The grid of streets between the Mekong riverside and the town centre holds the densest collection of French colonial architecture in Savannakhet. Shaded by old trees and bound on the west by the river road, the quarter has two-storey shophouses with colonnaded ground floors, stucco administrative buildings, and a few Chinese-style merchants' houses. Some are well maintained; others are pleasantly weathered.
The character of the streets is close to what it was thirty years ago — low-rise, quiet except for scooters, with a few teahouses and noodle stalls at ground level. The best approach is simply to walk: the old quarter is small enough to cover in under an hour. Sena Road and the streets immediately east of the riverside are the best place to start.