Life on the Mekong River
Learn indigenous skills of Luang Prabang specialty products rooted in culture and tradition of the locals near the Mekong River
Gather at meeting point - registration and tour briefing. On this tour we will visit two villages where people use indigenous skills in food production and textiles to earn an income.
The highlight of this tour is learning how to cultivate river weed on the Mekong River, which is a traditional and local speciality to Luang Prabang. This is the only site in ASEAN where you can get river weed produced in this indigenous way. This tour is as hands on as possible. You will learn the entire process of how to cultivate river weed, one of Luang Prabang’s most important local products, from start to finish.
We will take a short boat ride from Luang Prabang town to the river weed making village. Once we arrive at the riverbed you will learn how to collect and clean up the river weed, then bring it back to the village. At the village you will learn how to prepare and dry it.
We will have a home hosted lunch prepared in the village so you can taste the river weed as well as everyday foods people in Laos eat. We will spend time with the local people in the village and ask questions to learn about their lives and culture. If the Village Chief and Head of the Women’s Union are available they will join us for the discussion as well.
Next we’ll get back on the boat and cruise down the Mekong River to a village that specializes in traditional textiles. All weaving there is done by hand by local villagers. You will see a demonstration on naturally dying the cotton and weaving on a wooden loom and have a chance to try it yourself. We will have conversations with the local people in the village to learn more about their lives. You will get to see traditional designs and patterns made by villagers from over 100 years ago from a villager’s private collection of textiles.
From there we will take the boat back into Luang Prabang town to conclude our tour.
Tour Start
8:00AM
Guest's hotel
Tour End
3:00PM
Down town in Luang Prabang
Duration
6-7 Hours
Price
USD85 per pax (minimum 2 per booking)
Price include food sampling and tourist guide service
From the total of 17 goals of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) promoted by United Nations, this tour aims to achieve SDG 1, SDG 11, SDG 12, SDG 14, SDG 15 and SDG 17. We support the local community business through partnership and promoting their businesses. We also uphold the zero waste and plastic free practices in educating the tourist and locals to be the world's hero! The world need us!
Reach the local village by boat
Enjoy delicious foods like a local
Experience the local trade
Appreciate locals 'way of life'
Sneak Preview
What you'll see on this tour
Things to know
All tours can be customized to the guests' needs. Tours on specific themes, pick-up and drop-off arrangements, foods for specific diertary needs, overnight accomodations, extra nights and combined tours can all be arranged. Please contact us for details. For more information on our terms, please click here.
Activities are subject to change at management's discretion depending on availability of tourist guides, weather conditions and unforeseen circumstances.
The tour is ideal for foreign visitors and tourists aged 11 and over and will appeal to foodies and culture buffs. Local guests are strongly encouraged to enquire about specially tailored tours. Maximum 10 participants per tour per day. First come first served.
Recommended gear: cap, hat, umbrella, and sun block.
Special notes: Lifejackets will be provided for every passenger.
Tour inclusion: Government tax, entrance fees, transportation (boat & Tuk Tuk), certified tour guide, cold towel, water in refillable aluminium bottle, lunch, local food tasting.
Other tours in Laos
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Cross-Border Trails
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Reviews
@HaoAhn95
TripAdvisor review: Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love) My team had a 4th walking heritage tour with this company. Honestly to say i love this tour so much. Our tour guide is Sean who is very knowledgeable and friendly. He took us through the hidden alleys in China Town and old little India town. He showed us a very different things about KL which impressed us alot. We walked and ate, the arrangements were absolutely perfect, the food are amazing which give us more experience. We learnt many things from this tour. Highly recommend to you if you want to see somethings different in KL Thank you for the tour.
Samantha
Tripadvisor review: Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love) Did this tour with Krishna yesterday. Ended up being just my husband and I. We loved it, Krishna was really knowledgeable and we felt like he wasn’t just telling us things you can easily read about. As for all the food sampling, that was yummy, great to try authentic foods. As we only had one day in KL this was a great way to experience and learn about it.
STtravel1
TripAdvisor review: Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love) My partner and I did the private 1/2 heritage and food walking tour of KL with Sean. We loved it! Sean is an extremely friendly, professional and knowledgeable guide. We learned a lot from him and felt very comfortable asking questions. He is clearly passionate about preserving KL’s incredible heritage and should be commended for this! It was great to see him interacting with all the local restauranteurs and shop owners we visited along the way. The tour provides excellent insight into all different aspects of Malaysian culture. Highly recommended! Don’t eat beforehand as you’ll be given the chance to try a lot of food and you won’t want to miss out! I also did this tour about six years ago in a bigger group as a solo traveller and loved it then too!
175huyn
TripAdvisor review: This review is about 3 years late. If you're ever in Kuala Lumpur, I highly recommend scheduling a tour with Be Tourist. Our tour guide Sean was great! He kept the group engaged and showed us the city and secret gems hidden within the city. The tour was a few hours and included the first Buddhist temple, alley way restaurants and the famous Klang river at the foot of the Masjid Jamek, one of Malaysia’s oldest mosques. We would be lost in KL if it weren't for Be Tourist. Thank you for introducing us to a beautiful city rich in pride and heritage.
Paweł G
TripAdvisor review: Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love) The tour was really interesting and well composed. The tour guide - Lewis - after introduction took us for the breakfast. It was tasty and we could try typical food available in this region. We also visited the taoist Temple. Every ritual as well as the meaning of it and the history of that place was described by the tour guide. The ideas the religion is following also. We had occasion to do one of the rituals ourselves. We went also to Hindu temple. We could see one of the celebrations usually done by then people following this kind of beliefs. The tour guide told us some interesting facts about this religion. After that we went to eat the typical Malayan dessert and kind of curry. The dessert was delicious! Then we went to Indian restaurant where we had the banana leaf experience - the food was served on banana leaf and we were eating with our hands(as they are normally do in here). It was great fun and the food was really tasty! We could get as much refills as we wanted! after that the tour was finished. Generally speaking - the tour guide was great - Lewis - he always was sharing with us with some interesting informations and he was providing answers to our questions even not related with the things connected with the tour - he had really bright knowledge. The trip itself was well designed - there was enough time for everything and we weren't rushing nor staying in some place too long. Beside the points mentioned above we also visited some must see point on the way to the main attractions. I feel the tour gives cultural Cross-section of Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur. And the organizers of it are really beautiful people with great ideas! If you take the tour - you support eco - approach and suitable way of living (they take care to reduce the usage of plastic and have many ongoing projects connected with ecology) Totally recommended with that price! Oh, And if you have any dietary preferences or restrictions(allergy to lentils, plant based diet) - you should let know to the organizers before the tour. All the best. Sincerely Paweł
Outandaboutanna
TripAdvisor review: Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love) We went on the heritage walking tour of old downtown KL. We got some fascinating history and some great food. We ate the markets and stopped at some Malaysian and Indian restaurants that we would never have discovered by ourselves. Make sure you go hungry as there is lots of delicious food to eat. The organiser and guide were excellent although the starting point was a little tricky to find. We’d definitely go back for another trip next time.
PaulKL23
TripAdvisor review: This was the real deal for visiting old Kuala Lumpur, due to our professional tourguide, Lewis! Taking us on a spiritual, geographical and surprising delicious journey in the old city of Kuala Lumpur, which you would not have found, without Lewis’s perfect guiding!
Marco
TripAdvisor review on Kuala Lumpur Heritage Walk (Eat, Pray, Walk and Love): If you really want to get to know Kuala Lumpur, this tour is an absolute must. Lewis is not only a guide, but also a defender of the preservation of the KL heritage. With passion and enthusiasm, he and his trainee Yi Hao took us into the city's past, the different religions and the delicious food that plays an important role in Malaysian culture. The strength of the tour was mainly in the fact that they really let us experience everything. In the temples Lewis let us perform the most important rituals and in the restaurants we could not only taste but also played a role in the preparation of the food. The guides speak excellent English and the explanations were clear and to-the-point. We have become a lot wiser and have a much better understanding of the way people live in KL. Lewis and Yi Hao: thanks again for this valuable experience.
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