Jan 8, 2012 - Vang Vieng

After Luang Prabang we went to Vang Vieng mainly to go tubing, if you don’t know what that is its basically you sitting in a rubber ring and float down the river and people throw a rope towards you and pull you in to their bars which are all along the river side. On the way we met a big group of Australians who were on holiday we ended up staying at the same guest house as them and tubing with them all, which was really good fun we went twice in three days and left. They were there about 7 days and I think probably went to the rivers bars...

Jul 8, 2011 - Vang Vieng

Sorry for such a wait between posts everyone! We are in Vietnam now and the internet can be a bit tempermantal! So, after Vientianne we headed off to Vang Viang. Vang Vieng is clustered around a river and neslted between huge limestone karst hills. But the main reason backpackers seen to go is to float down the river in a rubber ring whilst drinking lots and lots of free shots!! Our first day in arriving we had a look around andf found a guesthouse for only 40'000kip a night (around 2 pounds!). We headed out for a look around but ended up...

Jun 26, 2011 - Vang Vieng

We headed from Chiang Mai to vang vien on an over night bus. Left at 7pm and arrived at 2pm. LONG trip. No problems on the border crossing, just alot of waiting around for it to open and what not. Vang Vien is a huge party town with not much else to do. It had been raining for the last week almost non-stop, and well the town is on a river and is knows for its river bars. People get in inter tubes, and float from bar to bar to get buckets of different alcohols. Since it had rained so much, the town was flooded, the bars had been washed away,...

May 30, 2011 - Vang Vieng

The tuktuk driver arrived at 5.45. He was 15min early. He tried to make me hurry. He took me to the bus station where they told me that I had to get on a big bus! I told him that I booked a minibus. However there was no use arguing. I had to get on that bus! The busride was horrilbe. The seats were uncomfortable and loose and the streets where bumpy and winding up and down the mountain slopes. I was a bout to get seasick. I met a couple from england-canada on the bus. We decided to go to a hostel together. We arrived in Vang Vieng at 1pm....

Apr 27, 2011 - Caves and busrides

A much shorter (6 hr) bus ride took us to Vang Vieng, Laos. It seemed to be "the" backpacker place to go, so we thought it would be fun to check out and break up what would otherwise be another long busride. Travel in Laos is painstakingly slow. They only just finally (we were told) finished "paving" most of these major roads between the big cities. However, they were often little more than a lane wide and the paving job had already worn down and broken up in many places. A drive that would take maybe 3 hours cruising down I-5 in the US,...

Mar 20, 2011 - Stunning Views on the Bus to Vang Vieng

Today we took a stunning bus ride over the mountains in a white knuckle ride van trip. Recent heavy rains had caused small landslides and we still had to maneuver around the odd rock. However, most of the more serious rock and mud slides had been cleared and we made good time. We stopped at the top of the mountains and had lunch from what felt like the roof top of the world. Vang Vieng is famous for tubing which means riding on inner-tubes down the river, stopping at bars on the way. This seems a little too energetic in the afternoon sun so...

Mar 5, 2011 - Vang Vieng, Laos

Friday, March 4 Today was not a good day. I woke up around 4 am with “digestive issues” and between bathroom runs went online. There was a message to skype Stephanie immediately so I did. Turns out my issues were a blessing as we found out face to face with Stephanie rather than via face book that Mike's Dad died. What do we do? We're only a week into a 5 week trip. Do we go home? I figured out how to phone using skype and called Mike's mom. One of the first things she said was “keep on going. I don't want you to come home. I want to see...

Feb 13, 2011 - Vang Vieng...with many, many a falang!

We head north via bus to Vang Vieng...leaving 1 hour later than scheduled, arriving 2 hours later than scheduled. We have learned by now NEVER TO plan activities for days we travel as inevitably, we end up not being able to execute the plans because bus travel is always long and frequently, exhausting. We have been warned in particular about bus travel in Laos but actually, the road was not too bad...mostly paved and not too windy. Vang Vieng's main attraction is its dramatic setting. Limestone cliffs provide a stunning backdrop along the...

Jan 29, 2011 - Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng

We spent the rest of the time in Luang Prabang visiting the temples, eating at the night market, hiring motorbikes and riding an incredibly stubborn elephant. John purchased some gut-rot Lao whiskey with a cobra stuffed in it. Nightly we watched the sunset over the Mekong with a cold Beerlao and fantastic curried coconut fish soup. We left Luang via another puckey bus trip down to the party town of Vang Vieng. This town's claim to fame is tubing down the Mekong visiting makeshift bars, rope swings and the invitingly named "slide of death."...

Dec 15, 2010 - Vang Vieng

Only made it to Vang Vieng by divine intervention. The bus should have been condemned, it took 1 1/2 hours to actually leave Vientiane and the bus was overbooked. at one point people were sitting on plastic chIrs in the aisle. And it was mosquito central! Finally got there and it was a bit of a party town. We hired bikes and cycled to the Blue Lagoon (a lagoon that is blue - true story!). There's also a massive cave there and to reach it you need climbing gear! Well almost... The weather turned sour in the afternoon in time for us to go...

Nov 9, 2010 - Vang Vieng

Arrived 9th November Departed 15th November Definitely back on the traveller route now, lots of Westerners around! The laws of Laos obviously don’t stand here as it is clearly a party town. We had a couple of days rest which consisted of eating amazing baguettes whilst laying on cushions in bars watching Family Guy. Great preparation for our first day ‘tubing’. Those of you who have been will understand but this is not like anything I’ve ever experienced. It would NEVER happen in the UK, or most other countries to be fair, as it is the most...

Sep 15, 2010 - Vang Vieng

Vang Vieng was never considered when drawing up our planned itinerary. Indeed it only came to our attention through chatting to other travelers. It lies between Luang Prabang, and the capital, Vientiane. If you typed Vang Vieng into Google the very next word that will come up will be “tubing”. From researching the place in Lonely Planet it appeared to be famous for the nightlife and the tubing. So we squeezed two days of it into our plans. Upon arriving in the town it seemed nothing special. It was raining, and the town seemed very quiet....