Champasak (city)
Champasak City is the capital of Champasak province in Laos.
Understand
Champasak is now an agricultural village along the banks of the Mekong river. It was the seat of the old Lao kingdom until the regime was overthrown in 1975. On the roundabaout on the main street is a memorial remembering the departure of the former royal family. There are some typical Lao houses made of wood and several French colonial houses, built for Prince Boun Oum and his father Chao Ratsadai. The main attraction of the city are the ruins of Wat Phu, located 8 km southwest of the city.
Get in
By boat
It is a 2½-hour ride on longtail boats from Pakse.
By bus
Champasak lies at a distance of 28 km from Pakse. The new road (built 2017) has reduced the travel time between the two cities to less than one hour. Minibuses go in the morning (but sometimes until 14:00) from Pakse's Talat Dao Heuang bus station (at 15.1148, 105.8156) to Champasak. Alternatively, one can take a southbound bus from Pakse Southern Bus Terminal (until 15:00) to reach Ban Muang on the eastern side of the Mekong river. A small ferry shuttles across the river to Ban Phaphin, 2 km north of Champasak.
Get around
See
- 🌍 Wat Phou.
- Wat Nyutthitham.
- Wat Phuthawanaram (8 km South of the city).
Do
- Champasak eSPAce bien-etre, ☏ +856 20 56 499 739. Coconut oil massages on the riverbank.
- The Champasak Shadow Puppets Theater used to perform every Tuesday and Friday, but it seems closed as of 2023. It is a theater play with traditional puppets, candles and live music. Every Wednesday and Saturday it shows a black-and-white fiction movie from 1924, that was filmed in the jungle of northern Laos. The screening of film is accompanied by the theater's musicians. Performances start around 20:30 and tickets can be purchased at the venue (Lao citizens free, foreigners 50,000 kip). The documentary "Theatre d'Ombres de Champassak" produced by Vincent Moon gives an impression of the show and its musicians.
Sleep
- There are several smaller guesthouses and hotels in Champasak, often located at the river side of the main road.
- Residence Bassac, Ban Amart Champasak, ☏ +856 30 54 07 587. Restaurant, wifi, river views.
Go next
Pakse is 30km north. The nearest border crossing is the Chong Mek/Vang Tao crossing into Thailand, 70km north-west.