The least visited of the Mekong towns, THAKHEK , 360km south of Vientiane, still lies in the shadow of Savannakhet and has yet to develop much of a tourist infrastructure. For many visitors it is simply an entry point into Laos from Nakhon Phanom in Thailand, but it does make a good base from which to explore the Mahaxai caves in the nearby karst formations. A wander round the streets leading out from the tiny town square reveals French villas and shop-houses, crumbling into overgrown gardens, and too-wide streets. This tranquil air of neglect is shattered nightly by club-hopping teenagers who buzz about town on brand-new motorcycles, the inheritors of a tradition only half buried by the revolution in 1975. During the Second Indochina War, Thakhek was a sort of Havana on the Mekong, with visiting Thais flocking to its riverbank casino. These days, budding punters have to content themselves with homemade dart boards and crude pinball games set up along the riverbank.

The ferry to Nakhon Phanom , across the Mekong from Thakhek in Thailand, runs daily during daylight hours (B50), making crossings every half hour or so, and leaves from the Immigration Office at the north end of Thakhek. Near the ferry landing, an exchange kiosk changes cash only. From Nakhon Phanom bus terminal, about half a kilometre west of the centre, buses leave for Ubon Ratchathani, Mukdahan, Khon Kaen and Nong Khai.