Vang Vieng, Lao PDR …. Heaven and Hell on the River Song

Just one hundred and fifty kilometers north of Vientiane is a town so different that it could easily belong on an entirely different continent. Welcome to Vang Vieng, Heaven and Hell on the beautiful River Song.

............Above: The sun setting behind the limestone karst over the River Song

Buy a bus ticket from any number of vendors in Vientiane, and your journey to Vang Vieng begins. A ticket for the large VIP Bus will cost $5 (45,000Kip) and a ticket for the faster but slightly cramped Mini-Van, around $8 (65,000Kip). However, if the vehicle that arrives to take you on the 4 to 5 hour winding journey to Vang Vieng isn’t the one you’d chosen, and paid for, then you really shouldn’t be too surprised. This is Lao PDR where different rules seem to apply.

.......... Above: VIP Bus or Mini Van? The choice is theirs, not yours

Fifty years ago, Vang Vieng was a sleepy backwater town on the River Song, a stopping point for travellers making the long journey from Vientiane in the south, to the town of Luang Prabang in the north. Resting tranquilly on the River Song and surrounded by tall and imposing limestone karst, Vang Vieng was a tourist destination simply waiting to be discovered. And it certainly was discovered, but perhaps not by the kind of tourists that most Vangviengians would’ve hoped for.

.......... Above: The air strip that doesn't exist cutting through Vang Vieng

Shortly after Mao Zedong launched China’s Cultural Revolution, Vang Vieng experienced its own Cultural Revolution, but unlike China, Vang Vieng would enjoy three of them.

Vang Vieng’s first Cultural Revolution began in the late 1960’s when, despite never officially being in Laos, the US Army Corps of Engineers somehow managed to build an airstrip right in the centre of the small sleepy town.

For the next seven years, and again, despite never being in Laos, the US Air Force and Air America operated from the Vang Vieng airstrip during the ”Secret War”, you know, during the war that also never happened. Sometimes this world we share can seem very complicated, but the cultural and economic impact of those things that never happened had on Vang Vieng, were immense.

.......... Above: Tubers beginning their day of fun on the River Song

After the American’s who’d never been there finally ran out of bombs and left, Vang Vieng’s second Cultural Revolution was about to begin. It came at the turn of the millennium and was, according to legend, started by a local farmer.

After a long hard day in the paddy, the farmer had inflated some large inner tubes and together with a few tired friends and a case of Beer Lao, spent a lazy evening drifting down the River Song. It was apparently so much fun that as word of this pleasant pastime began spreading, it wasn’t long before every would-be backpacker in world had ”Tubing in Vang Vieng” written large and bold on their bucket lists.

.......... Above: The limestone karst are dotted with deep caves, many containing images of Buddha, and many used to shelter from the millions of bombs that were never dropped on Laos.

With reasonable prices for everything, easy access to visas, and allegedly, ample supplies of narcotics, Vang Vieng quickly became Party Central in Asia: Club Med, Goa, Ibiza and Club 18-30 all rolled into one affordable package, but without the distraction of the beach. Almost overnight, businesses sprang-up to deal with the mass influx of backpacking adventurists and the sleepy town astride the beautiful River Song, would never be sleepy again.

.......... Above: SAKURA BAR, perhaps the most famous party bar in Vang Vieng.

The party continued for over a decade, but when adventurous young people combine all-night partying, all-day drinking, drugs, and dangerous activities over water, then hangovers, questionable tattoos, and unwanted STD’s, won’t be the only negative consequences.

At its peak in 2011, there’d been at least twenty unlicensed bars catering to the Tubers needs along a 5Km stretch of the River Song. Starting at noon, tubers would drift in groups down the river, moving from one bar to the next, and each bar would offer its own unique attractions; rope swings, water slides, drinking games, and the infamous narcotic laced Happy Menus..... What could possibly go wrong?

......... Above: Enjoying a cold Beer Lao by the River Song.

Well, as the 2011 tubing season had drawn to a close, the local hospital had recorded twenty-three tourist deaths, mostly from drowning or head injuries caused from diving into the rocky but often deceptively shallow waters of the River Song. However, that number hadn’t included any victims so badly injured, or so obviously deceased, that they’d been transported directly to hospitals and morgues in Vientiane.

.......... Above: When we travel, never forget that "real life" is happening all around us.

Lao PDR might not have the least corrupt police force in the world, but when their masters insist that they act, they generally do as they’re told. For a nation intent on improving its image within the ASEAN community, the rising tourist death-toll had been drawing the wrong kind of attention, and when bar owners had failed to implement new rules and safety guidelines, the police had returned with their sledgehammers.

In 2012, the police had moved in and literally torn down every single bar alongside the River Song, and tubing for a time, along with those who’d flocked to Vang Vieng, were suddenly gone.

........ Above: The new Amari Hotel shoots to the skyline, and of course, blocks the views from more reasonably priced and long established guest houses behind it.

With the flow of tourist income suddenly turned-off, Vang Vieng looked to the East and found financial salvation in an unusual place; a reality TV show produced by a Korean television channel.

I haven’t seen that television show, but from what I understand, regular contestants seeking fifteen-minutes-of-fame are flown to Vang Vieng in order to compete in various water-based challenges. I guess, similar to the things the tubers had been doing for the past decade; water slides, zip-lines, and base jumping, but certainly with safety nets and probably without the assistance of booze and drugs. The show became an instant success, and a Celebrity version soon followed, and in a short space of time, Vang Vieng was back on a very different tourist map and its third Cultural Revolution had begun.

........ Above: The partying today is more sedate, but still fun for everybody.

Within a season, the backpacking adventurists had been replaced by tourists from Korea, and then more recently from China. Restaurants rebranded, hotels refurbished, inner tubes were replaced by kayaks, mountain bikes and 4x4 buggies, and a host of new hotels catering to the needs of these higher spending travellers began leaping towards an ever changing skyline.

........ Above: The views from the balloons must be even more captivating than the views of them.

Today, Vang Vieng appears to have reached something of a happy compromise. The youthful backpackers and outdoor adventurists still come here in decent numbers, and there are still many bars where they’ll party hard until the early dawn. But alongside them, there are now more mature Asian tour groups, who come to Vang Vieng for its relaxed and peaceful charm.

But somehow, these disparate groups manage to coexist quite well and Vang Vieng is, in my opinion, all the better for it.

......... Above: While Vang Vieng sleeps, the misty mornings along the River Song are magical.

For me, I fall somewhere between those two groups. I love the laid back charm of Vang Vieng, where doing absolutely nothing feels just as good as doing everything. And whoever your neighbor might be, there’s no escaping just how beautiful Vang Vieng actually is. As I write this, this is the view from my $15 balcony room on Vang Vieng’s riverside. I’ve certainly stayed in more expensive places with poorer views than this.

........ Above: Enjoying a reasonably priced room with a view.

Thanks for reading along.

Riding and smiling as always ….. Geoff