Lao's Khammuan province is anticipating the opening of a new tourist attraction this year in the form of Khoun Kong Leng Lake, located about 50km north of Thakhaek district in the Phou Hinboun foothills.
The emerald green lake is one of 10 nature-based tourist sites in Hinboon district for which the province has authorised a local company to conduct a feasibility study for development under the Green World project.
The nine other sites proposed for development for tourism are Khounkhae, Vangnamtok Thamluang, Khoun Nam Pakan, That Khone Keo waterfall, Phou Khoy Sou, Phou Pha Dang, Sai Nam Khoun Kong Leng, Sai Nam Yen, and Sai Nam Pakan.
Provincial Department of Information, Culture and Tourism official Manothong Phongsavanh told Vientiane Times that a memorandum of understanding on a feasibility study to develop Khoun Kong Leng Lake, Khounkhae, Khoun Nam Pakan and That Khone Keo waterfall was signed in March last year between the province’s Planning and Investment Department and a local developer.
Manothong said a range of activities and facilities was planned for these 10 sites under the Green World project. These include kayaking, swimming, restaurants, resorts, zip-lining, a glass bridge, trekking and cycling in forests, and rock climbing.
The developer is in the process of building modern cabins and clearing trees around Khoun Kong Leng Lake, with the work now 50 per cent complete.
The developer plans to arrange 30 tourist activities, with most based around the lake’s natural attractions, including kayaking and swimming.
Khoun Kong Leng Lake is a popular swimming spot and visitors can also walk on trails around the lake and into the surrounding forest in the Phou Hinboun National Protected Area.
Khammuan is located in the centre of Laos and travel by private vehicle to the provincial capital Thakhaek district takes four to five hours from Vientiane. The province’s most popular tourist attractions are the lake, Tha Falang and Khonglor Cave.
Tha Falang is 10km from downtown Thakhaek district on the Nam Don river, while Khonglor Cave – which means “beauty in the dark” in Lao – lies within the National Protected Forest Area of Hinboun Mountain.
VIENTIANE TIMES/ASIA NEWS NETWORK
