Kuang Si Waterfall
The picturesque waterfalls, turquoise cascades and limestone-edged ponds of Kuang Si, nestled amid forest some 30 kilometres southwest of Luang Prabang, are an understandably popular destination with both locals and foreign visitors.
Though not far from town, it did used to be a bit of an arduous trip along either muddy or dusty, but always bumpy, trails but nowadays it’ll just be the tour buses that slow you down on the smooth, sealed road. Indeed just reaching Luang Prabang used to be extremely arduous and the first time we visited north Lao’s UNESCO World Heritage town it took us 2 days on a dirt track from Vang Vieng. Today it’s a mere 2 hours on the air-con, hi-tech, Chinese-built fast train from Vientiane.
All very convenient for the residents of this formerly remote town and the influx of foreign visitors has certainly brought employment and income to the area; however, it does mean the popular destinations in and around Luang Prabang such as Kuang Si and the cave temples at Pak Ou can get very busy during high season.
A series of smaller falls and cascades lead through the lush forest Where a few basic bamboo stalls stood there’s now a string of busy restaurants, coffee shops and souvenir stands stretching along the access road although an excellent, new addition – (relatively speaking as it was established in 2003) – is the Free the Bears Sanctuary situated a few hundred metres short of the entrance. The rescue and rehabilitation centre houses sun and moon bears as well as pangolins, civets, leopard cats and several monkey species all of which have been rescued from hunters, the pet trade or private zoos. A welcome initiative for Lao wildlife as well as providing further income and employment for local residents. An excellent visit and, of course, an excellent cause.
Moon, or Asiatic black, bear. (This photo was actually taken at the Cambodia Free the Bears Sanctuary at Phnom Tamao The solution then is to head up to Kuang Si early, while most other visitors are still grazing on their buffet breakfasts, offering the chance of a more tranquil experience as well as the opportunity to get some unimpeded shots of the highly photogenic site. We can then stop at the Bear Sanctuary on our way out and perhaps grab one of the excellent local coffees before heading back into town, via the excellent Ock Pop Tok, silk weaving project. After lunch at a riverside cafe, the early afternoon is an ideal time to explore Luang Prabang’s narrow lanes and ancient temples as the town will be quiet since most visitors will by then be at the waterfall or cave temples.
A morning tour including Kuang Si, Free the Bears and the community weaving project is included on all our north Laos small group tours as well as our Laos and Cambodia tour, Indochina Adventure and the off-the-beaten-track Laos and Vietnam tour Mountains and Hill-tribes.
