Above the Mountains in Vang Vieng

The train to Vang Vieng was surprisingly easy, after going through a security check, we grabbed some snacks, boarded our train, which passed through rice fields and rolling hills, until 50 minutes later we had arrived in Vang Vieng. The best part of the journey was actually the last 5-10 minutes or so, as we got closer to Vang Vieng, the landscape completely changed and these massive limestone mountains appeared in the distance.

These mountains are actually the main attraction of Vang Vieng. They are steep cliffs, almost rising vertically from the countryside and are covered with thick green vegetation. They looked amazing and we were ready to start exploring them.

At the station we jumped into a minibus to take us to our hotel, the Sky Hotel. It cost us 40,000 kip each, which worked out at roughly $3 AUD per person, it could have possibly been slightly cheaper with a taxi but I couldn’t be bothered waiting for one when these minivans were already leaving. Once at our hotel, the Sky Hotel, we checked in and headed out to find some lunch. Now, although we ordered all meals at the same time, Suz and I were fed first and then, once we’d finished, the kids got their meals. Probably not the greatest place when you’re travelling with hungry teenagers (well almost two of them), but eventually everyone got fed.

Back at the hotel, we organised a tuk-tuk for the afternoon and headed off towards Nam Xay Viewpoint. Xander and I jumped out to do the climb while Suz and Eloise continued onwards to Blue Lagoon 1. The climb up Nam Xay is only around 150 metres in elevation, but don’t let that number fool you as it might be a short hike, but it’s a brutally steep climb. In the heat and humidity, it felt way longer than “just” 150 metres!

The climb was exhausting, hot and, in places, quite slippery, with plenty of sharp rocks to negotiate. By the time Xander and I finally reached the top, we were both questioning some of our life choices (well, at least I was, Xander was just skipping ahead). Thankfully, the views made every step worthwhile. From the summit, we got incredible panoramic views over the Vang Vieng valley, with its rice fields, winding roads, little villages and those enormous limestone mountains stretching out in every direction.

And then there were the motorcycles. Right at the top, there are two motorbikes that have been placed for visitors to get that obligatory Instagram photo. Naturally, there was absolutely no way Xander and I were climbing all that way and not taking a photo (so after having to wait for some Russians that were taking a million photos of each other, we finally got ours as well).

The journey back down was easier than going up, but it was still long and tiring. Once we reached the bottom, we found our tuk-tuk driver and headed to Blue Lagoon 1, where we met up with Suz and Eloise and jumped into the cool lagoon water which was very refreshing and just what we needed. We spent some time swimming and cooling off before heading back into town.

That evening we decided to treat ourselves to some massages, yes all of us got a 60min foot and back massage, which cost us a total of 480,000 kip, about $40 AUD in total for all four, what a bargain, we will have to do these more times. After spending the day climbing mountains and swimming in lagoons, the massage definitely hit the spot. 

We finished the night with a simple Chinese dinner surrounded by locals before taking a short walk back to the hotel. It was an early night because the alarm was set at 4:30am (ridiculous) the following morning. But we had to get up early, as it was hot air balloon ride time.

The 4:30am alarm came around far way too quickly, after turning the alarm off, I checked my messages to make sure the balloon ride hadn’t been cancelled yes. We’d had heavy rain overnight, which is normal for this time of year as the rainy season is coming to an end, but I looked outside and couldn’t see rain so we were in with a chance.

At exactly 5:00am, our minivan arrived to collect us. We were handed cards marked “Bumblebee”, which showed the balloon that we we’d been assigned to, and after a few more stops to collect additional passengers, we arrived at the Above Laos area. Here we were served coffee whilst given a safety briefing. The weather was still being monitored, and we were told that if conditions weren’t suitable we’d either have to wait, rebook or receive a refund. We were also told we might have to wait until around 8:00am to find out what was happening, so we settled in and waited. Then, around 6:30am, we saw as the balloon baskets appeared, the huge balloons began to inflate and suddenly this was actually happening and not long after this, we were airborne!

It’s difficult to describe the feeling of being in a hot air balloon. There’s no engine roaring, no sudden acceleration and no real sensation of movement. Instead, you simply rise quietly into the sky, carried by the wind, with the mountains of Vang Vieng stretching out below you. At some point I checked the height indicator which said 3,000 feet, which is not far from 1000 metres in the air. As a balloon can’t just be steered, we flew where the wind wanted us to go and as we went higher, the landscape became even more spectacular, with clouds and mist drifting around the limestone peaks and the patchwork of rice fields far below.

Around 45 minutes after taking off, our pilot started descending and we were almost floating above a large rice field, before we were able to be guided safely to the ground by ground staff that by this stage had been given ropes and were guiding us in to a safe spot.  Safely back on the ground, we were still buzzing from the experience, as for both Suz and I, this was a genuine bucket-list item, and being able to do it surrounded by the incredible scenery of Vang Vieng was just amazing. As luck would have it, just as we had touched down safely, the rain started falling all around us, talk about good timing!

Back at the main airfield, we were treated to breakfast, champagne and certificates showing that we’d taken part in the balloon flight. After returning to the hotel, we relaxed for a while before heading out again to Tham Chang Cave. Getting to the cave involved climbing a steep set of 147 steps before entering the cave itself. After the climb of Nam Xay the previous day, the steps weren’t exactly what I was looking for, but once we made it inside the cave it was worth it (and it also protected us from the rain that had arrived again). Whilst it was wet and miserable outside, the inside of the cave was cool and dry, and at times it felt like we had the entire place to ourselves.

After the cave we returned to town, grabbed some lunch and then spent some time relaxing around the hotel pool before it was time to head to the train station again, the time had come for us to leave for our final destination in Laos, Luang Prabang.