Our 2 families with kids ranging in age from 9-16 just returned from a 3 day trip with Tiger Trail out of Luang Prabang, Laos. We booked over the internet and although communication came to a sudden halt while they moved their office, booking was easy and they were able to accommodate our requests. We began with the “mahout for a day” project, where the 9 of us got to know 3- elephants very well over the day and a half we spent there. It was a magical, exhilarating, thrilling, sometimes scary experience! We started with a short ride through the jungle on the traditional bench placed on the elephants back. I think this was just so we could feel what it was like to be on top. After a nice lunch of curry and rice at the Elephant Camp, we rode the elephants bareback to their resting place in the jungle. It was pretty awesome for all of us to be on top of these giant creatures with the mahout following behind giving orders. One of our group members was irritating the elephant by sitting too far back (they really prefer you ride the neck) and was given a couple of “shakes”in an attempt to dump him…no such luck, lucky for him!
We spent the night split amongst three of the bungalows at the Spirit Lodge and it was lovely. After reading a past Trip advisor review, we checked the beds thoroughly and did not find any bugs. Sheets were crisp and clean too. A simple dinner by candlelite overlooking the Nham Kan river and to bed for an early morning treat.
We met at 7:30 and walked into the jungle to find our elphants and take them to the river for a bath! It was clear they looked forward to this time, as their speed steadily increased the closer we came to the water. Bathing these beautiful animals, neck deep, without the help of he mahout, relying on the simple commands we had learned, was magical to say the least.
Back to the camp for a hearty breakfast and we then began our 2 day Fair Trek to visit 3 villages, where we stayed overnight in the last. We chose the most difficult of hikes, but probably the most rewarding. The scenery was breathtaking, as we moved over mountains, through grasslands, crossed rivers and streams. We had lunch and bought a few things from a Hmong village, and then hiked into a mixed village and given simple accommodations(blankets on the floor covered by mosquito nets) above the general store.
Our group was tired, to say the least, as we had hiked over 6 hrs in mountainous terrain, and 35C heat! There are easier treks available, we just didn’t know about them.Our only suggestion would be to make sure you had plenty of water for the hike; even with the bottles our guide brought, and what we had, it wasn%26#39;t enough. 2L/person would suffice.
We would recommend Tiger Trail, and especially our guide Lu, who worked very hard to take such good care of our group. The buffalo stew he made for us in the village was excellent.
We would also recommend the Elephant Camp and Spirit Lodge…clean, comfortable and yes, they do change the sheets!
Great time at the Spirit Lodge with Tiger Trail!
That%26#39;s nice to hear %26amp; I am jealous.I have mentioned in a post before that I was at this same place for a 1 night 2 day'; live the life of a mahout';tour last october %26amp; had really been looking forward to it.It was nothing like you mentioned with very little time with elephants I know there were complaints other than mine so it sounds like Tiger Trails %26amp; Elephant park may have taken notice of those complaints despite not replying to mine
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