I've wanted to see Pakxe since I first saw a photo of the sleepy little town on the Mekong in southern Laos. There seemed something terribly romantic about it. When I got there, I was a bit surprised to find a rather upscale tourist town, with very nice hotels and restaurants. There are tons of backpackers and bus tourists here. I ended up not liking it all that much. Of the three or four Mekong towns I visited in Laos, Tha Kaek was easily the best.