TRIP OVERVIEW
The Laos Timeless – Heritage Tour itinerary covers the most significant sights along a path that guarantees a cultural, archaeological and natural experience.
Start with Vientiane, the Laotian capital, which is home to buildings with unique architecture mixing French colonial and Buddhist temple styles such as the nationally symbolic Pha That Luang temple. Explore Vang Vieng, the town framed by a backdrop of karst mountains, lush forests and impressive caves. Luang Prabang, ‘City of the Golden Buddha ‘, the legendary capital of the Lan Xang Kingdom, located on the peninsula at the confluence of the Mekong and Nam rivers, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1995.
Admire the beauty of the Kuang Si waterfalls and cruise the Mekong River to discover the Pak Ou Caves, or the Thousand Buddha Caves, an important place of worship and pilgrimage for centuries.
This sample itinerary starts in Vientiane and ends in Luang Prabang. It can be customized to suit your travel needs as well as combined with other routes.
Group tour: Yes
Dates: As you wish
Starts/Ends: Vientiane – Luang Prabang/ Vice versa
Tour routes: Vientiane – Vang Vieng – Xieng Khouang – Luang Prabang
Tour Type: Heritage and Landscape
Tour Tailor-Made: Absolutely Yes!
Itinerary
Day 01: Arrival in Vientiane
Day 02: Vientiane – city tour – Vang Vieng
Day 03: Vang Vieng Full-day Tour
Day 04: Vang Vieng – Xiengkhouang – Plain of Jars
Day 05: Xieng Khouang – Luang Prabang
Day 06: Luang Prabang – Pak Ou Caves – Kuang Si
Day 07: Luang Prabang – City Tour – Departure
Day 01: Arrival in Vientiane
Arrival in Vientiane, the guide and driver will pick you up and transfer you to the hotel.
Free time for rest after a long flight and walking to night market and the quiet capital of Laos on the banks of the Mekong River you can see in Thailand.
Dinner at Khua Lao Restaurant
Free time at your disposal.
Overnight at Sure Stay hotel4_*_ in Vientiane.
Day 02: Vientiane – city tour –Vang Vieng
In the morning, we start to visit Vientiane, the quiet capital of Laos on the banks of the Mekong River.
We visit the most significant landmarks such as Wat Si Saket, known for its thousand images of Buddha that, according to local belief, protected the temple during the Siamese invasion of 1828 and its cloister contains more than 8000 Buddha statues. We continue to Wat Haw Phrakeo, built in 1865 to house the famous Emerald Buddha but today it contains a collection of Buddha statues, antiques and all artifacts found in around Vientiane, and then continue to visit That Luang Stupa, considered the most important monument in Laos, which was built to cover the original small stupa containing a piece of the chest bone of Buddha, according to local belief, it was brought over in the 3rd century BC. We conclude our visits to Vientiane at the Patuxay or Arch de Triumph, built quite recently in commemoration of those who died during the wars in the past and it is today as the land-mark of Vientiane.
Afternoon transfer to Wat Xieng Khouan, also known as ‘Buddha Park ‘. In 1958 the Buddhist-Hinduist cleric Boun Elua created numerous sculptures inspired by the Buddhist and Hindu religions, with the aim of ‘uniting’ the two beliefs through a work of art. The 40-metre-long statue of the reclining Buddha and the large hollow sculpture in the shape of a head, which provides access to an upper level with a beautiful view of the park, symbolizing the passage from hell to heaven, are particularly noteworthy.
Lunch around 12:30 pm in Vientiane before we then drive along one of the most scenic routes in the whole of Asia to Vang Vieng which is located on a blend in the Nam Song River. This small and tranquil town is rapidly developed with the advent of tourists, but the beautiful scenery with a mixture of quiet water and limestone outcrops are unchanged for a century.
After we arrive in Vang Vieng so we can explore along the Name Song River by speed boat, you can see a beautiful views, landscape surround by mountainous and water buffalo as well.
Free time walking night market and rest of day
Overnight at Amari hotel 4* in Vang Vieng.
Day 03: Vang Vieng Full-day Tour
Start our tour after you breakfast at 09:00 am Rather than a town, Vang Vieng is a large village where the real highlight is the undeniable beauty of the karst landscape and the unexplored caves, some of which have names that recur in local mythology and are said to be inhabited by spirits.
Visit Tham Chang Cave, the most famous and full of fascinating stories. It was once used as an impregnable refuge during the devastating raids of northern Chinese predators. An electrical system now lights the way to the upper cave from where you can see the superb surrounding landscape and the Nam Song River through a gap in the limestone wall.
At 10:30 am drive to the norther of city to where our start kayaking to experience on the Nam Song River Kayaking only 7 km, which is a famous drifting place in Vang Vieng. The river is relatively wide, with rapids and still water and tubing inside the cave.
After then take a 20 minuets drive to Blue Lagoon 1 or Blue Lago where you can swim and Champing on the hot day.
Lunch around 12:30 pm, at Blue Lagoon Restaurants and enjoying your free time
At 17:00 pm Hot Air Balloon Experience over beautiful views in Vang Vieng
Lift off to exciting heights on an exhilarating hot air balloon flight in Vang Vieng. Take amazing views of mountains & natural around of the city skyline and hinterland as you enjoy the sunset from the sky! The Flight has an approximate duration of 40 minutes.
Overnight at Amari hotel 4* in Vang Vieng.
o Assistance: private guide and driver
o Meals included: breakfast in the hotel
Day 4: Vang Vieng – Xieng Khouang
We are driving overland on up Hill Mountain with splendid natural scenery to Xieng Khouang, where was devastated by American bombing between 1964 and 1973.
Upon arrival, we transfer out to visit the Plain of Jars, an impressive archaeological site was hundreds of large stone jars are littered all over the plateau. After that, we are seeing the old capital of Muang Khoun and the nearby villages, home to the Hmong hill tribe people. They have an interesting local culture and a colorful history.
Get back to the hotel and rest
Overnight at Vansana hotel 3* in Phonsavanh (Xieng Khoung)
o Assistance: private tour guide and driver
o Meals included: breakfast in hotel
Day 5: Xieng Khouang – Luang Prabang
After breakfast, drive 305 km out to and up Route 13, passing through ethnic minority villages with local school, with some houses overhanging steep roadside drop offs. Look for the children playing in the dust with their piglets and puppies. See examples of swidden agriculture hacked out of steep hillsides and the varying checkerboard patches of regrowth as you continue your scenic journey. Arrive in Luang Prabang.
Overnight at Houny vilai hotel 4* in Luang Prabang
o Assistance: private tour guide and driver
o Meals included: breakfast in hotel
Day 6: Luang Prabang – Pak Ou Caves – Kuang Si
After breakfast we head to the pier and embark on a river cruise to Pak Ou Caves, also known as the Thousand Buddha Caves. Located at the confluence of the Mekong and Ou rivers, they are one of the must-see sights on a trip to Laos.
The sanctuary consists of two large limestone caves: Tham Ting, the lower cavity, which can be reached by climbing the 30-step staircase, and Tham Theung, the upper cavity, which can be Rea hed by climbing the 70-step staircase.
The Pak Ou caves have been an important place of worship for many centuries for the faithful, who offer a Buddha image as a gift when they make a pilgrimage there. As a result of this tradition, today both cavities house thousands of statues of Buddha of different sizes, from a few centimeters to about 2 meters, in different styles and spiritual positions (mudras), from meditation to ascent to nirvana. During the cruise we admire the typical Laotian rural landscape and the local lifestyle. We stop for a short visit to the village of Ban Xang Hai, known for the production of “Lao Lao”, the famous rice whiskey.
We continue to the outskirts of Luang Prabang to the incredible Kuang Si waterfalls. Along the way we visit some villages inhabited by ethnic minorities. Once at the falls, there is plenty of free time for a refreshing dip in the turquoise waters, to explore the trails that lead into the forest, or simply to relax surrounded by this beautiful natural setting.
On the way back to Luang Prabang we visit the village of Ban Xang Kong, known for its ancient textile tradition and the production of paper from mulberry bark. We end the day with a beautiful sunset from the top of the Wat Phabath temple.
Overnight at Houny vilai hotel 4* in Luang Prabang
o Assistance: private tour guide and driver
o Meals included: breakfast in hotel
Day 7: Luang Prabang – Departure.
At 5:30am we witness the Tak Bak ceremony, the monks’ quest, an ancient Asian Buddhist religious tradition practiced with constancy only in Luang Prabang. Every morning, for the past 2,500 years, hundreds of monks walk barefoot from their temples to the center of the city. Forming a long line, they slowly walk through the streets to collect alms, especially ‘sticky rice, donated by the faithful, who wait silently on the pavements, in exchange for prayers and blessings.
Once finished, we return to the hotel for breakfast. We then begin our walking tour of the most important monuments.
In the morning, we visit to the National Museum: formerly the Royal Palace, it now houses an important collection of valuables including statues of Buddha and many other objects donated by visiting dignitaries to the court of Luang Prabang. We continue along the quiet streets lined with buildings from the French colonial period to admire their architecture and learn about their original function. Next, we visit the Wat Sene Souk Haram temple, or ‘Temple of 100,000 Treasures”, built in 1718 using 100,000 stones extracted from the Mekong River, and Wat Xieng Thong, or ‘Monastery of the Golden City ‘, founded in 1560, one of the most important in Luang Prabang, known for the grace and elegance of its architecture.
Afterwards, we visit Wat Visoun, built in 1513, Wat Aham, or ‘Monastery of the Blossoming Heart ‘, built at the beginning of the 19th century as a place of meditation and a meeting place between animist and Buddhist cultures, and the Wat Mai, ‘New Monastery ‘, built at the end of the 18th century, one of the most complex and picturesque temples in the city, richly decorated and easily distinguishable by its unique five-level roof.
We also climb to the top of Mount Phousi to explore the sacred golden stupa and enjoy the panoramic sightseeing of the Mekong and Khan rivers. End of program. / Flight to Hanoi.
You will be picked up by the guide and the driver. Check in and free time.
o Assistance: private tour guide and driver
o Meals included: breakfast in hotel
Tour includes:
• Tours & transfers in private air-conditioned vehicles
• 2 mineral water/ day/ pax
• All accommodation with daily breakfast at selected hotels
• Private English-speaking guide
• Meals as indicated in the itinerary with local foods (B= breakfast; L=Lunch; D = Dinner)
• Boat cruise as stated
• Entrance fees and permits for all sights visited
• Mineral Water and towel
• Government taxes & Service charges
Tour excludes:
• International airfare & airport tax
• Visa in Laos (available at the airport at 30 USD)
• Personal travel insurance
• Personal expenses such as Telephone and Laundry bills.
• Tips and gratuities