Chiang Khan Walking Street

Chiang Khan is a quaint little town that sits along the banks of the Mekong River in Loei province in Northeast Thailand.  Loei province is the crossroad between Northeast Thailand and Northern Thailand. You can check out other thing to do around Loei province.

Chiang Khan is full of local Thai tourists.  Their main stop is the Chiang Khan Walking Street.

Our family has visited this walking street a number of times over the last couple of years.  There is fun to be had by all ages!

Location of Chiang Khan Walking Street

The Chiang Khan Walking Street is in the old part of Chiang Khan town and parallels the Mekong River.

The street is called Chai Kong and it starts as a small alleyway off of the main throughway down from the north.  It then turns into a wider road, but it is still just large enough for two vehicles to pass each other.  

The beginning of the street is more residential and the farther down you go, the more accommodations and shops you will find.  You will notice the wooden buildings with clapboard shutters, something the walking street is famous for.

The wooden houses line both sides of the street, and the bottom floors open up into restaurants and shops.

The walking street runs through the entire old town and ends at Wat Tha Kok at the far end of the old town.  Although the bike path along the river continues for much, much farther.

Along the Mekong

The road has a parallel boardwalk which runs along the other side of the wooden houses next to the Mekong river.  This looks more like a bike path than a road.  No vehicles can enter this road.

Daytime

Despite its narrow lane, the walking street does allow vehicles during the morning and afternoon hours.  There are people accessing accommodations and delivery trucks, along with many motorcycles.  However, the walking street is still good for biking and walking as it is not generally too congested.

The hotels along the street all have bikes for rent.  We struggled to find enough kids bikes for our family, so keep that in mind if you require small bikes.

Restaurants along the walking street sell usual Loei dishes, including the popular breakfast pan egg dish, Kai grata in Thai.  This is a class dish found in these parts of Thailand.

You also have your choice of cafes along the street.  It is lovely to sit and sip your coffee or eat your meal while looking out at the beautiful rushing river.

Night Market

Around 4:30 pm every evening, the road becomes a pedestrian-only street. Motorcycles will still come through if they want to.

The night market stalls begin around the area of Wat Si Khun Mueang.  This is said to be the oldest temple in Chiang Khan.  It is also where many people park to access the walking street if you need a parking space.  There are also toilets there that you can pay to use.

Stalls are set up on both sides of the street.  These stalls are not in any specific order, so the best way to enjoy the night market is to explore!

You will find that the majority of stalls are food, drink, or snack stalls, though there are artisan and souvenir stalls intermixed.

Our family finds the food on sticks to be the most fun to look at and taste.  We find that the items on sticks are more extensive and unique than other markets around Thailand.

Here is our list we put together of what we saw on sticks:

Crickets

Silkworms

Spiral potatoes

Moo ping

Crab

Shrimp

Intestines

Quail eggs

Hot dogs

Clams

Regular eggs

Fish balls

Fried sticky rice

Fried bananas

Can you add anymore to the list that we missed during your visit to the Chiang Khan Walking Street?

As the walking street can get very crowded during dinner time, we recommend taking your food one street over to the river boardwalk.  You can sit on benches or the steps by the river.  The sunset is beautiful over the river with the wooden clapboard buildings in front.

Surrounding Area of Chiang Khan Walking Street

The walking street may be the main attraction in the town of Chiang Khan, but there are several other places we recommend visiting during your time in Chiang Khan with your family.

Wat Pra Putthabat Phu Kwai Ngoen – Bunny Temple

Wat Pra Putthabat Phu Kwai Ngoen is a temple 15 minutes away from the walking street.  This temple is up on a hill with a view overlooking the surrounding hills.

Commonly referred to as ‘The Bunny Temple’, this temple is special because of its resident animals.  In the temple complex, there is a large area designated to bunnies.  And there are SO many bunnies!  My kids had a blast finding all sizes and types.

Some have escaped the area and can be seen all around the forested hilltop!  Beware when driving up the hilltop!

Along with the bunnies, there is a large group of guinea pigs.  They can get almost as big as the adult bunnies.  They live harmoniously in the enclosure.

Lastly, you may find a domesticated boar or two.  These were laying in the enclosure under a shelter with the rodents running all around them.  They seemed to enjoy their environment.

Kids can buy food to feed the animals right outside the enclosure.  However, since you can just walk in without buying feed, our kids enjoyed all the extra vegetables and plants that had been dropped by other kids before and using that to feed the animals.

Chiang Khan Skywalk

Farther outside of town, you will find the Chiang Khan Skywalk.  This attraction allows you to view the Mekong river from a bird’s eye view! It’s located 25 minutes away from the walking street at the point where the Hueang River converges with the Mekong River.

The skywalk is found up on a hilltop that overlooks the confluence.  You are able to walk out on the glass and feel like you are walking in the sky.  It is a beautiful view of the rivers, the rainforest, and getting to look into the country of Laos on the other side of the river.

We recommend a trip to the Chiang Khan Skywalk during one of your afternoons in Chiang Khan before the night market opens.  The experience will only take a few hours of an afternoon.

Hours

9 AM- 5 PM

Cost

Adult 60 baht

Child 30 baht

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