We spent four nights here, spending one night in the middle of our stay in Laos out in the country, leaving the bulk of our luggage there. The room we had (a 'Bellerive' opposite the breakfast terrace) was immaculate, with our own little terrace outside the room. The couple who own the hotel are charming and when there take time to meet and mix with the guests. The staff are permanently smiling and helpful, just make sure they really do understand exactly what you're asking them! There are other hotels which are both cheaper and in some cases more expensive, but we paid $130 a night and I thought it was excellent value. It's perfectly sited at the ideal distance from the main tourist shopping street. The breakfast is great, and sitting there looking down on the Mekong river life was wonderful. If I go back to Luang Prabang, as I hope to, I'll definitely be booking the Bellerive again.

Generally, I agree with all of the other positive reviews of the BelleRive. Good location, great breakfasts, decent staff. Also as mentioned, the rooms are set up such that there is not much space for your luggage or clothing - we had to basically keep it all in the suitcase the whole time.

However, we paid US$165/night, and once we got to Luang Prabang and checked out some other hotels, we felt the hotel was overpriced. In addition, we did not have hot water in the showers for two days, and I found a large gekko in the shower one evening when we returned home. Not the end of the world, but again, for $165/night I would expect hot water every day.

Dissapointing, and I would try someplace else the next time we are there.

We stayed three nights in this lovely hotel and have no complaints to make whatsoever. The hotel is very well positonned, and from the rooms on the first floor, you can see the Mekong river from your window/terrace. The rooms are sweetly decorated with wonderful wooden appliances but are also modern and well kept.
I remain however dissapointed about Luang Prabang as a World Heritage City. We live in Northern Thailand so we found that the temples were pretty poor when compared to Chiang Mai for instance and most of them were closed when we tried to visit them. The local handicraft/souvenirs, available from the night market and the local shopping street are mostly fake antiques made in China or clothing and stuff/silk made in Thailand. The local restaurant scene is definitely inferior and expensive and in all, we did not feel Luang Prabang deserves any of the fashionable hype it carries right now!
Our stay at the Bellerive hotel was however the high point of the trip!

I have very little to add to the other excellent reviews of this inn. From pickup to checkout, everything was great for my partner and me and my parents. A couple of small notes: breakfast is gigantic and terrific (except the sausages -- get the bacon or ham), the steps inside the rooms are very slippery so be careful in socks, and the hot water doesn't last all that long so be "green" in your showering. Otherwise, I can't imagine why anyone would stay anywhere else -- there are more luxurious properties but they don't have the Mekong view, and there are properties closer to town but they aren't as nice.