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208<br />
PLANNING YOUR TRIP TO LAOS<br />
10<br />
STAYING CONNECTED<br />
One <strong>of</strong> the country’s principal operators,<br />
Green Discovery (www.greendiscovery<br />
laos.com) is the activity tour specialist<br />
with <strong>of</strong>fices in Vientiane, Vang Vieng,<br />
Luang Prabang, Luang Namtha, and<br />
Pakse. <strong>The</strong>ir website <strong>of</strong>fers a wide range <strong>of</strong><br />
options for every activity. <strong>The</strong>y also run<br />
10 ESCORTED GENERAL-INTEREST TOURS<br />
ESCORTED TOURS<br />
Green Discovery (www.greendiscovery<br />
laos.com) <strong>of</strong>fer a range <strong>of</strong> tours, taking in<br />
every site and activity you could want to<br />
see in every part <strong>of</strong> the country. <strong>The</strong>y have<br />
<strong>of</strong>fices all over the country so trips can be<br />
booked locally or all in one go from Vientiane.<br />
<strong>The</strong>y specialize in adventure activities<br />
but they also provide a full range <strong>of</strong><br />
tours covering towns and villages, and<br />
historical sites.<br />
For Remote Asia (www.remoteasia.<br />
com), the flagship activity is motorcycling,<br />
with other tours as well. <strong>The</strong> <strong>Laos</strong> Heritage<br />
and Cultural Expedition is an 11-day<br />
experience, taking in all the major sites <strong>of</strong><br />
interest from Luang Prabang in the north<br />
CELLPHONES<br />
<strong>Laos</strong> has bypassed the need to upgrade the<br />
land-line system by investing heavily in<br />
the cellphone network. <strong>The</strong>re are a number<br />
<strong>of</strong> operators and you can buy a local<br />
SIM card for $5. Recharge cards are also<br />
cheap and widely available. <strong>The</strong>re are a<br />
number <strong>of</strong> providers. Laotel and ETL<br />
Mobile have the best coverage. Tigo has<br />
agreements with over 100 International<br />
phone networks. <strong>The</strong>y also have a low-cost<br />
international rate <strong>of</strong> 2,000 kip per minute<br />
to many countries, if you buy their SIM<br />
card and dial “177” instead <strong>of</strong> “+.” <strong>The</strong>ir<br />
tours <strong>of</strong>fering a combination <strong>of</strong> activities.<br />
Remote Asia (www.remoteasia.com)<br />
<strong>of</strong>fers a “Work up a sweat” 11-day activity<br />
tour <strong>of</strong> the north, involving dirt biking,<br />
trekking, kayaking, caving, mountain biking,<br />
and stays in hill tribe villages.<br />
to Wat Phou in the south. <strong>The</strong>y also <strong>of</strong>fer<br />
tours tailored to your needs and these can<br />
be put together beforehand.<br />
Diethelm Travel (www.diethelmtravel.<br />
com) is a Pan-Asian operator <strong>of</strong>fering a<br />
whole range <strong>of</strong> tours both long and short<br />
all around the country.<br />
Exotissimo (www.exotissimo.com) is<br />
another Pan-Asian tour company <strong>of</strong>fering<br />
a range <strong>of</strong> escorted tours throughout the<br />
country.<br />
Inter Lao Tourism (www.interlao.com)<br />
was one <strong>of</strong> the first operators on the scene<br />
and has been established in <strong>Laos</strong> since<br />
1989. It has Lao ownership and all staff is<br />
Lao and has very detailed local knowledge.<br />
11 STAYING CONNECTED<br />
coverage is still said to be poor away from<br />
larger towns. ETL Mobile (www.etllao.<br />
com) is known to have better coverage in<br />
rural and remote parts <strong>of</strong> <strong>Laos</strong>. However,<br />
in <strong>Laos</strong> “better” certainly does not mean<br />
“everywhere.”<br />
INTERNET & E-MAIL<br />
<strong>The</strong>re are Internet cafes in every town <strong>of</strong><br />
any size at all. Prices vary between 100 kip<br />
and 300 kip a minute. Connections are<br />
usually fairly slow. Computers are <strong>of</strong>ten<br />
badly maintained and riddled with viruses,<br />
so beware if you are using a thumb drive