Xieng Khouang Travel Guide

The Mysterious Plain of Jars

In the north of Laos, lying across a flat high plateau is the province of Xieng-Khouang, where you will find the intriguing Plain of Jars.

Hundreds of giant stone jars, some as large as 3.25 metres high, are strewn all over the plateau. Carved out of solid hunks of rock from surrounding mountains, no one really knows why they are there. Theories range from the view that they were made to store wine for a huge party to celebrate the conquest of Pakhanh City (Xieng Khouang). Other researchers believe they were made to store dead human bodies as was the practice of ancient believers. No one really knows.

The Plain of Jars was also on the Ho Chi Minh trail and during the "Secret War on Laos" during the Vietnam / US war was bombarded with bombs. It's estimated that more bombs were dropped on Laos than in the second world war. As a result, visitors are advised to stick closely to guided trails as unexploded ordinance still litters the plain.

The hot springs at Meuang Kham district are worth visiting, and Tham Piu cave is a sobering historical site, used as a bomb shelter by the villages during the Vietnam War.