Vang Vieng is a great stop between Luang Prabang and Vientiene in northern Laos. Its wild days behind it, it now offers a wide choice of adventure activities and there is much to explore in the beautiful surrounding countryside.

Tubing: my husband tells me this is something he did as a child in the dams of inland New South Wales, using tractor tyre inner tubes. Fairly harmless fun then, but add ten years to the child, let him – or her – travel to warm exotic lands with unlimited cheap alcohol and drugs in a free for all party atmosphere and suddenly a childish sport can become a lethal entertainment.

Vang Vieng in northern Laos, just 150 km north of the capital Vientiene, discovered this to its cost when it became a popular backpacker stop on the so called ‘banana pancake’ trail. The Nam Song river provided a beautiful backdrop to tubing and was lined with numerous bars, but water sports and alcohol don’t mix well: people started dying and after the death in 2012 of two young Australians, the authorities finally clamped down.

Today, tubing is still popular but the hedonistic party lifestyle has gone. There are still a few bars along the river (rumoured to be government backed) but a 11 pm curfew keeps things under control. Vang Vieng now has it’s eye set on a richer type of tourist and to be honest, the town was a bit of a mess when we visited in December 2016. New modern hotels are under construction everywhere and the back roads were being dug up. There is no cohesive centre to the place, just a raggle taggle of streets with restaurants, shops and tourist tat. Rather bizarrely running through the back of the town is Lima Site 6, a runway used by the Americans during the Secret War 1964 – 1973.

Vang Vieng Today

That said, it still repays a visit. The Nam Song river provides an attractive focal point and sundowners at the Elephant Crossing Hotel were a lively finish to the day (but don’t stay there at the moment:construction site next door!). Hot air balloons were to be seen in the distance, ultra lights buzzed overhead and an armada of Chinese canoeists, muffled in face masks and life jackets paddled frantically home. All the hubbub could not detract from the soft evening light on the molten river which bore echoes of gentler times as the sinking sun starkly silhouetted the dramatic rounded mountains.

It is still possible to be a backpacker and live cheaply in Vang Vieng, which suited us. We found rooms at the top end of town at the northern end of Main Street at Nam Song View Guesthouse, a simple guesthouse overlooking a sideshoot of the Nam Song and a suitably rickety bamboo bridge to a lush little island. We had a lovely mountain view and the most uncomfortable mattresses I have ever slept on, so much so that we used our sleeping mats on top of the bed which improved matters considerably. The ensuite room was a bargain 80,000 kip with a simple breakfast, but do try the bed before you choose!

Opposite was the run down Australian bar and an assortment of cheap restaurants abounded, in some of which it was possible to buy fried rice for 10,000 kip and watch dated episodes of Friends lounging on squishy cushions, just like the old days.

Banana Pancakes

I like backpacker areas: they keep the prices down and the bastardised menus serve a purpose. I am as partial to a banana milkshake and banana pancakes as the next person, and there are many fine examples to be found, most notably on the little food cart strip on the Main Street above the bamboo bridge. The ladies in their jolly stands make to order and I challenge anyone to resist a fresh, hot banana and chocolate pancake.

Other good value restaurants on the street have fine river views, though the menus are all much of a muchness so I will leave you to choose. In the hunt for more substantial fare one night we found Gary’s Irish Bar – there is always one – and enjoyed their excellent burgers. The Lao beer is good, a pale lager made with a mix of local rice and imported malt.

Take a Hike

However, the real charm of Vang Vieng is to be found in the countryside around the town which is beautiful and unspoilt. It is not even necessary to go very far from town to find another Laos. While my husband went climbing one day, I wandered over the long bamboo bridge to the western side of the Nam Song and headed out to the Pha Poak cave, an easy 20 minute stroll.

The path, once I had left the latest building site behind, meandered through rice paddies and skirted round the edge of sheer limestone cliffs. There were few people and it was all very peaceful.

The isolated limestone plug which contains the cave is easy to spot,  especially as it has a flag flying from the top. The cave is of no special interest, but it is worth doing the short but steep climb to the top of the hill (I suggest proper shoes) for a truly spectacular view.

Suddenly you are looking into another world, a hidden plain hemmed in by high ragged cliffs, where farmers work their land as they always have. One woman trawled a flooded field looking for frogs, another worked on a rice paddy. I descended and walked down through the little fields and bamboo thickets,:-) enjoying the bucolic scenes so far removed from the frantic modernisation of Vang Vieng.

West of Town

Mopeds can be hired for as little as 40,000 kip a day and are a great way of exploring further afield. Download a Hobo map www.hobomaps.com. One popular option is the West Vang Vieng loop which meanders on dirt roads through 25 km of beautiful Laotian countryside and villages. The bridge at the southern end of town has a toll so the fun way to start the moped adventure is zipping over the free bamboo bridge – nothing will seem scary after that and in fact the roads are fairly quiet and safe, even if largely dirt.

Along the way, there are detours to various caves. We particularly liked the Tham Phu Kham  cave which had a large golden buddha lying in its huge cavern. The sun’s rays penetrated through a hole and lit it up beautifully.

Below the cave, the popular Blue Lagoon lived up to it’s name and provided a welcome dip after the 200m climb, as well as the hugely entertaining sight of the Chinese visitors trying to pluck up their courage and jump off a high tree limb into the water. As most actually wore life jackets, I presume they could not swim so maybe more courage was required than normal!

North of Town

Another day we drove north on Rt 13 to Ban Phatang, a little village on the Nam Song from whose bridge there is the quintessential Laos view of countryside and jagged peaks; huge fish swum in the waters below. We checked out Elephant Cave, appropriately called after the stalagtite formation that did indeed look just like an elephant. The temple bell was an old bomb case. You can wander on to Water Cave from here, a good way to cool off as a visit involves towing yourself through a flooded cave in an inner tube.

4 km north of town, and on the river, is the Mulberry Organic Farm, known for its mulberry shakes. We popped in for lunch and had their raw vegetable spring rolls which worked brilliantly with their fresh flavours – and the shakes were delicious too!

Other Options

In its haste to reinvent itself, Vang Vieng now has a plethora of things to do. As mentioned, my husband went out climbing with Adams group one day which was a bargain 260,000 kip for the whole day. He had a great time, and was the only person with them in the afternoon – a different way of experiencing the karst heights around town.

Quad bikes are growing in popularity, there are dirt bicycles for hire or hot air ballooning for only about $80. Kayaking is also popular, there are lots more caves and trails to explore and if all else fails, there is always the old favourite: tubing!