Muang Pak-Lay Travel Guide

There are several restaurants scattered around the town - if you can't without some 'western oriented' dishes you may try those near or attached to guesthouses although your choice will be more or less very limited (remember the remoteness and difficulty to supply goods). Most of other will serve Lao and ofthen Thai and sometimes Vietnamese dishes but usually they will not have English menues. Best local restaurants are to be found near the market and football ground. In the midday, however, these won't be full of visitors but will have livelier atmosphere in the evenings (or in the mornings). Restaurants upon the Mekong are nice and have views, larger menues and cold beer but are bit more expensive and obviously for foreigners with some western foods on the menu - but you might find thier atmosphere a bit dull.

Favorite Dish: Try local noodle soups and afford yourself a cup of Lao coffee with milk and ice. It's both cheap and delicious.

Since Pak Lay is small town and doesn't yet have many vistiors there aren't many places to hang out untill very late. Streets get dark after sunset since they don't use public light and most smaller restaurants will be closed in afternoon. However, you can dine or drink beer with friends by some restaurants or guesthouses with terrace over Mekong - these are probably the best place to spend an evening outside. Another place to look for some atmosphere (though... with just a few people usually listening music or watching TV) would be West of Market where you'll find a few smaller restaurants that remain open until quite late and are favoured with Lao working in the district. In general streets after dark get very quiet and uninhabited.

Pak Lay main shopping place is the market. Probably you won't really do a lot of shopping there unless you need to buy foods and things for household. There aren't handicrafts and souvenir shops in Pak Lay so far, but you can buy some silver, gold, coins at good prices there. If you know how to use, there are some villagers who sell traditional medicine.

What to buy: coins, foods, herbal traditional medicine

What to pay: some bargain is always possible.

If you desire to walk around the town after the sunset it's good to have torch with you. There are no public lights yet and roads aren't paved - watch your step or help yourself with your own source of light.

Pak Lay doesn't see much tourists due remoteness... However, you'll meet some in town probably. You won't need to go far to be alone with Lao, take any road and any direction, you'd see scarcer villages and more forests, birds, clean rivers.
You can take a pick up by the market and it will take you towards Thai border. Go on toward Thongmyxay district, you'll see elephants, rice fields, forests and huge deforested areas. Go towards Sayabouly capital, you'll see some nice villages again. No accomodation alomost, no tour guides, almost nobody speaks English but there are very friendly locals. No paved road.... is that enough to take you off the beaten path?