Laos Short visit to Houai Sai: starting point for cruises on the Mekong Houai Sai, Travel to Laos 5 (4)As part of a cruise on the Mekong, my parents and I stopped in the small Laotian town of Houai Sai (often spelled Huay Xai for English speakers). Located just across from Chiang Khong, a small Thai town that is part of the famous Golden Triangle, Houai Sai is little visited, just like cities like Savannakhet, where most people go mainly to get their visa (including me, but I had visited it and I talk about it here).Houai Sai is above all a crossing point to go to Thailand or leave it from the north of the respective countries. Those who come from Thailand generally take the slow boat directly and pass by this small town. If you ever have a few hours available, here is what you can see there. Summary hide A quick update on crossing the border between Thailand and Laos Houai Sai, a small town typical of Laos Fort Carnot The hill temple of Houai Sai: Wat Chomkao Manilat Houai Sai in summary (with map) A quick update on crossing the border between Thailand and LaosBefore reaching Houai Sai, we had to reach Laos from the city of Chiang Khong. Usually, people take transport from Chiang Rai, 100 km away. You will find local buses going to Chiang Khong for 65 Baht.At this rate, they will be small local buses, stopping often and with limited comfort, expect easily between 2 and 3 hours to make this journey. It is possible that the bus stops at the entrance to the village instead of dropping you off at the crossroads leading to the bridge which serves as a border.This is to force you to pay Tuk Tuk to finish the journey (you have to make your “colleagues” work a bit…).Tuk tuk, tuk tuk?Small parenthesis. This is quite common… At the border further south between Mukdahan and Savannakhet, it happened to me more than once that the bus did not wait for me while I got my visa for Laos, despite the fact that I explicitly paid for a Mukdahan-Savannakhet ticket, and not Mukdahan-border post.Forcing me to either wait 1 hour for the next bus (admittedly, it's not the end of the world...), or to take a tuk tuk... (they then ask for 200 bahts, to do 2 km...)End of the parenthesis. Yes, because now the crossing is done by a bridge. Some would prefer the good old method, where, previously, you had to go to immigration on the banks of the Mekong, you then crossed by boat and arrived directly at Houai Sai.Crossing the bridge is expensive, as it cannot be crossed on foot, you have to take a shuttle, usually packed, for 25 Baht.Plan to exchange dollars beforehand to pay for the $30 Laotian visa. You will lose on the exchange if you pay in Baht (also remember to bring a passport photo, with a white background recommended).If you don't have Kip yet, the Laotian currency, you can change at the border post, otherwise don't worry, you can use your Baht at Houai Sai (afterwards the exchange will not necessarily be in your favor, because the change will be given back to you in Kip to the nearest rounding)The shuttle bus across the bridge will drop you off at the bus terminal 4 km after the border post. It will then be 7 km to reach the center of Houai Sai. Tuk tuks will of course be ready to take you there, it's up to you to use your negotiating skills 😉The advantage if you arrive with several people is that there will be a way to lower the price since the tuk tuk will be profitable on the number. In my case, I think we paid 80 Baht per person (about 20 Kip)Once you've completed this short journey, well, you're there, welcome to Houai Sai!Houai Sai, a small town typical of LaosTypical? Yes, namely I would say, calm, dusty, without being pejorative, this is what characterizes the cities and villages in general in this country which is so much poorer than Thailand. Crossing the border, the contrast is striking. Many like it for that and therefore consider Laos as "more authentic".I will not return to this debate of "authenticity" since it is not the subject here, but simply summarize what can be done in Houai Sai.A “typical” house in Houai Sai.Fort CarnotAfter dropping off our things at our hotel (for your information, the Sabaidee Guesthouse), we were heading towards Fort Carnot.The fort was built by the French in the early 20th century, shortly after Laos became part of Indochina. Situated high on the small hill overlooking Houai Sai and its neighbour in Thailand, it was an ideal observation post.This is a fort that was never an important center, given the lack of military activity in the area. At its peak, there were only a few French officers and about thirty soldiers stationed here (mostly Lao and Vietnamese enlistees). Once Laos gained independence in 1954, Laos initially took over the fort to use the building as housing.Fort Carnot is seemingly the best preserved colonial military building in Laos, with many others having been destroyed. The structure is clearly in ruins despite an attempt at restoration in 2011. Large trees climb up the walls and today there is not much to see, especially since the interior was closed off…It's a little-known place (it's not even indicated on Google Maps!), I had heard about it at the guesthouse, and if it's not an exceptional place, there is always the satisfaction of being alone and the climb is a good way to do a bit of exercise and have a partial view of Thailand (even if in the end, you have the same thing from the temple I talk about later).It remains a possible walk, which allows you to meet its inhabitants. At the turn of a street, we met one of them, speaking impeccable French, yet having never lived in France according to him! He even invited us to have a drink at his table, the Laotian welcome in all its splendor!Getting to Fort CarnotFollow the main street along the river as if you were returning to the bus terminal (so towards the south). You will pass a high school then the post office (marked in French in addition), then you will find a little further on your left a dirt road a little steep to go up there.The post office.Path leading to Fort Carnot.Concretely, the entrance that seems to be the main one (with the leaning tower and a courtyard in front) was closed, but apparently there is another one, on the east side, which is not locked. I could not test it, because having gone around, I did not see anything like that…If you happen to manage to get in, you will come across the old dormitories and cells, you will be able to admire a breathtaking view of the city and the river and if you are daring enough, you will be able to take the rickety stairs of the tower still standing near the precipice.Looking for Houi Sai MarketFollowing the advice of the nice French-speaking gentleman, we tried to reach the Houai Sai market. I like markets in general, because it is a good place to meet people and soak up a purely local atmosphere.Unfortunately, the directions to get there were pretty vague and I had virtually no idea where it was… To make matters worse, the few people I asked either didn't seem to understand what I was looking for or confirmed the direction without giving any further details…And finally, "last but not least", the heat of March did not really encourage us to walk in the blazing sun...It took the writing of this article to visualize concretely where it is located… (see bottom of the article otherwise type Muangkeo Market on Google Maps)It was only 700m from our position… Oh well.The hill temple of Houai Sai: Wat Chomkao ManilatThe other "important" point of visit in Houai Sai is its temple on another small hill. After the return walk along the main road, along the river, we were at the foot of the hill. Access is from the path opposite the one leading to the boats for the cruises.A staircase classically lined with Nagas (the mythological serpent in Buddhism, a sort of god of the seas and rivers, who sheltered the Buddha from the elements during his long meditation session).Monks were sweeping, a typical afternoon temple activity. The temple itself is very colorful, not particularly memorable, but it is the view of the river and Thailand across the street that makes it charming, especially as the setting sun, reddening, completed the picture.A few monks, mostly young, were wandering around the area before heading to the temple at prayer time. A sign indicates Fort Carnot at 900 m, proof that it is not necessarily necessary to go back down from the other hill to reach the temple (afterwards the distance is the same).The atmosphere is peaceful and apart from a small group of tourists and 2/3 curious onlookers, not many people came to disturb this moment of serenity.We took advantage of the last rays of sunshine to go back down, hunger starting to beckon. That evening I ate an excellent crepe for dessert which could, in the same way as the very good chocolate mousse of the hotel in Thakhek, to bring me back.Houai Sai in summary (with map)It is certain that you will not spend days in the area, but I would say that stopping there for a day can be enough to see a bit of Laos outside of the eternal Luang Prabang and other destinations generally popular in Laos.On a map, here is a summary of what you need to remember from this little tour of Houai Sai:Did you like the article? share on Pinterest! Did you like the article? 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