With a long weekend to spare it was time to finally visit Don Det in the 4000 islands in Laos.

First the travel, this time using Asia Van Transfer (AVT) from Siem Reap all the way to Don Det ($42). They also arrange travel to Pakse if you are going that far.

The van was fine, nothing special either way, but with only 5 passengers it was great that we could all spread out, at least as far as Steung Treng. From there the van meets up with vans from other locations so it was packed for the onward journey to the border of Laos (about 1hr further).

AVT have an agreement with Green Paradise Tours in Laos, who take you once you cross the border. Crossing is done by yourself ($40 visa, $2 fee, one passport photo), but is fairly easy. Ladies sell sim cards on the Laos side which are about $3 for enough data to last 2 weeks depending on your usage of course.

From the border it was about 30mins to the boat that takes you to the islands. Standard asian long boat for another 15 minute trip. The AVT ticket includes this crossing. There are also boats designed to take motorbikes across if you are game enough!

Don Det itself is a strange place, not quite sure what to make of it. The tourists are very much backpackers, and the man bun hippy ones in particular here to smoke dope. If thats your thing this island is for you!

Touring the island and the connected island of Don Khon is very easy. They have paved the roads everywhere. A moto for the day is about $8 and you can visit everywhere in one day.

There are a few places that pass as beaches on the Mekong where you can swim. The water was a lovely temperature (March), just watch the currents if near the waterfalls.

At the south of Don Khon there is an old French port town/village where you can see Cambodia, and boats from there land on the island. It is probably not legal to cross but as with such things a few dollars go a long way!

Overall it is worth visiting the 4000 islands for a chill couple of days but I thought they are over rated. Generally it is quiet and relaxing but there are certainly nicer places in Laos, so don’t lose sleep if you miss this stop on a longer journey.