Laos Secret War Tour

Friday 3rd July – Luang Prabang

• Arrive in Luang Prabang at your own convenience. The city is largely connected to many airports in South East Asia, and China.
• Airport or train-station pick-up and transfer to our hotel – Villa Chitdara.
• Meet the rest of the group, which is arriving in the afternoon from Vietnam, directly at the UXO Visitor’s Centre, which documents the devastation that Laos suffered during the Second Indochina War.
• Visit the Traditional Art and Ethnology Centre (TAEC), the only independent resource centre in Laos dedicated to the country’s many diverse ethnic groups.
• Head to our hotel, Villa Chitdara, to quickly freshen up before we jump on the ferry to cross the river to Xieng Men village, where we visit one of its most beautiful temples. Wat Long Koon, also called the Monastery of the Happy or Blessed Song, had strong ties with the royal family of Luang Prabang, as the designated-king resided here in retreat before the official coronation.
• Start the real local experience which you only find on this side of the river: we are invited to a local house for some beers and grilled sticks BBQ.
• The same man will then take us on his boat, driving us up the river and around the Jumbo Guest house, while revealing stories about the spirits that guard and guide the local people. We then slowly drift back down the river towards Luang Prabang while enjoying some beers and the sunset.
• Overnight in the Villa Chitdara Hotel in Luang Prabang.

Saturday 4th July – Luang Prabang – Kuang Si Waterfalls – Hmong village – Luang Prabang

Morning

• Luang Prabang is known to be one of the best-preserved traditional cities in South East Asia. The tranquillity and tropical charm of this town, with its splendid natural scenery and cultural sights, make it one of the most alluring destinations in Laos!
• After breakfast, we’ll start with a trip to the Morning Market, a lively street where locals stock up on all sorts of interesting supplies, including colourful vegetables and live frogs!
• Then, we’ll step from the energy of the market into the serene calm of one of the city’s most sumptuous monasteries, Wat Mai.
• Continue to the famous Kuang Si waterfalls, where you can swim in the pools or walk along the beautiful jungle paths.
• At the waterfall, you may visit the Bear Rescue Center, which hosts rescued bears in their large, open grounds. There, you can see these beautiful animals while learning about the efforts to save them from traditional medicine harvesting.

Afternoon

• Our first stop after the waterfall are the picturesque rice paddies along the road, where we can enjoy a quick coffee while sitting in a wooden pavilion on stilts.
• Drive to Ban Lak Paed village – where people from the Hmong tribe live – for a talk with two local men who participated in the Indochina wars. We will sit with them and their families as they open their doors into their house for us. They are good friends with our guide Saeng, as they are both from the Hmong tribe.
• Enjoy a delicious home-cooked family lunch together, traditionally served with everybody sitting on the ground and sharing a cold Beerlaos while answering all your burning questions regarding their past and present life. This truly is one of our most treasured experiences in Laos.
• Return by vehicle to Luang Prabang by late afternoon, after a wonderful day tour to the best parts of Luang Prabang World Heritage City.
• Visit the night market, food market, and eventually the “Fat Cat” Bar, run by a charismatic owner and good friend of ours, who not only serves the best drinks in town but also possesses in-depth knowledge about Laos, the Indochina wars, and life today.
• Overnight in Luang Prabang.

Sunday 5th July – Khmu Village – Tad Sae Waterfall – Luang Prabang – Vientiane

Morning

• Before breakfast, if you´re a (very) early bird, you can stand on your hotel room balcony and see the monks passing by on the street in their saffron-coloured robes, receiving food and personal care items in their alms bowls.
• After breakfast, you’ll ride about 30 minutes along the banks of the Nam Khan River. After crossing the river by boat, begin an easy, 1.5-hour trek through the beautiful jungle canopy, stopping along the way to explore a large, traditional Khmu village nestled in the mountains.
• You may enjoy lunch here or wait until you reach the waterfall, depending on the time and your preference.
• After the village visit, you’ll continue trekking for about 1.5 hours down to the Tad Sae Waterfall, where you may explore and swim.
• Finally, board a long boat again for a short cruise downriver, then transfer into a vehicle for return to Luang Prabang city.

Afternoon

• Return in the afternoon and take the fast train to Vientiane (~3h).
• Arrive at VTE train station and transfer to Douang Deuane Hotel.
• Visit the sites of the old Purple Porpoise and White Orchid bars where the pilots and other characters involved in the war would drink and spend their nights. This is a side of the story which is hard to discover for visitors, but our guide can bring it back to life.
• Go to the street stall food area, eat and go to Mekong for drinks at the outside bars.
• Overnight in Vientiane.

Monday 6th July – Vientiane – Phonsavan

Morning

• Breakfast in hotel.
• Transfer to Vientiane airport for the short flight to Phonsavan (~45min).
• Transfer and check-in into Mali hotel, quick refreshment, and lunch.

Afternoon

• Head to the plain of jars for our afternoon exploration. The Plain of Jars is a large cultural site in Laos containing thousands of stone jars. Archaeologists believe that the jars were used 1,500 to 2,000 years ago. Most of the excavated material has been dated to around 500 BC to 800 AD. Anthropologists and archaeologists have theorized that the jars may have been used as funeral urns or perhaps storage for food.
• The local legend tells of the ancient king named Khun Cheung, who fought a long, victorious battle. It is said that he celebrated his victory by creating the jars to brew and store huge amounts of lao lao, a traditional rice wine. The jars lie scattered throughout the northern end of the plain in the Lao Highlands close to the principal mountain range of Indochina which divides Laos and Vietnam. It played a big role in the context of the Vietnam War and the Secret War. On your way to the cultural sites, you might see old Russian tanks and large craters which are now historic remnants themselves.
• Transfer back for dinner at Mali Hotel to see videos and film about the secret war years in Laos.
• Overnight in Phonsavan.

Tuesday 7th July – Phonsavan – Long Tieng

Morning

• Early check-out and breakfast in hotel
• Start the 3h journey heading south towards Xaysomboun, Laos’ newest province established in 2013. Previously called the “special zone”, Xaysomboun is very mountainous and was covered in thick jungle, making it the perfect strategic logistical location and hideout during the 60’s and early 70’s. Recently there has been logging and mining activity (upwards to 3,200 Hmong work in large mining projects) but most of the Hmong, Khmu, and Lao Leum still primarily live off subsistence farming and hunter gathering. You will be as new and novel to the locals as they will be to you.
• Continue through some of the most beautiful and unspoiled countryside to the town of Long Tieng.
• We will have a typical lunch of this region on arrival in Long Tieng.

Afternoon

• Once considered “the most secret place on Earth”, Long Tieng (it was also referred to as Lima Site 98 (LS 98) or Lima Site 20A (LS 20A)) was the country’s second largest city until the mid-1970s and one of the busiest airports in the world.  The town had a population of 40,000 made up mostly of Hmong soldiers in traditional clothing, Khmu and Thai Leu in military outfits, Thai mercenaries and American pilots. Here the Hmong set up businesses such as taxi service, cobblers, food vendors and equipment repair. Today there are still many remains of what was the centre of a guerrilla-led clandestine war on communism backed by the CIA.
• Spend the whole day exploring the area including Skyline ridge, the airstrip and buildings that are leftovers from the Vietnam war era.
• Have a BBQ and beer on the hill overlooking the airstrip. This simple BBQ will be the peak of the trip, based on stories and envisioning the past.
• Overnight in Long Tieng.

Wednesday 8th July – Long Tieng – Vientiane

• Early departure by private AC-vehicle for Vientiane, the Lao capital city, passing through the area of Phou Bia, the highest mountain in Laos, before we meet the main Route 13 to Vientiane.
• Breakfast and lunch will be along the way, as well as some stops for refreshments and scenic photo opportunities.
• Tour concludes in the late afternoon in Vientiane after a long but comfortable drive.
• Accommodation, airport or train station drop-offs can be arranged as well as further advise for travelling in Laos and South East Asia.

Join us to our successive Tibet tour starting in Xi´an. YPT can advise on logistics from Laos to China via train or flight.