Destination Laos

Preparations & Expectations

Expectations

Expect a new travel experience. Expect streets to be quite busy with bicycles and motorcycles, but a pace that you associate more readily with a country town. Expect peacefulness and a more relaxed and simple way of life. Expect a less developed country with a sense of timelessness, and things to happen in their own time. Experiences that will create fond memories that will stay with you forever.

Experiences such as rising at dawn in Luang Prabang to watch hundreds of saffron robed monks move silently through the streets to collect alms (daily offerings of food). Participating in a traditional Basi blessing ceremony, where a village elder calls on guardian spirits to protect and watch over you.  For those that like to see handicrafts – witnessing delicate traditional fabrics being hand woven on looms that have remain unchanged for decades.  Enjoying delicious Laotian and international cuisine or sipping freshly ground Laotian coffee from a street side vendor.  When it’s time to take a break, watching the sun set over the Mekong while sipping a cold drink from a table on its banks.

Expect the unexpected, but expect to fall in love with Laos!

People

The Lao people are very receptive to foreigners and will usually welcome you warmly. People here generally live a different paced life and their relaxed attitude and “bo pben yang”, (it’ll be ok), attitude can take some time to get used to. There is a healthy curiosity towards foreigners and you may find yourself frequently engaged in conversation unexpectedly or at the centre of attention! Lao, Thai, English, and French (to a lesser extent) are spoken. The vast majority of Lao people practice Buddhism and/or Animism (spirit worship). There are also small numbers of Christians and Moslems.

Preparations

Clothing

Light, comfortable clothing, and good walking shoes are beneficial. Lao people dress modestly and revealing clothing is disrespectful and can cause offence.  Temples and some tourist sites do not permit shorts above the knee or singlet/vest tops and request that you dress neatly. Shoes are normally removed when entering temples, some shops and local homes, so when around town sandals or thongs (flip-flops) that can be easily removed are recommended. Between November and February it can get quite cool in the mountains and the north, especially in the evenings, so some warm clothes are required.

Drinking water

Bottled water is readily available everywhere and is recommended at all times – please do not drink the tap water. At local restaurants fresh salad vegetables are best avoided unless washed yourself in bottled water.

Money

The Lao kip is a non-convertible currency and now trades at around 8,500 kip to USD$ 1.  Most shops and restaurants in the main cities and towns will also use USD and Thai Baht freely. We recommend that visitors to Laos bring USD cash to use during their visit to Laos. There are limited ATMs at this stage in Laos (in Luang Prabang and Vientiane only), and are perhaps best not relied upon yet. Cash advances from major credit cards can usually be done at banks in Vientiane and Luang Prabang, however credit cards are still not widely accepted throughout the rest of the country and travellers’ cheques can only be cashed at authorized foreign exchange outlets and banks in main centres, and require presentation of a passport. Small denominations of USD cash are the most practical currency to carry although if staying for a while or planning to do a lot of shopping $50 and $100 have the best exchange rate. Clean, new USD currency is recommended as torn, dirty or old style notes are usually not accepted.