A southeastern province situated on the Bolaven Plateau is devoted to agriculture and nature offering idyllic scenery. A prehistoric site exists not far from the cascades where a wonderful scene can be seen.
Salavan Province is home to the Phou Xieng Thong National Biodiversity Conservation Area, covering nearly 1,000 sq km in the western part of the province next to the Mekong River. It is thought that Asiatic black bear, banteng, clouded leopard, Douc langur, elephant, gibbon, guar, Siamese crocodile and tiger and inhabit this area. Within a cave huge stone caskets are piled one on top of the other, province not only beauty but interesting thoughts as to how it originated.
Salavan has vast tracts of forest and is home to three National Protected Areas that harbor a wealth of biodiversity. Xe Xap, (1,335 km2) Xe Bang Nouane (1,970 km2) and Phou Xieng Thong (1,200 km2) lie mostly within Salavan’s borders, have a range of habitats and micro-climates and are home to a diverse population of ethnic minority groups. The Mekong River separates Salavan from Thailand and the province also shares a border with Vietnam to the east. The main geologic features are the Bolaven Plateau, Mekong River Valley and Southern Annamite Mountains, which rise to over 2,000 meters in the eastern portion of the province.
Most visitors access Salavan by route 20 from Pakse, stopping in Ban Houn, a roadside village that produces fine weavings and basketry. Tad Lo, the best known attraction in the province is a wide, multi-tiered waterfall surrounded by lush greenery and a number of well-planned resorts and guest houses. At Tad Lo you can rent a bicycle, enjoy nature walks and venture out to surrounding villages on the Bolaven Plateau. Tad Lo sits in the center of a major coffee and vegetable growing region, so there is usually a variety of fresh seasonal produce on the menu. East of Tad Lo and the provincial capital are Ta-Oy and Samouay Districts, populated mostly by Mon-Khemer speaking ethnic groups. Here you can see traditional long houses that may house up to 45 people. A nice outing in Ta-Oy is a trip on the Xe Lanong to watch birds and walk to the La Lao Waterfall. Criss crossing the eastern half of the province is the famous Ho Chi Minh Trail network, still in use today as a link between remote villages. Along the trail you can see extensive evidence of the heavy aerial bombardment this part of the country suffered during the Second Indochina War.
On the Mekong is Khongsedon District, maker of some of the most potent Lao lao whiskey in the country. Khongsedon has many unusual rock formations along the Mekong valley, best known among them is Phou Lahit with its prehistoric rock paintings.
One of the most entertaining songs and dances in the entire country, the Lam Salavan, was conceived here and this catchy tune really does make you want to get up and dance! There are excellent “khaen” players in Salavan and the traditional instrument is still made here. Besides coffee, two famous Salavan products are the fragrant coconuts from Naxai Village and the delicious barbeque chicken that can be purchases at Napong Village on route 13.
Like everywhere else in the country, Lao New Year or Pi Mai is celebrated throughout Salavan for a week around 14 April. Before this are the Katang and Ta-Oy ethnic group’s annual festivals, which occur during late January – early February.
Outdoor Activities
• Trekking
• Caves
• Climbing
• Cycling
• Camping
• Kayaking
Highlights
• Tad Lo Water Park
Break away from Pakse’s hordes and travel two hour on Route 20 to the Bolaven Plateau and Xe Set River, straddled by a cosy tourist cluster, the gateway to natural and cultural attractions in “Tad Lo Water Park”. A short walk from the tourist village leads to the headliners, Tad Lo and Tad hang Waterfalls gushing down the Xe Set, but that’s just the start. Tad Lo Lodge offers short elephant trek, cyclers can visit ethnic villages and a conservation area, and the Tad Lo Information Centre offers treks to towering Tad Soung Falls, the stone caskets, Phou Tak Khao Viewpoint and Nine-holes Cave.
Location: Route 20, about 90 km northeast of Pakse and 30 km south of Salavan Town.
• Tad Tevada Waterfall
Tad Tevada is located in Viengkham village, Salavan District and province on the Raod No. 20 from Salavan to Pakse District in Champasack Province, far form Salavan District 15km at Phao village on the left handside and continue to 19 km, the fall is high 30 meters and wide 5 meters on the top of the hill crift, it is very bueatiful waterfall than other fall in Salavan Province, they cover by green forest and animals, the area suitable for picnic, relax, adventure and study about nature, how about the road is quite dificult (dirt road) you sould use the car and motorbike better.
• Tad Hung Waterfall
Imagine waking up, stepping outside your room, walking a few steps, and finding yourself facing a 30-meter-wide, tree-lined waterfall crashing over a 10-meter, tiered-rock wall into a series of rapids before settling into a calmly flowing river. This vision turns into reality when staying in Tad Lo. A handful of guest houses and resorts on the Xe Set River just below Tad Hung offer exactly that, and for those staying in the Ban Senvang tourist enclave, a bridge spanning the Xe Set River offers a direct view of the falls and rapids that follow. And knowing that the more dramatic Tad Lo Waterfall is around 500 meters upriver beckons visitors to hike closer to Tad Hang and beyond.
How to get there: Located 32km from Salavan District, travel on the road No. 20 to Salavan - Pakse District, Champasack Province, using the time about 1 hrs and 30mn.
• An Explosive Museum
Pass by a two meter tall, 3,000 pound bomb that stands as a pillar to Salavan Province’s past at the entrance to the UXO Lao Office compound. Lao holds the unfortunate title as the most densely bombed country on earth, with Salavan ranked second in provincial barrages during the Indochina War, and its UXO (unexploded ordinances) office displays the evidence. Two large bombshells stand astride the flag pole at the front door, and racks of inert bomb, a mortar, cluster bomb casings and an airplane Gatlin gun line the front walls. The entrance holds a surreal collection of clumsy looking but deadly assortment of homemade devices, miniature rockets, and land mines.
Location: Salavan District’s main road between the Visitor Information Centre and the bus station.
• Weavers World
Inspect distinctive looms and woven designs found only at a group of tight-knit ethnic Katang communities in Khoum-Ban Toumlan. Villagers have handed their weaving techniques down through generations, and are rarely practiced elsewhere. Looms hang from the rafters under houses on stilts, and weavers shuttle threads up and down rather than side to side. You can watch the entire silk weaving process from moth to cloth as Toumlan weavers raise their own silkworms. The worms form yellow cocoons, and once the moth emerges, the cocoons are boiled, unraveled, and spun into threads before undergoing a natural dyeing process using leaves and insects to create different colours.
Location: Route 23, about 50 km north of Salavan District.
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