VacationSelector
Wat Xieng Thong temple, Luang Prabang
Luang PrabangWat Xieng Thong temple
Sint Servaasbrug over the Maas, Maastricht
MaastrichtSint Servaasbrug over the Maas

Photos: Luang Prabang by Basile Morin, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped; Maastricht by Michielverbeek, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped.

Luang Prabang or Maastricht?

Our verdict in twelve categories, each scored against the same fixed benchmark cities, and the climate month by month, so you can choose for your trip.

Choose Luang Prabang for

  • prices
  • nature and the outdoors
  • wellness

What lies behind each score is written up on Luang Prabang’s own page.

Choose Maastricht for

  • day trips
  • nightlife
  • getting around

What lies behind each score is written up on Maastricht’s own page.

Scoreboard

Twelve categories on one fixed scale from 0 to 100. The shaded stretch is the gap between the two.

Beaches & swimming. Luang Prabang 14, Maastricht 8: Luang Prabang leads by 6 points.
Food & drink. Luang Prabang 42, Maastricht 58: Maastricht leads by 16 points.
Culture & sights. Luang Prabang 65, Maastricht 60: Luang Prabang leads by 5 points.
Nightlife. Luang Prabang 8, Maastricht 42: Maastricht leads by 34 points.
Nature & outdoors. Luang Prabang 68, Maastricht 58: Luang Prabang leads by 10 points.
Day trips. Luang Prabang 35, Maastricht 77: Maastricht leads by 42 points.
Good for families. Luang Prabang 38, Maastricht 55: Maastricht leads by 17 points.
Getting around. Luang Prabang 50, Maastricht 74: Maastricht leads by 24 points.
Shopping & style. Luang Prabang 38, Maastricht 60: Maastricht leads by 22 points.
Affordability. Luang Prabang 80, Maastricht 38: Luang Prabang leads by 42 points.
Live music & performing arts. Luang Prabang 18, Maastricht 40: Maastricht leads by 22 points.
Wellness & relaxation. Luang Prabang 60, Maastricht 52: Luang Prabang leads by 8 points.
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What lies behind each score is written up on the two cities’ own pages: Luang Prabang and Maastricht.

Your match

Pick a travel style or drag the sliders, and both match scores follow your weighting.

Luang Prabang
43match

Wins on prices and nature and the outdoors with your weighting.

Maastricht
Best match
52match

Wins on day trips and nightlife with your weighting.

What matters to you?

When should you go?

Pick your month. The climate figures are measured averages, not a forecast.

Luang Prabang in July

33 °Cdaytime high
24 °Cnight-time low
250 mmrain in the month
4 hsunshine a day
13 hdaylight a day

Maastricht in July

24 °Cdaytime high
14 °Cnight-time low
73 mmrain in the month
7 hsunshine a day
16 hdaylight a day

Daytime high, °C

0°10°20°30°40°JFMAMJJASOND

Rainfall in the month, mm

0100200300400JFMAMJJASOND
Luang PrabangMaastricht

Temperature and rainfall are climate normals, averaged over the years shown. Luang Prabang: 1991-2020 normals, Luang-Prabang (0.8 km from centre). Maastricht: 1991-2020 normals, Maastricht Airport Zuid Limburg (10 km from centre).

Before you go

MeasureLuang PrabangMaastricht
Official languageLaoDutch
CurrencyLao Kip (LAK)Euro (EUR)
SocketsABCEF230 V, 50 HzCF230 V, 50 Hz
Driving sideRightRight
Time zoneUTC+7UTC+1, UTC+2 in summer
Emergency numberPolice 191, ambulance 195, fire 190112
Elevation305 m49 m
Main airportLuang Phabang International Airport (LPQ)4 km from centre7 non-stop destinationsMaastricht Aachen Airport (MST)9 km from centre5 non-stop destinations
Public holidays this year-11 days

By the numbers

MeasureLuang PrabangMaastricht
City population53,792120,227
People per km²-2,000
Museums within 10 km021
UNESCO World Heritage sites within 50 km15

Where else could you go?

Every comparison below shares a destination with this one, so you can follow Luang Prabang or Maastricht somewhere new.

Browse every destination

Sources

Structured data from Wikidata (CC0). Weather data by Meteostat. Meteorological data provided by NOAA, DWD and others. Rainfall where no rain gauge is within 25 km is from the TerraClimate 1991-2020 climatology (Abatzoglou et al. 2018, Scientific Data), read at the city. Airport data from OurAirports (public domain). Non-stop route lists from the "Airlines and destinations" tables on English Wikipedia airport articles, by Wikipedia contributors, reused under CC BY-SA 4.0. Currency from the ISO 4217 register maintained by SIX, cross-checked against country data from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Price level from World Bank open data (PPP conversion factor for private consumption and official exchange rate), CC BY 4.0. Time zones from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0); clock offsets computed from the IANA time zone database. Tourism statistics from Eurostat, © European Union, reused under CC BY 4.0. Public holidays from Nager.Date (MIT). Daylight hours computed from each destination's latitude using the NOAA solar position algorithm. Exchange rates via Frankfurter, based on European Central Bank reference rates.

Category scores are our editorial verdict under rubric v3, each placed against the same fixed benchmark cities; the climate figures are measured. How the scores are set. Snapshot generated 2026-10-31. Daily budgets are estimates from country price levels.