For many travelers, Savannakhet is simply a stopover on the way to Thailand or their route through Laos, just a convenient place to cross into the neighboring country. However, on our second trip to the country, this time by motorcycle, we stopped at this border destination and found a place to spend several days reminiscing about its colonial past, visiting temples, and exploring its natural spaces.
Furthermore, the fact that it is one of the many cities that flows along the Mekong makes it special, a river with so much history that flows through six countries until it reaches the South China Sea in Vietnam.
Savannakhet is worth a stroll through its historic center, where you will come across many buildings from the French colonial era, street-level shops that preserve the architecture of those years and even a church, that of Santa Teresa, built in 1920.
It was an important city for colonial trade, something you will also recognize in its buildings, although their state of preservation could be better. Some of the most emblematic buildings are the Provincial Hospital or the central Talat Yen Square.
Among others, you can visit the Buddhist temple Vat Sayaphum. Unlike some other buildings, the state of preservation of its wooden windows and carvings is good. Traditional ceremonies of the Buddhist calendar are still celebrated here.
You will also find a Chinese temple on the streets of Savannakhet.
In addition to this temple, you will find the That Ing Hang. Although it is no longer in the city center, but 12 kilometers away, it is a revered place whose 16th-century tower attracts Buddhists from within and outside the borders of Laos. The tower is a genuine reliquary that is supposed to guard the bones of Buddha.
About 40 kilometers away you will find the That Phone Stupa, a stupa-reliquary built between 557 and 700 AD, which you will reach by crossing rice fields. A Buddhist spiritual center which, together with Buddhist temples, becomes a place of pilgrimage at various times of the year.
Finally, the “stone house” or Heuan Hinh, about 65 kilometers away, is another place to visit to learn about local history. It is the ruins of a rest house that is about 1,000 years old, which places it during the reign of Jayavarman VIII.
Two places are especially important for trekking and observing the local fauna. One is the Dong Natad forest. In its surroundings you will find a sacred lake and a couple of traditional villages. You can book guided tours and even sleep in one of these villages.
The second area is Dong Phu Vieng, another protected natural area with bamboo forests and rocky plains. You will find good multi-day routes.
Although it may seem strange to notice the dinosaurs in a place like Savannakhet, you will not be able to help but do so as they are advertised everywhere and posters promoting the dinosaur museum are all over the city, there is even a roundabout dedicated to these animals.
Beginning in the 1930s, numerous fossils and bone remains were found that are now on display in this museum.
