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Travel Pakse Champasak Travel Champasak
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http://www.hotsia.com > เที่ยวปากเซ จำปาสัก > เที่ยวจำปาสัก ตอนที่ผมเขียนเรื่องเที่ยวจำปาสักนี้ ผมนั่งอยู่ที่เรือนพักสายทองจำปาสักอยู่ริมแม่น้ำโขง แม่น้ำโขงช่วงนี้กว้างมากๆ มีดอนตรงกลางเรียกว่า จำปาสักมีที่ท่องเที่ยวที่คนไทยรู้จักกันดีคือ ปราสาทวัดพู มรดกโลกของลาวต่อจาก หลวงพระบาง แต่จำปาสักกลับเป็นเมืองที่เงียบๆ เพราะคนไทยที่มาเที่ยวแค่ผ่านจำปาสักไปเที่ยววัดพูแล้วไปนอนที่ปากเซ เพราะว่าห่างกันแค่ 30 กิโลเมตรเท่านั้น
Especially the road coming from Pakse before crossing the bridge from Chong Mek (the Lao Wang Tao checkpoint), visiting Wat Phu no longer passes through Champasak town. No need to take a boat because the road leads directly to Wat Phu. People in Champasak have started wondering if, once the road is completed in 2011, tourists will still visit Champasak town. I played badminton with locals and sensed this feeling. Therefore, I predict that initially, Thai tourists using tours might be affected, but in the long run, more people tend to travel independently.
Or what I call independent travel, which does not only mean backpacking but all kinds of travel without buying a tour. Thus, I have to write this so friends can travel by themselves. Traveling to Champasak and Wat Phu is very easy to do independently (read about traveling to Wat Phu Champasak by clicking here). To enjoy Laos travel, you must travel independently. You can stay wherever you want, for as many days or nights as you like, and eat whatever you want.
You can drive yourself or take a bus; both are fine. Just have a passport, and you can stay in Laos for 30 days without a visa. Champasak is an old town before the new city was built at Pakse. It is so old that in ancient times, there was a route from Wat Phu to Angkor Wat. They are now studying and developing this route. The houses in Champasak look ancient and charming. Locals are not very familiar with Thai tourists because Thais usually do not stop here; they just visit Wat Phu and return, as mentioned.
Independent travel here is very interesting because people are friendly, and nothing has changed from being a tourist spot. In Champasak town, there is a main street along the Mekong River for several hundred meters. Champasak has no markets, only mobile market carts, which I photographed for you. Therefore, mornings are lively with vendors pushing carts, people selling fish along the roadside houses, and monks collecting alms in the morning. Morning is the best time to stroll around Champasak.
For visiting Champasak, I recommend staying only at accommodations by the Mekong River because the sunrise in Champasak is truly beautiful. I stayed at Ruean Pak Saithong; the sunrise was so beautiful that a Japanese tourist I met decided to extend their stay for several nights. The Mekong River is very wide, and the opposite bank has something blocking the sun, creating a unique charm of Champasak. Don’t miss waking up early to see it.
Regarding food here, I recommend waking up early and walking along the street where there are many authentic Lao coffee shops. There are both pho and morning coffee for sale. Lao coffee comes from Pak Song, Champasak province, and is very delicious, well known by Lao people. I have become addicted to Lao coffee here. The coffee I usually drink is black Lao coffee without sugar or milk, served hot in the morning while watching the sunrise. In the afternoon, I drink iced coffee. For other meals, just stroll around; many shops sell food priced around 15,000 kip. Champasak has banks for currency exchange and credit card cash withdrawal. Debit cards without names and with Visa cannot withdraw money here; you must withdraw enough cash from Pakse. Motorbike rentals cost 80,000 kip per day, bicycles 10,000 kip per day. If you want to go to Wat Phu, cycling is good exercise and takes about 1 hour. There are enough accommodations in Champasak for tourists without advance booking.
Except during the Wat Phu festival in February, but you can camp and sleep at Wat Phu as they allow it. Hotels in Champasak range from 120 baht per night for a fan room to 600-700 baht for an air-conditioned room. I stayed in a fan room for 120 baht per night, which was fine. No need for wifi. If you come in the Thai winter, no need for air conditioning; it’s comfortably cool here. Mr.Hotsia recommends hotels near Wat Phu, staying in old Champasak town. Sunrise in Champasak over the Mekong River. Alms offering with sticky rice in Champasak.
Map location of Champasak town in Champasak province, Laos 14 53 55.044 N, 105 52 51.696 E. View the location on Earth at Wat in Champasak town is a newly built temple but beautiful. In the evening, students return from school. Sunrise from the Mekong River side of Pakse, or as locals call it, 'Se' simply. The sun is perfectly round and beautiful. Morning alms offering by Buddhists in Champasak. The old governor’s house in Champasak is now closed to visitors.
Cycling around Champasak is a main activity for tourists. Old houses of Champasak town. The main street for morning and evening strolls. Sitting in front of houses in the evening. Students returning from school. Another temple in Champasak. Lao and Vietnamese flags, brotherly neighbors. Lao National Day. Bridge over a stream flowing into the Mekong River 14 52 57.3 N, 105 52 30.618 E 14 52 57.888 N, 105 52 31.176 E. A dog sitting in a good spot. Sunrise in Champasak.
This view is from my accommodation, Ruean Pak Saithong. Morning alms offering. Wat Phu and other interesting places in Pakse. Traveling to Champasak. Visiting schools in Champasak. Ruean Pak Saithong accommodation and restaurant.
Travel Pakse Champasak Travel Champasak Image 2
