#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide for Laos

#treasuresoflaos is a blog guide for individual travellers to the well known and hidden treasures of Laos with Google Maps. You discover Laos cities, countries and rivers through the eyes of people, who have been there. Learn about the growing influence of China in Laos - and the activities of the organized crime.


#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide to the Treasures of Vientiane

See the locations on Vientiane Google Map by #treasuresoflaos

. Not to miss, when your are in Vientiane

. Hotels and Guesthouses in Vientiane with reviews of people, who have been there

. Where to eat, when you are in Vientiane

. Nightlife in Vientiane

. Relax in Vientiane: Massage and Spas

. Eco-Lodges near Vientiane

. Tours from Vientiane: Nam Ngum Lake

. Tours from Vientiane: Go tubing or organic farming in Vang Vieng

. Tours from Vientiane: Join the nature at Phu Khao Khouay National Park

. Sanjiang Market: Chinas growing
influence in Vientiane



#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide to the South of Laos - Pakse, Champasak, Mekong and the 4000 islands

. Pakse - the southern door to Laos
See the locations on Pakse and Champasak Google Map by #treasuresoflaos

. Bolaven Plateau: Waterfalls everywhere -
and a Zip-Line system in the Jungle
See the locations on Bolevean Plateau Google Map
. Lao Power for Thailand: New dams on Bolaven Plateau affect the Dong Hua Sao National Biodiversity Conservation Area

. Trekking around Kiet Ngong and Phapho wetlands - in Xe Pian National Protected Area
See the locations on Xe Pian National Protected Area and Kiet Ngong Wetlands Google Map by #treasuresoflaos

. Champasak, Vat Phou and Lingaparvata
See the locations on Champasak and Vat Phou Google Map by treasuresoflaos
. Vat Phou in Champasak - the site and its history

. Si Phan Don ສີ່​ພັນ​ດອນ - 4000 islands in the Mekong
See the locations on Si Phan Don Google Map by #treasuresoflaos
. 4000 Islands in Mekong: From laid back Area to international Hotspot for Tourists




#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide for the Laos-China-Railway

From Kunming to Vientiane: The Crossborder Service of Lao-China-Railway has started
See stations and tunnels of China Laos Railway on Google Map by #treasuresoflaos

China-Laos Railway: Timetable, Tickets and Rules

History of Chinas Railway for Laos:
Track laying has arrived at Luang Prabang at the end of 2020

History of Chinas Railway for Laos: Fast Railway Building between Yuxi and Mohan in Yunnan

History: Chinese money brings big change: A railway from the North of Laos to Vientiane and Thailand



#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide for Luang Prabang and around

See the locations on Luang Prabang Google Map
. The Jewel at the Mekong
. Between heaven and earth: The Temples in Luang Prabang
. Hotels and Guesthouses in Luang Prabang
. Climb Mount Phousi and have an amazing view
. Markets in Luang Prabang
. Pha Tad Ke: A Dutchman's Faszination with Ethno-Botanism in Luang Prabang
. From Silk to Art: Shops and Galleries in Luang Prabang
. Lick your Lips in Luang Prabang: From Laotian to French Cuisine
. Puang Champa: A house for the traditional royal arts
. Dinner Cruise on Mekong
. Bibliophiles in Luang Prabang
. The Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre
. Tours from Luang Prabang

. Another controversial Mekong Dam in Luang Prabang raises Fears
. Construction for Controversial Mekong Dam near Luang Prabang has progressed



#treasuresoflaos: Your Guide for the North of Laos

. Online Scam: How the Chinese Police raided the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Laos
See the locations on Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone 金三角经济特区 Google map by #treasuresoflaos
. Bokeo International Airport: For two millions of Passengers - but only one Flight daily until now
. Inside Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone: A Chinese Zone in Laos, where Americans are not allowed in
. Will the Chinese Scam Networks relocate their Operations from Myanmar to Laos?
. Macao at Mekong: How Chinese money flows into the Golden Triangle

. Discover Luang Namtha ຫລວງນໍ້າທາ
See the locations on Discover Luang Namtha ຫລວງນໍ້າທາ Google Map



#treasuresoflaos: Laos - Mekong rivers as Power Battery of Southeast Asia


This guide is to be continued soon!

Online Scam: How the Chinese Police raided the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone in Laos

See the locations on Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone 金三角经济特区 Google map

Once upon a time there was just a casino with a golden crown, that could be seen from Thailand across the Mekong river in Laos (picture from March 2017):

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Today there is a city full of highrise buildings with signs in Chinese (video taken in 2023):



In the least populous province Bokoeo the tallest highrise building of Laos will soon dominate the bank of Mekong river: The new hotel will count 32 floors and be 146 meters high. And it is just one of several highrise complexes, which are growing along the river: Laos Xinyue City Center (鑫越城市中心项目) is the name of this project, constructed by Shanghai Baoye as general contractor. The residential section of the project is composed of 4 high-rise buildings, which are 92 to 97 meters high.

The project of Powerchina is located in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (金三角经济特区) in Tonpheung. It is just the newest example of a construction boom, that has transformed the formerly rural area in the North of Laos, where the borders of Laos, Thailand and Myanmar meet, into a city. For millions of US-Dollars Bokeo International airport (博胶国际机场) and Golden Dragon Mountain International Golf Resort (金龙山国际高尔夫度假村) have been added lately.

The mastermind behind this development is Zhao Wei (趙偉, 70), a native of China's Heilongjiang province, now Chairman of the administration of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone. The businessman initiated this zone in 2007 having won a 99-year lease covering a vast area of 3,000 hectares from the Lao government. Before setting up in Laos Zhao Wei was a timber merchant and operated casinos in Macao and in Mong La, a town on the border between China's Yunnan province and a rebel-controlled area in Myanmar. The casino in Mong La operated under the name Blue Shield Entertainment mainly for customers from China, where gambling is prohibited. It got frequented by many Chinese officials, what led China to pressure Zhao Wei for closing this operation. Therefore he transfered his activities to Laos, where he invested under the name of Golden Kapok Group 金木棉集团 and built the Blue Shield Casino (蓝盾娱乐), also known als Kings Romans Casino.


The Kapok Star Hotel

Around this casino high rise buildings went up in the last years. The most prominent one is Kapok Star Hotel (木棉之星酒店), illuminated every night in spectacular colours. There are more hotels, shops and entertainment venues. Meanwhile everything in this special econonomic zone in Laos is Chinese: People spend yuan, speak Mandarin, vehicle license plate numbers are written in Chinese, signboards are written in Chinese and people may travel there visa-free from China. And if you look on Facebook and Instagram many young asian woman are presenting themselves: Prostitution and drugs are widespread in the special economic zone - although forbidden in Laos. And last year it got more and more obvious, that the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone has become a hotspot for online fraud and human trafficking. Many people, who were lured with high-paying job offers, told the police and the media in China, Thailand, Malaysia, South Korea and other countries, how they were forced to work as online fraudsters, cheating internet users in many Asian countries and even were tortured, when they did not reach the fraud goals. In November 2023 the government of South Korea imposed a travel ban to the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone to prevent citizens from becoming victims of fraud crime.


Enormous building activites along Mekong river

The facebook accounts of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone did not talk about online fraud for a long time. And Zhao Wei's own security force seemed not to intervene against the illegal activities. Lao officials - for example the Prime Minister - frequently visited the zone and seemed to be backing everything, what happened there. This changed dramatically at the end of the year 2023 and the beginning of the year 2024. Chinese law enforcement officers of the Ministry of Public Security travelled to Laos. Together with Lao police forces they arrested 462 online fraud suspects in December and 154 people on January 21. Later followed more raids and another 114 suspects were caught. And on February 28 Chinese media reported: "268 criminal suspects who committed cross-border telecommunications network fraud were handed over to us." The handover took place in January at Bokeo international airport. The Lao Ministry of Public Security confirmed to Radio Free Asia that the suspects were arrested in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone.



The Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone was not the only target of Chinas Ministry of Public Security. Similar operations were conducted in Myanmar, Cambodia, The Philippines and the United Arab Emirates. China is pushing hard against the scammers. In 2023, Chinese courts dealt with 31,000 telecom fraud cases (up 48%), sentenced 64,000 (up 39%). Incidence of cases of assisting online criminal activities also increased significantly, as the Vice President of Supreme People’s Court said.

And what is Casino tycoon Zhao Wei doing now? On February 26 he smiled broadly at his Kapok Star Hotel, where the Lao Central Committee held a conference on "Combating and Preventing Illegal Online Activities". Lao government held the meeting "to publicize the dangers of cybercrime and Lao national laws and regulations to all domestic and foreign investors, operators and workers, so as to ensure the peace, security and safety of the Lao country and people. orderly to ensure the healthy development of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone", as mp.weixin.qq.com/ reported. Wang Erbao, President of Golden Kapok Group, promised that the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone would cooperate with the Lao government to crack down on illegal and criminal activities and cooperate with the government to promote and improve laws and regulations against telecommunications network fraud.

LAOS: On 26 Feb, Lao Central Committee held conference on ‘Combating & Preventing Illegal Online Activities’. Event held in Kapok Star Hotel in Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone. The Golden Triangle SEZ is a major hub for illegal online activities. 1/ https://t.co/oJg47aYUzo pic.twitter.com/w3Lfof9A0d

— CyberScamMonitor (@CyberScamWatch) March 2, 2024

In 2023 Great Britain had sanctioned Zhao Wei, his wife Su Guiqin and his casino-director Eberahim Abbas due to links to *trafficking of individuals to the [GTSEZ], where they were forced to work as scammers … subject to physical abuse and further cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment or punishment."


Read also:
Thousands of (illegal) Myanmar workers constructed the buildings in Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone


Get an impression of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone by this video:

Bokeo International Airport: For two millions of Passengers - but only one Flight daily until now

Bokeo International Airport (BKIA) in Laos was expected to open end of 2023. But that did not happen. There was just a Youtube video announcing the opening soon:



The new airport is located at the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (SEZ) and covers 300 ha. It would be the second airport in Bokeo province in addition to the existing small airport located in the provincial capital Huayxai. The new airport has been constructed by the owners of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone, Chinese-owned Kings Romans Casino (Dok Ngiew Kham Group with chairman Zhao Wei). The construction cost of US$175 million is being financed by the Hong Kong-based Greater Bay Area Investment and Development (HK) Limited, which is a member of the Dok Ngiew Kham Group, as Vientiane Times reported. The aiport is designed to accommodate large aircrafts including the Boeing 747 and Airbus 320.

Construction of Bokeo International airport shown on Facebook Page of Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone on May 4 in 2023.

Doubts came up in Bokeo province and elsewhere about this airport project. The Lao government can expect to lose customs revenue, taxes and entry fees to Chinese investors who have the 99-year lease on the land in Bokeo where the airport is being built, as rfa.org reported.

The Golden Triangle SEZ has also become a haven for criminal activities including money laundering, prostitution, online scam and drug trafficking, as the International Crisis Group pointed out in a report. It named the Special Economic Zone "South East Asia’s Most Conspicuous Criminal Enclave". In December the Lao authorities deported 462 Chinese nationals for offenses including human trafficking from the Golden Triangle SEZ.

The International Crisis group reported, that online scam operations are running in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone. But lately China has asked the countries in South Asia to fight the criminal networks behind these scam operations. This could be one more reason, why the opening of Bokeo International Airport was in delay. Such a big airport, that can handle 2 millions of passengers a year only makes sense, if Chinese authorities agree to flights from Chinese airports to Bokeo to transport customers to the casino and the hotels.

Then Bokeo International airport hold an opening ceremony on 5 February 2024. The ceremony was attended by Lao Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone. But this ceremony was overshadowed by the announcement of Lao Airliness of the indefinite termination of Bokeo-Vientiane flights, as Laotian Times reported. So this airport for now only handles one passenger flight a day operated by Lanexang Airways International between Vientiane and Ton Pheung (ເມືອງຕົ້ນເຜິ້ງ). And this airline seems to be owned by the same Chinese company, who built the airport and developped the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone. This company got a 50-years concession for the airport, as Lao News Agency writes.


Read also:
Will the Chinese Scam Networks relocate their Operations from Myanmar to Laos?

Inside Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone: A Chinese Zone in Laos, where Americans are not allowed in

Along the Mekong in Laos, on the border with Thailand, Myanmar and China, lies the "Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone" (Chinese: 金三角经济特区; Lao: ເຂດເສດຖະກິດພິເສດສາມຫຼ່ຽມຄຳ). If you spend just a few minutes there, you'll quickly realize that it's an area that Laos does not control. Who does? The zone has an area of about 3,000 hectares and was created in 2007 by the Lao government together with the Chinese-owned Hong Kong-registered company Kings Romans Group with the hope of generating economic development. A casino and hotels are the main attractions. But the zone has gained a reputation of being a Chinese city rife with illegal activities such as drug, human and animal trafficking, as you can read on Wikipedia. In January 2018, the United States Treasury Department sanctioned Kings Romans, its owner, Zhao Wei, and the "Zhao Wei Transnational Crime Organization," alleging the casino was used to launder money and traffic drugs, among other serious crimes. That's why holders of American passports are not allowed in, as this video docoumentations shows:




Another documentary bei International Crisis Group about the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone: Inside South East Asia’s Criminal Empire.



Read more:
Will the Chinese Scam Networks relocate their Operations from Myanmar to Laos?

Will the Chinese Scam Networks relocate their Operations from Myanmar to Laos?

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Kings Romans Casino in the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone along Mekong river in Laos

Fears are rising over Myanmar-based scam groups relocating to Laos due to crackdown in Myanmar, pushed by China, reports rfa.org. In recent months China has intensified a crackdown on online scams operated by criminal syndicates in forced labour camps in border areas of military-ruled Myanmar. “There have been growing concerns that many of these scam groups might opt to relocate their operations to Laos, especially to its Golden Triangle area,” a source who wished to remain anonymous for security reasons told Radio Free Asia. South Korea therefore has decided to impose a travel ban for the Lao Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (SEZ) from Feb. 1.

In December, the Lao authorities deported 462 Chinese nationals for offenses including human trafficking from the Golden Triangle SEZ according to rfa.org. in mid-September 164 Chinese nationals, including 46 arrested in the Bokeo Special Economic Zone were sent back to China. The Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (SEZ) was established in 2007 in the northern province of Bokeo on a 3,000-hectare concession along the Mekong River. it has also earned a reputation as a haven for criminal activities, including prostitution and drug trafficking, reports rfa.org. Impoverished young people from Laos and neighboring countries have told Radio Free Asia they were lured to the area with the promise of a lucrative job but were then held against their will in casinos by trafficking rings that exploit them under threat of violence.

Lao authorities currently do not have the right to enter special economic zones to conduct investigations, notes rfa.org.

By <a href="//commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=User:SaiLp&amp;action=edit&amp;redlink=1" class="new" title="User:SaiLp (page does not exist)">SaiLp</a> - <span class="int-own-work" lang="en">Own work</span>, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link

The skyline of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone on Mekong river

To the criminal networks, the casinos in Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia are the new banks, allowing them to launder money on a vast scale away from scrutiny and with little likelihood of law enforcement catching up with them, according to a report released in January by the UN Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), writes South China Morning Post. The government of China has painted an alarming picture of a Mekong region studded with casinos that are a crucial cog in the money-laundering machines engineered by gangsters in Taiwan and Macau, including the infamous 14K Triad and Taiwan’s Heavenly Way Alliance.

Zhao Wei (赵伟) is the owner of the Dok Ngiew Kham Group and co-owner of Hong Kong SAR-listed Kings Romans International (HK) which operates the Kings Romans casino in Laos. He is also the chairman of the Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone (GTSEZ). In the UNODC-report you can read: "Zhao Wei’s network of criminal connections in Asia has been solidified through his close association as a purported member of the 14K triad. In January 2018, the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned Kings Romans and Zhao Wei, declaring his network a ‘transnational criminal organization’ and imposing sanctions on him and three associates as well as three of his companies based in Lao PDR, Thailand, and Hong Kong SAR. In addition to drug trafficking, the U.S. Treasury also alleges that Zhao’s network engages in human trafficking, wildlife trafficking, money laundering, and bribery, much of which is facilitated through Kings Romans." in December 2023, authorities in China and Lao PDR executed a joint operation targeting confirmed cyberfraud operations, raiding seven business offices and arresting 462 suspects in the Golden Triangle SEZ. Zhao Wei has denied the allegations that illegal activities took place in the zone.

But by a visit in 2023 the International Crisis Group identified four guarded high-rise buildings with barred windows and high fences wrapped in razor wire. "Locals told Crisis Group that people were locked inside and forced to work as online scammers", you can read in "Stepping into South East Asia’s Most Conspicuous Criminal Enclave".

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Zhao Wei (red dress) in a picture from November 2019


According to Prof. Dr. Pinkaew Laungaramsri from the Faculty of Social Sciences at Chiang Mai University Zhao Wei has also invested in KK Park in Myanmar, a hub for scam operations and other crimes near the border of Mae Sot district in Thailand. She told https://transbordernews.in.th/: “One of the KK buildings, the KK4, as far as we know, has been made possible by the joint-investment with Kings Romans. Basically, Zhao Wei has purchased and invested in the project. Why did he buy the building? Obviously, because it is a hub of all the call-center gangsters and the connection is there.” The Professor said also: "At present, people lured to work with the call-center gangsters have been sold off to the Golden Triangle gangs and ended up in the area opposite to Mae Sot District. They are initially shipped through a boat ride to Tachileik and then transported on to Mae Sot District."


Read also:
Macao on the Mekong: How Chinese money flows into the Golden Triangle (31.1.2018)

Report "Casinos, Money Laundering, Underground Banking, and Transnational Organized Crime in East and Southeast Asia: A Hidden and Accelerating Threat" by UNODC
Transnational Crime and Geopolitical Contestation along the Mekong. Report by International Crisis Group.

From Kunming to Vientiane: The Crossborder Service of Lao-China-Railway has started

See stations and tunnels of China Laos Railway on Google Map by #treasuresoflaos

The Lanexang EMU, arriving at Vang Vieng station

Finally it's possible to travel on railway from Kunming in China to Vientiane in Laos: On April 13 the first trains left Kunming and Vientiane and arrived 10-and-half-hours later at their destination. The 1,000-kilometer rail line, which links the capital of China’s Yunnan province to the capital of Laos, had been completed in December 2021, but due to Chinas’s strict “zero COVID” policies, the border of China and Laos could not be crossed.

Now the fast train between Vientiane and Kunming South Station is running daily in both directions, starting at 8:08 am and arriving at 19.38 in Kunming (China time) and 17.38 in Vientiane. First class tickets for the full journey are available for 760 yuan ($110) while second-class tickets are priced at 470 yuan ($68). Laos-China Railway Company Limited (LCR) have launched an App on Google Play, iOS and Huawei to allow passengers to purchase LCR train tickets on their mobile phones using UnionPay cards. The service is operated with green bullet trains of China Railway and the Lanexang EMU trains of Lao-China-Railway. Find more informations on Hobomap.

For the border checks the passengers have to leave the train in Mohan (China) and Boten (Laos) with all their belongings. The stops will take 90 minutes.


Read more:
China-Laos Railway: Timetable, Tickets and Rules

The China-Laos Railway started cross-border passenger services last Thursday, with the first passenger train departing from Kunming, the capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, and heading for the Lao capital Vientiane. pic.twitter.com/efhw3Q85Qq

— JoyceChi🇨🇳（互fo） (@JoyceChi51) April 17, 2023

The Lanexang EMU of Lao-China-Railway entering Mohan station in China:

Historic moment! The first international trains on the #China-#Laos #railway departing respectively from Kunming, Yunnan province and Vientiane, Laos, "meet" each other. #BeltandRoad pic.twitter.com/R7Dphq6mO9

— Ji Rong嵇蓉 (@JiRongMFA) April 14, 2023

The green bullet train of China Railway entering Vang Vieng station in Laos:

Uncertain future for Phou Ngoy Mekong Hydropower Project

As locals await relocation and environmentalists raise concerns over impacts on the Mekong’s ecology, the future of the planned Phou Ngoy dam (also called Lat Sua) looks uncertain, "The Third Pole" reports. The run-of-river-dam is planned on the Mekong River in Champasak Province in Laos, about 18 km downstream from Pakse. The project for producing 728 Megawatt of electricity has been developped by Charoen Energy and Water Asia Corporation of Thailand (CEWA) and the South Korean construction companies Doosan Heavy Industries and Construction and Korea Western Power. The dam structure would be 1,300 meters long and 27 meters high with a head of 10.6 meters.

Visualisation of the Phou Ngoy Hydropower Project by CEWA

How many villages along the Mekong are affected?
The US $2.4-billion dollar project would impact more than 200 hectares of land and 88 villages, 57 villages above the dam and 31 below. The most-affected village would be Ban Khonken fishing village, where 811 residents reside in 142 households. They have been told that they will have to relocate for the construction works.

Is there an impact on Vat Phou Unescco World Heritage site?
An official at the Lao Ministry of the Information, Culture and Tourism said according to rfa.org he was worried about the dam’s impact on Vat Phou, a Khmer Hindu temple complex about six kilometers (3.7 miles) from the Mekong River. “If the Lao government and the Phou Ngoy Dam developer really want to build this dam, they’ll have to do the Heritage Impact Assessment, similar to the one for the Luang Prabang Dam Project that has been submitted to UNESCO,” he said.

Is Phou Ngoy Hydropower project economically feasable?
There are doubts, as "The Third Pole" reported in Dezember. Yongpil Seo, country director of the Thai office of Doosan Enerbility, one of the Korean partners, said he thought it was “unlikely” the Korean partners would continue with the project, adding he believed CEWA is currently looking for lower-cost Chinese partners and is struggling to find investment. No power-purchase agreement (PPA) with the Thai state enterprise Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand (EGAT) seems in sight.