Can I just start by saying, I love Laos! It is an often overlooked destination in SE Asia, not having any beaches, but do yourself a favor and schedule a few days in Laos.
Our first day was spent in the city with our wonderful guide. Walking through the markets alone was an education. There were so many new vegetables, fruits, spices and meat that I had never seen before. Our guide was like an encyclopedia! We tasted a few things, but in general stayed away from anything fresh - as advised, most fresh produce should be avoided unless cooked.
Markets in Luang Prabang (Jessica Liles)
We visited a few temples and a museum and climbed a hill in the center of town with a temple on top and panoramic views of the city and the Mekong.
In the afternoon, we tried Laotian whisky and watched the distillation process before boarding our private long tail boat and cruising down the Mekong. You'd never see it if you didn't know it was there, but high on one of the banks is a cave that houses thousands of Buddhas - wooden, ceramic, metal, stacked 30 deep in some areas. Our guide explained that once a year families are selected to place a Buddha in the cave. More wealthy families have more extravagant contributions - like the life size Buddha just inside the entrance - but each one is unique.
Cave of Buddhas on the Mekong River (Jessica Liles)
Luang Prabang is such a charming city. The whole city is a UNESCO world heritage site, so the classic styles prevail throughout the city. No buildings over three stories means the entire city feels more open and less oppressive. The French influence is clear here as it is in northern Vietnam. Walking through the former palace (now museum) felt at times like being at my grandmother's house, with its mid-century modern furnishings. It really put into context just how young Laos' independence is.
Excellent safari trip with Adventure Life and Albatross Travel. Special shout out to our guides Eric Turasha (Kenya), and Blasi Shirima (Tanzania) from Albatross Travel. Both were world class!!! The trip went off without a hitch; all the camps were amazing…worth mentioning...one of the camps we were going to stay in on the Tanzanian side was damaged by high winds so we ended up in a different camp (Mara under Canvas Camp). Can't say enough good things! A great experience and superb service!!
Brenda Cox
1 day ago
very easy to deal with kassandra. she listened to what our interests were and planned a great trip for us. nothing to worry about!
carole therisod
1 day ago
Always professional knowledgeable and efficient. Jess H. is great.
Cynthia Gillett
2 days ago
My tour operator was helpful. Unfortunately she was unable to get my single-supplement canceled. Not too many tours charge for that anymore and I almost canceled my trip because of that.
Joel
2 days ago
Adventure Life went above and beyond to care for all our travel needs!!! From the flights, to the accommodations, the tours, the tour guides, the transfers, the scheduling, everything was top notch and our minds were blown away!! It was so nice to be able to travel to another country that we’d never been to before and have every detail laid out for us!! No stress, no searching where to go, what to do, fighting with tourist crowds, getting rental cars, etc…..,it was all done for us, very organized and worth every penny!! We will definitely use Adventure Life for our future travel plans!!! A+++
