Where am I again?
Region: Southern Laos> Province: Champasak> Location: Don Dhet

Getting There and Away

Bus

Most people get here from Pakse -- it's easy enough to book a ticket at Nazim or Jasmin Restaurants or Lanexang Travel on Road 13. Minivans leave daily at 08:30 for 75,000 kip. They reach Nakasang at 11:30 where you can catch the ferry to Don Dhet -- the ferry costs 15,000 kip if you do it on your own, but it's included in the price of the ticket.

If you head out to Pakse's Southern Bus Station at the 8-kilometre market on your own, you're looking for buses to Nakasang, which usually drop off at a boat landing about 3km south of Nakasang town. Departures as 08:00, 09:00,10:00, 12:00, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00, and the price is 30,000 kip. Songthaews leave when full. The ferry to the southern boat landing on Don Dhet should cost about 15,000 kip per person, as long as there are three or more passengers.

Leaving Don Dhet, you can buy a boat/minivan ticket through Natural Travel or Langexang Travel. There are departures at 08:00 and 11:30 -- the van drops off in Pakse town and costs 75,000 kip. Or you can do it on your own, leaving from the northern boat landing and crossing to Nakasang town -- 10,000 kip -- songthaews leave hourly between 06:00 and 10:00. The 10:00 always leaves late and always leaves jam-packed, so try to catch the earlier ones for more comfort -- costs 30,000 kip, drops off the Southern Bus Terminal in Pakse. There are no more departures after the 10:00.

Bus tickets going north can be arranged in Don Dhet: Champasak: 45,000 kip, Vangtao (for the Thai border): US$7, Savannakhet: US$14, Vientiane: US$18. For conveniences' sake, you can also book a ticket to Dong Ha in Vietnam for US$17, or Bangkok for US$40, but you'll be changing buses in Pakse and you could do it on your own for the same price.

If you want to do Ubon Ratchathani to Bangkok by overnight train rather than bus, be sure to book at least two days in advance to assure availability, and expect to pay more depending on what class of sleeper you choose to book.

International bus tickets to cities in Cambodia are widely available everywhere. Prices vary slightly, but are generally: Stung Treng: US$13, Kratie: US$20, Kompong Cham US$23, Phnom Penh US$26 and Siem Reap US$30. They all depart at 08:00 from Nakasang and the price of the ticket includes the boat across the water.

Boat

Don Dhet can be reached two main ways -- by boat from Don Khong, or by boat from Nakasang. Don Dhet is connected to Don Khon by the silly French bridge.

To/From Don Khong
The trip from Don Khong takes around 1.5 hours depending on the time of the year and quality of the boat. From Don Khong to Don Dhet costs US$12 for 1 to 4 people or US$3 per person for 5+.

To/From Nakasang
The trip takes about 15 minutes and costs 15,000 kip.

Getting Around

Don Dhet has nothing but dirt paths and dirt roads -- much to its credit. You could bring a motorbike over, but it really goes against the spirit of the place to do so. It's easy enough to walk around, and bicycle rentals are a popular and cheap option: 10,000 kip for a pokey bike with a low-slung cross-bar and a basket up front, 15,000 if you want to go mountain-bike style -- recommended if you're headed down the railroad track road in Don Khon, which is kind of rough.