarant which is very quiet and can be cool as it is in the open air. tours can be organised from the lodge but they dont run to itinery, things are left out and they start late and finish early.

Beautiful, Beautiful, Beautiful”

Yes read all the reviews.... I had amazing hot water, then no water, then hot water again. The area is gorgeous. It's away from everything so getting time to relax is perfect. bring a book or music cause there is nothing else. The staff works with you on getting the shuttle in town... Getting picked up from the airport was a bit iffy so make sure you have the hotel number to call and remind them.

Exceptional”

Hotel on elamus. Elevandid jalutavad .Jõgi lähedal, bassein täiesti olemas

elephant camp extraordinary”

4day elephant camp. One of the most amazing experiences of our lives. Accommodations and meals amazing. Loved every minute.

Caos ”

Had to book the room last minute as the whole of Luang Probang was fully booked, at first no taxi driver recognised the address at all which seemed unusual as it was only meant to be 6km from town. Eventually found a tourist info place & for $10 they took us there. Better than the $27 the taxi drivers wanted-thieves! When we arrived there was no actual record of our stay, they had no internet at all (despite wifi advertised) so I couldn't prove if I was in the right place. Was just told to go look at/ take photos of the elephants they had working there which was a total surprise & made me doubt whether I was booked here or not! Was then approached by a nice Greek couple who had stayed the previous night in a "dirty, cold hut with no electric or wifi" and were only still there as no where else was available. Continued to wait for our room to be prepared, I made the error of needing the toilet, I quickly found one cubicle locked the other had 2 inches of dirty water on the floor and excrement covering the toilet. Realised this was never going to be a nice stay so we asked to cancel the booking on the grounds they couldn't provide the facilities listed online- this drew blank looks & there was no way any refund was coming our way! Through pure luck the stranded Greek couple had nowhere to go & just wanted to know they had a bed for the night so they said they would buy our reservation off of us!! The guy who we spoke to there, "Honda" seemed like a nice guy but just didn't have any idea what was going on or how to resolve it. The location was terrible for getting back and forth to town. You are totally reliant on taxi's (theives! We wouldn't usually mind but it worked out more expensive than anywhere we have ever been!) hopefully you will have better luck!

Acceptable”

We are really disappointed for more than one points They were supposed to pick up at the airport but they forgot. we waited 1h decided to take a taxi, and they refused to refund the money. Then we wanted to book for riding elephant, someone say OK OK. but the next day we waited again for nothing. the girl didn't understand but say yes and didn't book for us! The room and the view is beautiful, but it smelled bad inside, the color of the water was orange, a lot of spider webs. I think the room wasn't used for a while. The welcoming was cold, and we didn't feel on our ease. We expected more than that for the price of the room, and at least a refund for the taxi. I do not recommend this place.

This hotel is falling in pieces ”

Bungalows : location wonderful near by the river, from where you can see the elephants bathing. But it's clearly not a place to sleep because it's old, not comfortable, no hot water, dusty with high humidity. Bedrooms inside the hotel : very spacious with gorgeous balcony. But nothing is working well. There are water leaks everywhere. The water in our bath stayed for 2 days ! Location : great location with an elephant camp onsite. But you must have a car because it's really far from town. Staff : they are helpful and try hard but you cannot do the impossible. No manager.

Good for elephants ”

If you like elephants this is a place to stay but maybe for one night. We stayed three and only had hot water on the first evening after that it was cold showers. The accommodation was basic our bungalow had shower and toilet facilities that you might find on a campsite. We had to ask for more blankets to keep warm and a kettle to make coffee and hot water to wash with. The staff tried but in general it was all substandard.

Not what we expected, uninterested staff”

Me and two friends arrived and we had booked 2 rooms but upon arrival they put us all in the same room and thats it. The manager went away and we didn't see him until the next day. The pool looked nice, but was dirty and full of insects and no one there to clean it. WiFi was poor everywhere and we were supposed to have a safe in our room for our valuables but none was found. Staff (except for the manager) spoke very poorly or no english which made it very hard for us to explain that we wanted to check out earlier. But thankfully I emailed a bit with agoda and they solved everything for us! On the plus-side, the views from this place is stunning! But maybe when they resort is in a better condition, I could stay here more.

lovely view but full of rats”

i got good service and nice sleep in the bungalow. but it was so-so, cause its far from town

good”

Pas attendu. Chambres sales poubelle des sciences non vidées eau marron serviettes de toilette sale”

Pas de wifi. Pas de navettes. Pas de services ni bar. Loin de la ville