The Laos backpackers hostel where two Aussies died is finally set to reopen after a recent renovation and name change.
Best friends Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones, both 19, died while holidaying in Vang Vieng, north of the Laotian capital, Vientiane, in November 2024.
The Melbourne teens were among six foreign tourists staying at Nana Backpacker's Hostel who died after consuming methanol-laced drinks during happy hour there.
The hostel closed down but is set to reopen any day, just weeks after 10 hostel employees were recently found guilty of destroying evidence and fined $185 each in relation to the death of American backpacker James Louis Hutson, 57.
Footage has emerged of the pool being refilled and a fresh paint job applied to the premises, while a new set of stairs has been installed near the bar.
The Nana Backpackers sign has also been removed from the hostel entrance.
Details about the new operators are yet to be confirmed.
The grieving parents of the Aussie teens have repeated calls for local authorities to stop the venue from reopening until those responsible are brought to justice.
Bianca Jones died while holidaying in Vang Vieng, Laos, in November 2024.
Bianca's her best friend Holly Morton-Bowles (pictured) also died
The Melbourne teens died after consuming methanol-laced drinks during happy hour at the Nana Backpackers Hostel, which has since been renamed
'We're incredibly disappointed that the hostel may be reopening,' Bianca's father Mark Jones told Nine News.
'[We're] certainly hoping that the (Laotian) authorities will not allow this to move on, until those responsible are brought to some justice.
It's understood that charges over Bianca and Holly’s deaths may still happen.
Holly and Bianca's families recently revealed that they found out about the recent court case relating to Mr Hutson's death not from the Australian government but from the loved ones of other poisoning victims.
It sparked a meeting with Prime Minister Anthony Albanese this week, who apologised for the lack of information from Australian authorities.
Albanese promised the families he would talk to Laotian Prime Minister Sonexay Siphandone personally to express his expectations for the matter going forward.
The meeting could happen as early as next week.
It's hoped the political pressure from Australia could prompt authorities in Laos to finally act.
The hostel will soon reopen after it was recently spotted with a fresh paint job
The hostel pool has also been refilled with water
Best friends Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones (pictured), both aged 19, died after drinking alcohol laced with methanol at the backpackers hostel
'We hope that conversation between the two prime ministers will help continue to progress the justice for our girls,' Mr Jones added.
The Australian government announced on Friday that it will give its Laotian counterparts $1.5million to support a program for methanol testing of drinks and an upgrade to forensic laboratories.
Bianca and Holly's heartbroken families have so far received very few answers in their quest for justice.
When they found out about the recent secretive court case, Mr Jones said its handling had been 'abhorrent'.
'For us not to be told they're going ahead is abhorrent. There are no words,' he said.
'To think that the Laos authorities believe that those involved in killing our daughters is worth $185 is disgraceful.
'Six people died in that hostel and they've opened it again. It's beyond comprehension.'
'The best word to describe it is disappointment,' Holly's father, Shaun Bowles, added.
The fathers also accused the Laotian government of failing to take accountability for the deaths and rushing the case to court.
'We were disgusted, really. It's very clear that they want an open-and-shut case so they can just move on. That's not being held to account,' Mr Bowles told the ABC.
Holly Morton-Bowles and Bianca Jones were among six foreign tourists who died after drinking methanol-laced drinks
Mr Jones and Holly's father, Shaun Bowles, have demanded accountability from the Laos government
The hostel (pictured before renovations) has since been renamed
Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) issued a grovelling apology, saying it 'fell short' in its consular duties to the families.
'The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade apologises unreservedly for the failure to keep the families of Holly Bowles and Bianca Jones fully informed about the outcomes of the court case relating to the destruction of evidence following the death of a United States citizen at the Nana Backpackers Hostel in November 2024,' it said.
'The Department prides itself on its commitment to consular service and to ensuring that the interests of consular clients and their families are paramount.
'On this occasion, we fell short of our aspiration.'
The department added that the destruction of evidence charges only related to the death of James Hutson, a 57-year-old US tourist.
English lawyer Simone White, 28, also died in the mass poisoning, along with Danish friends Anne-Sofie Orkild Coyman, 20, and Freja Sorensen, 21.
