Laos Travel 2023- The 4000 Islands: Don Det and Don Khon.

In the very south end of Loas the mighty Mekong river divides up into many channels between those lie the 4000 islands. Many are very small and uninhabited.

Don Det and Don Khon are both backpacker tourist spots. Still a little off the beaten path. Very rural and in our opinion worth the trip. Tourism is important here but you also get a glimpse of rural life in Laos. We were there in December 2023 which is dry season.

Getting there

We travelled there from Paske in Laos. We got to Paske by taking an overnight train from Bangkok to Ubon Ratcharrani and then taking a bus from there to Pakse. There are two buses a day from Ubon Ratcharrani to Pakse one at 9:00 am and one at 3:00pm. The timing means you will need to spend at least one night in Pakse.

There are three companies that provide mini van service from Pakse to the 4000 Islands they all leave between 8:30 am and 9:30 am. The rate varies between 190,000 KIP and 150,000 KIP depending on where you buy your ticket. You can buy them from all the travel agents and hostels in Pakse. Check to make sure your ticket includes the ferry to the Islands which costs 20,000 KIP.

The vans all take you to Nakasong. They park up the street and you have to walk down to the ferry boat station about 100m away. On the way you pass an ATM. There are no ATMs on the islands so you may want to stop here. It is a BCEL ATM. These are very popular with the tourists from Europe because they have a 2,500,000 KIP limit and the service charge is only 20,000 KIP.

We have not been able to get these machines to work with our Canadian bank cards. We have been able to use JDB. There are places on Don Det that will change US dollars and Euros.

You can also get to Don Det from Cambodia.

At the boat pier there is an office where you have to exchange your trip ticket for a boat ticket before you go down to the boats. On the dock they sort you into Don Det and Don Khon and put you and your luggage on a long tail for the short trip to the islands.

We stayed on Don Det which has more places to stay and restaurants. Don Khon is connected by a bridge and a little quieter.

The hub of Don Det is the area around the pier but there are places to stay all along the edge of the island. We stayed on the sunset side. The sunsets were stunningly beautiful.

We had booked a hut at Ois Place but the owner’s mother passed away and they asked us to cancel our booking. It looked nice from the outside. We ended up a bit further down in a very basic hut (fan and a single light bulb) with two hammocks on the front porch for about $10 a night. There was a restaurant/ bar area overlooking the Mekong which we were also free to use.

Life on Don Det and Don Kong is very laid back. At most restaurants a simple meal took an hour. When you sit down they give you the wifi password and take your order. No one is in a hurry. Hanging out is the norm. Many restaurants have “Happy Shakes, Happy Pizzas and other Happy items”. Although cannabis is illegal in Laos. Happy foods may have that or other ingredients. We did not try any happy food.

What to do in the 4000 Islands

For many people not doing much of anything is how they spend their time and that is perfectly acceptable. We are a little more active.

Rent a bike and explore

There are bicycles for rent all over the place. The price is generally between 1500 and 2000 KIP a day. The bikes are very basic, no gears, but you get a basket on the front. No locks because you don’t really need one.You can also rent a motorbike but you don’t need one.

Cycling hazards in Don Det

There is one paved road which is more sidewalk sized on the sunrise side of Don Det. The road on the sunset side of the island is not paved but it is rideable. Don Khon has a paved road around the whole island. The French built a railway line across the islands in the late 1800’s to get supplies past the waterfalls and rapids. The railroad operated until the 1940’s. The paved road through Don Det and Don Khun is the original rail line.

Cycling around the Island

We rode around Don Det. It’s scenic and interesting to ride through the many small farms. We also crossed the bridge to Don Khon (which is a popular spot to watch the sunset) and rode around Don Khon.

Don Khon

We stopped at Tat Somphamit Waterfall which has a 20,000 KIP admission charge. The waterfall is impressive but they appear to be rebuilding all the facilities and right now you can’t get a very good view of the falls.

There is a suspension bridge which looked built but it was not open yet. The views will be great when it opens. They are also building a zipline which will also be spectacular once it’s open. If you keep following the signs you eventually find a beach, but you can not swim there. Overall, it’s currently a bit of a disappointment, but we did see some kids and water buffalo playing in the water on the way in which was worth the 20,000 KIP

Khongyai Beach is just down the road. There were people in the water there. It was full of long boats belonging to local fishermen. The tourists were in the water by the boats. Swimming in the Mekong is challenging for two reasons: The water is pretty fast moving in most places and it’s one of the most polluted rivers in the world. Many of the locals do bath in it but if you are looking for a beach vacation this is not the right place. There is a small restaurant at Khongyai Beach. We walked the bikes down the the final 300 metres because the road was very rough.

Khone Pa Soy Waterfall on the other side of the island is much smaller. It’s free but the restaurant is abandoned and the suspension bridge is really sketchy. We did not cross it but the locals do. Its just off the main road so it’s still worth the detour.

The Old French Port at the southern end of the Island was once the hopping off point for seeing Irrawaddy dolphins, but the last one in Laos died in 2022. There is a small population left in Cambodia (89 in 2020). You can see Cambodia from the old french port it’s right across the river. We stopped there for a fruit shake in a restaurant overlooking Cambodia. There is a small display with an engine and an explanation about the railway in English. There were four small boys playing in it. They were trying to hook a bicycle to a wheelbarrow full of kids. It did not work.

There is also a set of steps to a lookout but it’s been taken over by the jungle so all you see is trees. There is a second display with an old train engine by the bridge to Don Det.

Overall riding around Don Khon is a pleasant and interesting way to spend a day. It’s basically flat and we rode about 20 km.

Take a Kayak Tour

There are two kayak tour companies on the Island Mr Lek which is associated with Mr Moo’s guesthouse and Green Paradise. We went with Mr Lek and we would 100% recommend him. Everything we read said $26 US we only paid $20 but it was easily worth $26. The price difference may have been luck or it may have been due to the devaluation of the KIP against the US dollar. It lost 43% of it’s value in 2023. The posters for all of the tours are generally incorrect. Pre-COVID the dolphins were a big part of the tours. Laos was completely shut down for three years and the country is still recovering. They have not been able to update the signs.

The tour started with breakfast at Mr Moos. We had omelettes which were good, but we should have ordered the pancakes, they were banana chocolate and they looked amazing.

We then Kayaked down to an unknown island which I believe was Don Som. The water is pretty fast moving but the kayaking was easy. When we landed Mr Lek paid a fee (part of which appeared to be cigarettes) to a couple of local guys who loaded the kayaks onto traditional tractor wagons and took them across the island.

We walked for about 30 or 40 minutes through rice patties and farms to a waterfall which Mr Lek pointed out is not on google maps.

The water was moving fast and I would not have gone in but Mr Lek convinced everyone to go in. It was great once you did. He climbed up the waterfall and caught a fish in his hands.

We then rode across the island in the carts used for the kayaks. It was fun, I am glad we did it, but it was not comfortable!

We had a shore lunch of grilled chicken and vegetables and a brief swim. We watched locals floating wood harvested from the jungle downstream and loading it onto the carts.

We then kayaked over some class 2-3 rapids one boat went over but the rest of us stayed up.

On shore again we piled us and the kayakas into a local large tuk-tuk/open bus and drove to Khone Phapeng Waterfall the biggest by volume in South East Asia. It’s huge and you get some good views. The facilities are very modern a real contrast to everything on the Islands.