I am not prepared for the wildness. I had envisioned the Mekong River, Southeast Asia’s great waterway that carves a path from the plateaus of Tibet to the deltas of Vietnam, as a gentle passage. A jade-hued bearer of small boats through jungles. But this was before I join Heritage Line in the border town of Huay Xai for a weeklong cruise on the Upper Mekong through the limestone mountains and tribal villages of Laos. And sit low in the prow of our beautiful ship, Anouvong, next to a makeshift shrine of flowers and incense, bracing myself as we fly through a boulder-strewn stretch of churning brown water, carving a path as deftly as a snowboarder. Laotians call their river Mae Nam Khong, or the Mother of Water. On this first afternoon, she is a feisty mother indeed.
But she, like the Ganges, is sacred to the people who have lived along her banks, bathed in and fished her waters, since they migrated here from southern China beginning in the eighth century. In a world of inhospitable terrain—steeply rumpled, forested peaks—the Mekong has offered life. And connection.
And this is what it feels like, once the adrenaline of one of its many shallow, rocky stretches is behind us: a river of connection. Our intimate band of voyagers (the Anouvong has just eight staterooms and two suites) spends mornings and afternoons in visits with villagers who see little tourist traffic. Most of our stops have no set places to dock: Our captain, an esteemed veteran of the river, sidles us alongside muddy riverbanks; our crew leaps out to dig posts and lash us to them. One day we tie the stern to a tree. This takes just long enough for groups of children to catch wind of our arrival and perch on outcroppings, kick a ball, show off, and wait for the strangers to enter their world.
Very little is performed on our visits—a tonic amid so much organized cultural tourism. Some visits are quiet walks among typical tribal dwellings, made from bamboo and thatch in some cases, milled wood and tin in others—and, rarely, cement. (The contrast is stark with the Anouvong, just back from a restoration and glowing with dark polished woods in French-Colonial designs, bright Laotian artwork, rich fabrics, and gilt accents.)
Our guides from the ship, who are Laotian, help us differentiate among the region’s three central ethnic groups—Hmong, Lao Loum, and Khmu—who have been pushed together at times by relocation programs, but still maintain their individual traditions and languages. What unites Laos, though, is its ethos of hospitality, from a proffered bouquet of bougainvillea courtesy of a giggling bunch of girls to pours of homemade rice whiskey, called Lao-Lao, from Tai Lue elders who tie strands of white yarn around our wrists as they would to anyone visiting. I learn that the strands hold good spirits captive in the body long enough to convince them to stick around. A rich gift.
This is a subtle world of browns, pale greens, and cultural nuance. And while this upper-Upper Mekong section is not terribly colorful or decorative, it’s deeply moving to be welcomed here, and I grow to treasure the fraying yarn at my wrist as a symbol of connection to these villages, their peoples, and a rare and quiet life. We trade the wildness of the early journey for tamer, yet dazzling, visits to Luang Prabang and, finally, the capital city Vientiane. Amid the brightly colored Buddhist temples and Lao coffeehouses, I feel the fun and thrill of a world that feels closer to mine. But I cannot help but look over my shoulder, up the mother of all rivers, and wonder what wild business she is getting up to.
Book Your Stay
Heritage Line operates three-, seven-, and nine-night cruises on the Upper Mekong aboard the Anouvong (and more itineraries downriver in Cambodia and Vietnam). The seven-night voyage includes a shipboard visit by talented local performers and a stop at Haw Pha Bang pavilion at the Royal Palace Museum. Prices start at $2,041 per person; heritage-line.com.
This article was featured in the May/June 2025 issue of VERANDA. Written by Tracey Minkin.
Tracey Minkin, an award-winning writer and editor for more than 30 years, is a contributing editor at VERANDA. With deep reporting and far-ranging expertise in the arts, culture, and travel, she covers a wide range of stories for VERANDA, from luxury travel and high craft to the worlds of restoration, design, gardening, jewelry, and watches. She is also a keen chronicler of her stories through her own photography and videos, which frequently appear in VERANDA's and other brands' social media feeds. She lives in New York's Hudson Valley, where she co-authored an art and antiques-focused guidebook for WILDSAM in 2021.
