Laos
ASIA · 6 PLACES
Laos moves at river speed: saffron dawns in Luang Prabang, karst spires over the Nam Song, coffee farms on the Bolaven. A 160km/h railway now links the north in hours.
Luang Prabang
Temples, Kuang Si, cooking and weaving classes. The obvious base to start.
Vientiane
COPE, That Luang, riverside night market. Two full days is plenty.
Vang Vieng
Balloons, lagoons and kayaking, on the fast train between the two cities.
Nong Khiaw
Karst viewpoints and the Nam Ou. Add a night upriver in Muang Ngoi.
4000 Islands (Si Phan Don)
Where the Mekong braids into hundreds of islands before Cambodia. Hammocks, bicycles, a rusting French railway and vast waterfalls.
Pakse
Base for Wat Phou plus a two or three day Bolaven Plateau loop.
One month here
Temples, Kuang Si, cooking and weaving classes. The obvious base to start.
Karst viewpoints and the Nam Ou. Add a night upriver in Muang Ngoi.
Balloons, lagoons and kayaking, on the fast train between the two cities.
COPE, That Luang, riverside night market. Two full days is plenty.
Base for Wat Phou plus a two or three day Bolaven Plateau loop.
4000 Islands — 7 nights
Hammocks, bicycles, waterfalls. Where the trip slows down and stops.
Three months here
Settle in: language, weaving, cooking, and slow day trips up the Mekong.
Multi-day guided treks, Muang Ngoi, kayaking and village homestays.
Climbing, caving and lagoons at a pace that isn't a two-night sprint.
Visa runs, dentist, decent coffee and a base for the Thai border.
Big Bolaven loop, Tad Lo, Wat Phou and coffee country at length.
4000 Islands — 14 nights
Two weeks of nothing. Leaves roughly a week spare for transit and detours.
Festivals worth flying for
Boun Wat Phou · February
Three days of pilgrimage, boat races and markets at the Khmer ruins in Champasak.
Boun Pi Mai Lao · April
Lao New Year. Nationwide water-throwing; Luang Prabang runs roughly 10-25 April.
Boun Bang Fai · May
Rocket festival. Villages fire homemade rockets to call the rains. Loud and rowdy.
Boun Khao Phansa · July
Start of Buddhist Lent. Candlelit temple processions and a quieter, devout mood.
Boun Ok Phansa & Lai Heua Fai · October
End of Lent: boat races and thousands of lit banana-leaf floats on the rivers.
Boun That Luang · November
Vientiane's biggest festival, a week of processions and fairs at the golden stupa.
In an emergency
Emergency number 1191 police / 1195 ambulance
Fire 1190; Vientiane tourist police 021 251 128. Rural medical care is basic and serious cases evacuate to Thailand, so insure for air evacuation.
Language
Lao. English in tourist hubs, French among older Lao, Thai widely understood.
Money
Lao kip, cash first. Cards only in hotels and smart cafes; ATMs are scarce on the islands.
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