When visiting Vientiane in Laos, one thing that should be on your itinerary is spending time along the Mekong River. There are many restaurants on the road that sits along the river as well as Chao Anouvong Park, the main park in Vientiane. There are also a few rooftop restaurants that are only a block or two away from the river that offer great views of the city as well as the river. We had been told before visiting that we should be sure to see a sunset over the Mekong River and we were definitely glad that we did. At night, the area around Chao Anouvong Park that is near the inner city turns into a night market with street food, family activities, and vendors selling locally produced items.

We decided to walk along the river to get a couple of cold drinks at a pub to escape the heat and watch the sun set. As we walked the street to get to the pub, we were distracted trying to find where it was located and we walked into a section of the sidewalk that had fresh concrete. The workers hadn’t blocked of the sidewalk and were gone for the day, so we didn’t realize that it was fresh cement. We quickly hustled off of it, but our footprints were already there, so we joke with ourselves that we have left our mark on Vientiane.

From the restaurant, we walked along the river as the sun set over the Mekong River, which was truly gorgeous. On the other side of the river is Thailand, so many people from Laos and Thailand cross back and forth every day. Afterwards, we continued to the night market as the crowds began to form as people came out to enjoy the cooler temperatures. One of the things that we noticed during our time in Vientiane was that there were a fair amount of expats in the city, which didn’t actually expect. We also enjoyed a sunset from one of the rooftop restaurants, which also provided cooler breezes as the sun slowly went down over the horizon.

There are many interesting things to do in Vientiane, such as visiting Buddha Park, going to the Golden Stupa, seeing Victory Gate, as well as just seeing all of the temples. In addition to those places, it is certainly worth taking some time to unwind along the Mekong River and enjoy a beautiful sunset.