Day 1: Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang (Lunch)
Transfer to the hotel. Lunch in a typical restaurant. Visit Luang Prabang, the ancient royal capital located in a valley on the middle course of the Mekong and declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO. The numerous temples give the town a sense of mysticism and spirituality that is felt by every visitor. We visit Wat Visoun, Wat Sené and Wat Xieng Thong. In the late afternoon, we climb to Wat Chom Si, at the top of the Phu Si hill, to wait for the sunset and enjoy the beautiful view. Return to the hotel.
Day 2: Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang (Breakfast, Lunch)
Early departure by boat to visit the caves of Pak Ou, located about one hour upriver. The first stop is in a village where, among various interesting traditional activities, the lao-lao (national liquor) is distilled. We continue upriver until we reach the famous caves of Pak Ou. The caves are high in a vertical cliff and a long wooden stairway leads to the entrance. The inside is filled with thousands of Buddha images, from various times, offered by the people. Lunch in a typical restaurant. On the way back we moor on the right bank of the Mekong, in front of Luang Prabang, for a short walk to the village of Ban Xangkong Sa, famous for its paper processing workshops and its ancient temples. Return to Luang Prabang to visit the handicrafts market on the main street that opens in the evenings only. Return to the hotel.
Day 3: Vientiane
Luang Prabang - Vientiane (Breakfast, Lunch)
Early wake-up call (before dawn) to watch the daily silent procession of over 200 monks, with the Patriarch at their head, who silently accept the food offered by the people. Return to the hotel for breakfast. Visit the National Museum inside the building of the Royal Palace. A rich collection of objects that belonged to the treasure of the royal family is displayed in the large, breezy rooms. The most precious item here is the Phra Bang, the gold statue symbol of the ancient Lan Xang kingdom. Transfer to the airport. Flight to Vientiane. Transfer to the hotel. Lunch in a typical restaurant. In the afternoon, visit the main temples of the city. Passing the side of the Patuxai, a triumphal arch characteristic of the city, you reach the most sacred place of all Laos, the That Luang, a grandiose stupa that is said to contain a relic of the Buddha. You return to the heart of the old city to visit the ancient Wat Si Saket, where more than two thousand images of the Buddha are kept. We cross the road and enter Wat Phra Keo, where we visit the Museum of Religious Art. Return to the hotel.
Day 4: Pakse
Vientiane - Pakse (Breakfast, Lunch)
Transfer to the airport. Flight to Pakse. Arrival and transfer to the hotel. Lunch in a typical restaurant. Visit the Bolaven plateau, a region known for tea and coffee plantations. Afterward, we visit villages where the local ethnic groups Laven, Alak, Nghé and Suei live. Each village is built around a sacred open space in the center where the protector spirit dwells. Return to the hotel.
Day 5:
Pakse (Breakfast, Lunch)
After crossing the Mekong we reach Champassak for a visit to the very sacred Wat Phou, a place of great spiritual power for centuries, where the emperors of Angkor worship the god Shiva. Now the temple is revered by the Laotian and Cambodian Buddhists. Lunch in a typical restaurant. Transfer to the airport or to the Thailand/Laos border.
