Laos Travel Packing List Suggestion

The first step to forget nothing is to establish a list of everything that you must carry in your bag: clothes, underwear, shoes, important documents, camera, chargers, toiletry kit, medicine kit and a good book for hours waiting at the airport.

Travelers should adjust the contents of your luggage according to the season and regions you will find yourself in or the activities that you intend to do. This Laos packing list below will give you an outline about what you need to pack. Of course it depends very much on your personal style of travel in Laos.

-          A padlock to secure your luggage

-          Casual clothes (warm clothing for winter and light clothing for summer); a plastic bag for dirty clothes. To respect local culture, choose items like knee-length shorts, long skirts and tops with sleeves and modest necklines, which are also ideal for wearing in temples. Also, keep raincoat in your daypack in case it starts raining during your travels (especially in June – October). If you want to swim, bring some swimsuits. Lao peole often wear T-shirt and shorts; however, it's generally accepted that tourists will swim in swimwear.  

-          Good walking shoes / sneakers and socks, or sandals (good hiking boots if you tend to attend in an adventurous tour).

-          Try to bring an adequate amount of cash with you (Lao Kip, small US dollar bills, Thai Baht). Laos has ATM machines, but they are only sparsely located in Luang Prabang, Vientiane, Houayxay and Vang Vieng. Travelers’ cheques are the safest way to carry larger amounts of money. Use a money belt to carry cash, credit cards, passport, and airline tickets…

-          Sun protection (sun glasses, sun cream, a hat or an umbrella), mosquito repellent or bug spray, small bottle of anti-bacterial hand gel, baby powder (good for absorbing sweat in your face and neck)…

-          Do not take valuable items like jewelry, branded watch to avoid theft and to show respect to local people by not showing off expensive things.

-          Having a map of Laos in either your cellphone or as a hard copy will be a great idea.

-          Camera or camcorder with lots of storage space because you will want to take plenty of pictures, as there are many spots worth photography that you will visit within Laos. Bring compact binoculars if wildlife is your thing.

-          Travel Insurance is not very expensive and can help you get home or to a country with better medical care if you need to.