Also known as Si Phan Don, 4,000 Islands is one of the most laid-back destinations in Laos. It is situated in the south of the country, just above the border with Cambodia, and is a wonderful place to come to experience rural, authentic Lao…

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In the far north of Laos near the Chinese border, Luang Namtha is a small provincial capital and market town that’s fast emerging as one of the country’s foremost eco-tourism and adventure centres, thanks to its proximity to the Nam Ha Nati…

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Enfolded by low, wooded hills, Luang Prabang languishes amid a gauzy tranquillity on a peninsula in the Mekong. Long regarded as the country’s preeminent cultural and religious capital, the town served for 15 centuries as the abode of Lao r…

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For a taste of life in the slow lane of northern Laos, Muang La, in the Nong Khiaw Valley, is hard to beat. Situated in one of the most scenic corners of the region, this sleepy riverside village is surrounded by forested hills inhabited mo…

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Sleepy Nong Khiaw, 78 miles (126km) north-east of Luang Prabang, straddles the languid Nam Ou River at the bottom of a deep, forested valley. Wonderful views of the surrounding peaks are to be had from the Chinese-built bridge that connects…

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Dominated by the Mekong, the flat, riverine terrain of Laos’ southernmost region is prodigiously fertile, though seen by comparatively few foreigners until recently, when a cluster of ecolodges, boutique hotels and – crucially – a luxury ri…

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One of the most formidable impediments to full navigation of the Mekong is the mighty Khone Phapeng Falls near the Cambodian border – the largest in Southeast Asia, and a jaw-dropping spectacle, especially during the rainy season. Beyond th…

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The far north of Laos retains the highest proportion of ethnic minority people in the country – a fact attributable to its convoluted geography of deep, isolated valleys and forested mountains. Collectively referred to as ‘Lao Sung’ (‘Highl…

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Huay Xai, a long, bumpy day’s drive west of Luang Prabang lining the Thai border, is home to the Bokeo Nature Reserve and its legendary ‘Gibbon Experience’. In a tract of dense, humid rainforest, a network of observation platforms high in t…

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The country’s most famous archaeological site, the so-called ‘Plain of Jars’, comprises around 100 different locations, dispersed over the Xieng Khouang Plateau, a wide area of grassy uplands and low hills, to the east of Phonsavan. Literal…

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Nestled on the banks of the Nam Song River, against an awesome backdrop of lofty limestone ridges and peaks, this small town 90 miles (150km) north of Vientiane, is the adventure capital of Laos. The wooded slopes, karst caves and broad, gr…

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Southeast Asia’s smallest capital, Vientiane, started life as a Khmer trading post on the Mekong and later expanded during the reign of the Lao Kings. Gallic influence, dating from the French Indochina era of the 19th and 20th centuries, is…

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