The 14 Best Cooking Classes in Laos

1.Evening Cooking Class & Local Baci Ceremony

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 151 reviews · 4 hours · from $51Our pick

Meet your English-speaking host at 4 PM for a market visit, then cook five Lao dishes in a family setting outside Luang Prabang. You will join a traditional Baci ceremony, eat your meal, hear Hmong music, and return to your hotel after about four hours. Covered knees and shoulders are required.

“This was a wonderful experience - even better than we had hoped! We were Picked up from our hotel and proceeded to the local market for a tour. Our guide was terrific and gave us information about all of the foods and in general the daily life in Laos. We then made our way to the cooking class location. The building was an open air structure overlooking a beautiful view of the rice paddy and mountain. It was such a beautiful location. We then learned about the Baci ceremony before it was performed for us, we were then asked to sing our own song to family which they seemed to…”

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2.Bamboo Weaving Workshop & Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 96 reviews · 4 - 5 hours · from $44Top rated

Travel by tuk-tuk from Luang Prabang to a traditional bamboo house, where an English-speaking instructor introduces bamboo’s role in Lao life. You’ll prepare bamboo strips, weave a small mat, cook bamboo shoot dishes, eat from a bamboo tray, and hear local instruments. Choose a morning lunch or evening dinner session.

“The facilities, people and activities were all very nice. It was very nice to hear that the whole business was run by Laotians. Our favorite was cooking together and learning about the ingredients”

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3.Cooking Class at the Former Royal Palace

★★★★★★★★★★4.9 · 51 reviews · 4 hours · from $45

Start near Wat Xiengthong with chef-guided market shopping by bicycle or tuk tuk. Then prepare four Lao dishes at Alame Restaurant, part of Victoria Xiengthong Palace, with cooks such as Noi or Vannasone. Expect hands-on work, a riverside lunch, recipes to take home, and a quiet break while ingredients are prepared.

“Noi, our "cherished" Cook & Guide, made this Event a real memorable one. After an enjoyable & very educative start at the Morning Market & coffee break at the Mekong, everything for the cooking class was set up at the terrace overlooking the river. Noi then took us through the sticky rice making procedure, some great fresh appetizers, flavourful sour soup with pork, mushrooms and plenty of herbs followed by delicious chicken laab, again with plenty of vegetables & herbs. All we ate together on the terrace overlooking the Mekong & a super desert of rice balls in cuconut milk finished it all off. Many thanks everybody & highly recommended!”

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4.Day-time Bamboo weaving & Cooking Classes join-in

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 38 reviews · from $25Best value

Spend about four hours at The Bamboo Experience near Luang Prabang, where Somsay and local craftspeople introduce bamboo culture, guide you in weaving a small mat or coaster, and help you cook bamboo shoot dishes. Hotel pickup, return transport, and lunch are included. Groups are limited to eight.

“Fabulous morning learning about bamboo with lots of hands on experience. Great cooking class again very hands on which resulted in an amazing lunch. Lovely guide. Defo recommend”

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5.Evening Bamboo weaving & Cooking classes join-in

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 17 reviews · from $25

Meet your pickup at 4 pm for a short ride from Luang Prabang to The Bamboo Experience, a traditional-style pavilion beside rice fields. Learn how bamboo supports Lao life, weave a small mat or coaster, help prepare bamboo-based dishes and sticky rice, then eat the meal you made. Groups are capped at 12.

“This afternoon was such fun! We were collected by tuc tuc, 10 minutes. Learnt the culture of bamboo and had a craft session. We helped make sticky rice prior to our cookery lesson, food was amazing ! A must do trip if you are in Luang Prabang”

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6.Tribal Cooking Class in Luang Prabang Forest and visit

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 15 reviews · from $78

Spend about five hours with a Khmu guide such as Peng or Pheng, collecting local ingredients, making bamboo chopsticks and a drinking cup, and cooking a traditional Lao meal over a forest or farm fire. Pickup, lunch, snacks, water, tools, and private transport are included.

“This was an amazing authentic experience! The guide is really kind and hardworking and the village is so lovely to see and be a part of! Favourite day in Luang Prabang! Don’t miss this and support!”

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7.Traditional Market Tour and Private Laotian Cooking Class with a Local

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 13 reviews · from $92

Meet your host Si at Phosy Market at 4:30 pm for a guided look at Luang Prabang’s largest fresh market. Then visit a local home, where Si teaches you 2 to 3 Lao dishes from family recipes. You cook, eat together, and return to the meeting point. Private pickup and drop-off are included within Luang Prabang.

“I participated in the market tour and cooking class (not for dinner, but for lunch). I can confidently recommend this experience. The Phosy Market tour is an incredibly stimulating place, filled with fascinating sights such as an impressive Read more”

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8.The Namkhan – Cooking Class

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 8 reviews · from $63

Meet at The Namkhan Wellness Center for a three-hour Lao cooking class capped at six people. With a local chef and English-speaking guide, you’ll harvest seasonal vegetables from the organic garden and greenhouse, prepare traditional dishes, then eat what you cooked at the farm-to-table restaurant. Recipes are provided afterward.

“The experience is amazing from learning how to pick different vegetables, clean & wash to cooking. Guide speaks amazing English and explaining the Laos culture. Cooks are nice and General Manager - Carl always check on your satisfaction.”

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9.Laos Cooking Class in Luang Prabang

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 7 reviews · from $58

Meet your instructor at Tamarind at 8:30 am for a market visit, ingredient selection, and a hands-on Lao cooking class. Chef Sit guides you through spicy dips, Mok Pa, Laap, lemongrass stuffed with chicken and herbs, and dessert. You eat what you make and take home a recipe book.

“As part of the cooking class, I visited the Phosy Market. We were then taken to one of the most picturesque open kitchens I’ve been to. We made 1 dip, 1 dessert and 3 other dishes. The instructor Chef Sit made this so simple for us. It aRead more”

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10.Full Day bamboo experience with cooking class & Kuang si waterfalls

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · from $44

Spend a full day at The Bamboo Experience, a traditional-style pavilion beside rice fields. Learn how bamboo shapes daily Lao life, weave a small mat, and cook bamboo-based dishes before eating lunch. Then ride to Kuang Si Falls, visit the sun bear rescue center, and swim in its turquoise pools. Pickup from central Luang Prabang hotels is included.

“Day was awesome, I never knew what you could do with bamboo, owner, his wife and staff are just fabulous, knowledgeable and funny and incredibly helpful. I really enjoyed this day, helping to prepare food and then having lunch, the whole experience is worth doing.”

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11.Luang Prabang Cooking, Pottery & Candle Experience

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 4 reviews · from $56

Choose a morning or afternoon Lao cooking class with Nid, or spend several hours at P70 making pottery and beeswax candles with Nid and Noy. Hotel pickup, materials, an English guide, and food are included. The pottery option can include a traditional Lao lunch, while the afternoon workshop does not.

“Wonderful experience with my cousin and sistef ! Nid is charming as her place. It is quiet and you can do cooking class or pottery. Or just come for a coffee.”

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12.Bamboo Forest Cooking-class & Farm Visit

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 6 hours · from $100

Spend 6 hours with a local Khmu guide near Luang Prabang, starting at a vegetable farm before heading into the forest. Pick edible plants, shape bamboo cups and chopsticks, and cook rice, meat, or fish over a traditional fire. Transfers, ingredients, and a small-group setting for up to 10 are included.

“Peng was awesome! This experience was so authentic and just a lovely time learning cooking techniques. This hands on experience was well worth the visit. I would highly recommend. Be prepared to get really into it as I never imagined I would be in a forest cutting down bamboo to use for my meal. Communication was excellent. I highly recommend!”

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13.Mekong River Cooking Class with Hotel Pickup

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 3 reviews · 5 hours · from $65

Spend five hours with a small group of up to six, meeting chef Sing at Luang Prabang’s morning market before preparing four Lao dishes aboard a boat. Choose meat or vegetarian recipes, including mok, laap, lemongrass-stuffed dishes, and mango sticky rice. Hotel pickup, tuk-tuk transport, ingredients, and lunch are included.

“loved the whole day....sing was an amazing guide very informative and a good cooking teacher, would recommend doing this!”

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14.Vientiane Private Lao Cooking Class with Market Tour

★★★★★★★★★★4.0 · 3 reviews · 6 hours · from $70

Spend six hours learning Lao cooking at Madam Phasouk Cooking House. Shop for ingredients at a local market, study herbs and plants, see ancestral kitchen tools, and cook with an English-speaking chef before eating your meal with Lao drinks. The group is limited to four, making it a hands-on choice for adults and older children.

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