A Closer Look: Laos & Cambodia

Welcome to Laos! Upon arrival, meet your guide at the airport and head onward to your hotel. After check in, spend the rest of your day to explore this scenic UNESCO World Heritage site. Home to three dozen Buddhist temples, some dating back hundreds of years, Luang Prabang has a mystical allure that embodies Laos’ spiritual aura. Rustic wooden guest houses, sleepy cafes and warm local smiles are all part of this quiet town’s charm. After exploring the town on your own, head back to your hotel for an early night, and prepare for the unforgettable journey ahead.

Today, embark on an in-depth journey to discover the daily life of Luang Prabang’s three most prominent ethnic cultures: the H’mong, Khmu and Lao Loum. Start your journey at the home of a local H’mong family, one of many H’mong residents in Luang Prabang. Here, sit down with the family and your guide for a chat to learn about how resettlement efforts for ethnic communities like the H’mong changed the rhythm of their daily lives. Afterwards, follow the lead of your host as he walks you through the intricacies of traditional flute making, one of the H’mong community’s most treasured traditional instruments. The traditional art of flute-making is quickly disappearing in modern Laos, but your host is both a flute enthusiast and one of the most respected flute players in the city. Listen to how the flute is played before rolling up your sleeves to make your own! After the workshop, head out by tuk-tuk to the banks of the mighty Mekong River and travel by a small traditional boat onward to Ban Xienmene Village. This sleepy rural community is home to the Khmu and Lao Loum minority groups, and remains a testament to traditional ethnic lifestyles in Laos. Chat with a local family before learning to make Laos Sa Mou or River Weed salad with them. Sit down for a family lunch before heading back to central Luang Prabang for a city highlights excursion. Wander the city alongside your guide and visit some of Luang Prabang’s most famous temples, including the arrestingly ornate Wat Xieng Thong and the magnificent Royal Palace. Both are prime examples of the fusion of traditional Laotian and Buddhist architecture, and remain two of the best preserved structures in the city. Then, head to the living crafts centre of Ock Pop Tok in the heart of the city. Follow along with your guide to learn about how the centre provides a place for locals to create sustainable and beautiful Laos' handicrafts and traditional artwork. After a stroll through the centre, kick back, taste the traditional Mak Tum Tea while enjoying the magnificent views over the Mekong River. Wrap up your journey with a visit to Big Brother Mouse, an organization devoted to promoting literacy in children and young adults. This is a perfect chance to strike up a conversation with a young local learning English before heading back to your hotel.

Rise early to the sound of the temple gong and witness Luang Prabang’s mystical early-morning ritual. As the sun just begins to rise, walk downtown through quiet streets to watch the daily procession of about 300 saffron-robed monks walking silently, collecting sticky rice and other food offered by pious locals. Almsgiving is an important religious act in Buddhism, and it must be carried out respectfully by locals and tourists alike. If you would like to be involved in the offering of food, your guide will be more than happy to show you the best way to interact with monks. Afterwards, stroll through Luang Prabang’s morning market to see the locals haggling for fresh meat, fruit and vegetables. Later today, set off on an elephant ride through the jungle! Drive to the nearby Elephant Village, a government-approved project to promote elephant conservation and support local communities. Upon arrival, meet the camp manager and receive a short primer in elephant care and maintenance. Then climb atop an elephant for an hour-long ride along jungle paths. Afterwards, take a short boat trip to Tad Sae Waterfall and enjoy a dip in the cool water here. After lunch by the falls, drive back to Luang Prabang, arriving at your hotel by early afternoon.

Early morning transfer to the Mekong River banks where you will board the Luang Say Cruise. A continental breakfast is served as you begin your journey upstream. It’s a stunning section of this mighty river that begins high in the Himalaya and passes through seven countries before exiting through its sprawling delta in Southern Vietnam. During the morning, the cruise will make a stop to visit the wonderful Pak Ou Caves, housing literally thousands of Buddha statues, hidden from the looting Chinese Haw in times gone by. The statues range from a few centimetres to the size of a human. After a buffet lunch served on board, a further stop will be made to explore Ban Baw village where you can watch the traditional process of making Lao whiskey. Arrive into Pakbeng in the late afternoon and transfer to your lodge. The remainder of your day is at leisure to enjoy the scenery of the river and the surrounding nature. For those wishing to stretch their legs after a day on the water, Pakbeng is an interesting town to walk through, and you will see many H’mong and tribal Thai minority tribe people in the area. Enjoy sunset and dinner from the balcony of your lodge overlooking the Mekong River.

After breakfast depart Pakbeng for your return journey to Luang Prabang by road, beginning by crossing a newly built bridge over the mighty Mekong. Your journey will take you through the remote countryside of northern Laos, passing minority villages. Stops will be made en-route to visit the Tai Lu village of Muang Ngeun with its traditional wooden houses and Wat Si Boun Yeun, an exquisite temple dating back to 1736. Take a break for lunch overlooking the Nam Heuang River in Sayaboury. During the afternoon, stop at the untouched Kamcham Waterfall to stretch your legs before arriving back into Luang Prabang around 4.30pm. Check in to your hotel and the remainder of your day is at leisure.

Morning transfer to Luang Prabang Airport for your flight to Siem Reap, where you will be met by your guide and transferred to your hotel.

After breakfast visit Pre Rup and the East Mebon on route to the exquisite Banteay Srey. Return to Siem Reap for lunch. In the afternoon visit the majestic Angkor Wat built between 1112 and 1152 by King Suryavarman II dedicated to Vishnu, the Hindu god of preservation.

This morning visit one of Angkor’s most fascinating ruins: Ta Prohm. After Ta Prohm head for Banteay Kdei and the nearby lake of Sras Srang. In the afternoon visit the Ancient City of Angkor Thom including the Bayon, the Terrace of Elephants and the Terrace of Leper Kings. Day 10 - Phnom Penh, Champey Academy of Arts, Tuol Sleng & Choeung Ek Tour

Morning departure for Phnom Penh by car (driver only). Taking approximately 5 hours, you’ll pass through provincial towns, villages and roadside hamlets offering you an insight into life away from Siem Reap and Phnom Penh. There will be the opportunity to stretch your legs and enjoy a coffee in Kampong Thom and stop at Skun Village, famous for its deep-fried tarantulas, if you so wish. Upon arrival, transfer directly to your hotel. Phnom Penh was once considered one of the most beautiful cities in the Orient and despite its recent turbulent history it still retains a certain Colonial charm. Today this rapidly developing city buzzes with energy and an air of opportunity as Cambodia advances into the 21st century. In the afternoon visit the Royal Palace, situated on the site of the former citadel and built by King Norodom in 1866, the Palace still serves as the King and Queen's residential quarters. Also within the walls of the Palace is the Silver Pagoda, so called because of five thousand silver tiles that line its exquisite floor. If time permits there is also the option of visiting the National Museum, which houses the worlds leading collection of Khmer art and sculpture, and Wat Phnom the founding site of the city. All are within easy walking distance of each other and are a great introduction to this laid-back city. Return to your hotel and freshen up. At 5pm you will be met by your guide in a tuk-tuk, your transportation for the evening, for a memorable food-focused experience. First stop is the Foreign Correspondents Club, more commonly known as the FCC. This legendary colonial watering hole oozes history, having been the social hub for foreign journalists and aid workers during the Khmer Rouge era. Some interesting memorabilia adorns the walls which your guide will talk you through, before leaving you on the rooftop terrace to enjoy a cocktail and views across the Mekong & Tonle Sap rivers as the sun sets. Re-joining your guide in the tuk-tuk, it’s time for a completely contrasting experience…Cambodian's don’t shy away from entomophagy (that’s ‘snacking on insects’ in layman’s terms), and they have long been seen as a good source of nutrition. Head down to the river where roadside stalls sell a variety of edible bugs which you will have the opportunity to try. Your guide is on hand to decipher the surprisingly tasty offerings. Continue by tuk-tuk to the Russian Market. By day this market is a tourist hotspot, but come evening the food stalls come alive, attracting local diners with typical Khmer food such as Banh Chheo, chicken rice porridge and beef skewers. Choose what you wish to eat, pull up a plastic stool alongside the locals and soak up the atmosphere. Next up, and your final food stop for the evening, are the popular seafood stalls where you can enjoy freshly barbequed seafood before returning to your hotel, again by tuk-tuk.

Make a morning visit to the Champey Academy of Arts. The CAA is a dancing school set up to train orphans and children from poor families in the art of traditional Khmer dancing, providing them with a future career. The centre is located near the National Museum and any visitor to the training centre will confirm that the children enjoy their new found skill! Lunch is at Friends the Restaurant a ‘kindness restaurant’ where ex-street children are trained in hospitality and restaurant skills, helping them to break away from life on the streets. In 1975, after years of guerilla warfare, the radical Communist Khmer Rouge party, under its leader Pol Pot, seized power of Cambodia and declared ‘year zero’. They immediately abolished money and private property, and ordered the entire population of Phnom Penh from their homes and into the countryside to cultivate the fields. Over the next three years an estimated 2 million Cambodians died, many from starvation and exhaustion. Many others were tortured and executed for being supposed ‘enemies of the state’. The afternoon is spent learning more about these terrible years, through visits to the infamous Tuol Sleng Museum of Genocidal Crimes and Choeung Ek, better known as the ‘Killing Fields’. It is an incredibly moving experience, but these are two visits you will be glad to have made. During your visit to Cambodia, you will barely meet a single person who didn’t lose a member of their family during these years, yet they are all willing to talk openly about it with you. They wish you to hear about it and see these places, to ensure that it never happens again.

After breakfast, drive directly out of the city, travelling in a south-easterly direction to the coastal town of Kep, one of Cambodia’s up-and-coming south coast destinations. Once a favourite seaside resort for the elite of Phnom Penh, today the town is having something of a resurgence thanks to imaginative ex-pats and local businessmen who are ensuring that the town retains its Colonial-era charm. Whilst this delightful town has very little in the way of sandy beach, Rabbit Island is just a short boat ride away and makes for a great day trip. Overnight in Kep.

Explore, relax and enjoy the sand....

Explore, relax and enjoy the sand....

Your day is at leisure until your transfer to the airport for your onward flight.