Extension in Laos – Pakse and the 4,000 islands in 7 days

Take advantage of your stay in Vietnam to discover this extraordinary region of Laos.

Go on an 7-day tour combining cultural visits, meeting locals and culinary discoveries. Start with the Bolovens Plateau living to the rhythm of its waterfalls and tea and coffee plantations. Then sail between the 4,000 islands of the Mekong River living quietly to the rhythm of the water. Visit the Wat Phou temple, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001, and the bucolic village of Champasak.

Day 1: Pakse - Boloven Plateau

The local English-speaking guide will meet you at the airport upon arrival in Pakse.

Then head to the Plateau des Bolovens, famous for its waterfalls, its fertile lands offering the best teas and coffees in the country or even the Indochinese peninsula. You will not miss a few tastings, on the advice of your guide. On the way, stop at Wat Pa (Big Buddha Forest Temple) where you will be immediately overwhelmed by a sense of peace and quiet. Discover also the waterfalls of Tad Lo before reaching Thatheng and its ethnic villages (Lao Loum, Taoy, Lavenh, etc.) then arrival at the Resort.

Day 2: Boloven Plateau (B, L)

Breakfast, then departure at 8 a.m. to join Paksong and embark in Soviet or Chinese Jeeps of another time for a real immersion in the heart of the Boloven Plateau between rivers, tracks, villages and plantations of coffee and tea trees. You will reach Jhai Coffee house where you will take the time to enjoy a cup of coffee.

On the way to the waterfalls of Tad Moun, admire the vegetable crops of all kinds (ginger, cucumbers, cabbage, salads, etc.).

It will then be time to join the Khamsone coffee plantation for lunch at the farm, with coffee and fruit.

Then go to meet the Laven minorities to discover their lifestyle and their daily life and visit some traditional habitats before returning to the hotel.

Day 3: Boloven Plateau – 4,000 Islands (B)

After breakfast, drive to the impressive twin waterfalls of Tad Fane. Take the time to visit the Tad Yuang waterfall on the Bolovens plateau, as it has become more accessible and friendly to tourists in recent years and then head south.

Discover the village Taoy of Ban Nong Bune famous for its wood carvings. The village produces many interesting products, from ceremonial masks and sculptures to practical everyday objects such as wooden plates and outdoor lamps. Take a break at the Taoy village of Phonsaat, known for its funerary rituals and its artisans who boast the natural fibers then direction Nakasang, from where you will embark on a motor canoe that will lead you among the «4,000 islands» of the Mekong.

You will reach the islands of Done Det and Done Khone, peaceful lands with a very marked French colonial past with its buildings, its bridge connecting the 2 islands and its railway that allowed to transship goods on both sides of the cataracts.

Day 4: 4,000 islands (B)

Breakfast at the hotel then departure by bike on the sandy paths of the islands of Don Det and Don Khone accompanied by our guide! You will pass along flat paths that will lead you to unmissable sites such as that of the ancient locomotive, the bridge with 13 arches that dates from the French colonial era of the early twentieth century and which connects Don Det to Don Khone and the remains of colonial buildings.

Lunch and departure to the Lippi Falls, locally called Tad Sompamit (very easy level, flat route) while taking the peaceful rhythm of the island. An ideal and quiet way to observe, capture and soak up local and rural life. Activity is intense in the rainy season, when fishermen build bamboo fish traps in unlikely places at the risk of their lives. By taking paths on wires stretched above the furious waterfalls. Return to your hotel and quiet end of the day on the island.

Day 5: 4,000 islands - Champasak (B)

Breakfast then crossing by canoe to reach the mainland to reach the waterfalls of Khone Phapheng, further south, on the border with Cambodia. They are among the most impressive waterfalls in this region of Asia and are the largest in the world! Then go back to Champasak with a stop to visit another temple of the same era as the Wat Phou, the Vat Uomo (also called Oubmong). It also contains pre-Angkorian sculptures, including a beautiful Mukhalinga (a human-headed linga now located at the Vat Phou Museum).

After lunch at a local restaurant, explore the jewel of southern Laos: the temple of Wat Phou, a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2001. Its style is preangkorian. The cultural landscape of Champasak, including the entire temple of Wat Phou, represents an area of planned landscape dating back over a thousand years and remarkably well preserved. After discovering the site, visit the museum before arriving at the hotel and free dinner.

Day 6: Champasak (B)

Breakfast at the hotel before exploring the temple of Muang Kang. Dating back to the 19th century, Wat Muang Kang is the oldest active temple in Champasak. History lovers will appreciate the mix of European, Siamese, Burmese and Chinese influences in this temple with high white columns and steep roofs.

Then return to town for a walk through the picturesque alleys of Champasak to spot buildings of the colonial era still standing. With for example the current church of Champasak which is located in the locality of Bane Phanom, on the right bank of the Mekong, just south of Wat Luang Khao, at the time when the road to go from Champasak to Wat Phou departs from the banks of the great river.

Lunch then in the afternoon, transfer to the pier to cross the Mekong to the island of Don Daeng for a bike ride or walk on the picturesque paths of the island of Don Daeng. Here, no car… you will be very far from everything for a retreat combining serenity, rest, hiking and cycling in the heart of a preserved countryside remained very authentic. Return by boat to enjoy the sunset on the river, a unique moment at the time of the aperitif, at your discretion!

Day 7 : Champasak– Return flight (B)

Breakfast at the hotel and transfer to Pakse airport for your return flight.

Price 2024:

From 870 € per pax for 4 pax