The Royal Palace Museum and the Phra Bang

The former royal residence holds throne rooms, gifts from foreign states and the gold Buddha image that gave the town its name.

Area

Old town

Start from

Sisavangvong Road, old town centre

Distance

walking distance

Time needed

half a day

Best season

All year; a good rainy-day choice

Difficulty

Easy

Transport

On foot

Tickets & rules

Entry ticket; shoulders and knees covered; bags and cameras left in lockers; no photography inside

Why go

The Haw Kham, the Royal Palace, is the place to understand how Luang Prabang lived as a royal capital. It is a modest palace by world standards, a single-storey building in a blend of Lao and French Beaux-Arts styles, but its rooms are full of quiet stories: the throne hall glittering with Japanese-style glass mosaics, the simple bedrooms of the last royal family, the reception rooms with gifts from abroad.

It is also the obvious answer to a wet afternoon. The building is cool, the gardens are lined with palms, and the small adjoining exhibits, including the royal garage with the king’s cars, keep you out of the rain for a couple of hours.

And it is home, in its own gilded temple, to the Phra Bang, the most revered Buddha image in Laos. Even if you are not religious, standing in front of it with Lao families who have come to pay respect is a reminder that this is not just history.

The story

The palace was built from 1904 during the French colonial period for King Sisavang Vong and his family, on a site chosen so that boats could moor at the foot of the steps from the Mekong. Its last royal residents left after the monarchy was abolished in 1975, and the building became a national museum.

The throne hall, with its deep red walls covered in mirrored mosaics depicting village life and royal scenes, was decorated in the 1950s and 1960s. Look out too for a room of diplomatic gifts from around the world, where, among the vases and swords, you can see a small piece of moon rock and a flag presented by the United States after the Apollo missions.

The Phra Bang itself is a standing Buddha about 83 cm tall, cast mostly of gold, in the posture of dispelling fear. Tradition says it was made in Sri Lanka many centuries ago and presented to the Lao king Fa Ngum in the fourteenth century from the Khmer court. It gave the town its present name, Luang Prabang, ‘the royal Phra Bang’. Twice it was carried off to Siam and twice it came home.

The ornate Haw Pha Bang temple at the front right of the grounds was completed much later, in the late twentieth century, to house the image permanently. During Lao New Year in April the Phra Bang is brought out and ceremonially bathed, and crowds come to pour scented water over it.

Getting there

The palace stands on the main street at the foot of Mount Phousi, a few minutes’ walk from any part of the old town. The entrance gate is on Sisavangvong Road.

Bags, cameras and phones must be left in the lockers by the ticket office, so carry little.

A suggested plan

1. 8:00Arrive at opening, leave bags in a locker and walk the garden past the statue of King Sisavang Vong.
2. 8:30Tour the palace rooms slowly: entrance hall, throne room, royal apartments, gift room.
3. 10:00Visit the Haw Pha Bang and its gilded image, then the royal car garage.
4. 11:00Before the midday closure, cross the road to climb Phousi or take coffee nearby.
5. Evening optionReturn for a performance in the Royal Ballet Theatre in the palace grounds.

Where to stay

The central old town around the palace and the main street is the most convenient base, though it is busier in the evenings during the night market.

Good to know

• The museum closes for a long lunch break around midday; check current hours and days.
• Wear long trousers or a long skirt; wraps may be available but don’t rely on it.
• Shoes come off at the entrance to the palace building; socks are helpful on cold marble floors in winter.