Jules sorry but I can't seem to locate the itinerary of the exact trip we ended up taking but broadly the trip was :

Luang Prabang by car to:
Oudoxamai by car to:
Hatsa by boat to:
Muang Khua by car to:
Luang namtha by car to
Phongsali by car to;
Muang Sing

Also somewhere along the route we stayed at a place called Ban Bountai, a small village but absolutely magical.

We then travelled by car back to Xiengkok (or something like that!) and took a speedboat back down-river to Thailand. We booked the trip through an agent in England and they used a Lao operator - I think called Lao Inter Tourisime which I believe are the biggest in operator in Laos and were very good.

The far north of Lao is an amazing place to travel but be prepared for bad or non-existent roads, very basic accommodation, limited food choices etc. but fantastic scenery, wonderful people and an area that is really untouched by mainstream tourism (or at least it was!). There are some eco type resorts dotted around (e.g. the Boat landing at Luang Namtha which was one of the first, although I am sure others have appeared since

When I say it is best to book through an agent, I meant that travel in Laos, outside of LP and Vientienne, is still difficult, but doable if you have the time to hang around for a few days here and there (which we didn't!). We will be going back in 2008/09 and spending 2+ months in Lao as part of a round the world trip. Travel outside of the rainy season will be problematic because of the roads (make sure you have 4WD). River travel is still the preferred method a lot of the time. If you only have a week or two engage a tour operator, it will save you so much time although you do need to be clear about exactly what you want or they will just take you along a comparatively well trodden path.

As for the fires, we had a really bad experience travelling in April which I believe is the worst time but the smoke can last for months (I believe until Sept). You can check the air quality in Northern Thailand (which should give a pretty good guide) at http://www.pcd.go.th/AirQuality/Regi...?task=findsite also see my trip report at http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34988056

We did not actually make it to the Lao Spirit Resort but it did look great and I believe others on this board are about to go there. A word of warning, we booked our trip down river from North Thailand with Tiger Trails (who own Lao Spirit) – the plan was to stay at Lao Spirit for a day or two and then trek through the villages before returning to LP. Because of the smoke we tried to alter this but the manager at Tiger Trails was very unhelpful and it beacame apparent that he was just out for a quick profit. We decide to extend our stay in LP moved on early Bangkok. We paid 50% in advance and lost out on the deal. May be we were just unlucky but I would counsel against paying any money in advance to Tiger Trails. If you want to stay aound LP there are several places in town where you could just turn up an get a trek or a place to stay in the surroundin villages.
Hope this helps. Let me know if you need anything further.

crelston Thanks for the run down on your itinerary that is a big help. We are not worried about the rustic aspect of going north so that is not an issue. I am just trying to figure out what we may like to do. I do agree that arranging transport will help us maximize our time so that is the way we may go. I know you said you weren't happy with your UK op but you seem to have been OK with the actual Lao op that you would recommend them? We don't want a tour by any stretch but do want to get out & about a bit and as you say with limited time I don't want to waste time. You said travel "outside" of the rainy season could be a prob & make sure you have 4WD????
Thanks again everyone still not sure this trip will happen but when we do know we need to be ready to make moves!
Crelston you will be back in Laos for a couple of months in 2008. Sounds great how long will your total trip be?
Happy travels.
J

jules - sorry I meant to say for travel IN the rainy season you will definitely need a 4WD as many of the roads will be dirt tracks.
I managed to find the website for the operator we used in Lao http://www.interlao.com/

They are used by most tour operators in the UK. we have used them twice and they were very good.
As for our plans for returning to Laos, we are about to embark upon a major lifestyle change in theta we are leaving for Sierra Leone in October to spend 1 year doing voluntary work with Voluntary Service Overseas (which, if you are in the US,I think is the UK equivalent of the Peace Corp?). Once that year is up our plan is to spend a year travelling out through Asia and back through South America via the Australia & the pacific islands. after that who knows! One thought is that we may open up some form of eco lodge somewhere in Laos - if so all fodorites will be most welcome!

Crellston I figured you meant in the rainy season but thought I would just check. Thanks for the link to the op I did find it but good to know I found the right one. Congrats on your lifestyle change. Sounds fantastic. I know what the VSO is being from your region of the world originally but now an Oz living in US! If you have some sort of web site that you will update on your adventures post the address here so we can occationally check in on you! Again Thanks for your help and every best wish on your new adventures.
Happy & safe travels.
J