Our favorite Laos tours and excursions

If destinations and accommodation are the bread and butter of a great vacation, a hands-on cultural experience is the secret sauce that brings it all to life.

We know that not everyone likes the idea of organized fun. You don’t need your hand held – we get it. But we also know that we’d bet our bottom kip that even the most die-hard independent travelers will fall for our incredible guides, whose in-depth knowledge and personal stories make every experience special.

The reason we can be so confident is because we’re independent travelers ourselves, and we know there’s nothing worse than coughing up for a cultural class or guided tour only to find that it feels inauthentic and touristy. That’s why we only recommend experiences we’ve personally road-tested and absolutely loved – no cookie-cutter day trips, no lackluster guides, and no doing something just because everyone else is.

In Laos, that means trekking up 100 waterfalls to picnic off banana leaves against the backdrop of the Nam Ou River Valley. It means cycling around the islands of the Mekong, stopping to watch craftsmen weaving bamboo and eating dinner with a local family. It means swapping Luang Prabang’s World Heritage architecture for its rural fringes, exploring the minority villages and tumbledown temples that line the banks of the Mekong.

We can take you beyond the standard tourist sites, but it takes the knowledge of a local to bring those places to life – and these experiences are the way to do it.

Meet the ethnic groups of Muang La

In the hills around remote Muang La, undisturbed by the modern world, the Khmu live in teakwood stilt houses, the Hmong raise pigs and buffalo, and the Ikhos produce dyes made with plant extracts foraged from the forest.

Traveling by 4x4 between their villages, you’ll have the chance to interact with people who rarely meet tourists and learn about the many cultural differences between these ethnic minorities. Then, to round it all off, hike up to a waterfall with spectacular views across the mountains. This is a rare opportunity to dove into the authentic life of the countryside in a breathtakingly beautiful part of Laos.

MandaLao Elephant Sanctuary

We’ve seen a lot of wildlife sanctuaries in our time, and this one might be the very best.

Looking after retired working elephants in conditions as close to their natural habitat as possible, the dedicated people at MandaLao have made it their mission to improve the lot of Laos’s dwindling elephant population through ecotourism. This is a chance to interact with one of the world’s most magnificent creatures in a way that makes a positive difference to their future – and we can’t recommend it enough.

Trekking in Nong Khiaw

There aren’t many trekking locations more impressive than Nong Khiaw, and this challenging route up the “100 waterfalls” is one of our favorites.

This multi-level cascade goes on for ten kilometers, with terrain varying from flat and gentle to near-vertical, with some wading, a little scrambling, and bamboo ladders fixed in place for the trickier sections. It’s sweaty work, but there are plenty of inviting pools in which to take a dip along the way, and you’ll be rewarded with a packed lunch served on banana leaves against a backdrop of spectacular views over the Nam Ou Valley.

Boules & Barbecue

What does Laos have in common with turn-of-the-century Provence? An abiding love of the boules, for one thing.

Join an amateur petanque league and you’ll soon find out that this is one of the best ways to get to know the locals. Over some drinks and snacks, your new teammates will show you how to toss a metal ball as close to the “jack” as possible, while trying to knock your opponents’ balls out of the way. Then, as the sun goes down, cross a bamboo bridge to a riverside restaurant for another quintessential Lao experience: Sin Dat Barbecue, where you grill your own food over a bucket of hot coals.

Treetop explorer

Not for the faint-hearted, this two-day guided jungle adventure will take you deep into the mountains of Doung Hua Sao National Park.

Trek through the coffee plantations and into the wild, semi-evergreen jungle to reach giant multi-level waterfalls. Then, criss-cross through gorges on zipwires, and take on a heart-thumping, via-ferrata-style walkway secured to the rockface with bolts and harnesses. There are no two ways about it: this is easily the most thrilling way to fully immerse yourself in the Lao jungle.

Soft Adventure in Nong Khiaw

Imagine kayaking to remote villages of silk-weaving workshops, picnicking by the river on the fringes of the jungle, swimming in pools created by thundering waterfalls, and then returning to your guesthouse to watch the sun set over some of the most otherworldly scenery Asia has to offer.

That could be any old day in Nong Khiaw – which is why it’s one of our favorite places in the world to scratch that adventurous itch. Whether you’re more paddy field stroll or heart-pumping summit trek, we can arrange hiking, biking, caving, climbing, boating and kayaking until you drop.