Things to Do in Savannakhet

Savannakhet's French Colonial Quarter

The old town's grid of avenues radiates from Talat Yen Plaza. It preserves one of the finest colonial townscapes in Indochina. Art Deco facades, Sino-Portuguese shophouses, and the octagonal tower of St. Theresa's Co-Cathedral all sit within a fifteen-minute walk. Peeling pastel plaster and arched wooden shutters give the quarter its texture. The repurposed Lao Chaleun Theatre, a 1930s cinema, now is a community square. Weekend live music and street art fill the space. The feel is more Pondicherry than Southeast Asia. The tourist office organizes a heritage circuit past nineteen points of interest. Or grab a free map from Lin's Cafe, a hundred meters north of the plaza. Set your own pace through a morning walk. Early starts beat the heat. The golden light on shophouse facades before nine is worth the alarm. Tour operators list guided versions under Savannakhet walking tours.

The Dinosaur Museum

Savannakhet's dinosaur museum sits in a slightly dilapidated building on Khantabouli Road. It is the only one in Laos. Its charm comes from eccentricity, not polish. The star exhibit is Tangvayosaurus hoffeti. This fifteen-meter sauropod from the Cretaceous period is outlined on the wall in fairy lights. Casts of its bones hang in anatomical position. Staff have been known to let visitors hold real fossil fragments with bare hands. The second room doubles as a working office. Dried limes and a water heater sit on the desk. Budget about thirty minutes. Bring patience with the labels. They are in French and Lao with limited English. The museum opens in the morning. It closes for a midday break. It reopens in the afternoon. Plan accordingly. Operators in town sometimes package it with other sights under Savannakhet tours.

That Ing Hang Stupa

This Lane Xang-style stupa rises nine meters above manicured gardens roughly fifteen kilometers northeast of town. It is the second-holiest religious site in southern Laos after Wat Phu in Champasak. King Setthathirath substantially rebuilt it in the sixteenth century. The site is believed to enshrine a relic of the Buddha. The French restored it again in 1930. Three terraced bases support the spire. A gold umbrella weighing roughly 450 grams crowns the top. A hollow lower chamber houses rows of Buddha images. Entry to that chamber is restricted to men. Women are asked to wear a sinh on the temple grounds. Hire a tuk-tuk for the round trip. Negotiate the fare before you climb in. Drivers at the stand near the market know tourists have few alternatives. Outfitters group the stupa with other sites under Savannakhet cultural tours.

Dong Natad Forest

This provincial protected area sits about fifteen kilometers east of the city center. It has been sacred forest for roughly four hundred years. Two villages inside it, Ban Tat and Ban Phonsim, still gather mushrooms, honey, resins, and medicinal herbs under its canopy. Day treks run five to six hours through semi-evergreen forest to Nong Lom Lake. Guides point out edible plants and torch trees along the way. The walk finishes with a lakeside lunch. The air smells of damp earth and leaf litter. The Savannakhet Eco-guide Association runs four different programs. Options range from a single-day "Honey Trail" to a two-day homestay. The longer stay includes a traditional baci ceremony and dawn alms-giving. It is worth it if you want to sleep in a village rather than a guesthouse. November through February is the best window. Trails are dry then. The forest canopy filters cool morning light. These programs run under Savannakhet day trips.

Wat Xayaphoum and the Mekong Promenade

Founded in 1542, Savannakhet's oldest monastery sits right on the Mekong bank. Its entrance steps flanked by green naga statues. Its triangular gold roof catches the late-afternoon light. Inside, murals depicting Jataka tales line the ordination hall. On the grounds you can watch villagers crafting new Buddha images by hand. The smell of incense and the quiet tap of chisels make this one of the more meditative temple visits in southern Laos. Across the road, a massive white-and-gold naga statue arches over the riverside promenade. Pop-up drink stalls and community aerobics sessions take over at sunset. Stay for the night market behind the Lao Chaleun Theatre. Grilled meat on skewers, sugar-glazed pancakes, and neon-lit stalls run until around ten. The evening covers the ground that Savannakhet food tours promise. You get the added advantage of wandering at your own pace.

Talat Yen Plaza and the Old Quarter is where most travelers end up. For good reason. Colonial shophouses line the surrounding streets. You are within a minute's walk of the night market, St. Theresa's, and Lin's Cafe. Guesthouses here tend to occupy restored colonial buildings with high ceilings and wooden floors. Atmospheric but not always modern. Choose this area if you want to feel the old-town character from your doorstep.

The Mekong Riverfront runs along the western edge of the old town. The handful of places here trade colonial charm for sunset views. The promenade is right outside. You can watch the sky turn copper over Mukdahan from a riverside terrace. Daosavanh Resort and Spa sits along this stretch. This is probably the closest thing Savannakhet has to a proper upscale hotel. It has a swimming pool and river-facing rooms. The location is a short walk south of the main cluster.

Khantabouli Road and Ban Chomkeo form the backpacker corridor. Pilgrim's Kitchen and Inn anchors this stretch. Its wooden terrace sits on the Mekong bank. Le Corbeau Bar occupies an old colonial mansion nearby. The feel here is more social. Travelers swap routes over iced coffee. This differs from the quieter streets around Talat Yen.

Sisavangvong Road near the bus station and Royal Thai Consulate is where newer mid-range hotels have appeared. The architecture is modern. The rooms tend to have stronger air conditioning and more reliable plumbing than the colonial conversions. The trade-off is a ten-minute walk from the old quarter. The surroundings are functional rather than scenic.

Tha Hae Road, Savannakhet's oldest thoroughfare named after the original settlement on the Mekong, runs south along the river. It holds a mix of guesthouses and small hotels. The pace is quieter than the old quarter. A few of the better-value budget stays sit along this road. Nongsoda Guesthouse, next to Wat Xayaphoum, puts you right beside the temple.

Route 9 and the modern edge of town stretch east of the colonial core. Accommodation here skews toward the casino-hotel complex catering to Thai visitors and a scattering of business-style properties. Unless you have a specific reason to be out here, an early morning border crossing, perhaps, the old quarter is a better base. Skip this sprawl.