Luang Prabang on a glance

On arrival at the Luang Prabang airport, you will be met and transferred to check in the hotel.

Situated in the centre of northern Laos, Luang Prabang is classified as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding cultural, historic and architectural values and its harmonious relationship between the natural and built environment.

There is no activities planned for today, so you may stroll around for the first impression of this ancient city. 

Overnight in Luang Prabang
 

After breakfast, you will first visit Royal Palace Museum, which was built in 1904 during the French colonial era for King Sisavang Vong and his family. 

We then embark on a leisure cruise upstream on the Mekong River, which also gives us a breathtaking view of the tranquil countryside, before reaching the mysterious Pak Ou Caves, two linked caves crammed with thousands of gold lacquered Buddha statues of various shapes and sizes left by pilgrims.  

Along the way, we stop at the village of Ban Xanghai, where they make the local rice wine. 

On arrival back in the city, we will visit the old Wat Sene and the nearby magnificent Wat Xiengthong a superb piece of Lao temple architecture, which presents a sweeping two-tiered roof and ornate mosaics including a beautiful ‘tree of life ‘glass montage on the rear temple wall.  

If time permits, we will drive out of the city to visit Ban Xangkhong, the Thai Lue village, which is famous for its arts and crafts. We also visit the nearby village of Ban Xienglek specializing in making the traditional Saa paper.

You can either get to the nearby village and join a petanque game with the local team

Late afternoon, we will make a stop at Wat Prabath to admire the sunset; this is the ideal place to catch the last beauty of the day. 

The tour ends after a visit to the famous Night Market, where you can find a lovely collection of handmade textiles made by local and hilltribe people surrounding Luang Prabang. 

Overnight in Luang Prabang

Wake up as the sun rises, we will prepare to join the most sacred tradition of Laos, the daily morning alms giving, which dates to the 14th century. More than 200

Buddhist monks depart from various temple to gather their daily meal from the faithful residents sitting quietly on the streets.

We then visit the temporary morning market near the former Royal Palace. Just set on the ground, the local people come here to barter their day’s catch from rice, to vegetable, to fish, or chicken. 

After breakfast at the hotel, we ascend the 329 steps to the top of Phousi Hill for a panoramic view of the city and the Mekong River. 

If time permits, we will visit UXO Visitor Center (closed on Saturday, and Sunday), where you can find the documentation about the secret war in Laos.

Then transfer directly to the beautiful Kuang Si, which is the biggest waterfall in the Luang Prabang area with three tiers leading to a 50-metre drop into spectacular azure pools before flowing downstream. The pools also make great swimming holes and are very popular with both tourists and locals

There is also the chance to walk to the nearby village of Ban Thapene, and explore the hidden waterfalls, which is rarely visited by other tourists

If you wish, take a short visit to the Bear Rescue Center, which houses a couple of dozen animals rescued from the hands of poachers and traffickers.

On the way back to Luang Prabang, we will take a short visit to the Ock Pop Tock Living Craft Center, set serenely close to the Mekong, this beautiful, traditionally styled workshop, where weavers, spinners and batik makers produce top-quality fabrics, offers free tours every half-hour. This is also one of the best spots to admire the sunset in Luang Prabang

Transfer back to your hotel late afternoon. Overnight in Luang Prabang

8:00 am - 8:30 am:  Pick up by our English speaking guide from your hotel lobby within Luang Prabang, Laos

Arrive at the Elephant Village Camp: Welcome greeting by your guide and participate in a short briefing about Lao elephants and our special herd

Elephant Feeding: Get up close and personal with elephants

Explore Elephant Village:  Visit our elephant hospital, museum, gallery and dung paper making facility!

One on One Experience: Enjoy the impressive experience of being a Mahout! 1 person per elephant
Trail of Falls Trek: Enjoy a 2 km trek on foot through the diverse jungle landscape of our exclusive Trail of Falls

Lunch: Dine in the forest surroundings with our freshly prepared picnic box lunch from our camp restaurant (vegetarian options available)

Continue the Trail of Falls: Enjoy another 1 km trek on foot along our exclusive Trail of Falls leading up to Tad Sae Waterfall where you can relax or swim in its cool natural pools  (water levels vary with seasonal conditions)

Boat trip back to camp:  Traverse the Nam Khan River in a traditional Lao long boat from the waterfall back to our Elephant Camp. You just might see traditional fishing methods and other various ways with which the local villagers make use of and enjoy the river.

3:00 pm - 4:00 pm Depart: Transfer back to your Hotel in Luang Prabang between 3 and 4:00 pm

You are free to stroll around the town for your own exploration before taking the departure flight