Cambodian Hill Tribes and Totem Poles

After breakfast your driver will pick you up at your hotel in Stung Treng and take you to the town of Banlung. You'll travel over red sandy roads through an area that has only recently been discovered by tourists. The Ratanakiri province lies in the tri-country area of Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam and far away from the civilised world.

Early in the afternoon you'll check in at the cosy, warm and inviting lodge in Banlung. The wooden bungalows are built on poles in the traditional style of the area. Amidst the jungle and in between two hills, you'll truly enjoy your stay here. The volcanic Yaklom Lake is only a five-minute drive away. Before your Cambodia trekking experience tomorrow, you will have time for a refreshing dive into this lake and into the cool waters plunging down from the vine-covered Cha Ung waterfall.

Today during your Cambodia trekking experience, you'll travel by foot from your lodge to visit with some of the ethnic minorities in the smaller mountain village. During this Cambodia trekking module, you'll be escorted by a guide who once lived in these villages, which allows him to tell quite personal and interesting stories about the Tampuan culture. You'll have a chance to take a look at the traditional houses and even to play a game of football with some of the local children. We recommend learning a few Cambodian words before meeting the villagers, and trying to communicate with them. Trying to speak their language will undoubtedly lead to some hilarious moments.

Sometime in the afternoon after you return from your Cambodian trekking experience you'll return to Banlung and the rest of the day is yours to spend as you please. In the evening you can try Thai and Laotian dishes in your lodge's restaurant. 

Although there are no activities planned for today, there is plenty to do and see in the area. For instance, you could visit the city of Banlung independently or sit on the banks of the large lake Yaklom with a good book and relax after your Cambodia trekking adventure yesterday.

You could also go on an elephant ride, passing by wooden houses and rubber and cashew nut plantations on a wobbling elephant. From time to time you may have to duck to miss a branch or leaves. There are many excursions you can participate in and all of them can be arranged quite easily on the spot. At the end of the day you'll find yourself on the back of your jumbo friend at the edge of waterfalls, where both of you can take a refreshing dip to clean off the dust from the ride.

After waking this morning to the sounds of crickets and frogs in the tropical jungle, you'll be picked by your driver and driven back to Stung Treng, arriving back around noon.

After this Cambodia trekking module, you can continue your journey to the Laotian border with the Cambodia Mekong travel module "Mekong, Dolphins and Laos" and spend a couple of days relaxing on Khong Island.