Tour Overview
The 10-day journey will take you to explore the highlights of Myanmar. During this Myanmar Tour, you will pass through the bustling city of Yangon, clearly feel the Buddhist culture through ancient temples in Yangon and be overwhelmed by the beauty of Hsinbyume white pagoda in Mandalay. Peaceful moments at one of the two largest freshwater lakes in Myanmar, Inle Lake, will also be a memorable memory on your Myanmar adventure travel. If you are a lover of culture, history and breathtaking wild nature, join this exciting journey with Asia Links Travel now! See the full itinerary for detailed information!
Tour Highlights
- Observe Yangon city by walking through the alleys, and participating in hundreds of local activities to get to know the local vibes.
- Reminisce of the Old Bagan with more than 4000 traditional red-brick pagodas.
- Discover the ancient land of Mingun with its fascinating attractions such ch as Mingun pagoda and bell.
- Explore the lively pace of living of the inhabitants in the city of Mandalay.
- Take joy in riding with the boat to the wind breeze the Inle Lakthe e and stunning nature view of the floating gardens as well as the Indein Complex.
Itinerary
The local driver will greet you at the Yangon International Airport and take you to the hotel for checking-in.
Meals are on your own. Overnight in Yangon.
You will start your first day in Yangon downtown with the Immanuel Baptist Church on Mahanbandoola Road. The Church was completed in 1885, destroyed in World War II and then built again in 1952. Going through a few narrow alleys filled with food vendors and local markets, when you met the Pansodan street with loads of second-hand and book copies.
This road also takes you through the three significant buildings of Yangon and Burmese people in general, one is High Court Building, the second is the head office of Inland Water Transport and the third is the Myanmar Port Authority.
When you find yourself end up on the Strand Road, you can take a visit at a few out of the ordinary architecture of the Customs House and the Law Court. Head north to the hustle Bank street, you will pay a visit on the Sule Pagoda Road, where sitting on the sides are the fortune tellers under the trees’ shades.
The Sule Pagoda has also been the symbol of the downtown area for almost 2000 years. Remember to spend some of your time for photos shooting at the Independence Monument as well as the Mahabandoola Garden.
Once you have finished with a round of the city, you will head west to the Indian and Chinese quarter. You have some of your time on Shwe Bontha street, where many gold shops at, then pass down the Moseh Yeshua Synagogue on 26th street, you will reach another local market called Theingyi Zei to join the hunting for little pickled - snake activity. The following site is the most colorful temple in Yangon - Sri Kali temple.
Up next, you will be transferred to Kyaukhtatgyi Pagoda where you will be astonished by the size of the 70 - meter long Buddha. Thereafter, you will move to the uptown area and visit the Kandawgyi Park to directly see and participate in the life of the local residents especially in the late afternoon and early morning. Nearby, you will have a look of a two-stories bird-shape golden restaurant, a remake of the royal barge.
When visiting Yangon, no one can ever forget how majestic the Golden Shwedagon Pagoda is. We can assure you will see one of the most magical sights in life when watching the last light from the sun fading away on the roof of the Golden Stupa. That glow is unforgettable. After the sunset, it’s your shopping time for religious items at the end of the stairway down. You will be provided all of the information that you need to understand how to use those reverent items like the monk’s robe, alms bowl, offerings, and incense.
As the sky nearly turns to dark, it the time for another magical color transformation moment of the pagoda when gazing upon a 100 - meter chedi with 40 tons of gold leaves. To the Burmese people, the Golden Shwedagon Pagoda is one of the most significant places of Buddhism Religion over the country.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Yangon.
After staying in Yangon, time to move on to the next city - Bagan, with the domestic flight, to contemplate amazing architecture of Burma. The city Bagan, standing by the side of the Irrawaddy River, holds a huge number of Buddhist constructions and was considered the country’s center from the 9th till the 13th century. The most stunning trademark of the city is more than 4000 red - brick temples situated all across the city, which creates a breathtaking view from above.
This tour around Bagan offers you a chance to not only explore the temples and pagodas but also the rich Burmese culture through the skillful work of the craftsmen. Our fisrt stop is an elevated temple which is served as a vantage point to contemplate the vast area of the temple plain.
Our trip continues to Ananda Temple - one of the most beautiful temples in Bagan. To ensure the best experience you can get when visiting this site, we will arrange the trip in the less crowded time. Then, proceed to explore other structures in the area to see more stunning 9th - 14th century manmade masterpieces.
Besides, you will get a glimpe of the local life as the temples in Bagan have long attached with the normal, daily life of Burmese people when they have spent their living by the side of the monuments in the city.
Next, we will pay a visit to the workshops of lacquer ware and wood cravings to see how the locals made these beautiful products.
The afternoon will be your free time on this day.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Bagan.
Your first visit of the day will be Nyaung Oo Market, the commonplace of the locals to trade fresh food and goods. Then, take a short walk exploring Old Bagan and pay a visit to the famous Shwezigon Pagoda, which was built since the 11th century by King Anawratha to commemorate Buddhism events. The rest of the morning is the time to wander around the area to explore many other hidden beauties of the daily life of the residents in Bagan.
A horse cart excursion will be arranged for you to stopover the highest temple in Bagan - Thatbyinnyu, the distinctive brickwork from the great Dhammayangyi Temple and last but not least the “crowning jewel” - Sulamani Temple.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Bagan.
Domestic flight to Mandalay.
We take a ride to the former capital city of Myanmar - Amarapura, to visit the Mahagandayon monastery, where the majority of the monks in Myanmar gather and study monastic and religious disciplines.
Thereupon, the guide will take you to Mahamuni Pagoda. The most impressive characteristic of the Pagoda that will surprise tourist is the Buddha statue inside totally covered with gold leaves by the male devotees.
The following site is the Kuthodaw Pagoda, which is famous for its footage of old sayings from Buddha - the “World’s Biggest Book” made out of 729 marble tiles. Shwenandaw Monastery is our next stop, which features the elaborate wood - carving art of Royal Palace’s structure from the beginning of the 19th century.
In the late afternoon, we proceed to visit the gorgous U Bein Bridge, which is in the meantime still the longest teakwood bridge in the world’s record. As the sun goes down, it is the best chance to capture the most beautiful moment of the sun shines through the wooden poles. This historic bridge marks the remains of the Royal Palace in Ava(Inwa) when the Burmese capital was moved to Amarapura.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Mandalay.
On this day, we will ride on a private jetty and spend about an hour sailing on the Irrawaddy River and heading to Mingun.
Mingun welcomes you with the first sight of Mingun Paya - unfinished stupas left behind from the late 18th century. A prophecy going around in the Kingdom foretold that once the pagoda was finished the Kingdom would come to an end, which may have led to a deliberate slowdown of the project. When the King died in 1819 the project was indefinitely halted and none of his successors resumed work on it.
In the 1800s, a terrible earthquake struck in leaving a huge crack on the surface of the stupa that we can see today. From the top of the paya, you can open up to a view of the magnificent Hsinbyume Paya, Mingun village and a part of the Irrawaddy River. However, it is not safe to climb on the top of the temple now because of its old structure.
Then, we move to visit the unique architecture of Hsinbyume Pagoda which is modeled after the Sulamani Temple - an important symbol in Buddist cosmos.
Another notable relic in Mingun is Mingun Bell with a height of 3.7 meters and a weight of 90 tons. Not only play a great role in the religious affair of the local communities, but the bell also is the 2nd largest bell on the planet that is still hung and usable. We also spend some time to chat with the friendly locals here and see how they make the traditional basket.
Afterwards, you will cross the Irrawaddy River and arrive at Sagaing. Sagaing Hill is the place where hundreds of temples, around 600 pagodas and temples, adjacent from the water level of the Irrawaddy. In this area, you will visit some of them such as Swan Oo Pon Nya Shin, U Min Thone Sae, and Shin Pin Nan Gyaing.
We will stop by the local market as well as a small pottery village to learn and observe how to make pots using their traditional methods.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Mandalay.
Transit from Mandalay to the domestic airport for the flight to Heho. Upon your arrival, you will head to the Nyang Shwe to explore the making of traditional Shan paper and other workshops. Make sure you stop for a visit at the Shweyanpyay monastery to observe its sophisticated woodworks.
Your trip around Inle Lake begins with a remarkable boat ride around the lake. The lake’s bank is featured with thousand of plants and dotted with fishing canoes, which creates a perfectly balanced atmosphere between human and nature. The plants, crawling upon the bamboo poles, on the lake are mostly the local’s “floating gardens” and there they grow vegetables as well as fresh fruits.
Next, you will arrive at Nga Hpe Chaung Monastery, the home of hundreds of Shan Buddha images. The place was used to be called “Jumping cats”, but nowadays, we can barely see any kittens jumping around the area. Then we will move to the next location - the Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda, where you can see five Buddha statues in person of the Buddha images made from gold leaves.
We also offer some optional visits to the traditional workshops of the lake where you can experience the making of the traditional crafts such as woven items, cigars, and silversmiths.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight at Inle Lake.
You will start your morning with morning breeze from the local market (the market runs every day except for the dark moon and full moon days). The earlier you arrive at the market, the more fresh products from the local you can get.
After the visit to Inle’s morning market, you will take a 1 - hour boat ride on the small canal, which will lead you to the Pa - Oh village of Indein on the west side of Inle Lake. You should follow the stairway, along with the greenery trail, to the top of the hill.
Once you get there, there comes the view of the historic Buddha statue among hundreds of ruined stupas. Then, trek down the Sae Ma village, you can catch the panoramic scene of the purest nature’s beauty and normal life of the village’s inhabitants. Take a walk among the Indein Complex, it is the most amazing site around the area.
You have your afternoon free for relaxation.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight at Inle Lake.
Free morning to explore Heho by yourself until your time to check out from the hotel and transfer to Heho Airport. Take the flight back to Yangon. Check-in at the hotel in Yangon and the rest of the day is yours.
Lunch and Dinner on your own. Overnight in Yangon.
Take your flight back home from Yangon International Airport. End of tour services.
What's included
Trip Notes
Time travel: Possible to travel all year around.
Rooms are available from 14.00 on arrival day until 12.00 on departure day, room supplement charge will be added for request of early/late check in/out.
Airfares (if any) may change without notice prior to e-ticket issuance.
Price for infants and children will be quoted as follow:
- Children under 2 years old: Free of charge (Maximum 1 child under 2 years old travels with 2 adults; from the second child, 50% of the regular fare will be applied)
- Children from 2 to 5 years old: 50% of the regular fare will be applied
- Children from 5 to 11 years old: 75% of the regular fare will be applied
- Children from 12 years: 100% of the regular fare will be applied
During Peak Season and special occasions, surcharges may be added to the price:
- Christmas and New Year’s Eve: Compulsory meals would be added during these times of the years, depends on hotels or resorts you will stay overnight.
- Myanmar New Year: 12 April – 18 April: Extra fee will be applied during holiday.
Visa requirements:
For Myanmar: You must have a valid passport and a visa (E-visa or visa on arrival) to enter Myanmar. Our consultant will be happy to advise you on visa requirements.
Your passport must be valid for six months beyond your planned stay, and you must have at least one blank page for each visa stamp.
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