Blooming Champa: Viang Vieng offers special lifestyle

The charm of Viang Vieng in Laos lies in its natural scenery and outdoor activities. Whenever you search for travel guides for Viang Vieng on social media, you’ll see its well-known karst landscapes, where tourists have fun in lakes or mountains. After the opening of China-Laos Railway, the number of tourists in Viang Vieng station has increased obviously.

Scenery of Viang Vieng.

Since the beginning of this year to Apr. 15, the number of trains that run through Viang Vieng station is 217% of that in the same period last year, and the number of passengers is 988% of that in the same period last year, said Zhang Hanyi.

In charge of the passenger transport service in Vientiane central station, Zhang said the numbers of tourists from China, Korea, Japan, Europe and America are also rising, especially those young tourists who love outdoor activities.

In the afternoon, tourists in Viang Vieng would enjoy kayak rafting and diving. Vhun Gao, a freelance guide of Viang Vieng, was drinking beer with several guests at the Buakam karst cave scenic spot on Nam Song River. The guests came from China, Korea and Australia.

An Australian tourist said that he would like to take the train on China-Laos Railway to continue his trip in Laos. They thought that a trip filled with surprise like this is what they came for.

With the opening of China-Laos Railway, more Chinese tourists came to Laos, said Vhun. To communicate with tourists better, he even started to learn Chinese. During his work for more than a decade, he witnessed that Lao people had started to run hotels and restaurants for tourists.

Tourists have fun in lakes.

Because tourism is thriving in Viang Vieng, tourist groups should book rooms at least a week earlier. Vhun used to receive tourists only four days a week. Now, he receives tourists everyday.

Viang Vieng was once a favored tour destination by a small group of foreign tourists. In recent years, a new preferential policy were carried out to encourage domestic tours in Laos. Together with the opening of China-Laos Railway and the express way from Vientiane to Viang Vieng, Viang Vieng will usher in more domestic tourists.

Athayasay Manivanh, director of the Office of Viang Vieng Information and Culture Tourism Bureau, said that the opening of the China-Laos Railway has boosted tourism in Viang Vieng.

Last year, the number of tourists received was only 120,000. However, from January to March this year, they have already received 162,000 tourists, added Athayasay.

After the direct Kunming-Vientiane train service was launched for international passengers, Athayasay has strong confidence in the future development of tourism in Viang Vieng.

As Viang Vieng has abundant tour resources and convenient transportation, new plans and projects in tourism will be attractive to tourists, said Athayasay.

Reporting by Liu Ziyu and Yang Chunmei from Yunnan Daily; trans-editing by Wang Yunya