Hiking in three villages in Mueang Ngoi Nua

This article has been translated from Russian language using an artificial intelligence-based translation algorithm. We apologize for any inconvenience caused by the quality of the translation. You can read the original of this article in Russian here, and ask questions on the topic of our travel forum in English here.

Near Muang Ngoi Nua there are three other ethnic villages that are easy to visit in one day on foot. True, you have to walk a lot, but it's worth it. These are the villages: Huay Sen, Ban Na, Huay Bo. All three are small and very poor, but each of them has a guesthouse worth 20,000 Kip, where you can stay for the night in very exotic conditions, even without electricity, but just to sleep is quite suitable. The smallest and most undeveloped village, Huay Sen, consists of only a few houses on one street. And the most developed Ban Na, it even has a cafe where you can take a break along the way and drink cold drinks.

Roads and trails everywhere are not difficult, but comfortable shoes will not be superfluous, it is better not to go on the route in beach slippers. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen, raincoat, and something to eat. And yet, there are a lot of land leeches. They stick to the legs and other parts of the body, climb into shoes, so it is better to protect yourself from them with thick, dense socks. If the Leech sucks, do not panic and tear it off. They are harmless if they are not removed, just let the blood soak in, and it will disappear in 10-20 minutes.

Hiking in three villages

🕐 Working hours: around the clock, it is better to visit during the day.

💵 Entrance fee / tickets price: for visiting all three villages and Tham Kang cave you need to pay 10,000 Kip (0.46 USD) at the checkpoint on the road in front of the cave

🚶 How to get there: all three villages have one dirt road, which then diverges, there are signs. Huay Sen is 7 kilometers from the center of Muang Ngoi Nua (village on the map), Ban Na is 6 kilometers away (village on the map), Huay Bo-7 kilometers (village on the map). The route through all three villages in the sequence of Huay Sen-Ban Na-Huay Bo will be about 18 kilometers. It is best to have a navigator (smartphone) with OSM or Yandex map editor installed. Organic Maps where all trails are marked. Also at the very beginning of the route you can visit the Tham Kang cave.

Roads and trails are clearly visible, even tractors and motorcycles drive on them, but there are still some difficulties: in two places you have to cross the river knee-deep in water, and if you go along one of the abandoned but marked on the map paths through rice fields, you will have to go waist-deep in water.