Pakse

Pakse is one of the main towns in Southern Laos, definitely a Thai-like town, up until recently, most travellers and backpackers tended to use as a transit point.
The tourism infrastructure in Pakse is not developed as the more popular north, making it a bit harder to explore, but Champasak Province and Pakse has much to offer, as beautiful wats, and two gorgeous rivers, great for enjoying some eats and drinks by the water side watching the sunset.
I do made some good shots as all my time was focused on photography becasue there was not much else to do.

When I was in Pakse it was raining season, so there was not much to do beside rest and eat, but it seams that recently the Lao Government has put a lot of careful work into cultivating a well regulated tourist destinations that combine the adventure of exploring the unknown with the convenience of regular and reliable services.
You can easily spend a week or so just making day trips, its a comfortable spot for hanging out, recharging your batteries, and picking up information, with an ever-improving guesthouse scene, some great food, and excellent local hospitality.
Travellers should be prepared to spend longer in this province than expected. Besides the excellent hospitality of the locals.
Though Champasak province has generally good roads, the transport that runs along them does so at its own creaky pace, loaded to the roof with more goods and baggage than people, making frequent stops along routes that offer a small selection of daily departures.

Posted on October 26, 2002

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