Mysterious Myanmar

Arrive in Yangon and transfer to your hotel for check in.

Board the “circle train” for a lively immersion into the colorful local life around the rural outskirts of Yangon. Visit Sule Pagoda, Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda, and Kalaywa Monastery to observe Buddhist ways of life. Visit Bogyoke Market, Yangon’s best market for handicrafts and other goods, and the spectacular golden Shwedagon Pagoda. Free evening.

Ferry across the Yangon River to Dala Village and take a trishaw to visit this quaint town and markets and
the Shwe Sayan Pagoda with its mummified monk. Visit the Myanmar Tea Shop.

Fly to Mandalay. Visit Mahagandayone Monastery – home of several thousand young monks and then a traditional workshop.
Visit Mandalay Hill, a major pilgrimage site known for its abundance of pagodas and monasteries. Visit the U Bein Bridge, the world’s longest teak span, constructed of 984 teak posts once part of the Inwa Palace and enjoy the local scenery.

Drive to Sagaing, the religious center of Myanmar with numerous pagodas and monasteries and monasteries. Visit Sagaing’s local market, rarely visited by tourists, and a small pottery village. Then on to Ava, the former capital and a horse and carriage ride. Visit the old wooden Bagaya Monastery, the remains of the royal palace and fort and observe local life. Stop at a silk-weaving workshop and return to Mandalay.

Drive to Monywa on the eastern banks of the Chindwin River. Visit Thanboddhay Pagoda, an enormous Buddhist temple endowed with more than 500,000 images of Buddha, and Boditahtaung Pagoda with the largest reclining Buddha in Myanmar.
Across the Chindwin River visit dramatic Po Win Taunng a vast temple cave complex with the best collection of mural paintings and Buddhist statues in Southeast Asia. Visit stunning Shwe Ba Taung, carved into a cliff.

Along the river, visit a traditional village and then on to friendly Pakokku, known for its tobacco and thanakha. Take a local boat downriver to Bagan.

Visit the colorful Nyaung U Market, the Shwezigon Pagoda, Ananda Temple, a masterpiece of Mon architecture and the adjacent brick monastery with its well-preserved murals, the sandstone Nanbaya Temple, and the Mon style Myingaba Gu Byaukgyi Temple, noted for its ancient mural paintings.
Visit the Handicraft and Lacquerware Craft Center, the massive Damayangyi Temple and enjoy a local horse–cart ride at sunset.
Balloon Flight at sunrise over Bagan (Optional tour)

Morning horse-cart ride through temple areas and then on to the dry flatlands toward Mt. Popa. Visit a small village where the locals make special sweet treats. Relax at a mountain resort surrounded by forests. Climb up 777 steps to the top of the monastery at Mount Popa, an intriguing pilgrimage site clinging awkwardly to the top of a volcanic plug.

Fly to Heho and drive through hills and fields of mountain rice to Pindaya. Visit the magnificent limestone Pindaya Cave, a very unique pilgrimage site. Visit local houses where families produce Shan paper and parasols. Drive to Kalaw and evening free.

Visit the colorful local market. Explore Inle Lake by boat to observe the “one-legged rowing” fishermen, hydroponic gardens, floating markets, villages, and temples. Visit the “Ancient monastery – Ngaphachaung”, cottage industries, and the colorful mountain hill tribes known for hand-woven silk fabrics.

Visit the colorful hill tribe morning market and the Inthar Heritage House. Visit the Inthar village of Inpawkhone to observe silk-weaving techniques using lotus stems. Visit a cheroot factory where Burmese hand-rolled cigars are made. Visit silversmiths and blacksmiths still using ancient techniques.

Go by boat to thePa-oh village of Indein, on the southwestern shores of the lake and observe traditional lifestyles. Wander through the Alaung Sitthou area, filled with picturesque stupas and magnificent views of the lake.

Fly to Thandwe; meet your guide and private transfer to pristine Ngapali beach with white sand beaches and nearby fishing villages.

Free time to take an optional sea kayaking tour or go mountain biking.

Morning is free. Transfer to airport for flight to Yangon and connect to international departure. Have a safe trip.

B: Breakfast L: Lunch D: Dinner