We couldn’t skip Northern part of Laos with its rich variety of mountains, waterfalls and caves. From Luang Prabang we headed towards Nong Khiaw and even the trip to this small town was an adventure itself. Beautiful mountains and green rice fields were surrounding the road, the weather was on our side as well.

Our first stop was at some local tournament. We still don’t know the name of this game (if you have any information, please, leave us a comment) but we should admit, it was quite intense. Even if there is always a winner and losers, the atmosphere was really festive! Big discovery came to light to us at this tournament: LaoBeer is not always a beer, but can be homemade rice wine as well!
Even before entering Nong Khiaw, we had a mandatory stop to do. Pha Kuang cave and its 300 meters long path was waiting for us. This cave will definitely remain in our memories as one of the most adventurous places we visited during our trip to Laos. Climbing, scrambling and dirty clothes guaranteed!

The area of Nong Khiaw is famous for its milestone mountains, Muang Ngoy village and several caves. Next morning we managed to get up early enough and explore one of its summits. After challenging hike we finally arrived to the top and were generously rewarded: the 360 degrees view was just breathtaking. The only downside of the whole experience was exaggerated and unjustified entrance fee but that just small detail

It was time to move even further north for us. Muang Xai and Muang La areas has really a lot to offer in terms of pristine nature, remote villages and ethnic communities. Our first stop was at Phachao Singkham temple, an ancient warship place with a lot of colors and bizarre statues. After we’ve done with cultural agenda we started looking for some more active time spending.
It’s like a treasure hunt, when you are looking for a waterfall without the knowledge of exact location and luck of road or map indicators. On our second attempt we made it to Houay Khai Waterfall and had a well deserved dip (at least one of us). Visiting small remote village after the waterfall was an extra reward for all our “efforts”.

Christmas night we spent in Muang Xai with nice alternative (at least for us) dinner. New, even more remote adventures, were waiting for us the next day!

Marry Christmas to everyone!