4 Days Luang Namtha Trekking Tour of Nam Ha NPA – Explore Akha and Khmu Ethnic Villages

Day 1: ChaluernsoukVillage-Phou Varn“Akha Village”. Approx. 5-6 hours ( L , D )

Departure from our office is at 9:00 AM by Tuk-Tuk. We stop for a few minutes at the morning market to purchases some food and necessary things, and then continue to the Khmu village of Chaluernsouk Villge where our trek begins. Hike deep into the Nam Ha National Protected Area. On the trail the local guides will share some of the native experience and knowledge about edible and poisonous plants, and about medicinal plants that include wild mushrooms, cardamoms, rattans, bamboo shoots, wild bananas stalks, and so on. After lunch, continue and visit waterfall, next hike to the mountaintop where you walk along through the agricultural area of the Akha people. On the mountain you will enjoy the excellent view of the Akha village amidst the dense jungle vegetation of the mountains. You will arrive at Phou Varn(Akha village) around 4 PM. While your hosts and guides prepare your dinner you can either relax, help in cooking while learning about the traditional cooking cuisine, walk around the village observing traditional life, or have a beer at the local ‘shop’. After dinner you receive a massage from the Akha women, this is a treat traditionally reserved for guests in the village.

Day 2: Luang Namtha-Phou Varn – Nam Ha Villge “Khmu Homestay”. Approx. 5-6 hours ( B , L , D )

After breakfast we begin the next leg of the journey over a small path through the rainforest, which is still primary and secondary forest area. After approx. 3 hours we have our lunch break, which will be prepared by you and your guides. Thereafter another 3 hours walk along the Nam Ha mountain and downhill to Nam Havillage. That is the village where we will stay overnight and share in tourism-oriented activities. You will join in and try out some activities created by a small native community that is now part of a community based tourism village and will show and teach you skills, such as: husking rice by feet or hand, a Khmu traditional Baci-ceremony, Khmu sword dance… After dinner you may want to listen to a village story from the homestay owner before you go to sleep in the Khmu traditional house.

Day 3: Nam Havillage –Nalan Village(Khmu Village) Appro 5-6 hours ( B , L , D )

Next morning after coffee you may see or participate in activities such as: blacksmith at work, weaving bamboo baskets or making gadgets/toys/souvenirs from bamboo, such as: birds, frogs, a simple cup, etc. Then have breakfast with the host family. Next local guide from the village will join on your trip to get you safely through rice paddies and up into the mountains of Nam Ha NPA. Along the trail you will see many types of NTPs (Non-Timber Forest Products), many bird species, monkeys are occasionally spotted or heard; your guide will teach you how to make a bird call, or bark like a deer, mimic squirrel sounds. They will also share some of their ancestral knowledge and skills about traditional medicines. Lunch is eaten in the shade near the waterway. After lunch we continue walk toward Khmu village, located on the bank of Nam Ha River. On the trail the local guides will demonstrate some of their ancestral skills they use when hunting wildlife.  You will arrival Nalanwhich the village awarded ASEAN Standard of Community Based Tourism 2018. After check in your homestay you have time to walking around the village and learn about their lifestyle, culture and traditional. After dinner on local food you will enjoy tourism activities offered by community.

Day 4: Nalan Village – Chalernsoukor Nalue Village. Approx. 3-6 hours – Luang Namtha( B , L  )

In the morning you still have time to visit the village and test Lao Coffee by bamboo cups. After breakfast, on this day we have two option as:,,The first option (3-4 hours hike) by hike uphill through forest. Traditional lunch will be prepared end route on the forest path. Thereafter, you will have an easy two-hour hike down the mountain slope until you arrive at the Chalernsoukvillage, where your driver will be waiting for you and shuttle you back to Luang Namtha.,,The second option (5-6 hours hike) follow the Nam Ha River through the village of Nalan Tai Village and on through the open cultivated areas of the Lanten people, who are local village residents. We leave the Nam Ha River as the trail steadily climbs for a couple of hours. This is the most challenging section of the trail, but also the most beautiful, as it passes through stands of ancient trees, some five hundred years old, that create a high dense canopy rich in birdlife. We need only pause quietly to hear the forest come alive with a mixed chorus of birds and insects. From the top of the ridge, spectacular northern views lay before you, with Luang Namtha visible away in the distance. The final descent takes the group past upland rice fields and cultivated areas tended by the people of Namlue village. The trail steepens here and can be slippery after rainfall.  But a careful pace with sound footwear will get you down safely to the village of Namluevillage where Lantan and Khmu people live together. And that is where you end your trek, returning to Luang Namtha by Tuk Tuklate afternoon to round off a journey we trust you will fondly remember.