Post: #1

My family has recently acquired about 15 acres of land in Vientiane. Its just south of the city on an oxbow of the Mekong. Some of it borders the Mekong river and it will border a recently purchased plot, which was purchased by the Chinese, for a resort.

The land is non continuous, but all are acreage plots from 1.5 to 5 acres each.

The plan is to build on it right away. My cousin is there right now making sure all the people are in place to make this happen as from what I understand connections are everything in Laos.

What we have discussed so far:

- Start small with a higher end backpacker type of place. Modern design, cool architecture, private garden type villas. Main building with a cafe/bar and reception.

- Use modular construction so the place can be added to when capital comes in.

- Due to military/ police connections, we can put in a nightclub if we want to.

What we have so far:

- The land.

- Family connections in government

- Architect/engineer and design

- Approval to build a hotel/guesthouse/resort

Questions:

- Laos seems to be an overlooked place in SEA. What are some suggestions to be a destination place without having to lure in guests with drugs, etc.

- Who are the main tourists. Is there anything to indicate that Laos could be a destination for couples?

- Chinese are investing heavily into Laos, as are other Asian countries, so perhaps a business style hotel with office space, meeting space, etc that can cater to the longer term business traveler (architects, engineers, designers, etc) from China/Taiwan, Korea and Japan.

- Boutique getaways seem popular in Laos, if anyone has any experience with these type of high end guesthouses, please tell.

I am hoping to tap into the hivemind of RVF. For logical reasons, this is the first and most trusted place to get advice, intel, etc. From the men I have met in real life, even if they have never been to Laos, I am still hoping for their input.

Post: #2

That's really exciting, to have the local connections that give you a serious advantage to tap into the underdeveloped markets like Laos and Myanmar.

I have never been to Laos, but based on my impression, ecotourism seems like the major draw of the country at the moment? I would think a B&B type place with local tour guides hired for eco- and cultural tours would be a good place to start, especially considering that there are still lots of landmines in the country.

I also like the idea of catering to businessmen. Assuming that the country remains relatively stable in terms of politics and policies, its relatively untapped resources should only continue to attract more and more business people from China and abroad.

Not sure if the country would garner much interest as a romantic couples' retreat destination anytime soon, due to its relatively unknown reputation and sketchy political situation. I would imagine that, except for the globetrotting types and bio/geo academic research types, most normal couples would not be inclined to go to Laos for a honeymoon. The majority of people like comfort and familiarity and why would they choose Vientiane instead of established destinations in the region?

I feel like the main tourists at the moment would be the backpacker types who are experienced travelers and prefer to go off the beaten path and explore the unknown on lower budgets. In fact I know one girl who is passing through Laos with her friend at the moment on her glorified "graduation trip". Can't really see it being a popular party destination like Thailand or Vietnam anytime soon though, according to Wikitravel:

Quote:Sexual relations between a Lao national and a foreigner are illegal unless they are married, and marriage requires special permits. Lao hotels are not permitted to allow a foreigner and Lao national in the same hotel room together. "Number One" condoms are available for 1,000-5,000 kip for a pack of three. These are probably the cheapest condoms in the world and their quality seems to be OK.

Drugs are a large problem in Laos and should be avoided at all costs. Lao law makes little distinction between personal use and trafficking and any conviction will result in heavy fines and expulsion at best and imprisonment or even execution at worst. Methamphetamine is widespread and often offered in "special" or "happy" shakes along the backpacker trail. Be extremely cautious of tuk-tuk drivers offering to sell you drugs, as they often collaborate with the police or a police impersonator to "shake down" ($500 is the common "fine") unsuspecting tourists. Keep in mind that often times Lao police dress as civilians.

That should deter the sexpats and Aussie spring break types for a while.

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What about other business opportunities in Laos? Things like importing cheap basic consumer electronics and whatnot? Does Laos have a manufacturing sector yet? How is the internet infrastructure in the country?

Interesting thread Laner, will be following with curiosity.

Post: #3

I've been to Vientiane several times. It's a really cool place to relax and get away from Bangkok for a few days.

Nightlife is minimal, but it is there. Lao people are very shy and reserved, even compared to Thais. Very traditional.

My Thai ex was from a wealthy family and she loved Lao people. She would always says "Lao people so cute!" in a way that you'll only understand if you've ever dated a Thai.

I think an eco/boutique resort catering to the upper middle class Thais and expats in Thailand would be a good way to go. Especially if your land is on the river.

A lot of French tourists go there from what I understand. It is also supposed to have some great French restaurants, though I never ate at one.

The last time I was there I met the owners of a coworking space. Locals. They both worked for a large bank and traveled often to Bangkok. Obviously from money. They told me there was a lot of money coming into Vientiane. They took me to a restaurant and you could tell by driving around there were definitely some new trendy restaurants popping up. Same type of thing you would see in Bangkok. It seems like there is some opportunity for restaurants.

The good thing about markets like this is you don't need to reinvent the wheel. There is so many things they DON'T have yet that I'd imagine any type of good sushi place, pizza, Mexican, etc. would probably be a big hit.

This sounds awesome man. Vientiane is a cool place. I think you'll like it if you go there to check it out.

Post: #4

Thanks for the feedback fellas.

After today we have the following items to add:

- The local businessmen say that backpacker type accommodation is good profit but high maintenance. For the fast money, this is it. However, the location might be an issue. See below.

- Its close to the country club. This puts it in sleepy location in regards to attracting backpackers, and as i mentioned we are not at all interested in baiting foreigners with drugs in order to get guests.

- We are getting the membership list of the country club today in order to gauge who are the foreign names on the list (Chinese, Japanese or what) so we can better understand who the foreign money might be.

- Liquor import. We will get a licence in order to be able to be in control of what we want to sell. In a communist country, this means that our contacts will be very important in order to set ourselves apart.

- Coffee. My cousin mentioned that family connections have a plantation that borders the coffee region of Vietnam and they swear the quality is as good as Vietnam, but at a lesser cost. This is great, as Vietnamese coffee I think is extremely underrated.

- We will be able to get $1Mil fairly easy, but this will require good management and budgeting. Especially the construction will take a good portion of this soon, and we need to prove the viability within months of opening.

- Family wants this to be underway as soon as possible. As I mentioned, I am only consulting on this project so I don't have much pull beyond this. But my knowledge and contacts are appreciated, and for this I thank you all for the help.

Post: #5

You could draw some inspiration from the South American Explorer Clubs. Given that your destination (Laos) is not a poosy-paradise per se, you'd be promoting other assets: you'd be offering a R&R (rest and recuperation) kind of place, with trekking maps and touristy advices, selling drinks, luggage storing at a fee, organization of festive events for backpackers at your place (cinema night...), etc... Not really a way to make millions, but, it'd be a start... Something to attract backpackers and trekkers, and become known and respected in the region...
http://www.saexplorers.org/

Post: #6

Laos also has pretty hard hitting rainy season. So please make sure that you have a backup plan for those 2-3 months.