After months of planning and preparation the time has finally arrived! Upon arrival, you will be greeted by your World Expeditions Schools guide and head straight to the hotel for check in. For the duration of your journey you will be allocated an English speaking guide and a private vehicle which will provide all your transportation. This will make it easier and more convenient to manage the various activities, programs and site visits you will be experiencing across the six days, along with giving you flexibility within the itinerary. Depending on your arrival time your guide will have a full trip briefing with the whole group either tonight or tomorrow morning. He will also conduct a short Laotion language lesson so you can familiarise yourself with some local phrases that you can use through out your journey.

Meals:  D

After an early breakfast at the hotel, we take a private transfer to the train station for the high speed train ride to Luang Prabang. On arrival, you will be welcomed by your World Expeditions Schools guide and driver and transferred by private vehicle to check in at the Sala Prabang. Luang Prabang is a World Heritage Town and the ancient capital of the Kingdom of Lane Xang. It was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO for its beautiful temples. Today we take a city tour starting with a visit to the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre to observe valuable artifacts and traditional clothing and implements from each of the 20 ethnic minority groups which inhabit the Luang Prabang area. We enjoy a tour of the city's oldest temple, Wat Sene and the magnificent Wat Xieng Thong where you can see the impressive “tree of life” mosaic set in colored glass. We’ll visit the impressive stupa of Wat Visoun. Lunch at a local restaurant. In the afternoon we visit The National Museum at the former Royal Palace, which displays a lovely collection of artifacts reflecting the richness of Lao culture throughout the ages and we climb up to Phousi hill to see the sunset and also panoramic of Luang Prabang. From there, we transfer to have dinner at local restaurant. Overnight: Sala Prabang, Luang Prabang

Meals:  B,L,D

After breakfast at our hotel, we walk down to the pier to access the Mekong River. The group is to be at the pier by 8:30am, where we board a traditional Laotian long boat called a Song Thaew (the entire group can ride on one long boat) and cruise upstream for approximately 40 minutes to reach Ban Houayon village. It is here where we spend the next three days assisting in the build of an adobe based construction that will be the dormitory for students from surrounding villages. Currently the students stay in very basic bamboo huts with no electricity or running water. The new dormitories will have a significant impact on the living standards of these students, making their home environment during the week much more conducive and complimentary to study and learning. When we arrive in the village on the first day we will take a tour of the village and the project site where we will get an introduction to the building process and our work objectives. We’ll be divided into working groups that rotate at the various working stations as the day progresses. We have a fruit break mid morning and a two hour lunch break. Families from the village will host lunch. You will be split into groups of three students and assigned a family for the time you are working in the village. The homes where the meals will be taken are within close proximity of each other. This is a unique and wonderful immersion opportunity and we encourage students to embrace the experience, show gratitude for the meals prepared and try to communicate with their hosts, learning some Lao phrases and teaching some English. In your backpack on service days pack: > Water Bottle/s full with water (filtered water will be available for you to top up your water throughout the day in the village) > Wet weather jacket > Sun hat > Sun screen > Sun glasses > sturdy work gloves Wear old clothes, joggers/runners or walking boots that you are happy to get dirty. You are working with mud and so we guarantee that your clothes and shoes will be covered in mud. Please dress conservatively - long shorts or pants and a t-shirt covering your shoulders, otherwise you may offend the community if you are dressed inappropriately. On the last date, late in the afternoon the community will conduct a Baci Ceremony to show thanks for your help and to give blessing for a healthy life. We return to the work site again in the afternoon stopping at 4:30pm to ensure we are in the long boats no later than 5pm, arriving in Luang Prabang by 5:40pm. Overnight: Sala Prabang, Luang Prabang

Meals:  B,L,D

Following breakfast we travel south of the town to the famous and picturesque Kuang Si waterfall. Once we arrive, we enjoy a short walk through the beautiful forest to Kuang Si Waterfall and pass the Free the Bears Rescue Centre, a conservation centre that rescues animals from the wildlife trade. We will meet the main keepers and have a behind the scenes tour of the complex, learning about the bears enrichment program and how the animals are rescued and nurtured. The turquoise colour of the water with a backdrop of white limestone cliffs gives the waterfall a magical appearance. We hope to enjoy a swim in the beautiful natural pools, walk around the falls, climb up to the top of the falls and take a picnic lunch in front of the falls. On return, you stop to visit local villages of Lao ethnic groups. Visit Ban Thapane (Kamu), Ban Ou (Lao loum) and Ban Na Ouane (Hmong) villages. You will learn more about the lifestyle of these people. En route to Luang Prabang we stop to visit the Living Crafts Centre “Ock Pop Tok” a place where you can meet weavers and learn about textiles, while helping keep these local traditions alive. Overnight: Sala Prabang, Luang Prabang

Meals:  B,L,D

We start the day by walking through the morning market area. It’s an experience that will stimulate all your senses. We will buy some local snacks, try the grilled meats and smell all the amazing fresh herbs from the nearby villages. After a quick rest at one of many coffee shops in Luang Prabang we will be picked up by minivan to take us to our cooking class. We will be divided into smaller groups and learn how to make a few of the local delicacies. We will obviously enjoy the food we learned to cook. We get back to our guesthouse in the late afternoon. Overnight: Sala Prabang, Luang Prabang

Meals:  B,L,D

This tour around Luang Prabang combines mountain biking with an easygoing kayaking trip. It brings exactly the right refreshment into your tropical day in Luang Prabang and takes you to some of the best sites, including golden temples overlooking the city and Henri Mouhot’s grave. After a biking tour through the Nam Khan valley and diverse village visits, we take a break on the banks of the Nam Khan River. After lunch we take a refreshing plunge at Tad Sae Waterfall then we get our kayaks to paddle downriver on the Nam Khan back to Luang Prabang. Overnight: Sala Prabang, Luang Prabang

Meals:  B,L,D

This morning the group has the option in taking part in the local Almsgiving. Almsgiving is the respect given by a lay Buddhist to a Buddhist monk, nun, spiritually-developed person or other sentient being. It is a symbolic connection to the spiritual realm and to show humbleness and respect in the presence of the monk. Following this we will head to the morning market and head to the airport for our return flight to Vientiane. Depending on the flight schedule there may be time for some local sightseeing in Vientiane. Overnight: Sailomyen Hostel

Meals:  B,L,D

We depart Vientiane today after breakfast. We hope you have enjoyed your time here, learnt a lot and made many happy memories.

Meals:  B