Whether you’re stepping straight off the long boat after a journey down the Mekong or it’s the final stop on your tour of Laos, Luang Prabang is the perfect city to spend four days. Nestled between mountains and rivers, this UNESCO World Heritage city offers a unique blend of rich history, serene landscapes, and vibrant culture. Luang Prabang captures the heart of every traveller. Check out this 4 day Itinerary to see all our must do recommendations of activities to do in the city of Luang Prabang!
Getting around Luang Prabang
When visiting areas outside, you might consider renting a scooter, or a private TukTuk. If you’ve never ridden a bike before, like me, LP is probably the best place to do it. The roads are significantly less busy than other places in SEA and drivers, considerably nicer!
If you are riding a scooter for the first time, please go with someone else or a group who can guide you. I will say, riding a scooter in Laos in general opens up a whole new world of exploration, just wear a helmet!! In terms of cost, you can get a rental for quite cheap – I paid €11 for Motor bike rental and gas 24hrs (try find someone who will share the ride with you to split the cost and take turns driving !)
When to visit Laos and Luang Prabang?
I visited towards the end of April and whether wise, it was perfect. Something to be mindful of is that in northern Thailand and Laos, the burning season occurs between the months of February and April. This will have a considerable effect on your ability to drive and experience natural sights.
Day 1 in Luang Prabang
Depending on how long you have to spend in LP, you will probably want to take your first day/night in LP pretty chill to recover from the slow boat over from Thailand.
- Explore the night market and some local delicacies. Think lots of fried meats and fish on sticks and lots of fruit smoothies!
- If you’ve not had enough of the Mekong River, why not take a Luang Prabang sunset cruise.
Day 2 in Luang Prabang
Start your morning off with Breakfast in Two little Birds cafe.
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- Followed up your hearty breakfast with a climb up Phousi Hill. At the top of this 300+ step hill you’ll be greeted with an exceptional panoramic view of the below LP (also a good spot for sunset).
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- Start with a visit to the Royal Palace Museum to understand the history of Luang Prabang and Laos.
- Visit the UXO Laos Visitor centre. The UXO Visitor Centre in Luang Prabang provides an insightful and sobering look into the impact of unexploded ordnance (UXO) on Laos, the most heavily bombed country per capita in history. The UXO Visitor Centre is open from Monday to Friday, 8:00 AM to 12:00 PM and 1:00 PM to 4:00 PM. The museum is donation based so I’d highly recommend bringing some cash.
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- For sunset, go down to the ferry crossing and take a short boat ride over to one of the bar – Mekong Svan Restaurant & Bar
- Visit the bowling alley, you’ll need to take a TukTuk or motorbike here
Day 3 in Luang Prabang
Day three you’ll be getting up nice and early to go and visit the famous Kuang Si Falls.
Take a half-day trip to the Kuang Si Waterfalls, about 30 km from Luang Prabang. The falls are spectacular, with turquoise pools perfect for swimming. There’s also a Bear Rescue Center nearby, which helps protect endangered Asian bears.
We’d recomend renting bikes and driving yourself however, if you’re not comfortable book a tour when you get there!
Finish the evening off with some hotpot (there’s some great spots in LP !)
Day 4 in Luang Prabang
Get up early to take a Yoga class at Luang Prabang Yoga
Take a boat tour along the Mekong River to visit the Pak Ou Caves, a sacred site filled with thousands of Buddha statues of varying sizes. The boat ride itself offers stunning views of the river and surrounding landscapes.
If you have some spare time, we’d also recommend taking a Lao cooking class.
Final thoughts
There’s so much fun activities to do in Luang Prabang and it is a really nice place to base yourself for a few days. There’s some activities which are quite popular to do in Luang Prabang such as the Alms giving ceremony which we’ve purposely left out of this itinerary as we’re not convinced on the ethics of such activities but you should do your research and make up your own mind.
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