ITINERARY
Day 1: Vientiane | Arrive Vientiane
International Flight: Excluded
Welcome to Laos! Upon arrival in Vientiane, our guide will greet you at the airport welcome area and transfer you to your hotel for check-in.
Accommodation: Settha Palace Hotel
Day 2: Vientiane | Leisure Day
Meals: Breakfast
On this day, you’re able to relax after the long international flight. Simply relax or go out for a stroll to explore local life. Also, you can enjoy a few drinks watching the sunset over the Mekong River, explore the Night Market and experience some of the city’s nightlife.
Accommodation: Settha Palace Hotel
Day 3: Vientiane | Laotian Capital Highlights
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
After breakfast, you’ll visit the Buddha Park, an enchanting collection of Buddhist and Hindu sculptures on the Mekong Riverside meadow, near the Friendship Bridge. There are approximately 200 religious images dating back over 500 years, which were created by a mysterious monk spreading his philosophy on life and revealing his ideas about the universe.
Patuxai Monument
We then come back to the town to visit the city in the afternoon, including the oldest Wat Sisaket, a temple of thousands of miniature Buddha statues, and the former royal temple of Wat Prakeo, which previously housed the famous Emerald Buddha Image. We also visit Lao national icon, That Luang Stupa, and we stop to take some pictures of the imposing Patuxay Monument, which is Vientiane’s own Arc de Triumph.
Accommodation: Settha Palace Hotel
Day 4: Vientiane – Phonsavan | Leisure | Flight to Phnonsavan
Internal Flight: Included
Meals: Breakfast
Board a late morning flight to Phonsavan. Upon arrival, our guide will greet you at the airport and transfer you to your hotel for check-in.
Accommodation: Vansana Plain of Jars Hotel
Day 5: Phonsavan | Plain of Jars Site 2 & 3
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Visit Plain of Jars site 2 and 3. The Jars: Estimated at 2,500 years old, hundreds of unique large stone jars found in the hills near Phonsavan. The largest is 6 tons and measures over 8 feet. Who built them, why, and how they transported them has remained a mystery.
Plain of the Ancient Jars
Accommodation: Vansana Plain of Jars Hotel
Day 6: Phonsavan | Explore the Main Site
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Continue to uncover the mysterious Plain of Jars;
Morning: visit the local market in Phonsavan famous for many colorful varieties of pastries; Visit one of the quarry sites for the jars; Visit site 1: contains the largest jar and one jar with a prehistoric carving.
Accommodation: Vansana Plain of Jars Hotel
Day 7: Phonsavan – Luang Prabang | Road Trip to Luang Prabang
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Transfer to Luang Prabang by vehicle through scenic mountain roads and visit several Hmong villages on the way.
Arrive in Luang Prabang in the late afternoon. Enjoy the leisure for the rest of the day.
Feel free to explore the beautiful city of Luang Prabang on your own to discover night markets selling local tapestries and souvenirs.
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 8: Luang Prabang | Alms Giving | Ancient City Temples
Meals: Breakfast
In the early morning, you can join in the alms giving ceremony where a procession of monks pass the hotel as participants solemnly give sticky rice and other objects into their bowls. Then enjoy breakfast at the hotel.
The morning is at your leisure to explore on your own.
Wat Xieng Thong Temple
In the afternoon, begin with a visit to the Royal Palace Museum, which hosts a range of interesting artifacts. We then head to the magnificent Wat Xiengthong with its roofs sweeping low to the ground, which represents classical Laotian architecture. We’ll also visit the impressive stupa of Wat Visoun and the shrines of Wat Aham and Wat Mai.
In the late afternoon, transfer to the forest temple of Wat Phon Phao for watching a stunning sunset over the Laos countryside. Return to the hotel for leisure time or explore the night markets on your own.
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 9: Luang Prabang | Hill Tribes and Kuang Si Waterfalls
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
Transfer in the morning to Ban Long Lao village – a Hmong and Khmu ethnic village who live simple lives off the land in a self-sustained community.
After exploring the village and mingling with the locals, you’ll begin the hike to Kuang Si Falls. Along the way are lush green forests and clear streams. Visit a cave along the way that once acted as a bomb shelter. Arrive at Kuang Si Waterfall – one of the most turquoise waterfalls in the world. The afternoon can be spent swimming in the waterfall and visiting the Bear Rescue Center where several Sun Bears and Malayan Black Bears are being cared for after being rescued from bile farms and wildlife traffickers.
Kuang Si Waterfalls
Then you’ll return to Luang Prabang and evening is at your leisure.
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 10: Luang Prabang | Befriending the Gentle Giants of Asia
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
In the morning, transfer to Elephant Village – an elephant sanctuary with a focus on rehabilitation and care of rescued elephants. Here you’ll meet the camp manager and receive a short briefing about the elephants. Throughout the day, you’ll take place in the following activities:
- Riding an elephant – you’ll have the opportunity to ride directly on the neck of an elephant
- Mahout Training – learn about the commands of how to communicate to the elephant
- Enjoy lunch at the outdoor garden restaurant
- Bathe your elephant – Go down to the nearby Nam Khan River to bath your elephant; perhaps the elephant will bathe you as well!
Then return to your hotel for leisure time.
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 11: Luang Prabang | Leisure Day
Meals: Breakfast
Spend this full day at your own leisure or visit a spa. You can walk around the city and discover the local daily life, find out some interesting souvenir items, drop by at a bar to relax and have a drink or two. Alternatively, simply indulge yourself with the comfort and amenities which your hotel offers.
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 12: Luang Prabang | Boat Trip to Pak Ou Cave
Meals: Breakfast, Lunch
In the morning, we embark on a cruise upstream on the Mekong River, which also gives us a breathtaking view of the tranquil countryside. Along the way, we stop at the village of Ban Xanghai, where they make Laos rice wine and rice whiskey. You’ll be able to try some and see the process they use to make it. Then we’ll reach the mysterious Pak Ou Caves, two linked caves crammed with thousands of gold lacquered Buddha statues of various shapes and sizes left by pilgrims.
Lunch will be served nearby the caves. During lunch, you’ll have the opportunity to try a local dish called “Orlam” which is a soup with vegetables and features a spicy wood that is partially edible. On return, we disembark the boat to visit a traditional weaving village of Ban Phanom, which is famous for its hand weaving.
Boat Trip to the Pak Ou Cave – 13 Days Luxury Tour Laos Mysterious Plain Jars
Accommodation: Belmond La Residence Phou Vao
Day 13: Luang Prabang | Farewell!
Meals: Breakfast
Today our guide will transfer you to the airport before your onward flight and will bid you a fond farewell. Thank you for traveling with us!
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