ChiangKhan Getaway

Post by **parrot** » December 25, 2012, 3:55 pm

My wife and I spent an night in Chiangkhan......same resort as we stayed several years ago along the Mekong....Chiangkhan River Resort. The resort is about 3km to the east of town where the Mekong makes a short southerly sweep before continuing north (1754N 10143E). The resort offers excellent mountain/river views, good restaurants, swimming pool, flowered gardens, and a variety of touristy shopping. The place was packed over the weekend.....I saw license plates from probably 20 different provinces in the parking lot.

Downtown Chiangkhan has its own walking street in the evening.....about 1/2-3/4 of a kilometer of street vendors and small shops selling lots of things to eat and buy. There are quite a few boutique hotels right along the river, and the prices seem very reasonable at 1500+ a night (= newish hotel with views), right in the center of town.

There's a first rate foot/body massage right at the beginning of walking street.....my wife and I both got foot/body massages by trained masseuses. Lots of good places to eat (mostly Thai food, but a few that offer falang variety).....and an especially good place to eat breakfast with a good cup of coffee.

Sunset was excellent as we got ready to eat along the Mekong.....but it was cloudy in the morning, so I didn't see much of a sunrise. (On our previous trip there, we saw brilliant red skies with fog over the Laotian mountains in the early morning.)

Just down the road from our resort was a camping area......and there are several others along the Mekong, if camping is your thing.

We were both impressed with the degree of development along the river walk area.......all of the buildings along the river walk area are done in wood.....either the very old structures still in place or redone, but using finished wood as the main building material.

The road from Udon to Nongbualamphu is fine......from there to Loei varies in quality, but you have some nice mountain/cave areas along the way if you're interested in exploring.

All in all, a great escape.....nearby, not expensive, good food, friendly people, nice atmosphere.

Post by **parrot** » December 25, 2012, 4:06 pm

A few more photos of Chiangkhan

The resort we stayed at and most all the places along the river that we visited also offered free wifi.

You could easily make Phurua and Chiangkhan a 2 day excursion.....one night at each with one day at each for sightseeing/eating/shopping.

Post by **Alchai** » December 25, 2012, 4:48 pm

parrot wrote:My wife and I spent an night in Chiangkhan River Resort

Hi Parrot
Thanks for the tip. Lokks like a nice place and as you said "a great escape.....nearby, not expensive". I looked on various internet sites for the hotel you stayed at and came to the conclusion that it must be "Chiang Khan Hill Resort" or looking to the west of town the "Chiang Khan River Montain Resort". My guess it is the first. Can you confirm?

Post by **parrot** » December 26, 2012, 6:47 pm

Sorry about that, alchai, I thought I included the photo below.

The resort is about 3km east of Chiangkhan, as you're heading toward Nongkai.

Post by **noosard** » December 26, 2012, 7:30 pm

What has this road got to do with this

The road from Udon to Nongbualamphu is fine......from there to Loei varies in quality, but you have some nice mountain/cave areas along the way if you're interested in exploring.

Looks like a good place to visit

Post by **noosard** » December 26, 2012, 7:38 pm

must apologies as have just traveled half this road and not reliazed loei so close to the river

Post by **parrot** » December 26, 2012, 7:59 pm

A few years ago on a trip to Phurua, we detoured off the road just outside of the town to Thali. The road wasn't the best, but the views were spectacular.....and only about 30-50 km from Phurua.

On our trip to Chiangkhan, just as you arrive in the town, I noticed a sign for Thaili.....going west of Chiangkhan. Looking at GoogleEarth, it may make for our next getaway.....a night in Chiangkhan, then head west to Thaili and into Phurua for a night before heading back to Udon.

Anyone taken the Chiangkhan-Thali road?

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 2, 2013, 1:19 pm

Hi Parrot, thanks for the Chiang Khan trip report & photos.

I stayed at Phu Pha Nam resort about 4 years ago, and drove around Loei, Dan Sai, and Phu Rua. I think it's a great area for a getaway from Udon. I like the mountains, trees, rivers, and country atmosphere.

I'm planning to go to Phu Rua tomorrow, then to Chiang Khan, via Tha Li. I will probably take 3 days.

My experience of driving along the roads that follow the Mekong, has been that they are normally ok, unless there have been floods and then they can get broken up a bit with pot-holes.

I'll let you know what I think of the Tha Li - Chiang Khan road.

Post by **parrot** » January 2, 2013, 2:36 pm

Brilliant One, take photos of anything special along the way that might be of interest as well!
Enjoy the trip!

Post by **writemotive** » January 2, 2013, 6:09 pm

YES! THANK YOU! I will do this trip with my family in February. I really appreciate the introduction to the area and travel advice and will post my experience on the forum.

Post by **BigBubba** » January 6, 2013, 4:20 am

More photos and review of this area here:

http://www.thaisabai.org/

Post by **writemotive** » January 6, 2013, 1:54 pm

Thanks BB, nice pics of areas of interest and of a nice looking hotel in CK, may try to book. Will post any worhty new info from visit in Febuary.

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 7, 2013, 10:35 am

Aoy and I got away late last week to Phu Rua & Chiang Khan.

Thursday. Udon Thani to Phu Rua via Loei. (206kms). Stayed at the Phu Rua Resort, which is set in nice gardens alongside a stream, with waterfalls. It was busy, but we got a cabin for 1500 baht. It was an old cabin, only just ok, and I wouldn't stay in it again. The resort has 2 new sections, which would be much better to stay in, but were fully booked out by a couple of coach tours. Breakfast was included, and was ok. We visited the Chateau de Loei, and bought a boot-full of plants & shrubs from the many growers in Phu Rua, about half the price of Udon.

Friday. Phu Rua to Chiang Khan via Tha Li, with a detour to view the Nam Hueng Thai Lao Friendship Bridge. (110kms).
Firstly, the owner of the Phu Rua Resort, and also another guest, both advised not to take this road, unless we were driving in a 4-wheel drive vehicle. Anyway, I thought I would give it a go, and if it was too bad I would go back. We have a Mazda 2 sedan. Sections of the route were ok. Other sections were bad, and probably 1/3rd of the route is very bad (terrible) and is really only suitable for a SUV or 4-wheel drive. These parts were badly broken up, deeply corrugated, unsealed sections. I was tempted to turn back at one point, but had already gone too far to go back. However, the countryside, hills, and views were spectacular, and I highly recommend this route if it is dry and you have the right vehicle. I would not do it again in a sedan. We were forced to drive very slowly most of the way, and only saw 12 other cars for the whole trip. Tha Li is quite a small country town. We saw a couple of resorts, so there are some places to stay. We detoured slightly at Tha Li to view the Nam Hueng Thai Lao Friendship Bridge.
Found a nice guest house in Chiang Khan, in the walking road, with views of the Mekong River. The rooms were 800 baht a night, and 1000 baht with a fridge. Naturally, I took a room with a fridge $\:D/$ The name of the Guest House was only written in Thai, but I think it might be the Bussada. I will post a pic with the name and phone number. It is only about 18 months old, spotlessly clean, coffee & cake were available for breakfast. The owner "Care" was very friendly and helpful, and I would highly recommend this accommodation and I would stay there again.
Chiang Khan is starting to "boom" and it comes alive in the evening with restaurants, stalls, and musicians all the way along the walking street. Most people rent a bicycle (50 baht) and slowly pedal around the town. It's nice and flat. After shopping for souvenirs, we had dinner at a near-by restaurant, and I finished the night off with a few cold beers on the upstairs balcony of the guest house, looking out over the Mekong River. Brilliant

Saturday After picking up some locally made coconut confectionery, we headed back to Udon, via Loei (210 kms)

I can recommend any of these places for a nice getaway for a few days, but I would take the road from Loei to Tha Li next time.
I will post some photos separately.

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 7, 2013, 11:57 am

Some photos of the Phu Rua / Tha Li / Chiang Khan trip ...

: Cabin - Phu Rua Resort

: Phu Rua Resort

: Phu Rua Resort

: Phu Rua Resort

: Near the Nam Hueng Thai Lao Friendship Bridge

: Guest House in Chiang Khan

: Walking Street - Chiang Khan

: Behind the Guest House - Road along the Mekong River

: Walking Street - Chiang Khan

: Walking Street - Chiang Khan

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 7, 2013, 12:03 pm

More photos of the Chiang Khan trip ...

: Walking Street - Chiang Khan

: Walking Street - Chiang Khan

: School Music Group - Walking Street - Chiang Khan

Post by **writemotive** » January 7, 2013, 9:05 pm

Dear B1,
Thanks for the posts as we will be making the journey early February and will take the route you suggested. I will try to book the Phu Rua resort "new sections" if available or another accommodation if not. Please if you don't mind, the last photo in your first posting looked like a nice new accommodation in Chiang Khan. Is this correct and would you recommend it? Do you have the name? Or, do you have another recommendation you could suggest? Thanks again for the great photos and travel log!
WM

Post by **Zidane** » January 8, 2013, 9:58 am

Some excellent reports and pics on this thread =D>
We are planning a similar trip in April but travelling along the Mekhong River valley via Si Chiang Mai to Chiang Khan.
The last stretch from Pak Chom to Chiang Khan you can make by long tailed boat so I might offload the wife and son onto a boat and drive the last bit by myself.

Also planning to do Phu Rua and come back to Udon via Nong Bua Lamphu.
There is a resort in Dansai called Phu Pha Nam which seems to have good revies in tripadvisor,so we might stay there as well as in Chiang Khan.

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 8, 2013, 11:51 am

WriteMotive ... I highly recommend the guest house in Chiang Kha. I covered it in my post i.e.
"Found a nice guest house in Chiang Khan, in the walking road, with views of the Mekong River. The rooms were 800 baht a night, and 1000 baht with a fridge. Naturally, I took a room with a fridge $\:D/$ The name of the Guest House was only written in Thai, but I think it might be the Bussada. I will post a pic with the name and phone number. It is only about 18 months old, spotlessly clean, coffee & cake were available for breakfast. The owner "Care" was very friendly and helpful, and I would highly recommend this accommodation and I would stay there again."
The phone numbers are 042-821-259 or 08-5181-1877. The lady's name is Kae (pronounced Care). As I said, the place is spotless, and I would definitely stay there again. It might be called the Bussabee??

Zidane ... I stayed at the Phu Pha Nam resort during my first trip to Udon 4 years ago. Lovely gardens, great aviary with exotic birds, some animals, nice swimming pool, good breakfast, and big rooms. It's a bit pricey from memory, but I was on my "honeymoon"

Post by **parrot** » January 8, 2013, 12:30 pm

The phone numbers above correspond to the hotel at http://travel.kapook.com/view50480.html, photo #20
You'd call the place, Bahn Boop Pah Jahn (บ้านบุปผาจันทน์). After a few beers, it might change to Bussabee!
Enjoy

Post by **Brilliant One** » January 8, 2013, 5:40 pm

parrot wrote:The phone numbers above correspond to the hotel at http://travel.kapook.com/view50480.html, photo #20
You'd call the place, Bahn Boop Pah Jahn (บ้านบุปผาจันทน์). After a few beers, it might change to Bussabee!
Enjoy

Hi Parrot, you are 100% correct. My thai better-half agrees, it is Bahn Boop pah Jahn!
For me, after a few beers it could well be "Resting Place for the Wallabee next to the Billabong" haha
However, I was quoting my TGF - she who is never wrong haha, and never has an alcoholic drink haha
But thanks for clearing up the name. It's always a worry for me to actually rely on what I'm being told

TIT

All the best, Frank