NORTHERN LAOS FAMILY ADVENTURE

You will arrive in Luang Namthta either from Vientiane by plane, or From Luang Prabang by car (8hours) or from the northern Thailand border by car (3 hours from Houay Xay). A Discovery Dmc staff will pick you up from your point of arrival and transfer you to your hotel where you can relax for the end of the day.

For early arrivals, we can organize a nice bicycle tour in the country side around Luang Namtha.

This excursion today is a pleasant paddling and exploring villages along the banks of the Nam Tha River. Wildlife can be seen while paddling.

The day begins with some basic paddle instruction and equipment familiarization before taking to the river in single or double kayaks. The Nam Tha meanders through changing forest types, inhabited by animals, such as sun bear, tiger and barking deer and a great variety of birds. The border of the Nam Ha Protected Area is reached in the Lanten village of Ban Sope Dute. Various sets of exciting but safe rapids lead up to a lunch break on the riverside.

After a typical Lao picnic, there is time for relaxation and a refreshing swim. The next paddling stretch takes the group to the Khmu village of Ban Sop Sim Noy. We continue until reaching Ban Hat Yawng of Khmu village for the night. Approximately: 20 minutes transfer/ 5 hours kayaking or rafting.

After breakfast, we are ready to trek back to Luang Namtha. The first 15 minutes trek is passing through rice paddy field. We eventually enter the primary forest of Nam Ha National Park. Here the trail traverses old growth forests, follows streams along which we will notice signs of the abundant wildlife in the area. If we are lucky, we may even see some.

Our picnic lunch is served in the forest. After lunch, we continue 2 more hours trek and then cross the Nam Ha River on a bamboo raft. We hike through the forest along the banks of the Nam Tha. Monkeys have been reported in this area. If we walk quietly and luck is on our side, we may hear them. From the other side of the Nam Ha River we take a transfer back to Luang Namtha. Approximately: 4-5 hours trekking.

Relaxed breakfast and transfer (time is up to you) to Houay Xay by private Minivan (around 4 hours) drive and accompanied by our English speaking guide. Rest of the day free for leisure.

In the morning your guide brings you to the boat pier from where we drive by public boat to Pakbeng on the mighty Mekong River. Picnic lunch is served on board. The boat arrives at Pakbeng before sunset for an overnight stay.

After breakfast we will start an excursion by walking or cycling around the island to visit the old colonial French bridge and the gorgeous Phili (or Somphamit) waterfall. We then embark on a boat for a 20 minutes ride to the dolphin area right at the Lao-Cambodian border. This is one of the last though threatened sanctuaries in the world of the almost extinct Irrawaddy Dolphin. We will spend about an hour for trying to spot and photograph these extremely rare and endangered freshwater mammals.
After another boat ride we reach Veun Kham at the Lao-Cambodian border, where our van will wait for us to take us to Khone Phapheng, the breathtaking and biggest waterfall in South-East Asia. We will have our lunch here. Next we drive to Ban Kiet Ngong for an elephant trek to the ancient Phou Asa temple on top of a huge cliff. From there we have wonderful far-reaching views over the Xepian National Protected Area, which is well-know for its extensive wetlands and diversity of water birds. In the late afternoon we will return to Pakse.

Free until your flight time, transfer to airport for your flight.