Laos Itineraries

Check in, walk to Patuxai Victory Monument for city views, then head to the Mekong.

The award-winning Lao restaurant with a social mission. Your best first meal in the country.

Laos' most sacred monument. Arrive before tour groups for a quiet, spiritual experience.

6,800 Buddha images at Wat Si Saket, then tuk-tuk to the surreal Buddha Park (Xieng Khuan) 25km south — giant concrete statues in a riverside meadow.

Fill a plate of Lao street food for under $2. The quintessential Vientiane evening.

Take the 9am VIP bus (~$8) or hire a minivan ($12). 3.5 hours through rice paddies and limestone scenery. Arrives around lunchtime.

Rent a kayak ($5–8) and paddle the Nam Song river past the karst mountains. The scenery is extraordinary. Many operators offer guided half-day trips with cave swimming.

The rooftop bars along the riverside turn golden at sunset with the limestone peaks as a backdrop. Organic Farm Restaurant or Vang Vieng Boutique Resort bar.

Swim across the river to Tham Chang Cave ($1.50), then continue 6km to the Blue Lagoon — a natural swimming hole beneath a limestone cliff. Rope swing into the water.

Cycle 4km north through rice paddies to this working farm. Set lunch with garden-grown ingredients, mulberry wine and mulberry tea. Completely unique to Vang Vieng.

The Pha Ngern viewpoint (1-hour hike) gives a panoramic view over the valley and river. Best light for photos is 3–4pm. Bring water — it's steep.

45-minute train through limestone scenery. Vang Vieng now has its own station — one of the most scenic short train journeys in Asia.

Check in and explore the UNESCO heritage old town at a leisurely pace. Wat Xieng Thong is unmissable — the golden mosaic rear wall is Luang Prabang's artistic masterpiece.

Fill a plate at the Sisavangvong Night Market — the best $0.70 meal of your life. Then walk the illuminated old town streets.

Watch in respectful silence as monks collect alms at dawn on Sakkaline Road. One of the most moving rituals in Asia.

Tuk-tuk 30km south. The turquoise tiered pools are some of the most beautiful natural formations in Southeast Asia. Swim, hike, photograph.

328 steps for the best panoramic view in Laos. Then dinner at Tamarind for your best meal of the trip.

2-hour boat up the Mekong to the ancient cave shrines. Thousands of Buddha images fill two cave chambers. The river journey is as memorable as the destination.

The former Royal Palace is now a fascinating museum with the Prabang Buddha (Laos' most sacred image), royal regalia, and gifts from world leaders. Compact and worthwhile.

The riverside tasting menu. The finest Lao cuisine in the country. Book ahead — fills up every single night.

Arrive, walk Wat Xieng Thong, catch the alms ceremony at 5:30am next morning. Night market dinner.

Morning at the waterfall, afternoon at Wat Si Phoun, Phousi Hill for sunset, Tamarind for dinner.

Morning boat to Pak Ou, afternoon at Tamarind cooking class. Royal Palace Museum before dinner.

3-hour drive through mountain scenery along the Nam Ou river. Arrive and check into a riverside guesthouse ($15–30).

45-minute hike to the most spectacular viewpoint in northern Laos. Two limestone karst peaks tower over the river valley. Go at golden hour.

40-minute boat downriver to the car-free village of Muang Ngoi. Trek to local caves, swim in the river, have lunch at a village guesthouse. Back by 4pm.

Morning minivan back to LP, then train to Vang Vieng (45 min, $5). Afternoon on the Nam Song river by kayak. Sunset rooftop bar.

Tham Chang Cave, Blue Lagoon swim, Organic Farm lunch, Pha Ngern viewpoint hike. The best day in Vang Vieng.

Train to Vientiane (2hr), then Lao Airlines flight to Pakse. Arrive by afternoon. Check in and have dinner at Delta Coffee for your first Bolaven espresso.

The finest Bolaven coffee in southern Laos. Then walk the old French quarter and eat at Champa Restaurant — the best local cooking in Pakse.

Rent a semi-automatic motorbike ($12/day) or hire a driver ($60). Head to Paksong via the coffee farm road — stop at roadside stalls to buy fresh-roasted beans directly from farmers.

Two spectacular twin waterfalls dropping 120m through jungle. Tat Fan is the most dramatic — a viewing platform looks directly into the mist. Tat Yuang is swimmable.

The plateau is home to the Alak and Katu peoples. Several villages welcome visitors. Ask your guesthouse to arrange a respectful guided visit.

2-hour bus to Nakasang, then a 5-minute boat to Don Det island. Hire a bicycle ($2/day) and ride the island loop — rice fields, stilted villages, the quietest Laos you'll find.

The Mekong Irrawaddy dolphins are critically endangered — only ~80 remain. At dawn, boat to the pool near Don Khon and watch them surface in the pink morning light. One of the world's rarest wildlife sightings.

Find a riverside bungalow hammock as the sun sets behind the Thai hills. Grilled fish, sticky rice, Beer Lao. The perfect end to 10 days in Laos.