Life's good? Or not?

If only life could be so good: Beer Lao & Hot Spring

Developing

The best known hot spring of Xieng Khouang province, Lao, is that of Baw Njai (Bo Nyai) which translates as big hot spring. It's also known for it's more advanced stage of development: no more just a spring, it is a real resort, with separate bathing facilities.

LP (Things to do in Xieng Khuang) describes it as follows:

'A hot mineral spring can be visited near Muang Kham. Baw Nyai is large and lies 18km east of Muang Kham, 51km from Phonsavan. The spring source is in a heavily wooded area where several bamboo pipes have been rigged so that you can bathe nearby, although the experience is a little disappointing owing to the muddy texture of the water'.

The LP Laos guidebook adds that it was originally built by Kaysone's wife (Kaysone was a leader of the Lao revolution) as a way of treating and entertaining foreign politicians.

My guiding info comes from A Guide to Xieng Khouang Mountain Province in Northern Laos [1] which I also used on my other Lao hot spring visit (to Baw Noi), another 15+ kms away in the direction of Muang Kham.

The spring(s)
Having visited Baw Noi previously and now expecting a major improvement in bathing facilities we were off on our way. The first advantage over the smaller spring was the entry fee (5,000 kip; 0,60 $US): the entry fee collector was on a break, possibly long term. Though the entry fees seem negligible, our driver believes we are having a really good lucky day, all smiles.

The entrance is about 2 km from road to Nong Het. Passing the entrance, one glides into an expansive compound with about 10 large bungalows. On the side of the road is a path which indicates the direction of the hot spring.


This tree lined dirt track goes through a forested area to a fenced-in pond. The pond is about 20m in circumference and one can walk around. On the far side one can observe the water springing and steam slowly rises above the pond.


Mukarin has a photo when there was proof of more forest in the immediate vicinity. A sign of the times?

From this pond, one can also walk to a smaller pond. This track is less wide and ends in a marsh-like pond (see photo below) which contains hot water, but not really hot.


Experience
We return back to the resort proper and having decided earlier that we were in need of a soak, head for the restaurant which doubles up as ticket sales point for soakers. Behind this restaurant are a number of small, stinky, damp and dark cubicles with small tubs. Though the soak would cost just 5,000 kip, for the sack of sanity we skip this part.

It always surprises me how such 'developed' sites have little or no idea what a soaker would like. Me quick thinking: take away most of the walls (so one has a nice view of the surrounding) forest, expand the tubs, add a shower and a resting/relaxing corner and you really have something tourists will go out of their way to experience. Now Baw Njai only produces disappointed potential soakers.

Convincing?

I'm not the only one disliking the soaking facilities. ordinary lishtar :

'I’m abysmally disappointed by the hot springs I was sure I was going to experience. The hot spring was there – green and pristine, but to try it out, I would have to go into a small room, equipped with a bathtub and toilet where the hot spring water was connected to. That’s it? I couldn’t believe it. I don’t want to try it out!'

ignatris blogs on Baw Nyai:

'a hot spring that looks like a development project gone wrong, even though the water is really hot'.

Some are more fortunate by opting to stay the night in a bungalow. At least here the bathrooms seem do-able, but not necessarily an exciting prospect. Achikochi Takema has an expansive blog entry on Baw Njai as well as on Baw Noi. His Baw Njai experience describes staying overnight and having a private bath. Drawing the bath though takes more than 5 minutes, just for the hot water to arrive. He also speculates that the spring appeared after a bomb fell at this place, thus explaining the existence of the pond. The fence would have been constructed to protect the spring from the free roaming water buffalo. He also pic's the bathing rooms in the guest bungalows, describing them as a more hygienic way of soaking.

The right way
In a way, it's quite disturbing this lack of insight in tourists (perceived) needs. In this one should take the example of New Zealand. Well-known for it's mountains and geothermal activity, not often do these two combine. So in response there are innovative projects which are not / can not using natural springs but copying the soaking experiences.

See for instance Onsen Hot Pools of Queenstown

'TripAdvisor members have voted Onsen Hot Pools the best of 74 Queenstown activities for over two years!',

Omarama Hot Tubs

'You have an amazing place there, absolutely beautiful'

and Glacier Hot Pools (Overall Winner West Coast Southern Alps Tourism Awards 2010).

The above are just proof of how easy it is to attract tourists if one adjusts to their demands. It needn't be so difficult.

On the positive side, some redeveloping of Baw Njai was in the process (bungalows), though I have my doubts whether it will result in better soaking facilities. If only i were manager ...

More
More info (mostly photo's) from the recently discovered Japanese language blog site by yoshidanoharuo. He/she has traveled extensively across the world looking for hot soaks. He/she ranks Baw Noi higher than Baw Nyai, three stars versus two on a scale of just 3.

Getting there: From Phonsavan, Xieng Khouang's provincial capital, head north east to Muang Kham and continue 20 km beyond Muang Kham in the direction of Nong Het. The turn off is well signposted. The resort itself is about 2 km's from the main highway.

Soaking experience: Only for the blind and gullible?

Overall impression: The impression we left with was that of a missed opportunity. How difficult can it be to get it wrong? If I compare with other hot spring haunts in Southeast Asia it's certainly a common theme in the developing of such soaks. Development = not good.

Notes:

[1] Creutz, S., J. Van Den Bergh (2009) A Guide to Xieng Khouang Mountain Province in Northern Laos. Lao National Tourism Authority, Vientiane, Laos.

Little

Lao lounging
North Laos is a great place to find hot springs. It's an intricate mix of various hill tribes with different customs and uses all blended into a lowland Lao culture where simplicity and timeliness are still in vogue. Add to this, historic settling and superb natural landscape.

In general there seem to be only a few hot springs in Laos, but I suspect that many are still waiting to be discovered. General access is still poor, but the surrounding Thai, Vietnamese and Yunnan mountain areas have many hot springs on offer, so why would Laos possess heaps of hot springs?

The mountainous province of Xieng Khouang contains 3 known hot springs, as far as I know. There is the hot spring of Ban Thak, which is still to be developed according to LP and which our guide assured us, was not worth it. the journey Especially in light of the big distance to get there via poor and tired roads. So we'll leave it for a next time.

Besides hot springs, Xieng Khouang is an interesting province to visit. The capital of Phonsavan is a bit windswept, but it sits on a high plain allowing for a nicer and cooler clime than most places in Southeast Asia. There are the mysterious Plain of Jar sites to be visited, many different ethnic tribes, appallingly war-time scars and an outstanding natural surrounding (f.i. the waterfalls of Tad Lang and Tad Ka).

Hot springs of Kham
On the road east of Muang Kham, in the direction of Vietnam, lie 2 quite accessible hot springs. Apparently everybody refers to these as Baw Noi (Bo Noi) and Baw Nyai (Bo Njai).

The hot spring Baw Noi (which translates as little hot spring) is just 3 km east of Muang Kham, a larger village in the north of the province.

My guide to this hot spring is the excellent A Guide to Xieng Khouang Mountain Province in Northern Laos [1] which includes the following:

'A little hot springs is located in Xang village, 3 km east of Muang Kham. It feeds into a stream just a few hundred meters off route 7. Note the limestone jar near the ticket office. In the village tai Dam women sell their weaving textiles; cross the river on a small bamboo bridge to visit the Phuan village and observe the women create the beautiful textiles. There is another hot spring nearby Nathong Village. Pass the village and follow for about 800 meters'.

It can be picked up in the informative provincial tourism office of Phonsavan, though large sections of the text appear on wikipedia and wikitravel.

Baw Noi
So, three kms out of Muang Kham, there is a smaller signboard indicating a turn is required if heading to Baw Noi.
One continues down this road towards the village of Xang. Or Xieng, according to this website. At the end of the road one goes through a gate to a wide enclosure. On the stream side of the enclosure is a wooden building with signboards referring to the spring, while on the right are a number of wooden buildings, the furthest away has a signboard indicating it's a guesthouse. But it could also be a school / office.

Entrance fee for visitors is 5,000 kip, about 0,60 $US. Interestingly the ticket refers the Nam Ounnoi tour, the river behind the enclosure.

Welcome

From the ticket office it is a 100m walk along the river to a wading place across the river. Here is also the location of the hot spring. Located just above the waterline, the spring has a double cement wall defense against the 30m wide fast flowing stream. Contained within these confines is water with a temperature of nearly 60 degrees, way too hot for a soak. It is also only 20 cm shallow.

Cemented. Thnx to 'GRANT ASSISTANCE OF THE MR JOHN 2000 BATH'.

Just beyond the broken outer wall hot and cold water are mixing, but there's neither a good spot for mixing the water to a temperature bearable and use as a shower, nor a space where one can bathe, even if the waters are shallow.

It being late afternoon we hang around for half an hour watching kids splash in the water and villagers returning from work on the land and crossing the river to get to their houses. A beautiful picture and a great way to experience Lao.

View from the spring; returning home.

The smaller little spring
Having read that there's another spring nearby I returned back to the ticket seller and asked. Yes there was, not so far away, she had been there once, but it was no place for visitors to go. Because.

The guesthouse owner came over and more talking ensued with me politely trying to push the issue. The discussion took a turn as we came to discuss about Jars and their existence. Yeah, there was a find site nearby, on the other side of the river and on all fours up the mountain. Two hours walk. I had read that there was a jar close to the ticket office. Same same?
Lots of discussion further, the guesthouse owner takes me to the edge of the enclosure and there's a partially broken Jar. We're getting there.

Eventually it was deduced that the hot spring I was asking about was overgrown, 100m stream upwards of the other spring. If I wanted to see it then the guesthouse owner would assist.
We all trudged off back to the river walked beyond the spring, along a field and then beelined to the bank of the river. The guesthouse owner said it was somewhere close with us trying not to get entangled in the weeds. Eventually he mentioned that he had (re-)found it. After scrambling there there was a small hole between the weeds where hot water (but a lot less hot than the more developed springs) streamed 2m along a small 20cm wide canal to the main stream.

The smaller of the small hot spring. The black hole is 20 cm across.

Bathing and soaking
We returned back to the original spring. In the meantime, the village is coming out to bathe, one women is soaking, fully clothed in the very hot spring. Wow!
Most though are just using the river to bathe in, with little regard to the presumed convention of shame and / or offending others. Wish I could move here.

We return to the ticket office and sit down, initially for a glass of water but soon we are tasting and testing all kinds of local fruits, not all palatable. A very nice place.

Another highlight of the village is it's bamboo bridge, downstream. The annually rebuilt bridge is nothing special, but another great place to watch village life: kids jumping in the river, teenagers fishing. We are really playing the tourist.


Worth it? Or not?
Exploring the internet there is not so much information available, either in blog form or in photo's. That doesn't surprise me, the hot spring ticket seller said they often have only a couple of visitors each week and in the hot season none at all.

One good overview is presented in a Japanese language blog entry. I've applied Google Translate and much of the written content is small talk but the photo's are good. And there's a short video.

Travelfish is downright condescending:

'Baw Nam Horn Noi is small and not worth a visit'.

Wikipedia Phonsavan's entry differs:

'Xang village is located near a small hot spring. An ideal spot for a small break. Across the river Phuan women demonstrate their weaving'.

There is a photo on travel pod, at a time of the year when there is more water in the river.

Finally, there's LP's entry:

'Baw Noi (Little Spring) feeds into a stream just a few hundred meters off Rte 7, a couple of kilometers before Baw Nyai on the way from Muang Kham.You can sit in the stream where the hot spring water mixes with the cool stream water and 'adjust' the temperature by moving from one area to another'.

Getting There. Take the road north out of the provincial capital of Xieng Khouang, Phonsavan, all the way to district town of Muang Kham (55 km). Head out of town towards the Vietnamese border (Nong Hed) and after 3 km there's a clear (though small printed) signboard announcing the hot spring on your right.

Soaking Experience. Very rustic place not designed as a soaking experience. Well-intended but someone needs to put there thinking cap on.

Overall impression. The site is beautifully located, interesting and welcoming. If not for the hot springs the other attractions are more than enough reason to detour here. Just do it.

Author and wife at Baw Noi.

Notes:
[1] Creutz, S., J. Van Den Bergh (2009) A Guide to Xieng Khouang Mountain Province in Northern Laos. Lao National Tourism Authority, Vientiane, Laos.