North Eastern Thailand Travel Guide

More commonly known by its collective name ‘Isaan’, the north-eastern bubble that borders Laos and Cambodia is the poorest region of Thailand, but also one of its most culturally rich and diverse, with unique art, music, food and architecture. Heavily influenced by Lao and Khmer cultures that go back thousands of years, it’s an area that’s noticeably different from the rest of the country. Not too many first-time visitors make it up here (unless you’re talking about the well-travelled trails along the Mekong River), but if you’re looking for ‘real’ Thais – simple but proud and unpolluted by the mad consumer dash that grips Bangkok – this is the place to go.