12 DAYS IN LAOS FROM LUANG PRABANG INCLUDING A 5 DAYS TREK AND A DAY ON THE MEKONG.

This 5 days trek can be included as follow in a 12 days trip in Northern Laos starting from Luang Prabang. The route crosses Southern Phongsaly province overlapping Udomsai province. Numerous hill tribes live close to each other perpetuating an ancestral way of life following a rich and complex code. Their names are Akha, Pala (Tibeto-Burman ethnic family), Khamu (Mon-Khmer) and Tai Yang (Tai-Kadai). The highest altitude of the trek is 1100m. The average walking duration is 4 to 5 hours per day along trails used by minorities to go to their fields, to the jungle or down to the valley. We’ll walk through primary forests, along mountain crest, we’ll cross fords. When we arrive in a village, we go directly to the headman’s house whose duty is to accommodate outsiders and give them directions. Very happy few foreigners venture up-hill due to a lack of appropriate organization. There fore a guide in absolutely necessary to approach a population that has almost not contact with the modern world. We’ll take our meals prepared by the porters (wild game, chicken, fresh vegetables and food brought from Luang Prabang). The porters, ethnic Lao loum, are very familiar with the fauna and flora of the area. Their knowledge is always appreciated. Water is canalized through bamboo tubes along the trails. We’ll go for a shower outside the village escorted by children who go to fetch water for their home.
Heavy backpacks stay down in the valley. A small rucksack is sufficient to carry personal belongings for the day.
Small presents for our host are welcome such as flashlights, pocket calculators, school stationary, light medicine. The total length of the trek is 5 days and 4 nights but I can propose other itineraries. Contact me.

Day1 :Flight Bangkok-Luang Prabang on Bangkok airways or Lao airlines.Transfert to the guest house close to the Mekong river. Stroll downtown in the historic center from temple to temple. Chat with monks.Sunset from Pousi hill. View of Luang Prabang D2: Bus to the mountainous province of Phongsaly up North via Udomsai province. Meet the porters and stay with them in a house on stilt by a river. D3: Bus for the departure point of the trek. Hike through paddy fields, river crossings. Rest in an ethnic Tai Yang village. Visit the primary school and meet the teacher. Night at the headman’s house. D4: steep climb to an ethnic Akha village through paddy and poppy fields. D5: hike along a crest to another Akha village passing a deep tropical forest. rice about to be harvested D6: hike through hills and forest to a Khamu village, the first inhabitants of Laos. D7: hike down hill back to the valley through magnificent paddy fields. Rest in a Khamu village halfway. Bus to Udomsai town. Night in a guest house. D8: bus to reach the Mekong river at Pak Beng. A Khamu woman and her child D9: complete day on the Mekong on a slow boat. Stops in a couple of villages. Visit the caves of Tamting (sheltering over 4000 Buddha images) opposite Pak Ou fishing village. Night in a guest house in Luang Prabang. the port of Pak Beng D10: visit the former Royal palace now a museum, Vat Xieng Thong, the chapel sheltering the royal chariot, handicraft workshops: silversmith, paper making.   D11: visit a pottery center by boat, half-day trip by tuk-tuk to Kuang si waterfalls. Back to Luang Prabang for shopping at the night market. massage and steambath at the Lao Red Cross.   morning alms D12: see the early morning alms of the monks. morning at leisure.Direct flight to Bangkok on Bangkok airways or Lao airlines. TARIFF PER PERSON ON THE BASIS OF 2 PERSONS: 1500 € 4 PERSONS: 1100 € 6 PERSONS:   950 € 7 PERSONS:   850 € INCLUDE: the flights Bangkok-Luang Prabang-Bangkok, all meals, porters & cooks during the trek, transportation, entrance fees, accommodation as described above. DOES NOT INCLUDE: Lao visa, drinks.