Mount Phousi
Three hundred and twenty-eight steps in the middle of the peninsula, with the Mekong on both sides.
Duration
1 hr – 1 hr 30 min
Best time
At sunrise, rather than sunset
Open
Every day
Entry price
To confirm
Mount Phousi is a hundred-metre hill in the middle of the peninsula formed by the Mekong and the Nam Khan. Three hundred and twenty-eight steps climb it, lined with frangipani.
At the top, a golden stupa and the only point from which both rivers are visible at once, with the mountains behind. It is Luang Prabang's sunset spot, and it is saturated: the western stairway, less well known, passes Buddhas cut into the rock and avoids part of the queue.
Getting there
Main stairway opposite the royal palace, on Sisavangvong road. A second stairway climbs from the Nam Khan side.
What the price covers
a small entry fee halfway up, rate to be confirmed
What to bring
- Covering clothes
- Walking shoes
Rules on site
The summit is packed at sunset, to the point where you cannot move: sunrise gives the same view with nobody there. Shoulders and knees covered — it is a place of worship.
