Laos & The Mekong

Start your holiday in style with included UK airport lounge access before flying overnight to Vientiane.

Arrive at Vientiane airport, where you will be met by a local guide and transferred to your hotel for check-in.

Stay: Salana Boutique Hotel

After breakfast at the hotel, you will be picked up for a city tour of Vientiane, which will take you to all of the main historic highlights. First, visit Wat Sisaket, the oldest original temple in Vientiane, which features remarkable frescoes and over 6,000 images of the Buddha. Nearby is Haw Phra Kaew, which contains some of the finest Buddhist sculptures and artefacts in the country. The main structure originally housed the famous Emerald Buddha that now resides in Bangkok. 

Other famous landmarks that you will visit include the Phra That Luang stupa, which was built by King Sethtathirat in 1566 and is now considered a national symbol. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant, before taking a 25km drive to the south of Vientiane in order to visit the Xieng Khuan Buddha Park. Built in 1958 by a Buddhist monk, the park is located on the banks of the Mekong River and is home to a collection of bizarre stone monuments and huge sculptures depicting the Buddhist and Hindu deities and demons.

Stay: Salana Boutique Hotel

Transfer to the airport for a flight north to Luang Prabang. The UNESCO World Heritage Site town is surrounded by thickly forested mountains and situated at the confluence of the Khan and Mekong Rivers, and has a tranquil, old-world charm. When you arrive, transfer to your hotel before enjoying lunch at a local restaurant. Then, head out with your guide for a walking tour of the city. 

Start with a visit to Wat Visoun, the oldest temple that’s still in use in Luang Prabang. The temple dates back to 1513 and contains a collection of antique wooden Buddha. Climb the 350 steps to the summit of Phou Sii Hill, which stands right in the centre of the small city, in order to enjoy commanding views for many miles in each direction. Visit Luang Prabang’s National Museum, formally the Royal Palace, where you can admire a collection of artefacts that belong to the former Laotian Royal Family. Also take in Wat Mai, a temple with a five-tiered roof that epitomises the graceful Luang Prabang architectural style. Finally, visit the Wat Xieng Thon, often said to be Luang Prabang’s most beautiful temple.

Stay: My Ban Lao Boutique Hotel (Superior)

After breakfast at your hotel, take a tour with the Living Land Project. this is a sustainable company set up in Luang Prabang where guests can learn about the importance of sustainable farming methods and how the produce grown can help support local communities. Enjoy the chance to learn about rice farming and the process of planting and harvesting in the rice paddies. The project provides many benefits for the local community and only employs locals or helps to train young members of the community. 

Later, travel out of Luang Prabang for about an hour to the idyllic Kuang Si Waterfalls. You will get the opportunity along the way to visit a Bear Rescue Centre, which is a sanctuary for the region's endangered black bears. Enjoy a picnic lunch near the falls, which cascade hundreds of feet into a series of cool, turquoise pools that it's possible to swim in. Return to Luang Prabang, and make a stop at the Mekong Riverside Garden. The business provides sustainable employment to rural residents through the production and marketing of high-quality textiles. In the late afternoon, enjoy Laotian refreshments and snacks on the banks of the Mekong before spending the rest of the day at your leisure.

Stay: My Ban Lao Boutique Hotel (Superior)

Start the day early with a visit to witness the tradition of Tak Bat, where hundreds of saffron-clad monks silently walk through the streets at dawn to collect alms (offerings of food). Afterwards, take a stroll with your local guide through the colourful, open-air morning market that’s located in the town centre and where local people buy and sell their produce. 

After breakfast, take a journey to the Mandala elephant sanctuary where you'll learn all about elephant behaviour before embarking on a jungle trek alongside two adult elephants, passing by rice fields and streams as you go. After some final treats for the elephants, return to the hotel for an afternoon of relaxation. In the evening, attend a traditional Baci ceremony and dance performance during which you will receive tidings of good luck for your travels; animism has always played a major part in the religious lives of Lao people, and the Baci is performed to ward off bad spirits.

Stay: My Ban Lao Boutique Hotel (Superior)

After breakfast, spend the day at leisure relaxing, shopping and exploring this atmospheric small town.

Stay: My Ban Lao Boutique Hotel (Superior)

After breakfast, transfer to the pier and board a boat that leaves early morning for a cruise on the Mekong River to Luang Say Lodge in Pakbeng. Enjoy a French breakfast on board before stopping off opposite the mouth of the Nam Ou River in order to visit the Pak Ou Caves. Explore the Tham Ting and Tham Phoum caves, and discover thousands of Buddha statues. Your English speaking guide will then give an introductory talk about Laos' different ethnicities. Enjoy a buffet lunch on board before stopping off to visit Ban Baw and observe the local village’s traditional way of life. The boat will arrive in Pakbeng before the night.

Stay: The Sanctuary Pakbeng Lodge (Superior)

Embark the boat early morning with a takeaway breakfast box to enjoy on board. You'll then receive an introduction to how local drinks and desserts are made, which you'll eat later in the day. You'll make a stop to experience rural life at the traditional Kamu village of Ban Houy Phalam, home to just 90 families, before returning to the boat for a traditional lunch. Upon arrival at the Laos–Thailand Friendship Bridge in Chiang Khong, cross the border into Thailand. Your English-speaking guide will be waiting at the Immigration Office on the Thai side, and you’ll be transferred south by private car to your hotel in Chiang Rai.

Stay: The Legend of Chiang Rai Hotel (Superior)

Spend the day exploring nearby tribal villages and visiting the Golden Triangle. Set high amid the magnificent mountain scenery, the village of Mae Salong was founded by Kuomintang soldiers who fled China after Mao Tse Tung’s victory in 1949. The combination of pack horses, hill tribes and southern Chinese-style houses conjures images of a small town or village in Yunnan Province in China. There are many fruit wines and liquors on sale at the market and the local illicit corn whisky is in much demand. The tour ends with a visit to the infamous Golden Triangle, which was renowned for centuries as the centre of the opium trade. From the hilltop, admire the splendour of the mighty Mekong merging with the Ruak and forming the ‘triangle’ with Laos, Burma and Thailand. 

Stay: The Legend of Chiang Rai Hotel (Superior)

After breakfast, check out of your hotel and transfer to Chiang Rai Airport for your flight to London.

Arrive in London after your overnight flight and continue your onward journey home.