The little town of Tha Kaek, right across the Mekong River from Nakhon Phanom in Thailand was once an important trading center back in the French Colonial days. Now it's little more than a sleepy backwater, but it still may be worth a visit.
Old shop-houses that need restoration
During the French colonial period, Tha Kaek was an important city, both for trade along the Mekong as well as a defensive outpost on the front lines with the Siamese, who weren't too happy giving up 'their' territory. As a result of the strong French presence, there are a lot of French colonial style buildings around town from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, so if you're interested in such things, a stroll around the old city area can be a pleasant way to pass some time.
But the history of Tha Kaek doesn't start with the French. The area around the modern city was once an important part of the Sikhotabong Empire, which held sway over much of modern-day Laos and northeast Thailand for nearly a thousand years up until the eleventh century. One of the few signs of this ancient past is the Phra That Sikhotabong pagoda, on the banks of the river a few kilometers south of Tha Kaek.
The area around Tha Kaek is rich in natural scenery too, especially caves, but I didn't get to investigate these as they are really only reasonable to visit in the dry season from October to May.
You won't find a big tourism infrastructure in Tha Kaek. There are only a few good hotels and restaurants, but there's enough to give you some choice. You can really only get to Tha Kaek by bus or private tour. There is no airport, although it doesn't take long to get here from the Nakhon Phanom airport with the new Friendship Bridge in place.
Tha Kaek doesn't have an airport with regularly scheduled flights, so the only way to get there is by bus or private car transfer.
The main bus station at Tha Kaek Buses to and from Tha Kaek are available from all the nearby provinces, such as Savanakhet and Pakse, as well as Vientiane. There is also an international bus service connecting Tha Kaek to Nakhon Phanom in Thailand across the new Friendship Bridge 3, opened in 2011.
The Sikhotabong pagoda is 6 to 8 kilometers south of Tha Kaek town. It is one of the most important religious shrines in the area, and even in the Lao nation. While it's not particularly spectacular, it probably is worth a visit.
The pagoda of Wat Phra That Sikhotabong The spire (that) was originally built in the sixth to eight centuries, at around the same time as That Phanom across the river in Thailand.
There are only about three or four hotels in all of Tha Kaek, and about that many guest houses, so the selection of accommodations is very small. Two of the three hotels are larger, old tourist class properties, the Riveria, listed below, and the Mekong Kham Mouane, which doesn't seem to be listed anywhere. The newest option is the small (dare I say 'boutique') Inthira Sikothabong, which is built into a rescued shop-house near the center of the old town.
There are a surprising number of restaurants around Tha Kaek, but it's worth noting that many of them are not set up to cater to westerners, so you may not find an English menu or much English spoken by the staff. That said, you certainly won't go hungry, and you're still spoiled a bit for choice.
Riverside food stalls set up in the plaza every evening The place to start, naturally, is the riverfront road, which is lined with little carts and stalls on the river side of the street, and a number of small restaurants in the shop-houses on the other side.
Like much of mainland Southeast Asia, Tha Kaek is subject to an annual monsoon. Here in the far inland area, the difference is quite pronounced, with a cool dry season from November through January, when on average no rain falls, which is followed by a short hot season from March to May, and then a very short, wet rainy season from June to August. The current conditions in the province are shown in the box at right (which might be for Nakhon Phanom, across the river).
During the French colonial period, Tha Kaek was an important city, both for trade along the Mekong as well as a defensive outpost on the front lines with the Siamese, who weren't too happy giving up 'their' territory. As a result of the strong French presence, there are a lot of French colonial style buildings around town from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, so if you're interested in such things, a stroll around the old city area can be a pleasant way to pass some time.
July 2012
The front of the Inthira Sikothabong hotel in Tha Kaek The Inthira Sikothabong (Inthira Thakhek) hotel is the newest and as of this writing probably the best place to stay in Tha Kaek. The hotel has been built into an old shop-house and preserves the teak floors, windows, and other elements of the old structure. There are just a dozen (well, 13 actually) rooms in this place. None of them are especially large, but they're comfortable enough for a night or two, which is all most people spend in Tha Kaek.
