Of an evening, head for the riverside where you’ll find a good selection of bamboo huts offering ample opportunity to imbibe a few cold ones among friends. Away from the river there are popular venues such as Kop Chai Deu (translates as ‘Thank you very much’) where food is available and Beer Lao comes on tap; the atmosphere here is famously relaxed and friendly and attracts both backpackers and expats. The Jazzy Brick close to Kop Chai Deu is also popular while the Chicago Bar, just a block away from the river also pulls plenty of punters of an evening.
The city has two nightclubs, neither of which are especially ‘happening’ venues and are probably best appreciated after several bottles of Beer Lao or glasses of Lao Lao; as in a state of pure sobriety, they may seem a little staid. DTech, in the grounds of the Novotel hotel plays mainly techno while the somewhat inappropriately named Future (just outside the Novotel grounds) plays music from the 80’s and 90’s. A bowling alley is also on hand in the city centre.
