Wat That Phanom in the distance

Taken on: 14th December, 2004. Copyright: All Rights Reserved - See travelfishery's page of Flickr

Read more about Nakhon Phanom

Home to some of Thailand's most spectacular Mekong riverfront scenery, Nakhon Phanom province, although primarily a gateway to Laos and onwards to Vietnam, is also home to one of Isan's (and southern Laos') most important wats, Phra That Phanom in the southern town of That Phanom.

While the province's position on the Lao border has created a relatively high Vietnamese and Laotian population -- with an influence that can be seen primarily in the food, this is nevertheless still a very Thai province.

Nakhon Phanom (City of Mountains) sits alongside the Mekong River and approximately 735km from Bangkok. Primarily a farmer's market town, there are as many tractor stores as mobile phone stores (or almost anyway) and it has an overall very rural feel to it.

Few travellers find themselves here for any reason other than leaving again to visit Laos via Read our complete Nakhon Phanom travel guide

More images