Upper Isan’s commercial capital: a lake park, big malls, two World Heritage sites and a large expat community.
Udon Thani is the commercial capital of upper Isan, a city of about 400,000 people on Highway 2, some 560 km from Bangkok and the gateway to Laos. It grew quickly around a US air base in the Vietnam War years and has kept an outward-looking feel: more than 5,000 expatriates from Europe, Australia and North America have settled in the area. Daily life is easy, with big malls, private hospitals and two international schools, and the province holds two UNESCO World Heritage sites, Ban Chiang and Phu Phrabat.
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