Konglor Cave: King of Caves in Laos

After 186 km on a motorbike and a day of seeing the caves of Thakhek. We were ready for Konglor Cave, AKA the king of caves! The drive to the city of Kong Lo is windy, bumpy, and scary at times, but breathtaking. The mountains you drive through are jagged and look to be out of a fantasy. Once you reach Kong Lo you will be stunned by the beauty of the tobacco fields, mountains, and blue skies.

We stayed at Chantha Guesthouse which offered clean, nice rooms, friendly staff, wifi, and views of the amazing landscape. They had balconies facing the mountains and a cute patio to enjoy a Beer Lao and watch the magic of the landscape.

One kilometer away is Konglor Cave. At the base of the mountain you see the mouth of the cave with a river of beautiful blue water flowing through. There’s a great spot for swimming by the entrance of the cave where you can hang out and relax after your boat ride.

https://instagram.com/p/zetrPPI6ws/?taken-by=boboandchichi

The boat ride through Konglor cave is 100,000 kip (~$13) per boat (max 3 tourist/boat) and comes with a local guide. You wear a life jacket and a head torch in the motorized canoe through to two and half hour journey there and back.

The motorized canoe itself is pretty small and you must wear shoes you can get wet. There are times you have to get out of the boat to pull it through shallow waters. But this is all part of the grand adventure.

 We were stunned and fascinated by the size of the cave. Even though it was pitch black, with exception to our tiny little head lamps, you could see how high the cave was during certain spots. It was almost eerie that we were floating through this dark, mysterious place.

Towards the beginning of your ride through the cave you will be dropped off to walk through the illuminated stalagmites and stalactites. These formations were massive and impressive. After about 5-10 minutes of walking you meet your guide and canoe at the end back in the water.

Towards the beginning of your ride through the cave you will be dropped off to walk through the illuminated stalagmites and stalactites. These formations were massive and impressive. After about 5-10 minutes of walking you meet your guide and canoe at the end back in the water.

Towards the beginning of your ride through the cave you will be dropped off to walk through the illuminated stalagmites and stalactites. These formations were massive and impressive. After about 5-10 minutes of walking you meet your guide and canoe at the end back in the water.

It’s crazy how well the local steering the boat knows this cave. He only has a slightly more powerful headlamp than us and is able to navigate perfectly through the dark waters missing shallow banks and giant rocks that would destroy our tiny boat.

 There are about 3 or 4 times where the water is too shallow and we have to get out and pull the boat over some small rapids. Poor Scott’s flip flops kept breaking and he had to barefoot it on some jagged rocks. I almost lost a sandal to a rapid as well. Since the local doesn’t speak English he will grunt at you when it’s time to help. Make sure you don’t make the poor guy do it all on his own!

After about 45 minutes you will reach the end of the cave and be introduced to daylight again with a beautiful mountain backdrop. You will take a 30 minute break with some local villagers where you can have snack or drink before the journey back. We were able to watch a friendly local woman use a loom to make colorful textiles.

This was our favorite site in Laos thus far and this should be on your “must do” list when visiting this gorgeous country. Our minds were blown the entire time. The only bummer is its so dark and you’re moving the entire time so its nearly impossible to capture by camera or video. Just take our word and enjoy the dark, mysterious, awesome ride!