Laos in Depth: Luang Prabang, Plain of Jars and the 4,000 Islands in 17 Days

Your driver meets you at Luang Prabang airport and takes you to your hotel. Luang Prabang is a UNESCO World Heritage town where gilded temples, wooden houses and French-era villas line two rivers. There is nothing scheduled today, so you can rest after your flight or take an easy first walk along the Mekong, where the light at sunset turns the water gold.Overnight: Luang Prabang

Your guide leads an in-depth walk through the lesser-known lanes of the heritage town, pointing out the four types of buildings protected by UNESCO: Lao stilt houses, half-wood French-era homes, colonial villas and Chinese shophouses. In the afternoon visit Wat Sene and Wat Xieng Thong, then Heuan Chan, a restored 19th-century noble house where you learn about Lao ceremonies and family life over a cup of local coffee or tea. Continue to the Royal Palace Museum and Wat Mai, climb Mount Phousi for sunset and finish at the night market.Overnight: Luang Prabang · Meals: B

After breakfast, board a boat upstream on the Mekong through quiet countryside to the Pak Ou Caves, a 16th-century cave shrine in the limestone cliffs filled with thousands of Buddha images. On the way, stop at Ban Xang Hai, known for distilling rice spirit. Back in town, visit the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre (closed Mondays) to learn about the many ethnic groups of Laos. Then drive out to Ban Xang Khong, a Tai Lue craft village, and nearby Ban Xieng Lek, where families make saa paper by hand.Overnight: Luang Prabang · Meals: B

Rise before dawn to watch the alms round, as monks in saffron robes walk the streets to receive sticky rice. Browse the morning market near the palace, full of fresh produce and crafts, then return for breakfast. Drive out to Kuang Si, the largest waterfall near Luang Prabang, where three tiers spill into turquoise pools that are perfect for a swim. Walk to the quieter falls near Ban Thapene and, if you wish, visit the Bear Rescue Centre. On the way back stop at Ock Pop Tok, a riverside textile center where artisans weave and dye fabrics.Overnight: Luang Prabang · Meals: B

Spend the morning in a hands-on Lao cooking class. With a local teacher you learn about herbs, sticky rice and the dips and salads at the heart of Lao food, then prepare several dishes and sit down to eat them for lunch. In the afternoon, visit Ban Phanom, a Tai Lue village just outside town known for hand-woven silk and cotton, and watch weavers at work on their wooden looms. Return to your hotel with the rest of the day at leisure.Overnight: Luang Prabang · Meals: B, L

A day at your own pace with nothing scheduled. Revisit a favorite temple, cycle along the Nam Khan, book a massage or simply sit at a riverside cafe and watch the boats go by. You might also browse the craft shops along the main street or take a quiet walk to the temples across the Nam Khan. In the evening, the night market and the small restaurants of the old town are an easy walk from most hotels.Overnight: Luang Prabang · Meals: B

After a free morning, your driver takes you to the station for the express train south to Vang Vieng, a ride of about one hour through tunnels and green valleys. On arrival, transfer to your hotel. Vang Vieng sits on the Nam Song River beneath steep limestone peaks, and the view from the riverbank at sunset is one of the best in Laos.Overnight: Vang Vieng · Meals: B

A full day in the karst. Start at Tham Jang, a cave once used as a refuge by local people, then Tham Nang Fa, known for its large limestone formations and stalactites. If you like, add a zipline flight over the forest for a small extra charge. Continue to Blue Lagoon 2, a quiet spot with clear blue water for a swim. Later, enjoy a 30-minute ride upstream on the Nam Song in a local long-tail boat, two people per boat. Stop at a village or market on the way back, and enjoy sunset over the river.Overnight: Vang Vieng · Meals: B

Drive 14 km north to Tham Xang, a cave shrine on the Nam Song named for its rock formations. Nearby, explore the long corridors of Tham Hoi and the stalagmites of the Loop Cave, then reach Tham Nam, where a cool spring flows from the cave mouth and you can float inside on a tube. Walk 2 km through rice paddies and gardens to the Hmong village of Phathao. In the afternoon, drive to Vientiane, the relaxed capital on the Mekong, where Lao, Thai, Chinese, Vietnamese and French influences meet.Overnight: Vientiane · Meals: B

Begin at Wat Si Muang, then drive 45 minutes to Buddha Park, a riverside garden of more than 200 Buddhist and Hindu statues. Back in town, visit the COPE Visitor Centre, which supports people injured by unexploded bombs and explains the long effort to clear them. In the afternoon, see Pha That Luang, the most sacred monument in Laos, climb Patuxai for a view over the city, and visit Wat Sisaket and Haw Phra Kaew. End with a walk along the Mekong as the sun sets.Overnight: Vientiane · Meals: B

Transfer to the airport for the short flight to Xieng Khouang. Your local guide meets you on arrival and takes you on a half-day trip to Muang Khoun, the old provincial capital. Among its quiet ruins you see a large seated Buddha, the columns and foundations of Wat Phia Wat and a 30-meter stupa from the Lan Xang period. Return to Phonsavan, the provincial town, for the night.Overnight: Phonsavan (Xieng Khouang) · Meals: B

Start early at Phonsavan's central market, where hill-tribe families trade produce. After breakfast, visit the MAG UXO Visitor Centre, run by the organization that has helped clear unexploded ordnance in Laos since 1994. Then walk among the great stone jars of Site 1, the largest and closest site of the Plain of Jars, some up to three meters tall and around 2,000 years old. Paths are clearly marked and you stay on them throughout. Fly back to Vientiane in the afternoon.Overnight: Vientiane · Meals: B

A day at leisure in the capital. Visit the morning market, linger over a French-style breakfast, see the Lao National Museum or book a traditional herbal sauna and massage. Cafes and bakeries around Nam Phou fountain are perfect for a slow lunch. In the evening, the Mekong promenade fills with food stalls, aerobics groups and families out for a stroll, a lively and very local end to the day.Overnight: Vientiane · Meals: B

Fly south to Pakse, the largest town in southern Laos. Your guide meets you and you head up onto the Bolaven Plateau, where the air is noticeably cooler. Stop at Tad Fan, a striking twin waterfall dropping into the forest, and, if time allows, Tad Yeung, with natural pools for a swim. Visit Ban Lak Sipchet, a village of knife makers, and Ban Lak Samsip, known for bamboo baskets. Finish at a coffee plantation to see how Lao coffee is grown and processed, then return to Pakse.Overnight: Pakse · Meals: B

Drive to Wat Phou, a Khmer temple complex on a hillside above rice fields, older than Angkor Wat and listed by UNESCO. Climb the stone stairway to the sanctuary for a wide view over the Mekong plain. Continue south with a stop at Ban Nong Bune, a village of skilled woodcarvers. Then reach Si Phan Don, the 4,000 Islands, where the Mekong spreads up to 14 km wide. A short boat ride from Ban Nakasang takes you to your hotel on Don Khone.Overnight: Don Khone · Meals: B

Explore Don Khone, a quiet island of rice fields and villages with relics of the French colonial era, including old buildings and the remains of the first railway in Laos with its vintage locomotive. Take a tuk-tuk to Li Phi Falls, a powerful set of rapids near the Cambodian border. Return to the mainland at Ban Nakasang and drive to Khone Phapheng, the largest waterfall by volume in Southeast Asia, where the whole Mekong thunders over a wide rock shelf. Drive back to Pakse in the afternoon.Overnight: Pakse · Meals: B

Enjoy a free morning in Pakse, perhaps a walk along the Mekong or a last Lao coffee in town. Pakse is a small, easygoing town, and the riverside cafes are a pleasant place to sit and look back on the journey from the mountains of the north to the islands of the south. Your driver takes you to Pakse airport in good time for your departure flight.Meals: B