Don Dhet
Travel Guide
In a nutshell
Some call it Khao San Road by the river. Elbow other backpackers out of the way, then slow down and just... be. This is one of Laos' best go-slow destinations and in Laos, that means something. You can go tubing or kayaking if it's toooo slow.
Referred to by some as Khao San Road on the river, if nothing else the scenery here is far better than at KSR. Now well-established on the traveller trail through Laos, the number of rooms on Don Dhet continues to climb steadily. The scenery is indeed very...well...scenic, and the ambience of the place very relaxed, but Laos this is not.
If you're on the way here expecting to experience the local culture, prepare to be very, very disappointed. If on the other hand, all you want to do is relax in a hammock for a week (or a month) meet and talk to travellers and eat traveller food with yet more travellers, then you're in the right place.
Certainly a beautiful area, daily sunsets and sunrises are equally stunning, there's a wealth of activities -- waterfalls, boat trips, cycling trips, hiking, camping and extended hammock laying -- with which you can busy yourself with for days or weeks.
You can easily visit nearby Don Khon by crossing the French Bridge, where there are great waterfalls, rusty trains, and the occasional glimpse of an Irrawady dolphin.
Don Dhet has yet to be hooked up to Laos main electrical grid -- we were told a few years back that it was set to arrive mid 2006, but as of our revisit in December of that year -- not so much. The locals get by running computers and sound systems off car batteries during the day, and the generators kick in at sunset and run until about 23:00. River breezes keep the rooms pretty cool most of the day even without fans, but morning on the sunrise side and afternoons on the sunset side can get pretty toasty.
In anticipation of these changes, a working group has been formed to try to establish a degree of planning into the ongoing development of the island to try to maintain some degree of control over what is happening now and what will happen in the future.
Encouragingly, they are using the example of Vang Vieng as an example of exactly what they do NOT want to happen, so at least they are getting off on the right step. Apparently the main focus in centring around controlling the burgeoning development and establishing a pricing system where the farmers and others who are running these establishments will start to receive a more sustainable level of income from their operations -- yes $1 rooms will not be here forever.
The view is towards shifting the pricing structure from what is not generally $1 a night (although in some cases people are still bargaining their room cost down to zero) to a more sustainable level of $2-3, with a longer term goal of $4-5 a night -- at which time rooms with private bathroom and electricity will be more the norm.
It is the belief that when most places are charging prices at this level, they will be able to earn enough to better maintain their bungalows in a financially independent manner (the roofs and walls may be made of thatch, but they still cost money and still need to be replaced) without needing to go to moneylenders which in many cases is what is happening now. Please consider the long term sustainability of a business when you stand there wearing your $300 backpack bargaining a $1 room to nothing.
The accommodation on Don Dhet runs along three sides of the island, the north-west side (sunset side), the north-east side (sunrise side) and the southeast side (facing Don Khon).
Related reading
The Gibbon Experience
Malaria:Cambodia,Laos,Thailand,Vietnam
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Southern Laos by scooter
Crossing the Cambodia Laos border
Lonely Planet Laos 6
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Text and/or map last updated on 5th September, 2010.
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Don Dhet reviews
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Don Dhet Not Worth the Effort to Get There and Away
I can't say that I was impressed with Don Dhet. As soon as my friend and I arrived in Nakasang the poor service began. The locals are not friendly, although I can't say that I blame them with what tourism has done to the area. Development is brisk on Don Dhet; more guesthouses and restaurants are popping up almost daily.
I was there over the New Years holiday (Dec 30-Jan 2) and I didn't find it very relaxing or peaceful. My friend and I stayed at a guesthouse down Sunrise Blvd (just past King Kong Resort). There was a party across the river on Don Khon that night and the very loud Lao music played until 4 a.m. Activity still starts at 6 a.m. the next morning so there was virtually no sleep to be had. Again the very loud Lao music started at around 10 a.m. because of the boat races and went until around 4 or 5 p.m. I still don't understand the propensity for exceptionally loud music in Laos.
I found there were 2 types of travelers to the island:
- those there for a few days to unwind, have a few drinks or maybe some ''happy shakes'' or ''happy cookies'', maybe do a couple activities, and then leave
- those that stay there for weeks or months on end and do nothing but drink
After a couple of days there really isn't anything to do. You can rent a bike and tour the island (maybe 1 day). You can go kayaking or on a boat trip to see the waterfalls. That's really about it.
My friend and I did a kayaking trip but it was an absolute joke. We were supposed to start at 9 a.m. and didn't start until at least 10 a.m. Another group got instruction on the beach and then also in the water once they were in their kayaks. Our group got shoved into the water with no instruction whatsoever, even though there were level 2 rapids that we would have to negotiate. Our ''guides'' spoke virtually no English and what they did speak was barely understandable. Everything was ''25 minute'', even if it took us an hour. Other groups had their lunch on a rocky island in the Mekhong so they could watch the river dolphins. Our group paddled to shore and ate in some dusty little nothing-town. We were supposed to go to Dolphin Beach, but were told ''no time, no time''. Then we paddled the kayaks to the end point and had to wait one hour for the minivan to pick us up to take us to the big waterfall!
If you do a kayaking tour, do NOT use the company that runs out of Dalom Guesthouse on Sunrise Blvd. and/or the Poolbar Cafe (same company. It's a rip off!
I couldn't WAIT to leave the island, and was so glad when I did!
Also: if you take a ''VIP'' bus to Champasak, it doesn't actually take you to Champasak. It dumps you across the river at Ban Muang, and then you have to pay 15,000 to 20,000 Kip to get across the river. Even then you don't get to Champasak but to Ban Phipin and then you have to walk the 2 km into Champasak or pay again for a tuk-tuk.
By MessBee (dabbler)
Written on 8th January, 2012 after a visit to Don Dhet in December, 2011
Greatest Sunset in Laos
I was on Don Det staying at Thon Don Family Bungalows on sunset side of the island. This place was gorgeous and you could watch the sunset in your hammock while enjoying a cold beer.
Thon Don helped us find Sunset Happy Boat. They set up boat tours during sunset on a pontoon style boat. The tours lasted between 3-5h and weren't more than 30,000kip a tour.The next tour we spent relaxing on the water listening to some music cruising along the mekong river. Peng (the owner) took us to a beach where he and his friend made a BBQ dinner for us. The next tour Peng took us out on, we did spearfishing (which was awsome - but unfortunetly i was not fast enough to catch a fish - of course Peng was). The third time we went out, we started a littler earliar. He boated us up river and brought tubes for us to float down on. After tubing, we set up again on a beach to watch some of the best sunsets Ive seen in Laos. It was great fun!
I hope you fellow travellers find this relaxing and fun thing to do on Don Det. Since Don Det is just developing, it may be hard to find so this may help once your on the island. Just head over to the sunset side and ask for Thon Don Bungalows and Sunset Happy Boat and Peng the owner.
Enjoy!
By deemchop (dabbler)
Written on 7th January, 2012 after a visit to Don Dhet in December, 2011
Scam on Don Dhet - tours and tickets
We have just been victims of a scam which may implicate a couple of the tour agencies on Don Dhet. We booked a fishing tour with Mr Loy, his little 'office' is opposite Phouvang Guesthouse and Restaurant on the sunrise side of Don Dhet. We paid $17 for two people to do a sunset fishing tour with BBQ and arrived at 2pm. No one showed up and despite attempts from Mr Mo, whose tickets Mr Loy had used as a reciept, when he finally showed up at 6pm he said he had no money. We agreed to meet again at 8pm but of course he is no longer in his office. We are resigned to the fact that we will not see our money again.
Just make sure you book any tickets - tours or bus - with a reliable agency and double check your receipt. Apparently this is not the first time this has happened to travellers on Don Dhet, with many being stranded with no onwards travel ticket that they thought they had bought from Mr Loy.
Thanks
Corinne and Sam Thomas
By CorinneThomas (dabbler)
Written on 18th February, 2011 after a visit to Don Dhet in February, 2011
The southeast asia party trail (with some quiet gems)
Don Dhet has continued to blow up and there are guesthouses almost ringing the entire island. I saw a lot of afternoon arrivals scrambling along the sunset side looking for a river view bungalow to no avail, even with the increased number of bungalow operations. There are at least 4/5 more operations up than listed on the site now, and all charge around 40,000 kip -- don't look for private bath, I didn't find one at any of the more secluded locations.
Though many people rag on the party scene here, I didn't see that much of it. The island still got pretty chill around 10/11pm, and the sunset side had a little bustle in some bars for an hour or two after the disc disappeared, but then it was all crickets.
All that said, south sunrise side (a little north of the French Port) there was a place called Paradise that was very laid back for those wanting to get away from things ... and as you kept to the riverside there were plenty of quiet operations. So, could always try and get a boat to drop you there rather than at the beach on the north end of the island which is a better place to make landfall if you want to hit the sunset side.
Either way, its very relaxed, feels less like a Laos than anywhere I've ever been in Laos, but is overall a nice place to spend a night or two when combined with bike rides over to neighboring Don Khon. Some people got lost there in the party for two weeks, I myself found three nights was enough, being on the far end of sunset I liked the quiet, empty trail to Don Khon for morning walks and it was easy to avoid the area that gives the place the Khoa San Road reputation.
Though most people who want a quiet spot opt for Don Khon, the build up of 'main street' there makes it just as hectic and I think you're better off going for the spots around the French Port on Don Dhet.
By caseyprich (dabbler)
Written on 14th February, 2011 after a visit to Don Dhet in February, 2011
Also reviewed by caseyprich: Can Tho, Champasak, China Beach, Da Nang, Hoi An, Hue, Ko Chang, Ko Maak, Ko Wai, Luang Prabang,
Top Stop for Sunsets and Waterfalls
After spending 9 days of intense traveling in Cambodia, Don Dhet was a much anticipated 2 days of relaxation on our trip. We took the bus from Siem Reap to Don Det which was long, but problem-free. We left Siem Reap at 5:30am and arrived in Don Dhet around 6pm. The border crossing was smooth and quick, and much to our surprise, someone on the bus without a Lao visa was able to get one at the border, quickly and much cheaper than when we got ours ahead of time at the consulate in Seoul. We were charged "stamp fees" of 1USD on the Cambodian side and 2USD on the Laos side.
Our bus met a mini bus who took us to the port where we got a boat to Don Dhet island. On the bus we were told that our bus ticket included the cost of the ferry to Don Dhet, but when we arrived, we were asked for 2USD each for the ride. It was dark by this point and starting to rain so we didn’t argue the extra cost.
On the island we stayed at Mr B’s Sunset Bungalows because they came recommended by Travelfish and Lonely Planet and because we really wanted to catch a nice sunset. The first bungalow they showed us to had an enormous spider in it, but they quickly took us to another one that was cleaner. We paid 40,000kip for a non-water front bungalow and switched the next night to a water-front for 50,000kip. The island has electricity now so there were lights on the balconies and fans in the room. The shared bathrooms were not the nicest, but the sunset views were amazing and made up for that. This place also serves food which is wonderfully tasty and cheap and has inner tubes for rent. Besides the bathrooms the only other downside was the roosters that woke us up at the crack of dawn everyday, but I think that would happen at any of the bungalows!
One of the best things about Don Dhet was the food. Some of the best food we had on this trip was eaten here. Beef and veggie stirfries, fresh fruit shakes, pumpkin burgers, homemade beef burgers, fresh French toast….we ate like kings here! The pad thai at Mr B’s was particularly delicious, even though it didn’t taste like pad thai at all!
During the day we rented bicycles for 8,000kip/day and rode around the island and onto Don Khon to check out the beautiful Li Phi (small falls) waterfall, which is definitely worth checking out, especially if you can’t make a trip to the Big Falls (Khong Phapheng). We read that Don Dhet is not "the real Laos", and while that is partly true, I still think we got a feel for what Laos is like because the owner of each bungalow lived right beside the bungalow so there was a nice mixture of tourism and real Lao life.
On day 2 we arranged for a trip to Khong Phapheng through a friend’s guesthouse. There were 6 of us and we paid 70,000kip each which got us a ferry to the mainland, a minibus to the falls (including the entrance fee) and a guided tour of the falls including a few areas where tourists don’t normally go that had some unique views of the falls. There was also a small market there selling the typical tourist fare. These falls are said to be the biggest falls is SE Asia and the “widest” falls in the world. Being Canadian, from near Niagara Falls, I am skeptical of this, but we did go in the dry season and they were spectacular still. Due to time constraints we weren’t able to see the dolphins, but would have loved to if the time permitted.
One last thing. Travelfish has said that they saw some of the best sunsets ever in the 4000 islands and I couldn’t agree more. We saw many beautiful sunsets on our trip but the best one was definitely seen while lounging on the hammocks on our balcony in Don Dhet.
By dano_b (dabbler)
Written on 11th March, 2010 after a visit to Don Dhet in January, 2010
Also reviewed by dano_b: Battambang, Luang Prabang, Phnom Penh, Siem Reap,
Don Dhet - overcrowded?
I liked being on Don Dhet, although it was the beginning of the high season and many many travellers were there, partying, taking drugs, making friends or just floating in the Mekong on some tubes. It was a very relaxed scene, and you meet people coming from Cambodia or Vietnam or northern Laos. Although there are not so many parts which can be called "beaches" it is fun to stay there and just relax and have a look at the rural life...
By chaos23 (dabbler)
Written on 13th June, 2009 after a visit to Don Dhet in November, 2008
Also reviewed by chaos23: Champasak, Ko Tao, Luang Prabang, Pakse, Vientiane,