Mrs Vandara Amphayphone, Owner

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Mrs Vandara is a superb, warm host who shares with her guests a treasure trove of information about Lao culture and her special loves of textiles and food. Brought up in the Souan Mon Mulberry Gardens weaving area of Vientiane, she has been interested in weaving and the cultivation of silkworms for as long as she can remember. In the time when the first language of education was French, she attended the capital's Lycee. On marrying her silversmith husband from Luang Prabang, she settled in his family home in this ancient silversmithing quarter which historically served the Royal Court.

Having developed her weaving skills over the years, Vandara is Director of the Lao Textile Association of the Northern Provinces. She travels across northern Lao working on the protection and promotion of this fascinating art, which is a core expression of Lao culture.

Testament to Vandara's culinary interests, her homemade teas and fruit drinks refresh guests in the summer and warm them in the winter. Her other guesthouses include Villa Lane Xang and Vanvisa 2.