Once a small farming town on the banks of Nong Han Lake, the largest lake in northeast Thailand, Sakhon Nakhon has evolved into a hectic industrial city laced with a maze of crooked sois and the occasional city-planned, wide-avenued roadway. Visitors come to Sakhon Nakhon mainly to revere the attractive Phra That Choeng Chum, an elaborate stupa built to cover the Lord Buddha’s sacred footprints left on the land beneath. In late October, at the end of the Buddhist rains retreat, the city also plays host to the annual Wan Phra Jao Phanom, which invigorates the city with a flurry of wat offerings and boat races. Take a quiet stroll around the lakeside park, chill out in Phu Phaan National Park, or visit the Khmer sanctuary of Phra Thad Phu Phek. No matter what you choose, you will not get bored in Sakhon Nakhon.
The Sakhon Nakhon Airport (☎042 713 919) is 6km northwest of town. PB Air flies to Suwannabhum airport in Bangkok (70min.; M,W, F, Su 8:40pm; Tu, 7:40am; Th 7:40am, 8:40pm; Sa 7:40am, 5:20pm; 3115฿). There is no public transport to the airport, and taxis can cost up to 200฿. Buses to Bangkok (11hr; nightly 6:30, 7, 7:30pm; 531-620฿) from a small office (☎042 711 737) 50m to the right of the bus station. Sakhon Nakhon’s bus station (☎042 712 860) is at the southern end of Ratpatana Rd. From the post office, take a left onto Ratpatana Rd.; the terminal is about 1km down, on the left. Buses to: Maha Sarakham (4hr; 10 per day 8am-9:30am and 5pm-7pm, 150-170฿); Kalasin (3hr.; 5 per day 7:30am-2pm, 59-89฿); Khon Kaen (4hr., 6 per day 8am-5:30pm, 176฿); Nakhon Phanom (2hr; approx. every hr. 7:30am-7:15pm, 70฿); Udon Thani (3hr., 14 per day 5:45am-5:20pm, 115฿); Ubon Ratchathani (5hr., 8 per day 6:30am-5:30pm, 134-241฿). Tuk-tuks are hard to find, but samlor (30-50฿) are everywhere.
Sakhon Nakhon is 647km from Bangkok and 93km from the Mekong River. Most buses traveling from the northeastern edge of Thailand will pass through on their way to Bangkok in the south or Udon Thani in the west. The streets are fiendishly complicated, with twisted, connecting sois that add character and confusion. The western border of town is marked by Ratpatana Road, and the bus station is at its southern end. To the north, Charoenmuang Road runs east-west and is lined with hotels. The post office is at its western end. Sukkasem Road connects these two roads, forms the eastern boundary, and makes a truncated trapezoid within which most of the city clusters. A useful city map is availabe from reception at Dusit Hotel.
Services include: Phu Sakon Travels, 332/3 Sukkasem Rd. (☎042 712 259), between Kamjadphadi and Charoenmuang Rd., which can book PB Air, Air Asia, Thai Air, and Nok Air flights; Bangkok Bank, 1324/20 Sookkasem Rd., at the intersection with Primprida Rd., with a currency exchange and 24hr. ATM (☎042 711 501; open M-F 8:30am-3:30pm); laundry machines in a random shed on the corner of Thanon Charoenmuang and Thanon Prempreeda about 50m north of L.P. Mansion (40฿); the Sakhon Nakhon Police Station, 75 Jaiphasook Rd. (☎042 716 506), two blocks north of the traffic circle; Sakhon Nakhon Hospital (☎042 716 565), on Charoenmuang Rd., east of the traffic circle; the Yathongchai Drugstore (pharmacy), 1891/2 Sookkasem Rd., near the night market (☎042 732 678; open daily 8am-9pm); Internet access, at Com., 1608/3 Primprida Rd. (☎042 736 204), just south of Kamjadphadi Rd., toward the bus station (20฿ per hr.; fax available; open noon-10pm); and the post office, 224 Charoenmuang Rd., at Ratpatana Rd. (☎042 711 049. Poste Restante. Open M-F 8:30am-4:30pm, Sa-Su 9am-noon.) Postal Code: 47000.
Quiet Sakhon Nakhon has a plethora of comfortable and affordable places to get some shut-eye.
Between trips to the wats around town, sample Sakhon Nakhon’s fabulous cuisine.
Wat Phra That Choeng Chum (“place of gathered footprints”) is one of the most sacred shrines in all of Issan. Located on Reuang Sawat Rd., at the intersection with Charoenmuang Rd., it houses a 24m, gold-and-white, Lao-style square chedi shaped like a lotus bud. According to the legend of Urangkathat, the four incarnations of Buddha have all traveled here to place their footprints in the soil. The chedi houses their impressions. To the left of a chedi is a small wat decoated with ornate wooden carvings and thousands of small pieces of colored glass. The annual wax castle procession, featuring a collection of miniature beeswax Buddhist temples and shrines, celebrates the end of Buddhist Lent (usually in mid-Oct.) and takes place at the wat. Behind the wat on the shores of Nong Han Lake is the Somdej Phra Srinakarin’s garden, created in honor of the king’s mother. Accordingly, it is kept in beautiful condition and its interconnectiong ponds and walkways make for a fantastic stroll at sunset. Steer clear of the water, though: the lake is infested with liver flukes, freshwater parasites that infect fish and treat human skin as if it were an amusement park. Don’t swim in the lake, and don’t eat undercooked fish, especially in Sakhon Nakhon. Several open-air bars line Tor Patana Rd., off Ratpatana Rd. A local favorite is Suan Rak. (Small Singha 60฿. Open nightly 4pm-midnight.) Next door, Golden Pond offers live rock and pop bands nightly at 9pm.
Phu Phaan National Park. A hideout for communist guerilla forces in the 1970s, the 645 sq. km of low-lying mountains and forests are now home to deer and monkeys, as well as the occasional black bear and elephant. Its few short hiking trails can be a welcome respite from dusty Isaan towns. (30฿ camping fee, 50฿ tent rental. Dorms 100฿, bungalows 500-600฿.) The park headquarters is located 25km from Sakhon Nakhon, on Rte. 213 to Kalasin. Most of the small waterfalls and viewpoints are only 3km off the road.
The incomplete Khmer sanctuary of Phra Thad Phu Phek, located on a hill 544m high, is in the opposite direction as the park, and offers a spectacular view and some decent ruins. It is best visited by private car or by hiring a motorcycle taxi (700฿ to take you there, wait, and then drive you back) from Sakhon Nakhon. Alternatively, if you are in a group and planning to visit both Phu Phaan an Phra Thad Phu Phek, you might consider hiring a private truck and driver from the bus station (☎087 949 0040, 1200฿ for a day, 600฿ for ½ day). Finally, although Let’s Go does not reccommend it, hitchiking may be an effective strategy. ( To get to the park from Sakhon Nakhon, take a Kalasin bound bus for 15km (20min., 20฿) or a songthaew from behind the bus station (when full 8am-3pm, 20฿) and ask to be let off at the park. To return, walk out to the road, and gesticulate furiously at every bus on its way to Udon via Sakhon Nakhon. Alternatively, hire a motorcyce taxi to drive you there, wait until you’re done, and drive you back (500฿). ☎042 703 044. Open daily 8:30am-4:30pm.)
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For 52 years, we have published the world’s favorite budget travel guides, written entirely by students and updated every year. With pen and notebook in hand and a few changes of underwear stuffed in our backpacks, we spend months roaming the globe in search of travel bargains.
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