August 2017, monsoon included
Laos came four years after the big loop, and right in the middle of the rains. Not the season any guide recommends, and I would not change it.
In August the Mekong is wide and the colour of coffee with milk, the waterfalls roar, and the whole country seems to move at walking pace. The film starts in Luang Prabang with its temples, the falls at Kuang Si and the river at dusk, then follows the road south through the limestone hills of Vang Vieng down to Vientiane, a capital so calm it hardly feels like one.
Back then that road took the best part of a day. Now a fast train does it in under two hours, which changes everything about planning a trip. The practical notes below are written for today, not for 2017.
Five days to a week is enough for this route. In Laos, fewer places and more time always works better.
Vientiane
See the golden stupa of Pha That Luang, the symbol of the country, and the old cloister of Wat Si Saket, its walls lined with hundreds of little Buddhas. Climb the Patuxai arch for the view, then spend the evening at the market on the Mekong bank, with Thailand just across the water.
About 25 km out of town, the Buddha Park is a slightly surreal garden full of concrete statues. Odd, and memorable.
Vang Vieng
Vang Vieng used to be known for wild parties on the river. That era is mostly over, and what is left is the landscape: karst peaks, caves, blue lagoons, kayaks and inner tubes on the Nam Song, balloons over the valley at dawn.
In the rainy months the river can rise in hours. Only go out with people who hand you a life jacket, and stay on land after a big storm.
Luang Prabang
A small town of temples and old colonial houses where two rivers meet, protected by UNESCO. Walk up Mount Phousi for sunset, browse the night market, and take a slow boat upriver to the Pak Ou caves, packed with Buddha statues left by pilgrims.
Every morning at first light the monks walk the streets collecting alms. If you want to see it, stay back, keep quiet, no flash, and only join in if you do it properly. It is a prayer, not a performance.
Kuang Si Falls
Half an hour or so from Luang Prabang, the water drops down a series of limestone terraces into pools that, in the dry months, are an unreal turquoise, and you can swim in the marked spots. In August they can turn into a brown, thundering river instead. Arrive early to beat the minibuses. At the entrance there is a sanctuary for rescued bears.
Best monthsVery hotRainy season
Blue skies, warm days, chilly early mornings up north. The easiest time to travel.
Hot, and in the north often hazy with smoke from the fields. Mid-April brings Pi Mai, the Lao New Year, and a lot of water thrown around.
The green season, like in the film: cheap, quiet, wet. Some rural roads close, but the train runs regardless.
Fresh, sour, full of herbs, and always with sticky rice that you roll into a ball with your fingers.
These notes are for travelling today, not for the year the film was made. I went through them again in . Border rules change without much warning, so please confirm on the official sites below before you book anything.
Italians, like most EU citizens, need a visa. The simplest option is the visa on arrival for 30 days at airports and main borders: cash, about US$40 depending on your nationality, one passport photo, crisp dollar notes printed in recent years. Or apply in advance for the official e-Visa.
Flying into Vientiane, Luang Prabang or Pakse, or crossing the first Friendship Bridge from Thailand, you fill in a free online immigration form in the three days before arrival and get a QR code. More border posts are being added.
The Laos–China railway links Vientiane, Vang Vieng and Luang Prabang in less than two hours. Since April 2026 a second-class seat from Vientiane to Luang Prabang costs about LAK 360,000 (around US$16). You need your passport to buy, and trains fill up: book a few days ahead in the LCR Ticket app or at a station or ticket office in town.
The currency is the kip, and outside hotels you pay cash. ATMs only give small amounts and charge each time. Some places take dollars or Thai baht, at a poor rate.
During the Vietnam war Laos was bombed more heavily, per person, than any country before or since, and much did not explode. In the countryside, especially in the east and around the Plain of Jars, stay on paths that are clearly used. The COPE visitor centre in Vientiane tells the story.
Drink bottled water. Use repellent against dengue, and ask a travel doctor about malaria if you are heading to remote forests. Hospitals are basic, and serious cases are taken to Thailand: get insurance that pays for evacuation.
Cover up in temples and take off your shoes. Women should not touch monks or hand them things directly. Raising your voice gets you nowhere here; patience does.
230 V, with sockets for A, B, C, E and F plugs. A Unitel or Lao Telecom SIM costs very little at the airport, passport in hand.
I made AsiaVIDEO between 2008 and 2018. Then life went in another direction, the camera ended up in a drawer, and the project stopped. No new films will appear here.
The one thing I still update is the “Before you go” box on each trip page: visas, money, transport, seasons. Last pass: October 2026. Rules change quickly, so always double-check on the official sites listed there before you book.