Luang Prabang Family Tour 7 days: Experience The Land of Elephant

Arrival at the Luang Prabang Airport, our guide and driver will pick up and transfer to your hotel in city center.
Check in hotel and relax.

Located  in the centre of Northern Laos, Luang Prabang is recognized  as a UNESCO World Heritage Site for its outstanding cultural, historic and architectural values and its harmonious relationship between the natural and built environment.

Have lunch at local restaurant (your own account). After lunch, our guide will pick up you from hotel and start a half day city tour. The first destination is Royal Palace Museum where people kept a range of amazing artifacts. Then we visit the city’s oldest temple of Wat Sene and the impressive Wat Xiengthong showing classical Laotian architecture.

We finish short tour today with the remarkable stupa of Wat Visounand the shrine of Wat Aham.
In the late afternoon, we will get an opportunity to join a private Baci ceremony at a local family. The Baci ceremony is a traditional ritual of the Lao people expresses the spirituality of the country and is a highly unforgettable experience and a deep insight into Lao culture for the participants. Overnight at the hotel in Luang Prabang

Accommodation : At the hotel in Luang Prabang
Meals                : Breakfast
 
 

After breakfast, we take a local boat on Mekong river in 2 hours to reach the best famous and spiritual Pak Ou Buddha Caves, where we could have a look at confluence of the Mekong & Ou Rivers. Since the 16 century, the villagers built many thousands of Buddha images here.

We will stop at Ban Muang Keo  on the way , a famous village for its traditional Lao rice whisky prodution. We will return to Luang Prabang in the late afternoon and continue by car to visit Ban Xangkhong  located the outskirts of town , a village being famous for its wood paper making and also Lao silk weavings with natural dyes.

You will stay overnight in Luang Prabang.

Accommodation : At the hotel in Luang Prabang
Meals                : Breakfast
 

We welcomed and met  by our guide this morning around 8:30 am, for the short road transfer to the boat pier which departs Ban Wat That at 9:00). Experience a 15-minute leisurely boat trip down the Mekong River, as well as views of charming Luang Prabang town from a unique perspective.

Upon arrival, a professional reception at Pha Tad Ke Botanical Garden will give us a short introduction about the gardens. Then pass through the Ginger Garden and the Ethno-botanic Garden, which is the middle of the garden. Follow the path through the Limestone Walk and take in the amazing mountainous Mekong landscape. Study how to make a bamboo stick animal at the site of the hunting lodge of the former royal family.

Then going on our tour of the gardens, passing through the Arboretum, Palm Garden and Bamboo Garden to a viewpoint which overlooks rice fields. Make a stop by the Mist House to learn more about the necessary of biodiversity conservation. End of your excursion with an optional orchid talk at Pha Tad Ke Nursery.

All of the gardens have introductory panels and labels, for the most detailed information. Enjoy a delicious Lao set lunch at the Pha Tad Ke café.

After lunch, we will reach one of the most beautiful Kuang Si Falls situated 30 kilometers of Southern Luang Prabang
The Kuang Si Waterfall consists of a tiered many of turquoise pools put amongst the dense Laotian jungle where we will have plenty of time to refreshing swim in the pools and hike around the falls.

You’ll also visit the Kuang Si Falls Butterfly Park, one of the must-visit spots, a project that was newly opened on January 2014 studying about Laos butterflies, host plants and preservation.

We stop at one of the local villages before getting to Wat Siphouthabath to admire the sunset then find the way back to your hotel. Overnight at the hotel in Luang Prabang.

Accommodation : At the hotel in Luang Prabang
Meals                : Breakfast
 

Our guide and driver will be waiting this morning to provide transport (3-hour drive) from the hotel in Luang Prabang to Sayaboury (90km). Located Southwest of Luang Prabang, Sayaboury is a mountainous province with peaks of more than 1,000 meters. Travel to this remote province will reveal many beautiful mountains and flower gardens.

It is also home to the largest population of elephants in Laos. Upon arrival to the pier at Nam Tien Lake, embark a boat to transfer to the center. You might be able to catch a quick glimpse of one of our elephants while our boat docks. After enjoying a Laotian style meal, your guide will take you for a visit of the Center’s facilities and present our ongoing projects.

During the hospital visit our veterinarian and biologist will take you into their world and explain about the projects they are undertaking. Through the visit of the only Elephant Hospital in Laos, you will discover the conservation actions implemented by The Elephant Conservation Center. You will then observe the elephants’ daily bath and learn more about our giant guests’ playful characters. Elephants are surprisingly good swimmers and love water. They also use this time to socialize.

After the elephants have washed themselves, you will meet our mahouts, who will show you how they get on and off the elephant and the commands they use. You will then have the opportunity to interact with the elephants with the mahouts at your side. Get a feel for the elephant’s amazing skin and prickly hair, and experience up close the dexterity of their trunk as you offer them some food. Feel free to take photos standing next to our giants! 

For those who really want to get a feel of being on top of the elephant, mahout style, you can request to do so later on when bringing the elephants to the forest or socialization area.  But this is absolutely not central to the experience we propose and is strictly on the neck, not in a chair on the elephant’s back!

While walking the elephants to their nightly resting ground you will witness the unique bond between the mahout and his elephant. Our experienced mahouts use vocal commands to steer the animals through the thick foliage.  As you stroll together with these magnificent creatures into the dense forest of Nam Tien, take a moment! This is the REAL land of elephants!  Your guide will give you some interesting information about the biodiversity of our protected forest.

Before dinner, take some time to relax on the lake shore, visit the elephant museum, swim or simply enjoy a fresh drink
 
Accommodation : Elephant Conservation Center’s bungalow
Meals                : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
 

On the second day, you will meet up with the elephants in the forest. After spending the night grazing in the jungle it is time for another bath. Enjoy strolling together with these magnificent creatures in their natural environment. If you wish, you can ask to ride the elephant, bareback on the neck, for a short time on their way through the forest, to get a physical feel for the animal.

When they have had their fill of water they are brought to the Socialization Area. This is an area where the elephants can freely interact during a big part of the day, recreating a semi-natural living environment. Here the elephants can enjoy being elephants. Follow the guide around the perimeter to learn more about the elephants. Take your time on the different platforms to see how a new herd is being formed. This rare opportunity will bring you closer to their natural life, something which is very special about our program and difficult to find anywhere else in Laos.

Lunch is served at one of the viewing platforms. You have some time to let everything sink in. Following the forest picnic, you can see the resident mother and baby at the nursery. The mahout of the mother stays close by while she and her baby have a bath and play. The mother trusts him around her offspring and even lets him play with her a little bit. Afterwards, board our boat for a trip back to the center in time to see the afternoon bath.

You will meet our veterinarian or biologist again as they will conduct a target training session. All our elephants are being trained using ‘positive reinforcement’ techniques to facilitate any necessary treatments. We offer you the chance to follow their work from a safe distance. Afterwards you can walk the elephant back to the forest.
 
Accommodation : Elephant Conservation Center’s bungalow
Meals                : Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
 

On the third day, our guide and biologist will explain the enrichment activities. Enrichment is a dynamic process for enhancing animal environments within the context of the animal’s behavioral biology. We are providing cognitive enrichment in the form of hidden food, toys, a mud bath etc. to give the elephant’s mental stimulation and avoid boredom.

They love it! We invite you to take part in this amazing experience by helping our team to prepare the socialization area: cut and hide the food, create elephant toys etc. to give the elephants a challenge. Once they arrive, you will have the opportunity to observe how the elephants interact with what you have created!

This is a novel and unique way to interact with our elephants, contributing directly to their well-being. After Lunch at the restaurant you can take your time to pack your bags and say goodbye to the staff. Perhaps you would like to take in the scenery for one last time before we bring you back to Luang Prabang. From there, our driver will transfer you back to your hotel. Overnight in Luang Prabang

Accommodation : At the hotel in Luang Prabang
Meals                : Breakfast, Lunch
 

You are free to make a stroll around the town before transferring directly to airport to take the departure flight. End of services.
 
Accommodation : NA
Meals                : Breakfast