Vientiane: the vibe
Videos from people who went, played right here, with what viewers said underneath. Not part of the score.
The verdict
Liked · 66Mostly positive with caveats: people praise the laid-back pace, friendly locals, cheap living and good food, but find it sleepy, underdeveloped and short on nightlife.
- laid-back pace
- friendliness
- affordable living
- food
- peaceful quiet
- limited nightlife
- underdeveloped infrastructure
- riverside night market eyesore
- corruption and police stories
- fake alcohol safety scare
- Feels more like a mid-sized town than a capital.
- Great for slow, quiet retirement or long stays.
- Better if you enjoy simple local nightlife rather than bars.
- Cheaper and calmer than Thailand, but with fewer amenities.
- Corruption and bureaucracy stories suggest caution around police and paperwork.
Read from 8 videos, 40 comments and 0 posts on 2026-11-07; the summary is written by a language model and can misread sarcasm.
⚠️ AVOID The Center Of Vientiane... 🇱🇦| TRUE OPINIONS About The Capital City Of Laos
Chai Travel · 82K views · 2024
What viewers said
“85 years old and volunteering half the year in Laos! Wow, respect!”
♥ 24 likes
“That lady you met who's 'quite old' is a gem. Spending her years making a difference, I wish I could meet her, a special energy.”
♥ 22 likes
“I am American. I have lived in Vientiane for 7 years. I don't have any regrets. I do not plan to leave!”
♥ 2 likes
“My wife's family still lives in Vientiane and we visit every few years. It's very peaceful and most are friendly. When visiting you have to slow down and enjoy its much slower pace of life.”
♥ 39 likes
“Good work by social worker at that age she is doing good. Great to see people like her.”
♥ 10 likes
“85 years old respect”
♥ 24 likes
“Used to live there for a year between locals ...... the most lovely place and most lovely people..... i will never forget them”
♥ 11 likes
“Nice place. LAOS is emerging very well. So many foreign tourists there. They are so blessed.”
♥ 21 likes
“I met Wouter from the Netherlands in Vientiane a few years back. He was living in a hostel dorm and was complaining that his Thai wife took all his money and house. He mentioned a story about how a corrupt police officer injected his leg wi”
♥ 2 likes
“#1 guy spoke English with such a Thai accent! Cool”
♥ 3 likes
Found with a YouTube search for the city and “digital nomad”, fetched 2026-11-07; titles, descriptions and comments belong to their authors and link to the originals.