The Bolaven Plateau is where Lao coffee comes from.

Most two-week Laos itineraries skip the south. They shouldn't. The Bolaven Plateau is where Lao coffee comes from, and the two-day motorbike loop through it is one of the great underrated road trips of Southeast Asia.

Start from Pakse

Rent a 125cc semi-automatic from any guesthouse on the riverside. Day one, head east through the smaller loop — Tad Yuang, Tad Fane, Paksong town for lunch, the Mr Vieng family coffee plantation in the afternoon, sleep at Tad Lo.

Day two, complete the loop south back to Pakse via Tad Hang and the lowland coffee farms.

Where to actually stop for coffee

Skip the touristy ones with cars in the carpark. Look for handwritten signs, a small drying patio out front, and someone roasting on-site. A few hundred kip buys you a single-origin Laos arabica brewed from this week's harvest.

What it costs

The whole loop — bike rental, fuel, two nights' lodging, food, coffee — runs about USD 60 a person for two days. If a tour company is charging six times that for the same loop, they're keeping the margin, not investing in the villages.