Overview
The tourism industry in Laos is developing rapidly, with several five-star resorts open or expected to open in the coming years. The major tourist destination is the world heritage site and ancient capital of Luang Prabang, but other areas including Champasak province and Vang Vieng also attract visitors, especially Chinese and Korean tourists. Tourism’s relative share of GDP averaged 12.5 percent from 2016-1019, before the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic. Since Laos reopened its borders to international tourists in April 2022, the industry has seen a slow but steady recovery, buoyed by the new passenger routes on the Lao-China Railway running from Kunming in the PRC to Vientiane in Laos. Since December 2021, the Lao-China Railway has carried over 701,600 passengers between stations inside Laos. Tourism and travel contributions to GDP have not yet been tallied for 2022 or 2023, but over 1.67 million tourists visited Laos between January and June 2023, compared to only one million tourists between January and September 2022.
Resources
Information on Luang Prabang
Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism:
- Ecotourism Laos: World Heritage Sites
- Knoema: World Travel and Tourism
- Economist Intelligence Unit: Laos Country Report