Vientiane Stopover Tour

The small and relaxed Lao capital of Vientiane sits on the northern bank of the Mekong River facing across to the even sleepier Thai town of Sri Chiang Mai. For many visitors, Vientiane is the first taste of Lao food, culture and hospitality and on all counts it does not disappoint.Actually pronounced Wiang Jan and translated as City of Sandalwood, the modern name of Vientiane comes courtesy of a bastardised French transliteration. Wiang actually means "fort" (City of Sandalwood sounds better than Fort of Sandalwood) but by all accounts it mustn't have been much of a fort, as the original city was over-run on a number of occasions by the Burmese and Chinese and was absolutely flattened by the Siamese (Thais) in 1828, after which the city was abandoned back to the jungle. This is one of the reasons why many of the Wats in the city are of a relatively young age, and if the road layout strikes you as a pretty inspired affair, you can thank the French for it they laid the whole place when they oversaw the rebuilding of the city through the turn of the 19th to 20th century.

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Duration: 3 days/2 nights

Tour Code: MLVS04

Tour Valid: Until December 30th, 2013

Highlights: Vientiane- Nam Ngum Lake - Ban Phone - Vang Xang -Vientiane

• Day 1 - VienTiane Arrivale - City Tour

  Place Transport: Airplane->Car
  Meals: Dinner

  Meet on arrival and you are welcome to Vientiane, the city of the moon – an ancient city, situated on the bend on the left bank of the Mekong as the largest city and the capital of Laos. Transfer to hotel for check-in. In the afternoon, we take a sightseeing tour of Vientiane, to visit religious museums of Wat Sisaket, the oldest temple to have been survived from the Siamese war of 1828 and its clois r contains more than 8000 Buddha statues; Wat Ho Prakeo, the former home-temple of the Emerald Buddha statue or Pra Keo, but today it contains a collection of Buddha statues, antiques and all artifacts found in around Vientiane; That Luang Stupa, the single most important monument in Laos, which was built to cover the original small stupa containing a piece of the chest bone of Buddha; Patouxay (Arch de Triumph), built quite recently in commemoration of those who died during the wars in the past and it is today as the land-mark of Vientiane.

  Day 2 - Vientiane- Morning Market - Nam Ngum Lake - Vang Xang

  Place Transport: Car->Boat
  Meals: Breakfast - Lunch - Dinner

  Breakfast at hotel, we depart to visit the Morning Market, the biggest shopping center in Vientiane and we take a full day trip by road No. 10 to Nam Ngum Lake (90 km N), with hundreds of small islands. We en route stop to visit a cottage-salt factory, where natural salt are extracted at Ban Bor village. After arriving at Nam Ngum Lake by noon, we enjoy our Lao food lunch at a restaurant by the Nam Ngum Lake. In the afternoon, we relax by taking a boat ride about 1 hour for panoramic view around small islands. On the way of returning to Vientiane along the road No. 13, we make a few stops at Ban Phone, a village where most people weaving bamboo-baskets, dinning tables, besides we will see how Lao traditional rice-whisky to be distilled, and we can have a taste and take a way. Before getting back to Vietniane, we also stop at Vang Xang, an archaeological site containing the 11th century stone carvings of Buddha sculptures hidden in the forest.

  Day 3 - Vientiane Departure

  Place Transport: Airplane
  Meals: Breakfast

  Following breakfast, we spend our independent exploration of this charming city by own till we depart to Wattay airport or the Friendship Bridge for departure to next destination.

  The Tour Exclusion:

  - International flight tickets and airport tax.Visas.

  - Dinners, except as specified above.

  - Drinks, gratuities and personal expenses.

  - Surcharge for peak season (if any) & other not mentioned in the above detail program.

  Additional Information

  Importance note

  - The itinerary is just a sample of our tours; we'll be pleased to design similar programs with dates and itinerary customized to your personal preferences in Tailor Made Tours section. Rates may vary frequently. Please contact us to get the best possible price based upon your travel period and specific touring needs.

  What to bring?

  - Sun Block, Wide brim hat, Camera + Film, Comfortable shoes, Rain gear, Warm clothes, original Passport...

  How to start?

  - MinMax Travel is a fully escorted tour and best-available all year round; the only thing you need to prepare in advance is the international air-ticket from/to your country.

  - You can get Laos Visa on arrival easily (getting visa at the airport).