Things to do in Thakhek
And where to stay, the best time to visit, what a day costs, and the traps to skip.
Best time to visit Thakhek
• a note or something on ✦ an occasion worth the trip
Cool dry season, the best months for the loop, clear springs, open caves and climbing.
The single best window, with dry roads and comfortable riding temperatures.
Hot dry season, roads stay dry but midday heat is fierce and burning season can haze the views.
Wet season, greenest and emptiest but dirt side roads treacherous and springs clouded.
Kong Lor can close entirely in the high water window, so build slack days or avoid these months.
What's on
- Boun Pha That Sikhottabong Third lunar month, usually February
The province biggest festival at That Sikhottabong, with pilgrims from both sides of the Mekong.
- Pi Mai Lao New Year Around 14 to 16 April
Water throwing and homecoming across Laos, joyful and chaotic with transport booked out.
- Boun Suang Heua Boat Racing Festival Late wet season, typically September to October
Longboat races on the Mekong at Thakhek as the rains recede, dates shift with the lunar calendar.
- Illuminated Boat Procession Nakhon Phanom End of Buddhist Lent, usually October
Fire boat festival on the Thai bank across the bridge, with the final two days the spectacle.
Best things to do in Thakhek
Kong Lor Cave
A 7.5 km boat ride in the dark through a mountain, emerging into the Natane Valley on the far side.
Tham Nang Aen Cave
The easiest cave near town, with walkways, an underground lake and a viewpoint over the karst.
Xieng Liap Cave
A free through cave with a stream and a wooden bridge, walked from one mouth of the mountain to the other.
Dragon Cave
A big, raw walk through cave on the loop second day, with a viewpoint climb above its entrance.
That Sikhottabong
Thakhek holiest stupa on the Mekong bank, a revered pilgrimage site best seen in late afternoon light.
Thakhek Old Town
A compact grid of French colonial buildings and a Mekong promenade made for a slow sunset walk.
Tha Falang Lake
Clear, deep swimming water under limestone cliffs, with simple riverside restaurants for a long lunch.
Cool Springs
A spring fed pool of startlingly clear turquoise water, and the best swim on the loop second day.
Where to stay in Thakhek
Old Town and Riverfront
first trip, loop riders, everyone default
Rentals, restaurants, the night market and the promenade are all walkable in the central colonial grid.
Tha Falang
climbers
The climbing valley 15 km east of town, based at Green Climbers Home with the crags a short walk away.
Kong Lor Village
cave focused loop night
Sleeping at the cave doorstep turns Kong Lor into a dawn visit with a slow Natane Valley afternoon.
Think twice about
- Main bus terminal highway strip
About 4 km from the centre with nothing walkable around it. Fine for an early bus, a poor base for a holiday.
- Highway edges east of town
No pavement and fast traffic after dark. Do not book an unreviewed highway guesthouse expecting to walk into town for dinner.
Best restaurants in Thakhek
Patalai
The town best reviewed restaurant, Italian leaning cooking with a proper wine list and a named host.
La Casa Thakhek
Italian and French home cooking in a small room, the pre loop and post loop dinner of choice.
Kyoto Japanese Restaurant
A small Japanese kitchen holding the town only perfect review score, a welcome change after the loop.
Sunset Restaurant
Mekong fish Lao cooking on the riverfront, timed so your main course lands with the sunset.
Sabaidee Thakhek Restaurant
A central Asian kitchen with vegetarian and vegan options that serves as the town reliable lunch fallback.
Thakhek Night Market
Grills, noodle soups, papaya salad and Beerlao around the square, the cheapest dinner in town.
Khop Chai Deu
Cook at your table dishes and hanging skewers eaten over the limestone forest at the Rock Viewpoint.
Best bars in Thakhek
Le Rendez-Vous
Food and live music in the heart of Thakhek, the closest thing the town has to a night out.
Best coffee in Thakhek
Soukjai Cafe Happy Cafe
The best supported cafe name in town for coffee and breakfast on a morning you are not riding.
Outdoor things to do in Thakhek
Thakhek Loop
A 450 km motorbike loop through karst, caves and springs, best ridden anti clockwise over four days.
Green Climbers Home
Around 400 bolted sport routes a short walk from camp, with gear rental and courses for complete beginners.
The Rock Viewpoint at Phou Pha Marn
Ziplines, bridges and ladders over a sea of limestone pinnacles, the priciest and biggest view on the loop.
Kong Lor Cave as a day trip from Thakhek by private car
The private car day trip version of Kong Lor for non riders, about 140 km each way with the Rock en route.
Nakai-Nam Theun and Hin Nam No
One of mainland Southeast Asia largest forests, tasted on the loop plateau leg and by boat at Thalang, plus a UNESCO listed karst forest of giant caves in eastern Khammouane, a guided expedition planned days ahead.
Best hotels in Thakhek
Le Bouton D'or Boutique Hotel
A French colonial boutique on the riverfront, the top end that exists in Thakhek and its nicest terrace.
Inthira Thakhek
A colonial building on the central square where loop riders stage before and celebrate after the ride.
Riveria Hotel
A clean, conventional mid range hotel by the river for travellers who want standard rooms over character.
Thakhek Travel Lodge
The original loop base, famous for rider briefings and logbooks of current road conditions by returning riders.
Bike and Bed Hostel
A friendly budget hostel that partners with Mixay rentals and stores your big bag while you ride the loop.
La Casa Thakhek
A small, loved hostel guesthouse whose owner gives genuinely useful loop tips and cooks for guests.
Spring River Resort
Riverside bungalows at the cave doorstep, the mid loop upgrade that lets you wake up in Kong Lor valley.
Is Thakhek expensive? What a day costs
| Budget | LAK 450,000 a person |
|---|---|
| Classic | LAK 900,000 a person |
| Splurge | LAK 2,250,000 a person |
A day of food, drink, sights and getting around, before the room
What to book ahead
- Thakhek Loop: a few days ahead
- Green Climbers Home: a few days ahead
- The Rock Viewpoint at Phou Pha Marn: a few days ahead
- Kong Lor Cave as a day trip from Thakhek by private car: a few days ahead
- Nakai-Nam Theun and Hin Nam No: weeks ahead
- Le Bouton D'or Boutique Hotel: a few days ahead
- Inthira Thakhek: a few days ahead
- La Casa Thakhek: a few days ahead
- Reserve a good motorbike a few days ahead in the November to February peak and specify semi automatic or automatic.
- Book La Casa and Green Climbers Home courses ahead in season, and interprovincial buses days ahead in festival weeks.
Is Thakhek safe?
- The loop is not a first motorbike ride: potholes, gravel, animals, trucks on blind bends and spilt oil cause accidents every season.
- Wear a full face helmet if offered, closed shoes and covered skin, use your horn on blind corners and never ride at night or after drinking.
- You need a motorbike licence and an International Driving Permit or your travel insurance may not cover a crash.
- Never enter a stream cave during or just after heavy rain, and note Kong Lor can close from June to September.
Thakhek travel tips: tourist traps to skip
- Inspect any rental bike brakes, tyres, chain and lights and photograph it before you sign, whatever the shop.
- Get two rental quotes, as equivalent bikes have differed by more than double between shops a block apart.
- Skip the Nang Aen boat add on if Kong Lor is on your plan, and skip a three day loop that forces a 200 km day.
Getting around Thakhek: public transport and more
- Walk the flat central grid, and use a tuk tuk with the price and return agreed before you ride for That Sikhottabong.
- Vientiane buses take roughly 6 to 9 hours and Pakse buses roughly 5 to 7 hours from the main terminal.
- On the loop, download offline maps before day one and fill up whenever you see fuel, never when you need it.
Who Thakhek suits
| Solo travellers | Great |
|---|---|
| Groups of friends | Great |
| Couples | Good |
| Bachelor parties | Not ideal |
| Families | OK |
| Bachelorette parties | Not ideal |
Make Thakhek your trip
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