The Xe Bang Fai Safari

We depart from Thakhek and drive on an unpaved road through a stunning landscape of limestone mountains. We stop for lunch at a boat landing on the banks of the Xe Bang Fai River.

After lunch, we take a local motor boat for the trip up river, passing forested karsts in the national park. We arrive in a small village in the late afternoon and settle into the village lodge. Before dinner we will have an opportunity to explore the village and learn about what life is like in this remote part of the world.

Approximately: 4 hours transfer, 2 hours long tail boat

After an early breakfast, we paddle our inflatable kayaks upstream to the entrance to the Xe Bang Fai Cave. We paddle into the cave, taking our time to discover the incredible limestone features, formed over thousands of years. We paddle through the cave for 11 Km to the other side of the cave for a picnic lunch before we return the same way. We will make camp on the river bank at the mouth of the cave, for a night of stars and stories.

Approximately: 7 hours kayaking

We start the day after breakfast. We then drive back to Thakhek for visiting Tham Xiengleb cave, that we reach after walking for about 20 minutes from the main road. Then we return to the main road and continue for a few kilometers until We visit another cave before we stop for delicious pinic lunch at the so-called “French pier” (Tha Falang). It is in fact a river with a large pond where the French army used to set up camp in the 1950s

After lunch we will continue on visiting the famous Buddha Cave, which has been rediscovered only in April 2004. The cave contains 229 bronze Buddha that are said to be over 300 years old. . We take time for swimming before heading to Thakhek.

Approximately: 4 hours sightseeing, 4 hours transfer