Chiang Khan
เชียงคาน
Wooden shophouses and a slow evening walk along the Mekong, facing Laos.
- Best time
- Nov–Feb (cool season)
- From Loei town
- About 1 hour by songthaew or bus (50 km)
- How long
- 1–2 nights
- Getting around
- On foot in town; bicycle, tuk-tuk or motorbike for Phu Thok and Kaeng Khut Khu
Updated September 2026
Plan your trip
Top sights & experiences
Things to do in Chiang Khan
Chang Puak Camp Chiang Khan
ปางช้างเผือกเชียงคาน
Chiang Khan Skywalk
สกายวอร์ก เชียงคาน
Chiang Khan Walking Street (Thanon Chai Khong)
ถนนคนเดินเชียงคาน (ถนนชายโขง)
Kaeng Khut Khu
แก่งคุดคู้
Phra Phutthabat Phu Khwai Ngoen
วัดพระพุทธบาทภูควายเงิน
Phu Thok (Chiang Khan)
ภูทอก (เชียงคาน)
Tai Dam Cultural Village
หมู่บ้านวัฒนธรรมไทดำ
Tai Dam House of Museum
บ้านพิพิธภัณฑ์ไทดำ นาป่าหนาด
Wat Sri Khun Muang
วัดศรีคุณเมือง
Wat Tha Khaek, The Ancient Temple
วัดท่าแขก วัดโบราณ
Things to do on the map
Tap a pin for details. 10 places in Chiang Khan plotted.
Where to stay in Chiang Khan
When to go
Nov–Feb Cool, dry and the season for the Phu Thok sea of mist. Nights get cold, so pack a jacket. Thai visitors fill the town on long weekends and over New Year, so book ahead for those dates.
Mar–May Hot, with burning-season haze in March that softens the river views. Quieter and easier to find a room.
Jun–Oct Green season with afternoon rain. The Mekong runs high and brown, and the morning mist at Phu Thok is less reliable.
About Chiang Khan
Last updated September 2026
Chiang Khan is a small town on the Mekong in Loei province, with Laos on the far bank. Its old centre is two long streets of wooden shophouses running parallel to the river, and most of what people come for happens on foot between them.
Things to Do
Every evening Chai Kong Road becomes the Chiang Khan Walking Street, lined with food stalls, cafes and small shops in the teak houses. At dawn the same road fills again for the monks’ alms round, when residents and visitors kneel to offer sticky rice.
Phu Thok, a hill a short drive from town, is the sunrise spot: in the cool season the Mekong valley fills with mist below it. Downstream, Kaeng Khut Khu is a stretch of rapids about 5.5 km from the centre, reachable by bicycle or songthaew. In town, Wat Sri Khun Muang shows the Lao-influenced temple style of the river towns.
Further out, the Chiang Khan Skywalk looks over the Mekong from a glass walkway, and the Tai Dam Cultural Village at Ban Na Pa Nat keeps the weaving and house styles of the Tai Dam community.
Where to Stay
Most stays are small guesthouses and boutique hotels in converted wooden houses along the river, so a room on Chai Kong Road puts you on the walking street and the alms round. Weekends and Thai holidays fill quickly.
Getting There
Chiang Khan is about 50 km north of Loei town, roughly an hour by songthaew or bus from Loei’s bus station. Loei has a small airport; Udon Thani has more flights and is about 3.5 hours away by road. Chiang Khan is a stop on our 7-day Isan road trip.