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Experience the intimate sights and scenes along the Mekong river to Luang Prabang (December 2012)
Back to 2012-2013 small group trips page
Join private slow boat trip on the Mekong river from northern Thailand to Luang Prabang in first week of Dec 2012.
What are there for you:-
- Life and scenes on the Mekong river & in the riverside villages
- Photography
- River boat travel, life of boat peoples
- Small villages, schools, works and homes of local peoples
- Make friends on the way with like minded travellers
- Lao style foods
- Overnight in a small riverbank town
The Plan
The trip starts in Chiang Khong - a Thai town on the Mekong river bank opposite Lao's Houixai.
We can arrange the transport from either Chiang Mai or Chiang Rai if needed.
The first night shall be in a nice and friendly accommodation in Chiang Khong.
If possible come before evening so you have time to walk around in the small town.
The next day you will be transferred to Houixai - Laos side of Mekong river. After the immigration we will go to the boat
landing by taxi to start the river journey. We will start early so we will have time to explore the villages
along the shore of river. Evening and night shall be in Pakbeng. Comfortable accommodation will be arranged.
On the third day we will continue the slow boat river trip further down to Luang Prabang.
The boat has comfortable seats under the roof, table for dinning, lift jackets, and a western style toilet.
Boiled water, coffee and tea, seasonal fruits will be available at all time. Lao style clean and healthy lunch
will be served on the boat.
Dates for December winter trip will be decided after few serious inquiries and before the end
of October. Last year we travelled upstream for 4 nights including a night in Hong Sa which is one hour drive from Mekong river.
Everyone enjoyed the two nights sleep on the boat.
This year we will wait for the comments of wound-be-travellers before we decide on the number of days.
It will be at least two nights and three days. First night in Chiang khong, and the second night in Pakbeng arriving
Luang Prabang on the third evening. If we do more days we should spend the extra days on the land at an interesting place doing
probably nature walk and village stay. In any case the trip will be minimum 3 days to maximum 5 days.
Services we will provide are:-
- Accommodations along the trip and breakfast
- Lunch, fruit, hot drink, drinking water on the boat
- Dinner if we spend a night or two in the village or on the boat
- Sightseeing along the river, entrance fee to Pak Ou cave
- Car and truck transfers at the ports
- Private slow boat, the whole boat for us
Some photos of the past trips (itineraries are not exactly the same) are in this site:
www.ourweb.info/01/photos/laos/
About the boat and its facilities and the boat trip:
- Western style toilet, roof, comfortable seats, life jackets
- Boiled water, seasonal fruits, coffee available at all time
- Lao style lunch provided
- One tour leader or fixer
- Stops to visit villages on the river bank on the route within the available time
- Permit for private trip of foreign tourists from Lao immigration
The boat | In a Mekong riverside village
Group size will be 6 to 14. Boat (river bank) stay or village stay are good for smaller group of say not more than 8.
Some notes on the trip:
- Please purchase accident and health insurance, trip cancellation insurance in your place
- Pack as light as possible, but bring a set or warm clothings
- Water tight suitcase or bag are suitable
- Toiletries, medical kit, personal medicines, torch light and extra batteries/bulbs
- Walking/day hiking shoes as well as sandals
- Please do not give any thing free to anyone you meet on the trip. However small donation of locally available educational and health care materials could be done to village school or headman
- No alcoholic drinks please
To join above programs please email to trekthailand (dot) net (at) gmail (dot) com these information
- Number of persons, full names and gender
- Pick up point and approximate date/time if you need transfer
- Food selection if you don't eat fish, pork, etc. or you are a vegetarian
Ask for more information you may need. If you want to arrange a similar trip for your own private group please let us know.
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