How walkable is Vientiane?
By Oscar Higson-Spence. Updated
Vientiane has a walkability score of 55 out of 100 across the 5 km around its centre, which makes it somewhat walkable: some errands can be done on foot. It ranks joint 520th of 690 cities worldwide.
What's within walking distance of the centre
1,096 shops, restaurants, parks and other everyday places are mapped within a 30 minute walk of central Vientiane. The nearest grocery is about 6 minutes away on foot. It earns full or nearly full points for groceries, restaurants & bars, shopping, coffee, banks, parks and schools. It is weakest for books & libraries.
Groceries
- ຮ້ານ ບີ້ໄກ່ນ້ອຍເຕົ້າຮູ້ຊີ່ງ, 7 min
- M Supermarket, 8 min
Restaurants & bars
- Kaogee Le Triomphe, 2 min
- Vari Drinking Water, 2 min
Shopping
- Westman Laos Shoes, 4 min
- Pakaythip Wedding Dress-ປະກາຍທິບຊຸດແຕ່ງງານແບບສາກົນ, 4 min
Coffee
- ໝີ່ເປັດຕຸ໋ນແອນຊັນ, 6 min
- The Breakfast Club.Social, 7 min
Banks
- ທະນາຄານ ລາວ-ຝຮັ່ງ ຈຳກັດ, 5 min
- Lao Viet Bank, 6 min
Parks
- dok, 21 min
- ເດີ່ນຕີດອກ ປີກໄກ່ ມາໂນລັກ, 25 min
Schools
- ສູນການສຶກສາມູ້ຫລານ Mulan Education Center, 2 min
- Lycée de Vientiane, 2 min
Books & libraries
- Monument Books and Toys Laos, 21 min
- T Book-ເຈ້ຕຸ່ນ, 27 min
Culture & entertainment
- ສະຖານີວິທະຍຸກະຈາຍສຽງແຫ່ງຊາດ, 14 min
- Major Platinum Cineplex Vientiane Center, 15 min
Further than usual
- The nearest cultural venue is 14 minutes from the centre on foot, against 4 minutes for the median city ranked.
Measured from the centre at 17.9706, 102.6165, the point near Vientiane's middle with the most places in walking range. Walking times assume 80 m per minute along an estimated street route.
Street layout
Within 800 m of the centre there are about 90 street intersections per km², and blocks average 88 m long. That is a well-connected street grid, so the score is not reduced.
How far walkability reaches
Vientiane's score of 55 is the average across the 5 km around its centre, the point with the most everyday places within a walk. Walkability averages 90 within 1 km of the centre, 73 from 1 to 3 km out and 40 from 3 to 5 km out. 12 of the 91 points within 5 km fall on water or on land without streets, such as hillsides, forest or farmland, and are left out, so the score describes only the built-up part. 41% of the sampled area scores 70 or more, where most errands can be done on foot. Walkability falls off steeply away from the centre, so check a specific address on the map.
- 90+
- 70–89
- 50–69
- 25–49
- 0–24
Each hexagon is the score at a point, 1 km from its neighbours, across the 5 km around central Vientiane. Rings mark 1, 3 and 5 km from the centre. Gaps are water or land without streets.
| Area | Score | Scoring 70+ |
|---|---|---|
| Centre | 91 | 100% |
| Within 1 km | 90 | 100% |
| 1 to 3 km out | 73 | 70% |
| 3 to 5 km out | 40 | 13% |
Nearby cities
| City | Distance | Score |
|---|---|---|
| Vinh, Vietnam | 336 km | 49 |
| Thanh Hóa, Vietnam | 391 km | 44 |
| Hoa Lư, Vietnam | 438 km | 33 |
| Nam Định, Vietnam | 466 km | 30 |
| Việt Trì, Vietnam | 475 km | 36 |
Questions about walking in Vientiane
Is Vientiane a walkable city?
Partly. Vientiane has a walkability score of 55 out of 100 across the 5 km around its centre, which makes it somewhat walkable: some errands can be done on foot. Its centre scores 91. The score covers about 80 km² around the busiest point rather than the whole city, and suburbs further out are usually less walkable, so check a specific address on the map. It ranks joint 520th of 690 cities worldwide on How Walkable.
How does Vientiane compare with nearby cities?
Vientiane is more walkable than its nearest ranked neighbours: it scores 55, against Vinh (49, 336 km away), Thanh Hóa (44, 391 km away) and Hoa Lư (33, 438 km away).
Which part of Vientiane is most walkable?
Vientiane's most walkable area is its centre, the point near the middle of the city with the most places in walking range, which scores 91. Walkability averages 90 within 1 km of it. Beyond 2.5 km, it holds up best to the west (averaging 61) and falls most to the north-west (30).
How is Vientiane's walkability score calculated?
For Vientiane it is the average of 79 points spaced 1 km apart within 5 km of its busiest point, leaving out water and land without streets; 32 of them score 70 or more. Each point counts groceries, restaurants, shops, cafés, banks, parks, schools, libraries and cultural venues within a 30 minute walk, gives nearer places more weight, and loses up to 20% where streets are sparse or blocks are long, using open map data from Overture Maps (release 2026-09-23.1) and OpenStreetMap. It measures what is within a walk, not what the walk is like: pavements, traffic, safety, hills and heat are not part of the score.
This page is generated from open map data with a published walkability method, explained in the methodology. Places from Overture Maps release 2026-09-23.1. City position and population from GeoNames.
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