Laos
We’ve compiled the best of the best in Laos - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.
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1. Wat Phou
The ruins of this temple complex that predates Cambodia's Angkor Wat sit grandly on heights above the Mekong River, about 8 km (5 miles) south of Champasak. The strategic site was chosen by Khmer Hindus in the 6th century AD, probably because of a nearby spring of fresh water. Construction of the wat continued into the 13th century, at which point it finally became a Buddhist temple. Much of the original Hindu sculpture remains unchanged, including representations on the temple's lintels of the Hindu gods Vishnu, Shiva, and Kala. The staircase is particularly beautiful, its protective nagas (mystical serpents) decorated with plumeria, the national flower of Laos. Many of the temple's treasures, including pre-Angkor–era inscriptions, are preserved in an archaeology museum that is part of the complex. An impressive festival takes place at the temple each January.
Rd. 14, Champasak, Champasak, Laos030-956--5325Sight Details
Rate Includes: 50,000 kip; 40,000 kip 6 am–8 am and 4:30–6, with no museum entry -
2. Wat Xieng Thong
Luang Prabang's most important and impressive temple complex is Wat Xieng Thong, a collection of ancient buildings near the tip of the peninsula where the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers meet. Erected in 1560, the main temple is one of the few structures to have survived centuries of marauding Vietnamese, Chinese, and Siamese armies, and it's one of the region's best-preserved examples of Buddhist art and architecture. The intricate golden facades, colorful murals, sparkling glass mosaics, and low, sweeping roofs of the entire ensemble of buildings (which overlap to make complex patterns) all combine to create a feeling of harmony and peace. The interior of the main temple has decorated wooden columns and a ceiling covered with wheels of dharma, representing the Buddha's teaching. The exterior is just as impressive thanks to mosaics of colored glass that were added in the 1950s. Several small chapels at the sides of the main hall are also covered with mosaics and contain various images of the Buddha. The bronze 16th-century reclining Buddha in one chapel was displayed in the 1931 Paris Exhibition. The mosaic on the back wall of that chapel commemorates the 2,500th anniversary of the Lord Buddha's birth with a depiction of Lao village life. The funerary carriage house near the compound's east gate, with a gilded facade, contains the royal family's funeral statuary and urns, including a 40-foot-long wooden funeral carriage.
Sisaleumsak Rd., Luang Prabang, Louangphabang, LaosSight Details
Rate Includes: 20,000 kip -
3. Wat Mai
This small but lovely temple next to the Royal Palace compound dates from 1796. Its sweeping four-tier roof is characteristic of Luang Prabang's religious architecture, but more impressive are the magnificent wood carvings and gold-leaf murals on the main pillars and portico entrance to the temple. These intricate panels depict the last life of the Buddha, as well as various Asian animals. During the Boun Pimai festival (Lao New Year), the Phra Bang sacred Buddha image is carried from the Royal Palace compound to Wat Mai for ritual cleansing ceremonies.
Sisavangvong Rd., Luang Prabang, Louangphabang, LaosSight Details
Rate Includes: 10,000 kip -
4. Wat Visoun (Wat Wisunarat)
The 16th-century Wat Visoun and neighboring Wat Aham play a central role in Lao New Year celebrations, when ancestral deities, called Pou Nyeu Nya Nyeu emerge from Wat Aham and dance in the processions down Sisavangvong Rd. Wat Visoun was built in 1503, during the reign of King Visounarat, who had the temple named after himself. Within the compound is a large and unusual watermelon-shaped stupa called That Makmo (literally "Watermelon Stupa"). The 100-foot-high mound is actually a royal tomb, where many small, precious Buddha statues were found when Chinese Haw marauders destroyed the city in the late 19th century (these statues have since been moved to the Royal Palace). The temple hall was rebuilt in 1898 along the lines of the original wooden structure, and now houses an impressive collection of Buddha statues, stone inscriptions, and other Buddhist art.
Visounalat Rd., Luang Prabang, Louangphabang, LaosSight Details
Rate Includes: 10,000 kip -
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