Nam Pan Lake – Sang Khom’s Pride and Joy
Nam Pan Lake, one of Udon Thani’s best attractions is in Sang Khom District. It’s only recently that the town of Sang Khom has had a makeover. For years and beyond, Sang Khom was very much a one-horse town. Certainly from a foreigner/tourist point of view. It still is, but over the past two years, the rural municipality has seen some form of modernisation. First, a Tesco Lotus Express appeared and recently 7 -Eleven opened a convenience store. Progress indeed, and both are doing good business.
Nam Pan Lake Sang Khom District
Nam Pan Lake is five kilometres from Sang Khom town and is a delightful day out, weather permitting. No fun on a wet day. The concept behind Nam Pan Lake is simple. Bring or buy some food, load up your raft and get towed out to the lake.
Entrance to Nam Pan Lake is free, and there’s plenty of car park space. There’s more than an ample supply of food vendors as well and plenty of them with stalls near the lake’s edge. Prices are inexpensive (to westerners) although they may stretch some local budgets. Not too many, I’d hope. Raft hire is 150 baht per hour with three life jackets onboard – 10 baht each for extra ones.
The food is typical Thai fare. Best bring your own if you prefer Western. Drinks are Thai priced, but weak stomachs may need a life jacket to eat the som tum—fiery stuff.
Calm waters. Ideal swimming conditions. There were lots of people in the water during my ‘take on the lake’. All appeared to have life jackets on – not sure if that’s a rule but good if it is.
Nam Pan Lake – Summary
Nam Pan Lake rates as one of the best attractions in Udon Thani. It is a bit far from the city – about 65 kilometres but worth the effort to get there. Ideal for a family or group outing and kids are guaranteed to sport a smile throughout as well as foster a few thousand more Facebook photo pixels.
Nam Pan Lake – Map
Click to enlarge
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Hi there! Great blog,
is it worth the effort to pay a visit to Nam Pan Lake? I have never been there but it looks great. Thanks!
Wouter – If you are in the area then well worth visiting.