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Vientiane Cycling Tour: Explore Mekong River Villages
4.0
2 Ratings
Tha Heua
Vientiane is situated on the shores of the Mekong River. Its tranquil and picturesque riverside hamlets make it an excellent idea to go biking and discover the city at your own pace.
Duration:
8 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
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Highlights
- Mekong River - At 9am, we will begin cycling out of the city. We shortly cycle along the Mekong River where you can enjoy the beautiful views across the river and into neighboring Thailand. From the Ban Tong village, we continue along the canal which takes its source from the nearby Mekong River and is used to irrigate nearby rice paddy fields. As we carry on cycling despite the relative close proximity to the bustling city you will certainly feel like you are a million miles away! Enjoy the peace and serenity as you watch the local people going about their everyday tasks.
- Tad Moun Waterfalls - Carrying onwards we head through some dirt tracks which take us through rice fields and forest, the trail can get a little muddy and sandy along the way but really takes us away from everything and will immerse us in nature. Along the way we may see the local people tending to their rice paddy fields depending on the time of the year, the trail leads us back to a tarmac road, we head along the road for a while until arriving at Tad Moon waterfall which is a popular spot for the local people from Vientiane, the waterfall itself can actually completely dry up during the dry season however it is still worth a visit to see the different rock formations, at the waterfall we take some time for a quick break and enjoy a cold drink.
- Vientiane - From the waterfall we cycle along the main road which is freshly paved and very smooth yet relatively quiet in terms of traffic, we shall begin with a slight ascend which from there the remainder of the cycling takes us on a steady downhill until arriving in the village of Ban Mai which sits on the banks of the Mekong, before that it is time to enjoy lunch alongside the river, you will take a lunch of delicious sandwiches, crisps and fruit all washed down with a cold drink.
- Mekong Riverside Park - After your lunch and taking some time to relax you will don your life-jackets and board your kayaks for the journey downstream back to Vientiane. Along the way you will enjoy the scenery on both sides of the river as you head along the border between Laos and Thailand, of course staying on the Lao side during the entirety…The Mekong River is home to several river islands (‘Don’ in Lao) along the way we visit one of the largest ‘Don Xing Xou’ which is used as for farming taking advantage of the year round fertility, it is also home to a beautiful beach at the far end! We carry onward kayaking down the Mekong until arriving back in Vientiane, the trip ends just outside the city center next to a riverside bar, the perfect way to end the day by enjoying an ice cool beer next to the river. From here you will be collected via truck and taken back to your hotel in afternoon.
What's Included
- Private local truck
- English speaking guide
- Lunch
- Bicycle
- Bottled water
- Round-trip pickup from hotel
What's Not Included
- Personal expenses
- Drinks
- Tips
Additional Information
- Tour is not available in April 13th-16th (Lao New Year)
Location
Mekong River
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
4.0
(2 Ratings)
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1 star
Jti1068tm
Dec 2, 2023
Not for beginners - The start of the tour was delayed by 30 minutes because the actual guide was unavailable and the replacement had to come to town first. But Tripadvisor drove us to the hotel.
We have already done several bike tours in Asia, but this was the hardest. Very hot and dusty. Only on busy roads. But our very friendly guide gave it his all.
The boat trip to the Mekong Island at the end was very nice.
The quality of the bikes could be improved. All in all, a nice change, thanks also to our cool guide.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Suejmiller
Jan 25, 2020
Kayaking on the Mekong River - Hello, I would have rated this tour 5 stars, but we did have problems with the trip. I received confirmation on 12.10.19 from Grayline Vietnam Threeland Travel that you had received our change of hotel pick up details. Yet, yesterday the day of our trip having already been notified that you would pick us up at 8:30am the rep arrived at 10:15am. During this time our hotel people had tried to contact you at the office number given and was getting no reply. When he came he had gone to the old hotel so had not been advised of new hotel details. This was not his fault and someone in the office should have updated the booking......they did have 4 months notice, so really not good enough! Also why were the phones not being answered!
I Would also recommend asking the height of people when at the time of booking as the bikes were really too small for us. All in all though when we did get going the trip was great.....no waterfall due to dry season, but hey ho, the cycling and kayaking were superb, cycling through the countryside and kayaking on the Mekong River; which was what we really went for. The guide was very apologetic at the delay and was very good.
Review provided by Viator
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