Nong Khai

Sala Kaew Ku, Wat Pho Chai and the Mekong over two Nong Khai days

Two days covers Nong Khai. Cycle to the Sala Kaew Ku sculpture park on the first morning, browse Tha Sadet Market, visit Luang Pho Phra Sai at Wat Pho Chai and watch sunset from Rimkhong Road. On day two, cross the Friendship Bridge to Vientiane or ride the river road east.

Rent a bicycle on the first morning, whether you came in on the sleeper or on a flight from Bangkok to Udon Thani International Airport, and pedal out to Sala Kaew Ku while the air is still cool. Give the sculpture park an unhurried hour: the tallest figures, a multi-headed naga sheltering a seated Buddha among them, are best seen with the low sun behind you. Ride back along the river and lock the bike near Tha Sadet Market, where stalls sell Lao textiles, Chinese housewares and Vietnamese snacks. The cafes around the market are among the few places open for lunch.

Spend the hot hours indoors, then visit Wat Pho Chai in the late afternoon to see Luang Pho Phra Sai, the gold and bronze Buddha that, the story goes, refused every attempt to carry it on to Bangkok. Walk down to Rimkhong Road for sunset over the Lao bank and stay for dinner.

Day two has two good shapes. Cross the bridge for a day in Vientiane (bring your passport and allow time at both border posts), or stay on the Thai side and follow the river road east by bicycle or motorbike, stopping at village temples and riverside shacks. Finish at the food stalls on Prajak Road.

Naem nueang rolls and Mekong fish along Rimkhong Road

Nong Khai's signature dish is naem nueang, grilled pork sausage rolled at the table in rice paper with herbs and green banana, brought by Vietnamese settlers. Isaan staples and Mekong fish fill the menus. Eat by day around Tha Sadet Market and in the evening at the riverside restaurants on Rimkhong Road.

Mornings and lunchtimes centre on Tha Sadet Market and the Thai and European kitchens around it, which open during the day. Once the sun drops, the action moves east along Rimkhong Road, where dozens of restaurants and bars face the river. Locals eat here; it is cheaper than the centre and usually better. Menus in English are increasingly common, though not universal.

Order naem nueang, the town's signature, a plate of grilled pork sausage with rice paper, herbs, green banana and a sweet peanut dip that you roll yourself. Round it out with Isaan staples: som tam pounded to order, larb sharp with lime and roasted rice, grilled chicken and baskets of sticky rice. River fish, often grilled with salt crust or steamed with lime and chilli, turns up on most riverside menus.

For cheap street eating, walk the vendor stretch of Prajak Road after dark. The Chayapone Market between Meechai and Kaeworawut roads and the Wednesday evening market are worth a browse too.

Naga fireballs, Songkran and the best time to visit Nong Khai

November to February is the best time to visit Nong Khai, with highs of 29C to 31C, January nights near 17C and about 8 mm of rain in December. April averages 36C and brings Songkran, August is the wettest month at nearly 350 mm, and the Naga fireballs draw crowds at the end of Buddhist Lent in October.

The cool months are the season for cycling and long riverside dinners, and the Mekong drops to show sandbars.

Heat builds from March, and April averages 36C by day. That is also when Songkran falls, and on 13 April Wat Pho Chai puts Luang Pho Phra Sai on public display so worshippers can pay their respects. Expect water fights on every street.

The rains arrive in May and peak in August at nearly 350 mm, when the river runs high and brown. They ease in October, just in time for the end of Buddhist Lent. On that night thousands gather along the banks hoping to see the Naga fireballs, small pinkish lights that rise silently from the water and vanish within seconds. Phon Phisai, about 40 km east, draws the biggest crowds; book rooms weeks ahead and arrive early to find a spot on the bank.