Mukdahan province
Mukdahan province was formed from a slice of Nakhon Pathom Province in 1980 and is best known for its pleasant riverfront scenery, as the birthplace of Field Marshall Sarit Thanarat and for larb plaa -- fish larb.
The same-named provincial capital, Mukdahan, is situated on the widest part of the Mekong River in Thailand and also opposite the Lao town of Savannakhet. To the north of town a bridge over the Mekong, the second between Thailand and Laos, was opened to traffic in January 2007.
While most travellers choose to enter Laos via a different port -- either Nong Khai or Chiang Khong to the north or Chong Mek to the south, a steady trickle nevertheless cross at Mukdahan. One advantage of crossing here is if you're heading straight to Vietnam, it's straightforward to get a bus from Savannakhet on to Lao Bao and over the border into Vietnam.
Outside of the capital, the primary attractions are the province's national parks. Although not up to the standard of the better-known (and far better-touristed) parks elsewhere in Thailand, Mukdahan nevertheless has a couple of small parks in Mukdahan National Park and Phu Sa Dok Bua National Park that the dedicated nature-lover may find of interest.
