Destination: Laos
LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL ITINERARY INFORMATION
Itinerary: Grand Temple Tour
TWO TO THREE WEEKS
Start in Vientiane with this trio of must-sees: Pha That Luang for its spiky stupa, where Buddhist doctrine is numerologically encoded; Wat Si Saket for the thousands of niches holding tiny Buddhas; and Haw Pha Kaew for the best collection of Lao Buddhist art in the country.
In Luang Prabang head first to the city's showcase temple, Wat Xieng Thong, a collection of Buddhist chapels delicately decorated with the best gold stencil work in the country. Virtually every other wat in the old temple district is also worth stopping by, as each is unique, but don't miss the massive bronze seated Buddha image at Wat Manolom, the unique watermelon-shaped stupa and faux-lathed windows at Wat Wisunarat and the Buddhist art school at Wat Xieng Muan.
Saving the most ancient and venerated for last, drop south to the small, unassuming town of Champasak. Just 4km outside of town at Muang Kao lie the ruined city walls of Kuruksetra, where the oldest surviving Sanskrit inscription in Southeast Asia was recently found. This defunct kingdom was almost certainly linked to nearby Wat Phu Champasak , an Angkor-style temple ruin and the grandest archaeological site in Laos. If you can visit in time for the Wat Phu Festival in February, you'll be treated to one of the country's most visually impressive and spiritually significant festivals.
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