Methanol poisoning in Laos has claimed six international tourists' lives, including Australian teens Bianca Jones and Holly Bowles, after they consumed tainted drinks while backpacking in Vang Vieng.

The deaths of six foreign tourists linked to a suspected mass methanol poisoning has thrown a spotlight on a small town in Southeast Asia that has worked hard in recent years to shed its reputation for excess.

Holly Bowles, 19, is one of six tourists who have died in Laos from what is believed to be methanol poisoning. She passed away on Friday, the day after her 19-year-old friend Bianca Jones passed away in a Thai hospital.

Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, was one of a number of people taken to hospital after the incident in the popular backpacking town of Vang Vieng last week

The Laos government said on Saturday (Nov 23) that it was "profoundly saddened" by the deaths of foreign tourists in Vang Vieng, with the toll from a suspected methanol poisoning incident now at six.

The father of a Melbourne teenager who died in Laos due to suspected methanol poisoning is calling for a broader investigation into the incident. Another Australian was among six tourists who died after drinking tainted alcohol.

The U.S., Australia and U.K. have issued warnings for travelers in Vang Vieng after several tourists died in a suspected methanol poisoning outbreak.

This week, an American man and two Danish women, aged 19 and 20, died in the same town due to methanol poisoning.

At least six tourists who traveled to Laos have died in recent days, prompting international alarm about the dangers of consuming alcoholic drinks that contain methanol.