Lamphoune Voravongsa - Luang Prabang’s Protector of the Past

Born in Laos, but exiled to France at a young age, Lamphoune Voravongsa returned to her roots after 30 abroad and opened her first shop in Vientiane specialising in traditional garments, jewellery, paintings and antique statues. She extended her business to include several shops in Luang Prabang before purchasing the former residence of Prince Soupha-nouvong, the resistance leader who later became the Lao People’s Democratic Republic’s first president in 1975.

Lamphoune restored the colonial mansion, which was built in 1904, and turned it into one of the most stylish boutique hotels in Luang Prabang as well as a classified UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lamphoune’s passion to empower other women led her to name the hotel Satri House, meaning ‘House of Women’. Inspired by Lao culture at the turn of the last century, Lamphoune’s greatest ambition is to show the rest of the world the beauty of Laos – its indigenous lifestyle, simplicity, elegance and grace. She also plays an active role in a handicraft association, Satri Lao Silk, which is devoted to preserving Laotian traditions.