Last updated on October 18, 2026 by Shannon
These are the 15 places and experiences in Laos I’d actually prioritize, pulled out of my full Laos travel guide so each one has room to say something useful instead of competing for space with currency exchange rates. A few of these pair naturally with each other (Wat Phou and the 4,000 Islands share the same southern loop out of Pakse), and a couple come with real logistics or safety notes worth reading before you go, not just after.
1. Relax and temple-hop in Luang Prabang.
Easily the prettiest city in Southeast Asia, Luang Prabang is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and has a low-slung charm and beauty you can’t stop enjoying. It’s also an easy spot to stop, take a cooking class, sip beers by the Mekong, and enjoy the Lao lifestyle.
Because of the French influence for so many years, the architecture is an intriguing combination of intricate European among the traditional Buddhist temples. You can also find delicious breads and sweets in town (also the French influence), and a general level of infrastructure that makes this a great place to recharge if you’ve been in the region for a while.
The temples are the other reason to slow down here—Wat Xieng Thong and Wat Mai are the two worth building time around, and the monks’ morning alms-giving procession through the old quarter is worth one early wake-up, even if you don’t make it a daily habit.
If your trip lands in October or November, Boun Suang Heua—the boat racing festival—fills the riverbank with longboat crews racing on the Mekong. It’s worth timing a visit around if your dates are flexible.
2. Swim in the Kuang Si Waterfalls (Luang Prabang).
Kuang Si, a park about 45 minutes outside Luang Prabang, has a series of turquoise pools stepping down the hillside, and most of them are open for swimming. A round-trip tuk-tuk runs 180,000–200,000 kip, and splitting it with other travelers at your guesthouse brings the per-person cost down close to what a shared minibus would charge anyway.
3. Boat the Mekong River.
Rivers are an essential part of life in Laos—get yourself onto the slice-of-Laos seen from a river boat at least once on your trip. If you’re not up for the two-day boat between the Thai border and Luang Prabang, a half-day trip to the Pak Ou Caves covers the same river scenery without eating up two days of your itinerary.
4. Shopping at local markets.
Backpacking Laos is about more than the big sights—it’s about sinking into the country’s fascinating pace of life, and the markets are where that pace actually shows up.
Luang Prabang’s morning market is worth getting up for—vendors set up well before 6am selling produce, jungle greens, and river fish that are mostly sold out by 8am, and it’s a better look at daily Lao life than any temple visit. The night markets in Luang Prabang and Vientiane are a different thing entirely: more souvenirs than food, built around textiles, wood carvings, and silver jewelry, with prices set high because negotiating is expected.
Bring cash in small bills—vendors rarely have change for anything large, and that alone slows down a purchase more than any haggling does.
5. Learn a traditional craft.
Discover the intricate art of weaving, pottery making, or other local crafts, and gain a deeper appreciation for the country’s artistic traditions. When I traveled Laos with my teenage niece, taking classes and learning local crafts was a real highlight for her. But it’s not only one of the best things to do with kids in Laos, it’s also a lot of fun for adults. I loved our weaving workshop where we learned to die silk and then wove our own placemat.
You can organize this throughout Laos, but you’ll have more options in and around Luang Prabang. The Traditional Arts and Ethnology Center, a short walk from central Luang Prabang, runs weaving workshops and demonstrations with local artisans most days—worth checking their schedule a day ahead rather than just showing up.
Ban Xieng Lek, a 30-minute drive from Luang Prabang, runs pottery workshops where a local potter walks you through shaping your own piece to take home.
For bamboo weaving, Ban Nong Heo, about 30 minutes from Vientiane, teaches basket and mat weaving with artisans who’ve done it for decades—plan on a half day if you want to actually finish something rather than just watch.
6. Eat all the things.
Laos has a culinary history distinct from neighboring Vietnam or Thailand, even though the two get more attention. Food sanitation standards are looser here, but that’s not a reason to skip the street stalls—just follow the same rule that applies everywhere in the region: eat where there’s a line of locals. This guide to food in Laos will get you started, and Mark covers even more essential eats here.
7. Trek through the lush landscapes of Luang Namtha.
Head to Luang Namtha, located in the north of Laos, for an unforgettable experience. This region is renowned for its ethnic diversity and stunning natural landscapes, making it an ideal destination for an immersive adventure.
Luang Namtha is Laos’ best base for responsible trekking. The Nam Ha Ecotourism Project, launched here in 1999 with UNESCO backing, was the first community-based trekking and permit system in the country, and that model still shapes how tours run today. Multi-day treks mean overnighting in Akha, Khmu, or Tai Lue villages, with a larger share of the fee reaching the host families than in trekking regions elsewhere in Southeast Asia that have become heavily commercialized.
Ask the tour operator directly how homestay fees are split before booking—that question alone tends to separate the operators still honoring the original model from ones just borrowing its reputation.
Luang Namtha is accessible by bus or flight from cities like Luang Prabang. Various tour operators in the area offer homestay and trekking packages that range in duration from one to several days. Prices for homestays and trekking tours can vary depending on the length and inclusions, but budget around $30-50 per day. If you’re keen to organize it before arriving, Viator has great options for treks and homestays lasting from three to five days from Luang Namtha.
8. Explore the picturesque villages of Muang Ngoi and Nong Khiaw.
Muang Ngoi and Nong Khiaw sit twenty minutes apart by boat on the Nam Ou River, but they’re different kinds of stop, not interchangeable ones. Nong Khiaw has a road and a bridge, guesthouses with river views, and a steep hike up to the Pha Daeng viewpoint that’s worth the sweat. Muang Ngoi has no road in at all—you arrive by boat only—with noticeably less electricity and far fewer motorbikes, which is either the whole appeal or the dealbreaker depending on how much you actually want to unplug.
If you only have time for one, pick Nong Khiaw for easier logistics and the better viewpoint, or pick Muang Ngoi if the point of the detour is specifically to get somewhere the road doesn’t reach.
Bus to Nong Khiaw from Luang Prabang and then easily take a boat onward to Muang Ngoi. Accommodation options in both villages range from guesthouses to riverside bungalows, with prices averaging around $10-20 per night.
9. Sleep in a treehouse and listen for Gibbons in the Bokeo forests.
The Gibbon Experience is pricey but so worth it—I did the Classic Gibbon Experience and will remember it forever. The project has done phenomenal conservation work in the Nam Kan National Park and is a solid choice for responsible backpackers in Southeast Asia, nature lovers, and adventure lovers alike. As of 2023, prices for the Gibbon Experience run around €175 for the express package, and €290 and up for the Classic and Honeymoon packages.
10. Find adventure in Vang Vieng.
Almost every backpacker traveling to Laos is on their way to Vang Vieng to tube down the Nam Song River. You can also rock climb nearby, eat pancakes at the mulberry farm, and generally enjoy the area. Tubing is rite of passage for SEA backpackers and it’s a fun way to spend a day, especially now that it’s not the massive party scene it used to be (it used to be culturally insensitive and dangerous, too).
11. Spend a day in the historic capital city, Vientiane.
Vientiane is the most low-key capital you’ll visit in Southeast Asia—after Bangkok or Hanoi, it can feel more like a large town. One day is usually enough to see Pha That Luang (the national symbol), the Patuxai Monument, and the night market along the Mekong, unless you want to use it as a base for a half-day trip to the Buddha Park (Xieng Khuan), about 40 minutes outside the city. If you’re short on time and have to choose between an extra day in Vientiane or an extra day in Luang Prabang or Vang Vieng, choose the latter—Vientiane is pleasant, but it’s not where Laos shows off. Reachable by air or bus; budget $30-40 per day.
12. Discover the cave landscapes of Tham Kong Lo.
Tham Kong Lo is the most physically dramatic single thing to do in Laos, and the one most travelers skip simply because it’s inconvenient to reach—which is exactly why it’s worth a two-day detour if you have the time. A long-tail boat takes you through 6.4km of river inside a 7.5km limestone cave system, in total darkness apart from the boat’s headlamps—bring your own headlamp as backup. Access is from the town of Ban Kong Lo; most travelers base out of Tha Khaek, the jumping-off point for the Thakhek Loop motorbike route, which passes the cave. Boat tours run $15-20 and are easier to arrange the morning of, once you can see the river level, than to book far in advance.
13. Visit the enigmatic Plain of Jars.
And near Phonsavan, in central Laos, you’ll need to hire a tuk-tuk to see the enigmatic Plain of Jars, but it is well worth the trip. The jars date back to the Iron Age and are scattered throughout the upland valleys of the Xiangkhoang Plateau. Hire a tuk-tuk or join a tour to explore the different jar sites, and expect to pay around $10-15 for a half-day excursion.
One thing to actually know before you go, not just read after: this region is still being cleared of unexploded ordnance (UXO) left over from the Secondary Indochina War, and it’s not fully cleaned up. The sites open to tourists are safe because the Mines Advisory Group (MAG) has cleared and marked them—stick between the paired white markers you’ll see along the paths, and never wander off a marked trail anywhere in the region, however tempting a jar outside the fence looks. MAG runs a visitor center in Phonsavan itself that’s worth a stop if you want the fuller picture.
14. Visit Wat Phou, Laos’ pre-Angkorian temple.
Wat Phou, in Champasak, is Laos’ other UNESCO site—a pre-Angkorian Khmer temple complex built into a hillside roughly four centuries before Angkor Wat, and it draws a fraction of Angkor’s crowds. Entry runs about 30,000 kip (roughly $1.40), it’s open daily from 8am to 5pm, and you’ll want a tuk-tuk or rented scooter from Champasak town to reach the hillside complex. Go in the early morning if you can—there’s no shade on the climb up, and Champasak gets properly hot by mid-morning.
15. Decompress in the 4,000 Islands (Si Phan Don).
Si Phan Don is a string of low-slung islands in the Mekong near the Cambodian border, and it’s where you go to stop moving for a few days rather than to sightsee. There’s little to “do” beyond renting a bicycle, swimming, and watching the river—which is the point after the bus-and-boat grind of northern Laos. It’s an easy add-on to Wat Phou above, since both sit on the same loop out of Pakse.
The one outing worth the effort is Khone Phapheng, Southeast Asia’s largest waterfall by volume, plus a half-day boat trip to look for the endangered Irrawaddy dolphins (sightings aren’t guaranteed, so ask locally about recent activity before paying for a tour). Access is via bus or boat from Pakse. Budget $20-30 a day for accommodation and meals—less on Don Det, the backpacker island, more on the quieter Don Khon.
For the full picture on planning a trip here—budgets, routes, safety, food, and how to travel responsibly—see the complete Laos travel guide.