Why this ride
101 km from Thakhèk to the finish, about 1 h 35 of riding. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Thakhek Loop: Thakhek to Nakai Plateau
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 101 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 1 h 35
- Journey
- One way; return travel is separate
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Thakhek
Thakhek is a sleepy Mekong river town in central Laos, and it is the traditional starting point of the Thakhek Loop, one of the great motorcycle routes in Southeast Asia. The town sits on the Lao bank of the river, facing the Thai city of Nakhon Phanom across the water, a ferry ride or a short hop over the Friendship Bridge. Old French colonial shophouses line the riverfront in faded yellows and greys, a reminder of the time when this was an administrative outpost of French Indochina. In the evening the promenade fills with locals jogging, playing takraw and eating grilled fish.
Read the complete Thakhek write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Thakhek is where the day begins. Next is Mahaxay.
2. Mahaxay
Mahaxay is a small town in Khammouane province, in central Laos, about forty kilometres east of Thakhek, and it lies on the edge of one of the great limestone landscapes of South-East Asia. Vertical grey cliffs, covered with green vegetation, rise from flat rice fields and rivers, forming a jagged wall of karst towers. The scenery has a dreamlike quality, particularly in the early morning when mist hangs between the peaks and water buffalo wade in the paddies.
Read the complete Mahaxay write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Mahaxay comes up about 50 km into the recorded legs. Next is Nakai Plateau.
3. Nakai Plateau
The Nakai Plateau is a high, rolling upland in central Laos, at about 500 metres, in the south of Khammouane province, close to the Vietnamese border, and it is dominated by a huge reservoir. The Nam Theun 2 dam, completed in 2010, flooded a large part of the plateau, creating a lake with drowned forests and islands, and sold most of its electricity to Thailand. The villages that once stood here were resettled on higher ground, and the landscape has changed greatly.
Read the complete Nakai Plateau write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 101 km.
Leg by leg
Thakhek to Mahaxay
Thakhek → Mahaxay is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Mahaxay to Nakai Plateau
Mahaxay → Nakai Plateau is 51 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
More motorcycle rides nearby
- Thakhek Loop: Thakhek to Kong Lor Cave · 277 km
- Thakhek Loop · 456 km from Thakhèk · 456 km
- Thakhek Loop · 172 km