About this trip
The typical short route through Laos takes in just Vientiane, then Vang Vieng, then Luang Prabang. Here, an eight-day version works in two extra nights at Xieng Khuang, where the Plain of Jars sits — an archaeological site with few parallels across Southeast Asia, one that many travellers have never come across before. The pay-off is a genuinely different stop on an otherwise standard Laos trip, added for the cost of only a couple of days.
Overland travel links Vientiane to Xieng Khuang by way of Vang Vieng, before a short domestic flight covers the final stretch into Luang Prabang, sparing you the long drive back. It suits travellers with even a passing curiosity about history or lesser-known destinations, and the best conditions fall between November and February, when highland roads and Vang Vieng's river levels are most cooperative.
Trip highlights
- Vientiane city tour, Buddha Park and a Mekong sunset boat trip
- Blue Lagoon swim and Tham Phukham Cave in Vang Vieng
- Jar Sites 1, 2 and 3 at the Plain of Jars, Xieng Khuang
- Muang Khun, the old provincial capital, and the UXO exhibition room
- Domestic flight from Xieng Khuang to Luang Prabang
- Pak Ou Caves and Kuang Si Falls in Luang Prabang
Day by day
Day 1: Arrival in Vientiane, city tour
Dating from 1818, Wat Sisaket — the oldest surviving temple in the capital — features on the afternoon tour, along with the Patuxay Monument, often compared to Paris's Arc de Triomphe. A sunset cruise on the Mekong closes out the day.
Day 2: Buddha Park, transfer to Vang Vieng
Statues by the hundred — Buddhist and Hindu figures brought over from India — fill the open grounds of Buddha Park, the morning's first stop before the drive on to Vang Vieng. En route, the drive pauses at Ban Tha Heu, known for its dried fish, and at the KM52 Hmong market.
Day 3: Vang Vieng sightseeing, transfer to Xieng Khuang
Checkout gives way to a morning at Tham Phukham Cave and the local market, where a swim in the Blue Lagoon precedes the long haul on to Xieng Khuang. Along the way, a photo stop at the Phou Khoun Phieng Fa viewpoint, prized for its green mountain views, breaks up the drive before you check in to your Xieng Khuang hotel.
Day 4: Xieng Khuang and the Plain of Jars
Xieng Khuang's history with unexploded ordnance is set out in the UXO exhibition room, one stop alongside the Central Market at the start of the day, before Jar Sites 2 and 3 come into view at the Plain of Jars. Muang Khun, once the seat of the old province, follows, its ruined pagodas and a sizeable seated Buddha statue still standing. Jar Site 1 closes out the day — the biggest of the sites, perched on a hill with sweeping views over the countryside below.
Day 5: Fly from Xieng Khuang to Luang Prabang
A short domestic flight from Xieng Khuang to Luang Prabang spares you the alternative — hours of driving back across the highland roads — leaving what remains of the day free to settle into this UNESCO World Heritage town, where the Mekong meets the Nam Khan River.
Day 6: Luang Prabang city tour and Pak Ou Caves
The National Museum, in the former Royal Palace, plus a run of temples en route to Wat Xiengthong, fill the morning, ahead of an afternoon Mekong cruise as far as the Pak Ou Caves, with a stop at Ban Xang Hai, where rice wine is distilled by hand. Pilgrims over many generations have left countless gold-leafed Buddha figures inside the caves, and the day closes with sunset marked atop Mount Phousi, climbed via its 328 steps.
Day 7: Luang Prabang city tour and Kuang Si Falls
A tiered waterfall some 30 minutes outside town, Kuang Si Falls anchors a second Luang Prabang day — its turquoise pools and shaded trails good for swimming and an easy last day of sightseeing.
Day 8: Departure
Your onward or return flight leaves from Luang Prabang International Airport, closing the trip, having moved you across four distinct corners of Laos in barely more than a week.
What's included
- English-speaking tour guides
- Land transportation by air-con vehicles
- Accommodation based on Twin-shared room with breakfast
- Meals as mentioned in the program (no drinks)
- Boat trips and admissions as mentioned in the program
- Drinking water during the touring day (2 bottles/person/day)
Not included
- Airfare (international and domestic) and airport tax ( on request )
- Visa services (Visa approval letter/Visa stamp fee/ Visa fast track on request)
- Early check-in/late check-out/ room upgrade surcharge
- Other meals, Drinks, and personal expenses (phone call, laundry, tipping etc.)
- Any services not mentioned in the program
- Optional Tours
Book this trip
- Days
- 7 nights / 8 days
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Full details on visas, payment and cancellations for this trip are covered on the [Laos travel information page](laos/travel-information).
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