Food & Drinks
Lao food and drink: Laos is a country of multi-ethnic group and each group has its own version of traditional cuisine. On the general level, Lao cuisine is fresh and spicy. The country's cuisine can be best described as blend of more Thai cuisine, Vietnamese cuisine and Chinese cuisine.
Festivals & Events
Laos is country of multi-ethnic nature and each community has a lot of festivals all year round. Some festivals may affect your tour itinerary in the country and/or your travel interests. It's always good to know the main ones that are more likely encountered on your holiday in Laos. Many other festivals held in different regions are not mentioned here. If you plan to travel thoroughly through Laos or if you plan to have an adventure tour in remote regions of the country, please consult our travel experts for further information.
Religion & Ideology
Theravada Buddhism is followed by 60% of Lao population and it's the most popular religion in the country. King Fa Ngum, the first king of Lan Xang Kingdom, declared Theravada Buddhism the state religion in the 13th century. Others following kings were active patrons of Buddhism building more wats, teaching the religion in schools...
Languages
Laos is a multi-ethinic country and each ethnic group has their own their language or dialect. But the official language of Laos is the Lao language as spoken and written in Vientiane. Standard Lao and standard Thai belong to the same linguistic group of the Thai-Kadai language family. The native speakers of Lao standard language and Thai standard language can mutually understand one another thanks to the similarity.
Society & Conduct
Laos is a multi-ethnic society. Each ethnic group has their own language and culture; and the etiquettes, behaviors, customs and social gestures vary from one group to another. The diversity of the culture among different ethnic groups may cause cultural difficulties to the independent travellers venturing through the country.
