Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE: PAKSE
By plane
The airport lies 2km northwest of the city on Route 13, and is served by tuk-tuks
on hand to greet flights. The Lao Airlines office is on No. 11 Road, near the BCEL Bank
(Mon-Fri 8-11.30am & 1.30-4.30pm; 031 212152).
Destinations
Luang Prabang (1 daily; 1hr 40min); Savannakhet (1 daily; 30min); Vientiane
(2 daily; 50min).
By boat
Route 13 is now such an easy drive that public boats have stopped running south
from Pakse. Tourist boats (60,000K each way) run between Pakse and Champasak when de-
mand is strong enough. To book, contact
Sabaidy Guesthouse 2
.
By bus
Long-distance buses pull in at stations around the city. Generally speaking, services
to and from the north use the Northern Bus Station, 7km north of the city on Route 13, while
those to and from the south and east pull up at the Southern Bus Station, 8km southeast of
town on Route 13 at the big T-junction; tuk-tuks from either bus station into town cost around
20,000K. The VIP Bus Station, just south of the tourist office on No. 11 Road, is for buses to
Vientiane, Cambodia and Thailand.
Destinations
Attapeu (10 daily; 4-5hr); Bangkok, Thailand (1 daily; 15hr); Phnom Penh,
Cambodia (1 daily; 16hr); Salavan (9 daily; 3hr); Savannakhet (5 daily; 5hr); Siem Reap,
Cambodia (1 daily; 16hr); Si Phan Don (1 daily; 2hr 30min); Tad Lo (4 daily; 3hr); Thakhek
(5 daily; 8hr); Ubon Ratchathani, Thailand (2 daily; 3hr); Vientiane (at least 15 daily;
10-16hr); Xekong (10 daily; 2-4hr).
Bysawngthaew
The busy sawngthaew lot on the eastern side of the New Market serves local
destinations, including Champasak (2hr; 20,000K) and Vang Tao, where you can cross to the
Thai town of Chong Mek. Daily sawngthaews to Paksong (1hr; 20,000K) and the three main
islands of Si Phan Don (3hr; 50,000K) also leave the Southern Bus Station 9am-3.30pm.
