DAY 1
Depart on your scheduled flight to Bangkok, capital of neighbouring Thailand.
DAY 2
Arrival in Bangkok. Transfer to your hotel for a two night stay.
DAY 3
Included this morning is a sightseeing tour of Bangkok, including the grand Palace and the beautiful emerald Buddha Temple. During the evening there will be a special Thai dinner, with a performance of traditional dancing.
DAY 4
Morning transfer to the airport for the flight to mystical Luang Prabang in northern Laos for a three night stay. Comprehensive, included sightseeing will begin in the afternoon (see bottom right opposite page).
DAY 5
Further included sightseeing in Luang Prabang. Then take a boat upstream to the sacred Pak Ou cave, which houses thousands of Buddha statues. Picnic lunch by the river, followed by an afternoon visit to Ban Phanom, a weaving village populated by the minority Lu people.
DAY 6
At leisure in Luang Prabang.
DAY 7
Morning flight to Vientiane, capital of Laos and also situated on the Mekong for a two night stay. It is a small, intriguing city, full of Lao, Chinese and French influences. Our included sightseeing features the gigantic, glorious That Luang stupa, Laos’ national symbol and one of its most sacred sites, and haw Pha Kaew, from which the famous Emerald Buddha (now in Bangkok) was stolen in 1779. You will also visit the Patuxai, a victory monument resembling the Arc de Triomphe, and si saket, perhaps Laos’ most beautifully designed temple.
DAY 8
Morning included visit to the extraordinary Buddha Park outside the city. This is a unique and amazing collection of Buddhist and Hindu fantastical figures – some very large and all highly bizarre. En route you will see the Friendship Bridge, which crosses the Mekong to Thailand on its far bank. Rest of the day free to explore the delights of Vientiane.
DAY 9
Early morning flight from Vientiane to Pakse in southern Laos, and the start of a fascinating three days amongst the tribal minorities, stunning beauty and cultural riches of this diverse region. Transfer to the your hotel before driving to the Bolaven Plateau to visit tea and coffee plantations, the remarkable waterfalls at Tad Fan and Tad Lo, visiting the minority villages, with their stilt houses, where ancient spirit and animal worship is still practised. Late afternoon return to Pakse, a bustling market town on the banks of the Mekong.
DAY 10
Drive south to take a ferry across the Mekong to Champassak in order to visit the remarkable Wat Phou temple ruins. This early Khmer temple pre-dates Angkor Wat and defines the easternmost border of the mighty Khmer empire. After lunch you will re-cross the Mekong and drive to the traditional village of Kiet ngong, where working elephants are still used. A 60-minute elephant ride through fascinating countryside is included. You then continue south and cross the Mekong by small boat to Don Khong Island, in the fabled 4000 Islands region. Transfer to your hotel for an overnight stay, right on the banks of the Mekong.
DAY 11
This morning take a bicycle ride around the island before departing by boat for the one hour trip downstream to Don Khong Island. Here you will see the old bridge and train used by the French to transfer goods upstream around the still impassable waterfalls and rapids which make this part of Laos such a scenic wonderland. Continue to the dramatic Phapheng Waterfalls before driving to the border trading village of Vuenknam, which looks across the river to Cambodia. Late afternoon return by road to Pakse and an overnight stay.
DAY 12
Morning visit to the local market before driving across the border into Thailand and continuing to ubon ratchathani for your flight to Bangkok for a final overnight stay.
DAY 13
Late morning transfer for the return flight to the UK, with arrival later the same day.