Things on our travels don't always go well and here is my story of how NOT to go tubing in Vang Vieng in Laos - yes it's a great place but there are dangers and things can just go horribly wrong...I'm advising travellers to stay safe and careful!
Arriving in Vang Vieng you can feel the buzz about the place - it's a mad place to party. You will meet new friends and drink and party the night away in the many bars there. But be aware that you will be wakening up the next morning to go tubing - know your limits!
After the night up, it was up and ready for a crazy day of tubing. Everything was going well and a truck took us to the first bar of the tubing.
What followed was just an awesome few hours. I met tons of new people and we were having fun, "tubing" but hold on...we weren't really tubing yet. We had played mud volleyball, danced away and thrown frisbees at cans. It was time to go tubing. You might have heard that "tubing" is really just drinking, and that proved to be the case. You will spend more time in the bars than on the tubes.
Earlier in the day I had bought a green waterproof "Tubing Bag" for my wallet and my camera (plus one spare memory card). That was all I needed for the day - wallet and camera. The stupidest thing I did was I brought ALL my cards and money with me (including my Hong Kong ID card and my currency in HK Dollars, US Dollars and Laos Kipp). The reason I brought it all was I didn't trust leaving it in the hostel. First mistake was bringing it all with me. Second mistake was buying that green bag. By the time bar four arrived, as I was reeling myself in on the tube, I got distracted by a stupid green bottle on a rope which I thought was my waterproof bag. As I reached for it, I lost my way into the bar and turned round to swim across. It all happened very quick and the currents on the stream are fast, believe me. Once something disappears down the river, it's gone. My green waterproof bag (which was attached round my neck) had disappeared forever.
I lost my money, credit cards and ID cards as well as my camera, all in the quest to reach another bar to drink more alcohol. Crazy. I met my mate Chaz again though but it was a bad idea taking the green waterproof bag with me.
My mate Chaz bought me a drink in that next bar as did an Irish girl and then I drank water, grasping a pair of flip flops and my travelling Northern Ireland flag. It was odd to me.
While my camera and wallet were busy floating away on the Nam Song, I managed to grasp on and keep a flag (my travelling Northern Ireland flag) and a pair of flip flops. I didn't even want the flip flops. Later I would learn I also picked up an ear infection from swimming in vain after a wallet I couldn't even see. I had lost my entire money for this trip. I was lucky my passport was back at the hostel and that I was safe and well.
By the time I was in the third bar I wanted just to go home, I had lost everything and couldn't even pay for a ride home. It was now almost dark.
A local Laos girl called Micky runs over to me and asks what the problem is. "I have nothing left here - any chance of a lift back to Vang Vieng?" I said and the heroine that she was she headed over to a remote garage, pulled out a scooter, told her friends she was giving me a lift and on the back of the scooter I went, flying through the rainy, wet, drizzly Laos countryside wondering what the hell I had done today. I wanted to give up travel in an instant. That was it - I was done with travel. I didn't even have any money now - to pay the hostel or to get out of Vang Vieng. A popular Norwegian, Arnie's Hostel Nam Song Gardens was next door to mine and I sat with him, he gave me a free beer and listened to my story. We'll end things there, how did I recover and ever want to travel again after this? And how did I get money to stay the night and continue my trip? A story for another day, my friends...
By the way you can get all sorts of drinks and drugs in Vang Vieng and on the tubing. People walk around drinking mushroom shakes and are off their heads on drugs.
Lessons to learn about the dangers of tubing in Vang Vieng, LAOS:
- ONLY take money with you. BELIEVE ME - that's all you need!!
- NEVER take a camera (it will either get destroyed or lost. Others will have cameras - ask for their photos.
- NEVER buy or take a useless waterproof bag!
- Try not to drink too much alcohol (easier said than done)
- Don't take drugs
So in closing, head to Vang Vieng and enjoy it, but BE CAREFUL! People die in the river ever year, at least I survived, at the end of the day, it's only money...
It's still a great town though!
Enjoy your trips!
Enjoy your time in Vang Vieng...
Jonny Blair
Arriving in Vang Vieng you can feel the buzz about the place - it's a mad place to party. You will meet new friends and drink and party the night away in the many bars there. But be aware that you will be wakening up the next morning to go tubing - know your limits!
After the night up, it was up and ready for a crazy day of tubing. Everything was going well and a truck took us to the first bar of the tubing.
What followed was just an awesome few hours. I met tons of new people and we were having fun, "tubing" but hold on...we weren't really tubing yet. We had played mud volleyball, danced away and thrown frisbees at cans. It was time to go tubing. You might have heard that "tubing" is really just drinking, and that proved to be the case. You will spend more time in the bars than on the tubes.
Earlier in the day I had bought a green waterproof "Tubing Bag" for my wallet and my camera (plus one spare memory card). That was all I needed for the day - wallet and camera. The stupidest thing I did was I brought ALL my cards and money with me (including my Hong Kong ID card and my currency in HK Dollars, US Dollars and Laos Kipp). The reason I brought it all was I didn't trust leaving it in the hostel. First mistake was bringing it all with me. Second mistake was buying that green bag. By the time bar four arrived, as I was reeling myself in on the tube, I got distracted by a stupid green bottle on a rope which I thought was my waterproof bag. As I reached for it, I lost my way into the bar and turned round to swim across. It all happened very quick and the currents on the stream are fast, believe me. Once something disappears down the river, it's gone. My green waterproof bag (which was attached round my neck) had disappeared forever.
I lost my money, credit cards and ID cards as well as my camera, all in the quest to reach another bar to drink more alcohol. Crazy. I met my mate Chaz again though but it was a bad idea taking the green waterproof bag with me.
My mate Chaz bought me a drink in that next bar as did an Irish girl and then I drank water, grasping a pair of flip flops and my travelling Northern Ireland flag. It was odd to me.
While my camera and wallet were busy floating away on the Nam Song, I managed to grasp on and keep a flag (my travelling Northern Ireland flag) and a pair of flip flops. I didn't even want the flip flops. Later I would learn I also picked up an ear infection from swimming in vain after a wallet I couldn't even see. I had lost my entire money for this trip. I was lucky my passport was back at the hostel and that I was safe and well.
By the time I was in the third bar I wanted just to go home, I had lost everything and couldn't even pay for a ride home. It was now almost dark.
A local Laos girl called Micky runs over to me and asks what the problem is. "I have nothing left here - any chance of a lift back to Vang Vieng?" I said and the heroine that she was she headed over to a remote garage, pulled out a scooter, told her friends she was giving me a lift and on the back of the scooter I went, flying through the rainy, wet, drizzly Laos countryside wondering what the hell I had done today. I wanted to give up travel in an instant. That was it - I was done with travel. I didn't even have any money now - to pay the hostel or to get out of Vang Vieng. A popular Norwegian, Arnie's Hostel Nam Song Gardens was next door to mine and I sat with him, he gave me a free beer and listened to my story. We'll end things there, how did I recover and ever want to travel again after this? And how did I get money to stay the night and continue my trip? A story for another day, my friends...
By the way you can get all sorts of drinks and drugs in Vang Vieng and on the tubing. People walk around drinking mushroom shakes and are off their heads on drugs.
Lessons to learn about the dangers of tubing in Vang Vieng, LAOS:
- ONLY take money with you. BELIEVE ME - that's all you need!!
- NEVER take a camera (it will either get destroyed or lost. Others will have cameras - ask for their photos.
- NEVER buy or take a useless waterproof bag!
- Try not to drink too much alcohol (easier said than done)
- Don't take drugs
So in closing, head to Vang Vieng and enjoy it, but BE CAREFUL! People die in the river ever year, at least I survived, at the end of the day, it's only money...
It's still a great town though!
Enjoy your trips!
Enjoy your time in Vang Vieng...
Jonny Blair
About the Author:
For more funny adventure stories and tips like Tubing Going Wrong in Vang Vieng head to Jonny Blair's immensely recommended website A Lifestyle of adventure.
