Enjoy your holiday with maximize your

 Authentic Lao experience

Eat Lao food - Purchasing fresh foods in the market and eating Lao dishes ensures that your money stays local and supports Lao farmers. When on a tour, request to eat in the village instead of taking food with you from town. This will provide villagers with income and you with an authentic Lao meal and tremendous cultural experience. Purchasing handicrafts in markets or villages directly supports local artisans and their traditional crafts. Taking a village guide and/or a local guide from town will makes your trip more enjoyable and educational, while helping employ local people. Look for packaged tours that include local guides, local food and local accommodation.  Staying overnight in a village as part of an organized tour provides a genuine experience with Lao culture and Lao people, Remember to compensate villagers for accommodation and for food and to visit villages with a local guide.  Visiting national protected areas help generate income and awareness to support the protection of threatened wildlife and forest ecosystems.

In addition, we recommend that you view the Do’s and Don’ts to learn about what you can do to minimize negative impacts on Lao culture and the environment and maximize your authentic Lao experience.

 

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The Gibbon Experience

Immerse yourself in the Gibbon Experience, two innovative programs centering on a network of canopy huts that provide a rare opportunity to see black-cheeked crested gibbons, once thought to be extinct. Overnight accommodation is in a canopy tree house with excellent views of the surrounding Bokeo Forest Reserve.

Classic Gibbon Experience

The Classic Gibbon Experience presents a relaxing and peaceful journey, with only an hour of essential walking. Trekkers choose how to spend their time; there is no schedule; food comes when you are hungry; and the guides are always be around and at your service.

Groups of eight people depart on alternate days at 9:00 am for two nights in the Bokeo Nature Reserve.

The Waterfall Gibbon Experience

The Waterfall Gibbon Experience takes trekkers deeper into the Bokeo Nature Reserve, with two to three hours of hiking per day along the Nam Nga River.

A freshwater swimming hole sits at the base of one waterfall tree house. The other tree house offers sunsets views overlooking several valleys.

Two groups of four people depart on alternate days at 7:30 am for two nights in Bokeo Nature Reserve, and they swap tree houses for the second night.

Find out more about black-cheeked crested gibbons.

The Gibbon Experience Includes:

  • Exclusive access to Bokeo Nature Reserve
  • Accommodation in a canopy level tree house
  • Semi-private bedrooms with spectacular viewsDelicious snacks and fire cooked meals
  • Unlimited access to explore the forest
  • Local guides eager to show you the forest and its inhabitants
  • Transportation to and from Bokeo Nature Reserve

What to bring to The Gibbon Experience:

  • A small rucksack - leave your main luggage with us
  • A bottle of water - for the walk into the forest
  • Mosquito repellent - a long-sleeved shirt is also recommended for avoiding bites and stings
  • A camera - remember to charge your batteries!
  • A flashlight - available if required

Booking

To participate in the Gibbon Experience, contact the its office in Houexay, Bokeo Province.
Tel: (+856-84) 212-021
e-mail: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or
visit www.gibbonexperience.org.

"The Gibbon Experience is being developed by Animo, a conservation-based eco-tourism company with a mandate from the Lao government to facilitate the sustainable and profitable conservation of the Bokeo Nature Reserve in conjunction with the indigenous inhabitants of the protected area."