Savannakhet to Thakhek

By bus the journey from Savannakhet to Thakhek is scheduled to take 5 hours.

Bus Times from Savannakhet to Thakhek

There is currently 1 bus service a day with Book Best Travel and Services from Savannakhet to Thakhek available to book online.

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Savannakhet Bus Stop

Book Best Travel and Services services from Savannakhet to Thakhek depart from Savannakhet Bus Station.

Pakse Bus Station

Book Best Travel and Services services from Savannakhet to Thakhek terminate at Thakhek International Bus Station.

About Travel to Thakhek

Thakhek, like Savannakhet, is a city located on the east bank of the Mekong River and an important transit point for travel between Thailand and Laos. It’s also, like Savannakhet, a transit point for overland between Thailand and Cambodia when border closures make direct overland travel between Thailand and Cambodia impossible.

Thakhek City

With a population of around 90,000 Thakhek is by far the largest city in the sparsely populated Khammouane Province. Thakhek receives fewer foreign visitors than Savannakhet, partly because Savannakhet has a Thai Consulate and Thakhek does not, and has fewer hotels, restaurants, and bars that cater specifically to international visitors.

The city itself has little of interest for leisure visitors, other than some very pleasant riverside views. Thakhek is, however, the access point for visits to the much more interesting Phoun Hin Boun National Protected Area.

Accommodation in Thakhek

Thakhek City has fewer than 20 tourist hotels.

The city’s 2 most luxurious hotels are the Le Bouton D’or Boutique Hotel, which charges around $35 USD for a standard room, and the Inthira Thakhek, which charges around $25 USD per night for a standard room. Both of these hotels are located right in the centre of the city close to the Mekong River, and both are self consciously styled in a way that’s reminiscent of the period when Laos was a French colony.

For more of an ‘old school’ backpacker experience consider trying the Thakhek Travel Lodge. The Thakhek Travel Lodge is a long-running guesthouse located 2.6 km from the city centre that charges from $14 USD a night for an air-conditioned room. Over time this establishment has improved it’s facilities and raised it’s room rates but it does, nonetheless, still offer more opportunities than most other hotels in Thakhek for people to meet like-minded travellers with whom they can share their travelling experiences whilst enjoying a drink around an evening time camp fire.

Thakhek Loop

In relation to tourism the thing that Thakhek is best known for is a 450 km long road route around the edge of the Phoun Hin Boun National Protected Area often referred to as the ‘Thakhek Loop’. A popular, and adventurous, way to complete the Thakhek Loop is to rent a motorbike from Thakhek City. Because of the poor condition of the roads it takes 3 to 5 days to complete the full circuit on a motorbike. There are clusters of small guesthouses on the way where travellers can stay overnight in relative comfort.

Visitors can also choose to visit some of the main points of interest on day trips by car or minivan from Thakhek, however, the travelling time on poor quality roads makes it difficult to visit the most impressive locations without staying at least 1 night away from Thakhet City during the trip.

Among the more popular destinations on the Thakhek Loop are:

• Tham Nong Pafa Cave (14.6 km from Thakhek City)
• Tham Nang Aen Cave (16.9 km from Thakhek City)
• Limestone Forest Viewpoint (136 km from Thakhek City)
• Konglor Cave (181 km from Thakhek City)

Travel from Thakhek to Thailand

Thakhek City is located 16 km by road to the south east of the Third Thai–Lao Friendship Bridge, and 48 km by road from Nakhon Phanom in Thailand. The distance in a straight line from Thakhek City to Nakhon Phanom in Thailand is actually less than 1 km (across the Mekong River), however, currently only local residents are permitted to make the direct river crossing.

By road the journey from Thakhek City to Nakhon Phanom takes from 1 to 2 hours, which is slow considering the relatively short distance travelled even by the longer road route. Travelling times speed up considerably when visitors eventually make it to Nakhon Phanom. From Nakhon Phanom you take either a direct bus service or a flight to Bangkok, or travel a further 3 to 4 hours by road to Udon Thani for further flight options and to join Thailand’s railway network.

• See bus times from Thakhek City to Nakhon Phanom.

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