Laos: Vang Vieng
Continuing on with our Contiki tour, we traveled to Vang Vieng from Luang Prabang as part of our southeast Asia backpacking trip (#JLAsia2018).
Transportation
The transportation is covered and part of the Contiki tour. We traveled by bus (like a greyhound bus) for 6 hours. 6 HOURS!
The reason why we did that is because Contiki wanted to take us to a famous restaurant called Scenic Views. The restaurant is in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by a panorama mountain view and an outside eating area.
The food was basic Laotian cuisine – sauteed vegetables, soup, curry and rice, breaded chicken. So far in my trip I haven’t been too impressed with Laotian food. Often times I found it a bit too bland.
The selling point for this restaurant is definitely the views. It was very refreshing to eat surrounded by nature and high up enough to see rolling greens. Even the toilets had an amazing view.
Accommodations
Elephant Crossing Hotel
We arrived at Elephant Crossing Hotel in Vang Vieng after a long-ass bus ride. The city itself seemed more rural than Luang Prabang but our hotel was quite nice.
Julianna and I had a room on the first floor, but if you had a room on a higher floor you would see a view like this:
The hotel had a really nice patio area and bar where happy hour drinks were BOGO. You can basically get two cocktails for $5 USD.
The hotel offered some activities too, such as daily yoga classes. All the workers were super friendly and helpful. One time late at night, one of the front desk receptionists came to me and asked for help on his brother’s English homework. He told me that Lao is easier to learn than English but I highly doubt it.
Things to do
Sakura Bar
We were told that Vang Vieng is a party town but based on how rural it seemed, I was skeptical. The most bumping bar in town was Sakura Bar – it was filled with Korean people and they were playing K-pop (even new songs from Produce48/101!). My inner kpop fan girl was so happy.
Apparently this bar was featured in some music video or show and now a bunch of Korean people travel just to go to this bar.
Kayaking + Caving
We paid for the kayaking and caving experience ($21 USD per person) and it was a highlight of the day.
Vang Vieng is actually so beautiful. The mountains reminded me of BC and it was just so relaxing to kayak through the Mekong river.
Our cave experience was interesting as well. We started off sitting on floating tubes and pulling on string to go inside a cave. We all had little flashlights on our heads like the minions.
There was one part of the cave experience that was quite narrow and dark so if you’re afraid of small dark spaces, this part may be a bit freaky for you.
Blue lagoon
Julianna and I didn’t go to the Blue Lagoon but some of our other Contiki members did. It’s a bicycle ride away and is basically a big diving hole. We were told that it was filled with members of an older korean tour group who all wore diving suits and life jackets before jumping in.
River tubing
Most of our Contiki members opted into a river tubing activity in the afternoon that is really just all drinking. The river tubing goes down a section of the river that is filled with bars where you basically stop, get drunk, and move onto the next bar.
We were told by our local tour guide that it’s a very controversial river because people have died in the river from being too drunk and acting stupid. The river is a very important and special thing to Laotians so they were devastated that it was tainted with death. Since then, many of the bars have shut down but the option to go river tubing still exists for tourists.
Massage + Pedicure
Julianna and some of our other Contiki members opted to explore the town. Half of them went to get a massage, which wasn’t too different from a Thai massage (still a little Asian women throwing your body around like a sack of rice).
Julianna and I got pedicures at a random shop for $6 USD. It felt like we were sitting in someone’s home because they had family photos up and one of the worker’s husbands came out of the washroom in a towel (LOL).
One really funny thing was that two of our Contiki friends were almost roped into getting sex at the massage parlour of their choice. They took them into a dark room and held up a phone that had a different price point from the one advertised on the store front and they kept insisting that it was a “special deal”. Stay safe kids.
Final thoughts
Vang Vieng was actually quite lovely in terms of the views and nature. Probably one of the most beautiful stops we’ve had so far in our trip. Weather was warmer than in Luang Prabang so for those sensitive to heat, you may need to stay inside somewhere during 12-1 pm.
Again, the Laos people are just so welcoming and genuine. Perhaps even more so since Vang Vieng is a smaller town.
In terms of partying, I think we partied harder in Phuket, but I definitely enjoyed Sakura Bar. The thing about traveling with Contiki is that it always feels like a party. People are always down to drink- so much that it kind of makes me not want to.
I’ll have to say that food has been a low point for me ever since arriving in Laos. When we were eating at a neighbourhood restaurant, we noticed that it was just one woman who was doing all the work (cooking, serving etc.). We were the only customers. Food took a long time to arrive and when it did, it didn’t even look like what we ordered. Julianna and I joked about how they make the menu and fill it with all kinds of food – Laos, Chinese, Korean, German, etc. – and then when you order something, they just try to make it on the spot and wing it.
If you’re traveling through Laos, I still recommend you to visit Vang Vieng if not just for the mountains and the views. If you’re Korean, I think you definitely have to.
