Luang Namtha (''Luang Nam Tha'') ( Lao: ມ. ຫລວງນໍ້າທາ) is a district as well as the capital of Luang Namtha Province in northern

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

. The city lies on the

Tha River The Tha River (Nam Tha) is a river in northwest Laos, and one of the 12 tributaries on the Mekong River. It gave its name to the town of Luang Namtha Luang Namtha (''Luang Nam Tha'') ( Lao: ມ. ຫລວງນໍ້າທາ) is a district as ...

(''Nam Tha''). Luang Namtha is a popular tourist destination, and a base for treks, biking to the surrounding hill tribe villages. The Luang Namtha Museum is in the town.

History

From January through May 1962, troops from the

Royal Lao Army The Royal Lao Army (french: Armée royale du Laos – ARL), also designated by its anglicized title RLA, was the Land Component of the Royal Lao Armed Forces (FAR), the official military of the Kingdom of Laos during the North Vietnamese invasio ...

(RLA) fought the

Pathet Lao The Pathet Lao ( lo, ປະເທດລາວ, translit=Pa thēt Lāo, translation=Lao Nation), officially the Lao People's Liberation Army, was a communist political movement and organization in Laos, formed in the mid-20th century. The gro ...

and

People's Army of Vietnam The People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; vi, Quân đội nhân dân Việt Nam, QĐNDVN), also recognized as the Vietnam People's Army (VPA) or the Vietnamese Army (), is the military force of the Vietnam, Socialist Republic of Vietnam and the ...

in the

Battle of Luang Namtha The Battle of Luang Namtha, fought between January 1962 and May 1963, was a series of clashes in the Laotian Civil War. It came about as a result of the turmoil following Laotian independence as a result of the First Indochina War with France. Th ...

. The battle ended with the RLA's headlong retreat southward 150 kilometers across the

Mekong River The Mekong or Mekong River is a trans-boundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's twelfth longest river and the third longest in Asia. Its estimated length is , and it drains an area of , discharging of water annuall ...

Transport

In the rainy season, Luang Namtha can be reached by boat from the

. It is connected by Highway 3 to both the Thai border at

Houayxay Houayxay ( lo, ຫ້ວຍຊາຍ) (also ''Huoeisay'', ''Houei Sai'' or ''Huay Xai''), is a district in Bokeo Province, Laos, on the border with Thailand. Ban Houayxay is the administrative centre of the district. The town lies on the Mekong ...

- Chiang Khong () and the Chinese border at

Boten Boten is a town in Laos in Luang Namtha Province. Boten is on the China–Laos border. It is opposite the Chinese town Mohan. While Boten is part of Laos, most of its inhabitants speak Mandarin Chinese as their native language. The main curren ...

Mengla County Mengla County (; Tai Lue: , ''Mueang La''; lo, ເມືອງລ້າ; th, เมืองล้า) is a county under the jurisdiction of the Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, in far southern Yunnan province, China. ''Meng'' is a vari ...

(). Luang Namtha is also served by

Louang Namtha Airport Louangnamtha Airport is an airport in Laos, 6 km south of the city of Luang Namtha. The airport was closed between 2006 and 2008 for a renovation that extended the runway from 1,200 to 1,600 metres, allowing larger aircraft such as the ATR 72 ...

, south of the city.

Gallery

File:LuangNamtha3 tango7174.jpg, Day market Image:Luang NamTha night market.JPG, Night market File:LuangNamtha ThatLuangNamtha2 tango7174.jpg, Luang Namtha stupa Image:Luang Namtha4.jpg, Harvesting rice File:LuangNamtha4 tango7174.jpg, Riverside guesthouse

References

External links

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Biodiversity Profile for Luang Namtha Province, 2003

Ethnic diversity in Luang Namtha - Laos

Facebook photo gallery
{{Districts of North Laos Populated places in Luang Namtha Province