Homestay Huay Bo, Laos

This was one of my most unique experiences in Laos. The homestay with family Kee. In a really tiny village, a few kilometers from Muang Ngoy. It’s in the middle of nowhere in the nature. You can stay at his house and join family dinners every night. The food is beautiful. The place is incredibly peaceful. It’s the very best opportunity to immerse yourself in the Laotian culture and people. You’lll have a lot of interaction with locals and spend the days in nature with activities. Experience their daily lives.

Local neighbors and kids
Helping the family
Other activities
How to book?
How to arrive there?

The Local Experience

It’s one of the most beautiful and local experiences I had on my trip in Laos. Mr Kee and his family will take care of you completely. It’s a great way to be immersed in Lao culture, meet lots of local people, help with daily tasks and take a break from the outside world. In this little village there was no internet connection. I spend 4 days with the family, did a lot of fishing, helped Mr. Kee, explored the area, played with the kids from the village, got to know the neighbors, helped with preparing family dinners, played games with the kids and Mr. Kee, sat around the fire and had good chats with Mr & Ms. Kee.

How did I find this experience?

I didn’t planned this before. But it just happened when I was staying in Muang Ngoy. Some other travelers showed me this handwritten flyer about a homestay close by. A homestay with Mr. Kee in a the little village Huay Bo a few kilometers from Muang Ngoy. I called Mr. Kee (using a phone in a restaurant). It was a short but convenient call and he would pick me up the next morning around 9:30.

Where do you stay?

You’ll stay on his property. He built some wooden houses next to his house. It’s a small basic cottage, but everything you need. There is a bathroom available at his house

Where do you eat?

Mr. Kee. Next to his house he built a little open restaurant. So there is a menu with breakfast, lunch and dinner. Everyday he or his wife Ms. Kee will cook for you. dinner you can choose to attend the family dinner. You will join the dinner with the family with a home cooked meal by Ms Kee. It’s incredibly delicious! I would definitely recommend this. If you catch you own fish during the day, she will prepare it for you!

You can even help Ms. Kee to prepare the dinner. So we were able to help unfeather the chicken and cut it. Or we saw how our catch from the river got prepared. So we literally eat our own catched river fishes. It was incredible! Their food was delicious and the family dinners were so much fun. The end of the dinners we will sit around the fire (kitchen fire), with some booze or just water. We had beautiful conversations and they told me so much about their culture. Most of the time we went to bed quite early because you will wake up early. Because of the sounds of all the animals.

Fishing

ne of the things we did the most was fishing. You’ll get some little fishing nets and can go to the river, together with the wife of Mr. Kee. She will explain quickly the traditional way of fishing in the river, with little triangle fishing nets. It seems so easy when she is doing it, but try it! When it was our turn we didn’t catch any fish for a long time. When we had 1 little fish we were sooo happy! Soon things started to change for us. Because some local kids of the village found us at the river. They were so excited and showed us their skills. They were so good and got us so many fishes and shrimps!

Once back in the town, family Kee was excited to see our catch. We admitted that we had some help from the kids. When the neighbors saw us with the fishing nets they were also so curious and wanted to see our catch. They started laughing. I don’t know if they’re impressed or making fun of us… Even though they didn’t speak English that well, the interaction was beautiful.

Locals neighbors and kids

Some neighbors were a bit reserved but when you take the time to try to talk to them they really appreciate it. Their English is not that good but if you learn a bit of Lao, you will be more able to talk to them. They are really kind, sweet and happy people. The children are not shy at all. They love to meet you and play with you (the whole day!). We spend so many hours chasing kids and playing games with them. They are amazing. It is so beautiful to see how they live and how happy they are.

Helping the family

It’s possible that Mr. Kee asks you to help him with something. Or you can offer it yourself. It’s a great experience to help them in their daily life. The other day Mr. Kee needed some help on the land, with moving tree trunks. He had cut down the tree to then use the wood to build new cottages to welcome more guests. With two other travellers who had come, we helped him on land for a few hours. It was fun working with the other locals.

Other activities

There are a lot of different activities that you can do with Mr Kee. Like fishing, trekking, hunting, cooking. Some of the activities need guidance of equipment. But Mr. Kee can help you for a small price.

How to book?

So far I know, Mr. Kee had 2 phone numbers.

+856 20 98 027 329 ( available for Whatsapp, but only if he’s in town)
+856 30 47 70 377 (only calling)
+856 30 47 78 112 (only calling)

You can introduce yourself and asked about his homestay. Then he will probably ask you if he needs to pick you up and from where.

How to arrive there?

If you arrange it with Mr Kee, he can pick you up with his “tractuc” at a certain rate. Something in between a tractor and a tuktuk. It’s a hilarious, not really comfortable experience. You are also able to reach his place by foot. You can follow the signs through the countryside. It is an 1,5 hour walk

📍 Location: Konsavan Guesthouse