Rosewood Luang Prabang

"Set the scene.Butterflies zigzagging around the gates, the sound of water tumbling down the mountainside, cutting through the greenery. Buildings are so well hidden into the landscape they are barely perceptible. What’s the story behind it?Thai-born owner Rena Udomkunnatum fell in love with this wild enclave outside Luang Prabang, where her sister owns a smaller hotel. She bonded with Rosewood’s CEO, Sonia Cheng, and together they chose Bangkok-based architect Bill Bensley, who has developed a reputation for his quirky tented camps in the region (see also Capella Ubud and Shinta Mani in the 2019 Hot List). The design isn’t entirely groundbreaking, but Bensley carries his narrative across all aspects of the hotel, and it’s endearing. What can we expect from our room?Each of the tents, villas, and rooms are set by the waterfall, so you fall asleep to the white noise of water and spring awake to birdsong. Bensley infuses his design with imaginary stories—in this case about adventurers, their steamer trunks emblazoned with fictitious initials. The craftsmanship is lovely, with wall frescoes and trompe l’oeil. Beds are exceptionally cloud-like; the outdoor bathtub a relief in the tropical heat, as is the traditional bucket and ladle. How about the food and drink?Served in the open-air Great House, where chef Sebastien Rubis has a passion for ancestral Lao dishes, many served with the black sticky rice that was reserved for aristocracy—such as the braised buffalo stew with puréed eggplant, dill, and herbs. Guests can trek with the chef into neighboring farmland to forage alongside the Hmong hill tribe for wild herbs such as mint, butterfly pea flowers, mushrooms, and acacia leaves. Sweets are delivered to the rooms every night, made with honey and sesame seeds. Anything to say about the service?Laos is still very much a developing country but the level of service here stands out. Spotless rooms; English spoken fluently. Sommaiy, a former monk, leads private meditation sessions and treks to remote forest temples where abbots still practice the esoteric art of Sak Yant Buddhist tattoos. "Allow thoughts that come into your head to know that you will come back to them later," he tells you, sitting on a cool stone floor beneath saffron-colored candles. Who comes here?Urbane seekers who know they cannot abandon their material worlds completely to live a Buddhist monastic life but who appreciate small moments like watching butterflies flutter and wearing hand-loomed dresses picked up on forays into town, accessorized by cotton cross-body pouches and scarves (the most kaleidoscopic of which can be picked up at the Special Education Handicraft School Shop next door). What’s the neighborhood scene like?There’s a concentration of smart, colonial-era hotels closer to town, including the former French officers’ quarters now known as Avani+ Luang Prabang, near the Indochine-era hospital that the Adrian Zecha restored in 2009 as Amantaka. Guests at the Rosewood can easily visit the local wats or shops such as Anakha Lifestyle, for local finds including sustainable buffalo-horn jewel boxes, hair clips, and chokers finished with silver filigree. There’s also the Asiama gallery, a comprehensive repository of Lao history through its tribal textiles. Travel by long-tail boat down the river, past gilded stupas, and electric emerald rice fields, for wanders below towering bamboo stalks at Pha Tad Ke Botanic Garden. Anything you'd change?No, just be aware that the oft-photographed tents are incredible but you have to climb for several minutes at a significant incline, which can be especially challenging in rainy season. And anything we missed?Hand-carved Buddhas from Celadon, the hotel’s white-washed boutique connected to the Buddhist Heritage Project, which can also arrange for guests to join 800 novice monks in a procession down the banks of the Mekong and a shared meal afterwards—a highlight of Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart's visit in 2018. Sommaiy can sort a Sak Yant Buddhist tattoo, if that appeals. At the hillside Sense Spa, Mr Xong, a village healer and trance dancer, prepares Hmong remedies using rare forest herbs. Is it worth it—and why?Unreservedly, yes. Even if you think other Rosewood properties are a bit buttoned up, this one is an exceptional outlier." - Cynthia Rosenfeld