This morning you by travel by tuk-tuk to visit the National Museum formerly Royal Palace, full of fine examples of Lao art and furniture and the former residence of the now deposed royal family. After a visit, take a short boat trip along the Mekong to the mysterious 'Cave of 1,000 Buddhas' at Pak Ou. Here, in a tradition that has lasted for centuries, local people add annually to a repository of Buddha statues. The trip to the cave will take approximately 1.5 hours each way, depending on current strength. You will also have the chance to visit a riverside village and may even get to sample the local rice wine (Lao-Lao). At the conclusion of your boat trip, you will be transferred by tuk-tuk from the boat landing back to your hotel.

Rise early this morning to see robed Buddhist monks collecting morning alms, following a centuries-old ritual. Visit Mount Phou si for sunrise. After breakfast you will be picked up at your hotel for a 40 minute drive in a westerly direction to the village of Ban Pak Si, stop on the way at the Local family's farm - a nice setting at the edge of the riversides. The host will take you around the farm and choose fresh ingredients from their garden for today's cooking class. You will help making your own Papaya Salad, Pork Laap, sticky rice and more. Feast your delicious lunch at the farm. After Lunch, your guide will lead you through the path that Local farmers walk every day to their farm, the 2 hour trekking will take you towards Kuang si Falls. Swim in the turquoise waters, or simply explore the beautiful surrounds. Enjoy free time before visiting a nearby sanctuary which cares for and rehabilitates bears rescued from animal traders, or from deforested habitat. Return to Luang Prabang, stopping as you like for photos of countryside and villages. Arrive back at your hotel in the late afternoon. Lunch included.

This morning you will be picked up at your Luang Prabang hotel at 8.00 am for the overland trip to Xieng Khouang Province (site of the Plain of Jars). The journey will take around seven hours and there will be plenty of opportunities to stop and admire the wonderful scenery. The journey passes through beautiful mountain ranges and H'mong hill tribe villages before arriving Muang Soi town, on the western edge of the Plain of Jars. Continue to Phonsavan, the main town in the Plain of Jars. The jars are one of Asia's most unusual sights and are thought to be over 2,000 years old - however origins are still a mystery. Archaeologists speculate that the jars were funerary urns, but discoveries in recent times have uncovered nearby unusual treasures of statues and precious artefacts. Late afternoon, check-in to your accommodation to watch the sun fade behind the surrounding hills.

Begin with a visit to the morning market, to see unusual wares and foodstuffs for sale. Then, explore the Mine Action Group (MAG) visitor centre, which gives you an excellent introduction into the war-torn history of this region and showcases the unprecedented volume of munitions left in this area. You will then set out for the main Plain of Jars sites. Begin with a trip to site 2, one of the smaller sites, but with excellent surrounding views of the countryside. Site 3 is possibly the most beautiful jars site and is set atop a small rise, surrounded by scenic yet bomb-scarred rice paddies. After site 3, return in the direction of town to site 1, the most famous of all the jars sites. Here, the jars are largest and most numerous. You will leave this site wondering about the true purpose of these amazing stone urns. After lunch, drive to Muang Khoun town. In colonial days this hamlet was the capital of Xieng Khouang Province and was the site of a unique style of Buddhist temples (low-lying, to withstand strong winds), French administrative buildings, and a bustling market. It was also a centre of opium trading … During the secret war, the town was unfortunately the site of much conflict and was almost razed to the ground. Today, little remains of the old town, however the journey from Phonsavan (30 kilometers) passes through pretty countryside and adds depth to your stay in the area. You will see the standing ruinous remains of a sitting Buddha statue (at Wat Phia Wat), and the ravaged That Chomsi (famous for a hole through its base made by treasure-hunting thieves). Return to Phonsavan town, by the end of the day.

After breakfast, check-out of your hotel. Time permitting, also visit the local market, full of interesting fruits and vegetables, and friendly people. Then transfer the short distance to Phonsavan Airport, for the return flight to Vientiane. Arrive in the capital time for an afternoon of discoveries of Vientiane, visit the exquisite Wat Sisaket, Vientiane's oldest original temple, built in 1818 (all other temples in Vientiane were re-built after the Siamese invasion of 1828).  Travel towards the Thai/ Lao Friendship Bridge to ‘Buddha Park.’ Located on the banks of the Mekong, this eclectic venue is full of larger-than-life concrete statues lifted from Buddhist and Hindu epics. The creator of these statues was rumoured to have been eccentric, so a visit here is interesting and makes for great photos. Finally, finish your day with stops at Phra That Luang (the most important national monument in Laos and symbolic of both the monarchy and the Buddhist religion) and the Patuxai Monument, reminiscent of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. At the end of the day, be dropped-off at your hotel.

This morning you will be met at the airport QV305/0700 and drive to the Tad Yeang and Tad Fane waterfalls. As you continue on to the lush Bolaven Plateau, Laos' premier coffee growing region, you will notice a change in both temperature and landscape. Encounter some of the plateau's Laven minority people and stop at local coffee plantation to sample some of the beans which many consider to be the world's finest. After the visit, transfer to Champasack and check in to your hotel.

After breakfast, visit to Wat Phou, a pre-Angkorian Khmer temple and UNESCO World Heritage site. This temple used to be the capital of the once-powerful Khmer Empire and is set on the end of a hill, overlooking the surrounding countryside. Check out at your hotel and you will travel by car down south to 4,000 Islands, stop en route at Ban Phon Sa-Art and Khone Phapheng waterfall before arrive at Don Khone. Board a small longtail boat for a 30 minutes open-top boat trip (depending on season) to Khone Island, home to interesting fishing villages and a handful of dilapidated French colonial houses. Check-in to your hotel (build around the old French hospital), upon arrival check in to your hotel, free at leisure.

After breakfast, travel by tuk tuk and foot to the site of the only railway in Laos, and the old French railway bridge, built at the end of the 19th century. Visit the beautiful Li Phi falls where you can sip on a fresh coconut as you take advantage of the numerous photo opportunities of the rocky falls. Board a small long tail boat back to Ban Nakasang, meet your driver and travel back to Pakse, stop at Phou Salao before check in to your hotel.

After breakfast, today free at leisure until your transfer to Pakse airport for your ongoing flight…