4 hours ago Six people are dead after a suspected mass methanol poisoning at a backpacker party town. What went wrong in Laos?

As authorities detain a hostel owner in Vang Vieng, expert says the recent deaths are just the ‘tip of the iceberg’Vang Vieng is an unlikely party hub.Surrounded by striking limestone mountains and caves in central Laos, it morphed from a small farming town to a hedonistic party hub in the early 2000s. Enticed by boozy tubing experiences, throngs of twentysomething backpackers cemented its spot on south-east Asia’s famed backpacker trail. Continue reading...

Events

7 hours ago Parents of British lawyer who died after drinking 'methanol' shots in Laos pay tribute to their 'beautiful, kind and loving daughter' who was 'one of a kind'

Simone White, 28, from Orpington, Kent, is among six people who have died in connection with the tragedy in the popular backpacking town of Vang Vieng last week.

Society

10 hours ago Kneecap at the Kentish Town Forum review: a sweaty, swaggering set of party

Vicious and vital this raucous show delivered a whole lot of communal joy

Politics

11 hours ago 'I visited Laos methanol poisoning party town and still shudder at the memory'

Vang Vieng in Laos has had a reputation for dangerous partying for over a decade and attempts to reform the town's tourist offering have clearly failed, writes Laura Hill

Politics

12 hours ago What is methanol poisoning? Six dead after suspected mass poisoning in Laos

The tourists became severely ill after reportedly drinking tainted alcohol in the backpacking hotspot of Vang Vieng

Events

30 hours ago British backpacker among five dead in Laos after ‘drinking methanol served as free shots’

Simone White, a solicitor from Orpington in Kent, is the fifth tourist to die following the incident in the Vang Vieng area

Events

31 hours ago Laos methanol poisoning: London lawyer 'fifth person to die after drinking contaminated shots'

Simone White, 28, was reported to be among those dead from methanol poisoning

Events

32 hours ago British lawyer, 28, dies in Laos suspected mass poisoning taking death toll to five

A 28-year-old woman from Kent has become the latest to be tragically confirmed dead in Laos following a suspected mass spiking of drinks with a fatally toxic substance

Events

32 hours ago British backpackers poisoned and four dead in Laos after ‘drinking methanol served as free shots’

Simone White and Bethany Clarke have both been named as it emerged that four people have died following an incident in the backpacking hotspot of Vang Vieng in Laos

Events