Visitting Wat Phu (Vat Phou) - UNESCO World Heritage Site in Champasak

Wat Phu (or Vat Phou) is a ruined Khmer temple complex located at the base of mount Phu Kao, in the Champasak province. The Hindu temple structures date from the 11th to 13th centuries. Wat Phu is small compared with the monumental Angkor-era sites in Cambodia but the tumbledown pavilions, enigmatic crocodile stone and tall trees that shroud much of the site give Wat Phu a mystical atmosphere. The temple is still in use as a Buddhist site today.

Wat Phu, Champasak - Top 10 Attractions in Laos

The Wat Phu Temple complex is contained within the Champasak cultural landscape, a remarkably well preserved planned landscape more than 1,000 years old. It was designed to express the Hindu vision of the relationship between nature and humanity, using an axis from mountaintop to river bank to lay out a geometric pattern of temples, shrines and waterworks extending over some 10 km.

Wat Phu Monumental Complex is one of the largest archaeological sites in Laos and was inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 2000, making it one of the only two sites with such status in the entire country. The foundation of the site is dated to the mid-5th century AD when the Chenla kingdom (5th-7th c. AD), started its expansion towards northern Cambodia. The monument, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, is one of the most important examples of Khmer architecture because of its plan, its historic and religious significance and for the value of its sculptures.

Wat Phu, Champasak - Top 10 Attractions in Laos

One of only two UNESCO World Heritage cultural sites in Laos, Wat Phu Monumental Complex has suffered from a lack of regular maintenance and is prone to damage and destabilization from fluvial processes.  To counteract these issues, Global Heritage Fund is supporting emergency stabilization and a sustained conservation and training program to save the last remaining temples of Wat Phu in Champasak, particularly Nandin Hall, in partnership with The Lerici Institute, the Lao Ministry of Information and Culture, the Champasak Province Office and the University Polytechnic of Milan.

If you visit Wat Phu on the full moon of the third lunar month (usually in February), you will come across the temple’s biggest annual festival with many impressive ceremonies and fun activities going on during the week-long period. These include monk-blessing ceremonies, elephant racing, buffalo and cock fighting as well as a trade fair. The event is never short of entertainment such as live music and traditional Lao dancing.