A village on the Mekong about thirty kilometers downstream of Pakse and, 10 km away, Vat Phou, also spelled Wat Phou: a terraced Khmer temple at the foot of Phou Kao, a World Heritage site since 2001.
Photo by Basile Morin on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Ondřej Žváček on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
Photo by Alexkom000 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
Photo by Christophe95 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Pierre André Leclercq on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Basile Morin on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Supanut Arunoprayote on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
Photo by Ondřej Žváček on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
Photo by Ondřej Žváček on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
Photo by Christophe95 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Alexkom000 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
Photo by Christophe95 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by François Bianco on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0
Photo by GuillaumeG on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo by GuillaumeG on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0
Photo by Pierre André Leclercq on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo by Christophe95 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Champasak is a single street along the Mekong: wooden houses and a few colonial mansions, the former royal family residence, guesthouses by the water. People stay here for Vat Phou, 10 km away: an 11th-century Khmer sanctuary built on an axis running from the mountain down to the river, at the heart of a 39,000 ha cultural landscape inscribed by UNESCO in 2001. Across the water, Don Daeng island offers homestays.
Photo by Basile Morin on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
A path lined with stone posts, two ruined palaces, then a staircase to the 11th-century sanctuary, 100 m above the plain: the complex stretches 1.4 km at the foot of Phou Kao, whose summit was seen as a Shiva linga.
Photo by Supanut Arunoprayote on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 4.0
Near the sanctuary, the sacred spring flows at the foot of the cliff; from up there the view takes in the barays, the plain and the way to the Mekong. A museum, funded by Japan, shows finds from the site.
Photo by Ondřej Žváček on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
A single street along the river, lined with wooden houses and two large colonial mansions, one of them the former residence of Prince Boun Oum. To the south, Vat Muang Kang, whose library is being restored.
Photo by Ondřej Žváček on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.5
A Mekong island opposite the village, about ten minutes by boat: homestays, rice fields and a forest temple, Vat Pa Phonsamek, with ancient origins.
Photo by Christophe95 on Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
Bicycles and motorbikes can be rented in the village. Behind it, a reservoir built in the 1990s created a rice-field wetland that is good for birdwatching.
Boun Vat Phou: three days of festivities at the full moon of the 3rd lunar month, with Makha Bucha: processions, boat races and a candlelit procession around the temple. In 2026 it ran from January 31 to February 2, marking 25 years since the UNESCO inscription.
A hotel with a pool facing the Mekong at the edge of the village, a lodge on Don Daeng island, and an ecolodge deep in the countryside, further south-east.
Photo: The River Resort
Air-conditioned rooms with balconies over the river, a pool, massages and a Lao and Western restaurant; bike rental, 24-hour front desk.
≈ $126 a night
Photo: La Folie Lodge
A lodge set in a garden on the island, with a pool and Mekong views; the boat shuttle to Don Daeng is included.
≈ $226 a night
Photo: Kingfisher Ecolodge
An ecolodge in the countryside, away from the river, for birdwatching, cycling and hiking; restaurant and bar.
≈ $78 a night
Booking affiliate links · average nightly price checked in October 2026
Songthaew or minibus · 1.5 to 2 hours
Morning departures, around 9 am: the songthaew drops you in the village (€9); the minibus, with a boat crossing, arrives at the east terminal (€11 to €13). Champasak is about 40 km away.
Tickets and times on 12Go Affiliate linkBoat · 1.5 to 2 hours
Boats run down the Mekong from the Pakse landing; book through an agency.
Minibus and boat · 3 hours
Departures at 9:30 am and 12:30 pm from the east terminal, to Don Det or Don Khong, €13 to €15.
Tickets and times on 12Go Affiliate linkPakse airport (PKZ) · 45 km
Lao Airlines flies Vientiane to Pakse two or three times a day; from there it is about 45 minutes by road to the village.
Times and prices checked on October 10, 2026 on 12Go, for an October 12 departure: check again before you travel.
November to February brings 29 to 32 °C in the afternoon and 19 °C at night: the best season for the climb to the sanctuary. March and April top 33 °C. The monsoon runs from May to October, peaking in August (436 mm); September is almost as wet.
| Month | J (current month) | F (current month) | M (current month) | A (current month) | M (current month) | J (current month) | J (current month) | A (current month) | S (current month) | O (current month) | N (current month) | D (current month) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Airhigh / low | ||||||||||||
| Rainmm | ||||||||||||
| Daysof rain | 1 | 1 | 5 | 11 | 22 | 26 | 28 | 29 | 28 | 23 | 11 | 3 |
| Mekonglevel | Low | Low | Low | Low | Low | Rising | Rising | High | High | High | Falling | Low |
| Our take | Ideal | Ideal | Fair | Fair | Fair | Fair | Difficult | Difficult | Difficult | Good | Ideal | Ideal |
| Month | Low – high | mm | River |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan (current month) | 5 | Low | |
| Feb (current month) | 5 | Low | |
| Mar (current month) | 22 | Low | |
| Apr (current month) | 59 | Low | |
| May (current month) | 150 | Low | |
| Jun (current month) | 267 | Rising | |
| Jul (current month) | 398 | Rising | |
| Aug (current month) | 436 | High | |
| Sep (current month) | 404 | High | |
| Oct (current month) | 277 | High | |
| Nov (current month) | 79 | Falling | |
| Dec (current month) | 17 | Low |
4 tours to book in Champasak
Affiliate links GetYourGuide · Prices checked October 10, 2026
from$100
Availabilityfrom$100
Availabilityfrom$120
Availabilityfrom$120
AvailabilitySources: climate, Open-Meteo (ERA5 archive, 1991-2020 averages); Vat Phou, UNESCO, the Vat Phou Office and the Champasak tourist office (2026); site management, KPL Lao news agency (September 2026); Vat Phou festival, Tourism Laos and Vientiane Times (2026); village and Don Daeng, Champasak tourist office and Rough Guides; transport, 12Go (checked October 10, 2026); activities, GetYourGuide (checked October 10, 2026). Updated on October 12, 2026 by Pierre-Marie Coupry.
