Day 1: Arrival in Luang Prabang (-)
Upon your arrival at the airport, you will be picked up and driven to Luang Prabang. Check-in and free time during the evening.
Overnight at the hotel in Luang Prabang.
Day 2: Luang Prabang – City Tour (B)
After breakfast, you will visit the oldest temple in the city, Wat Sene, before going to Wat Xieng Thong, highly recognizable with its roof almost touching group (which represents perfectly the Laotian architectural style). You will also see the impressive stupa at Wat Visoun, while also discovering Wat Aham and Wat Mai Temples.
After that, you will visit the Royal Palace Museum, a place housing beautiful artifacts dating from the first Kings’ eras up to the last Kingdom, which reflects the richness of Laotian culture.
Later, you will go to the top of Phousi Hill and admire the sunset while enjoying the view on the city and Mekong River.
Overnight in Luang Prabang.
Day 3: Luang Prabang – Kuang Si Falls – Trekking (B, L)
Have breakfast at the hotel. Then, depart for Kuang Si Falls. On the way, you will see beautiful rural landscapes made of rice terraces and pineapple tree plantations. You will stop at Ban Long Lao, a H’Mong Village where the customs, language, and culture differs from those of the majority of Laotians.
From there, you will start your trek (2 to 2.5 hours) and go through the forest and the primal jungle before reaching the spectacular Kuang Si Falls.
You will have your lunch there, before enjoying free time to bath in the water pools created by the falls.
Then, you will start to ascend to the top of the main fall. Over the centuries, the circulating water has shaped curious rounded limestone concretions and peaceful ponds with turquoise waters at the bottom of the falls. The entire site is vast, airy, and discreet while the surrounding nature is quiet and dense: all these ingredients make this site a peaceful haven.
You will return to Luang Prabang by road.
Overnight at the 4-star Villa Santi Resort in Luang Prabang (www.villasantihotel.com).
(Note: medium-level trekking; do not forget to bring adequate shoes).
Day 4: Luang Prabang – Nong Khiaw (B)
Start the day with a good breakfast before leaving Luang Prabang by road, along the Nam Ou River. You will pass by several ethnic villages located along the river. You will finally get to Nam Khiaw, a wonderful little town on the west bank of the Nam Ou. Enjoy the nature and spend time in serenity.
Overnight at the 2-star Nong Khiaw Riverside Hotel (Standard room – www.nongkiau.com).
Day 5: Nong Khiaw – Muang Ngoi – Trekking (B, L)
After breakfast at the hotel, you will board a traditional boat to the ancient city of Muang Ngoi (1-hour boat ride). You will reach Muang Ngoi early, before starting a 30-min hike around 9:00am to Tham Kang, an ancient cave which was a refuge for villagers during the Indochina War (1960-1972). You will have the time to appreciate the surrounding countryside.
After this visit, you will hike to Ban Houay Boor (a village inhabited by the Khmu and T’ai Deng ethnic groups), where you will enjoy lunch with locals. Then, you will continue your trek to Ban Na (a T’ai Deng Village). There, you will learn more about the daily life of the inhabitants, before returning to Muang Ngoi. From there, you will be driven back to Nong Khiaw.
Overnight at the 2-star Nong Khiaw Riverside Hotel (Standard room – www.nongkiau.com).
Day 6: Nong Khiaw – Luang Prabang (B, L)
This morning, you will enjoy a 2-hour boat ride descending Nam Ou River towards Luang Prabang. After a while, you will stop near a dam and leave the boat. From there, you will start a 1-hour walk as the boat can’t go through this way. You will then reach another boat and start your second cruise. Later, you will get to Ban Pak Ou and visit Pak Ou Caves, a pair of communicating grottoes. Those two grottoes (Tham Ting and Tham Poum) are sanctuaries, housing many Buddha representations that were left there by pilgrims.
Picnic lunch.
Stop by Ban Xang Hai, a village specialized in rice whiskey distillation. You will reach Luang Prabang at the end of the day.
Check-in at the hotel and free time in the evening.
Overnight in Luang Prabang.
Day 7: Luang Prabang – Elephant Park – Departure (B, L)
This morning, you will head to the Elephant Park and Elephant Village, located 15 km from Luang Prabang and in the tropical forest. There, you will have fun during a 1-hour elephant ride through a beautiful landscape on the valley of Nam Khan River. Then, you will board a boat to Tad Sae Waterfall. There, you will be free to roam around and relax in the water pools at the foot of the fall.
Enjoy a picnic lunch near the river. You will then go back to Elephant Village, before being transported to Luang Prabang.
Later, you will be driven to the airport for your evening flight.
