Kapok trees in bloom in Bokeo province.- VT
VIENTIANE: The 21st Kapok Flower Festival (Boun Dok Ngiew Ban) will be staged in Tonpheung district, Bokeo province, this month, on a grander scale than in previous years with 2024 being Visit Laos Year.
The festival will feature a colourful programme of events from Jan 21-28 to celebrate the glories of nature in the bucolic surroundings of Don Xao island, where kapok trees produce a mass of red blossom every winter.
The programme includes the Miss Kapok and Miss Tourism contests, a drone display, performances staged by troupes from Laos, China, Thailand and Myanmar, a fireworks display, release of lighted lanterns into the sky, a golf tournament and a boxing tournament.
This is the second festival on Bokeo’s tourism calendar for 2024 after the province organised the Ethnic Group Festival earlier this month, which was also a bigger event than in past years.
To encourage visitors to spend time in Bokeo, provincial authorities have improved facilities and services at some of the main tourist destinations and also upgraded places of accommodation and restaurants to improve visitor satisfaction.
Bokeo province has many places of interest, such as the Nam Kan protected area in Huayxai district, which offers several adventure activities.
The lushness of the landscape makes trekking rewarding and people who are fit can enjoy ziplining and a stay in a treehouse.
Huayxai district, the provincial capital, also has old temples perched atop scenic cliffs, and the ruins of the ancient city of Souvanna Khomkham.
Some of the best local dishes include khao laeng feun (noodles with chilli sauce) and khao soy tad (noodles fried with sugar sauce or honey), which is a favourite dessert.
The province has 77 officially designated tourist sites, including 53 nature-based attractions, 14 cultural sites and 10 places of historical interest, according to 2022 statistics provided by the Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism.
Bokeo is located in the far north of Laos, 624 km from Vientiane, and is accessible by road and air. It is a delightful rural retreat that offers a true insight in the Lao way of life and is well worth taking time to explore, especially at this time of the year when temperatures are lowANN. - Vientiane Times/ANN
