The PATA foundation offers its support to Laos and its “Viengxay Story”

Laos is set to receive a PATA Foundation grant this year that will be awarded to the Kaysone Phomvihane Memorial Tour Cave Office for the development of an audio tour and related promotional materials on the "Viengxay Story", into Lao, Vietnamese and English. The Viengxay Story details the nine years in which 23,000 Laotians sought shelter in caves from aerial bombardment in a "secret war." Between the years of 1964 and 1973, up to 480 caves in the Viengxay district in Houaphanh province in Lao's northeast were transformed into a city where Laotians sought refuge... more info and photos

PATA members the Netherlands Development Agency (SNV) and the Lao National Tourism Administration (LNTA) are working to develop the caves as both a tourist destination and a "world peace site that focuses on poverty reduction and the needs of local people".





Houaphanh is currently the poorest province in a country where 40% of the population survive on less than US$1 per day. The tourism development of the caves has been supported locally as it represents and acts as a vital tool in the fight against poverty.






"For tourists who take the time to reach Viengxay and the nearby attractions throughout northeast Lao, we can promise a very enriching and educational experience," said LNTA Chairman, Somphong Mongkhonvilay.

The LNTA is scheduled to unveil plans for Viengxay's 'cave city' development to international travel agents at the Lao Ecotourism Fair, July 26-29 in Vientiane.


Source: e-Travel
MOre photos: http://www.flickr.com/photos/19882127@N00/sets/72157594529646069/