Laos – 1 Month Itinerary

Laos was one of those countries that totally blew us away. We had absolutely zero expectations and we were really only visiting because we had the time to do so. Laos has remained one of our favourite spots of our entire SE Asia trip. Bordering Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam, you won’t struggle to find other backpackers to socialise with, in Laos. There’s seriously beautiful scenery and a pretty sweet nightlife – if that’s what you’re after.

The below is the itinerary that we followed throughout Laos. We spent 30 days here, looking back this was pretty generous. If you’ve got the time, great. If not, time spent in certain locations can be shortened.

Perfect if you have 1 month in Laos and are planning on travelling through to Cambodia.

TDLR : Huay Xai > Luang Prabang > Vang Vieng > Vientiane > 4000 islands

Huay Xai is a teeny tiny little border town. You will hit this town as soon as you cross the river from Thailand. You are unlikely to stop here unless you plan on taking part in The Gibbon Experience. There are no other backpackers here, apart from those taking part in The Gibbon Experience. From memory, it seemed this town’s tourism only existed because of… you guessed it. The Gibbon Experience.

The Gibbon Experience takes you out of Huay Xai and into the Nam Kan National park for trekking, ziplining and sleeping in the world’s highest treehouses. It is a seriously cool experience. We took part in the Waterfall Tour. I have never jumped in water so cold in my life. But hey, it’s all about the experiences, right?

This is a two-night gig so I allocated four days so that you have a day before (to check in at The Gibbon Experience office) and a day after to recuperate before you head on.

How to get there: The journey here should take around 2 -3 hours by bus from Chang Rai, Thailand.

Don’t Miss: Ummm…. Oh yeah. The Gibbon Experience

Luang Prabang is an absolute must. This was one of the most fun places we went to. So much so, that it’s a little bit of a blur. For those who wish to bypass The Gibbon Experience, you will still arrive in the same manner by slow boat from Huay Xai. This is a two-day affair, but don’t worry, you will stop halfway to get off and sleep in a hostel. We met a fun group of people and ended up sinking a few beers, playing some cards and making friends.

Luang Prabang has an excellent night market. This includes food, clothes, souvenirs and more. We wandered around here most nights and ventured further past it when we wanted something more substantial from one of the many restaurants.

One of the most popular draws to the area is the Kuang Si Falls. A beautiful waterfall with an area for swimming and jumping in. There’s also a steep hike with banging views from the top. Trips here are super easy to arrange, it’s not hard to find a driver willing to take you.

Note: If there’s a big group of you, don’t be surprised if you driver asks for your Kuang Si Falls ticket money upfront. If they buy everyone in the taxi’s ticket they get a commission which pays for their lunch whilst they wait for you to finish having fun.

I’m serious. There is a bowling alley which seems to stay open when all the bars close. They’ll sell you a whole bottle of Laos Vodka and mixer for about £5. Get a lane and bowl the night away. Shot per gutter ball, per strike, per split, per spare.

There are a number of tourist agencies in town who will jump at the chance to take your money. We went on a kayaking / white water rafting trip which, in true Asian fashion, didn’t follow the planned itinerary. We still had a great time and enjoyed taking in the views. I mean I probably enjoyed it more than the others because the tour operators (in true Asian fashion), only packed 4 sets of oars for the 5 of us.

The capital of Laos often gets overlooked on the backpacker circuit. A lot of people will stay north and travel through to Vietnam. We were making our way south to cross the border into Cambodia so we decided to spend a few days here.

Contrary to popular belief, there is stuff going on in the capital. It’s pretty chill but you can find some good spots – especially for Western food. Close to where we were staying, there was a little area called Cowboy park. This consisted of lots of mini restaurants and bars, live music and tonnes of people eating and drinking the night away. There wasn’t a backpacker vibe here as such but we still had a great time.

In terms of sightseeing, we ventured to the Patuxai monument, the Buddha Park and the COPE visitor centre. You can read more about our time here.

Don’t Miss: COPE visitor centre. This showcases the detrimental damage that bombs have had on the country and the great work this organisation are doing to help those affected by them.

As previously mentioned, Laos often gets overlooked but we have no idea why. OK, so Laos doesn’t quite have some of the most sought-after and iconic bucket list items that its neighbouring countries can offer… Thailand has the Grand Palace, Cambodia has Angkor Wat, Vietnam has Ha Long Bay (to name a few). But it does have gorgeous scenery, a slow-paced relaxed feel and we found it to be a great place where we met some of the nicest people we’ve met whilst backpacking.

I write this message from Vietnam 6 months after leaving Laos. We were looking for somewhere to chill out for our last couple of weeks and Laos was a seriously big contender. If it weren’t for the location of The 4000 islands (not being close to an airport) I would most likely be writing this post from there.

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