An insider's guide to Burma, featuring the country's best hotels, restaurants, shops, attractions and things to do, including advice on applying for a visa, how best to travel there and things you should know before you go. By Gill Charlton, Telegraph Travel's Burma expert. Click on the tabs below for the best places to stay, eat, shop and visit including an itinerary taking in the best of the capital, Yangon.
Why go?
Following the lifting of Western sanctions, Burma - also known as Myanmar - has become a magnet for tourists. It has some wondrous sights: a thousand temples scattered across the countryside in Bagan; the leg-rowers and floating gardens of Inle Lake, and majestic rivers - the Ayeyarwady and the Chindwin - navigable into the furthest reaches of the country. But the big draw is the chance to see a country where the 21st-century world has barely intruded. This is changing but there is still a strong sense of the old Orient here. It's a place where Buddhism is still a way of life.
The 21st-century world has barely intruded in Burma.
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Though Burma now claims an elected civilian government, this is hardly a country which is free from oppression. The difference is that the Burmese people are hopeful that the changes they have witnessed over the past four years cannot be reversed: the release of opposition leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi; access to the worldwide web, including sites critical of the government; and the arrival of planeloads of Western tourists with dollars to enrich their communities.
Chronic temple fatigue is a big danger for the first-time visitor. Plan your itinerary to go beyond the main tourist areas. Spend time in the traditional teak villages, tea houses and small-town markets getting to know some of the most endearing people you will meet anywhere in the world.
Though Burma now claims an elected civilian government, this is hardly a country which is free from oppression. The difference is that the Burmese people are hopeful that the changes they have witnessed over the past four years cannot be reversed: the release of opposition leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi; access to the worldwide web, including sites critical of the government; and the arrival of planeloads of Western tourists with dollars to enrich their communities.
Chronic temple fatigue is a big danger for the first-time visitor. Plan your itinerary to go beyond the main tourist areas. Spend time in the traditional teak villages, tea houses and small-town markets getting to know some of the most endearing people you will meet anywhere in the world.
When to go
The best time to visit is during the cool, dry season between November and February. Days remain very warm but it can get chilly at night in the hills. In March, the thermometer can leap from highs of around 28C in central Burma to over 40C, with debilitating levels of humidity. The monsoon rains start in late May and often continue into October, though the wettest month is August.
The photogenic teak U Bein bridge that winds for nearly a mile across a shallow lake.
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Try to time your visit to include a Full Moon day as this is a popular time for street parades and festivities in monasteries. Avoid the Maya Thingyan Water Festival (April 13-16 in 2015) when a lot of businesses close, sometimes for ten days.
Know before you goVisas:
Citizens of 67 countries can now obtain tourist e-Visas for entry by air through Yangon using an online application form: visit evisa.moip.gov.mm. The fee is $50 and you must allow five working days for processing. You will be sent an eVisa Approval Letter, valid for 90 days, to present at immigration.If you are planning to cross into Burma overland from Thailand you must apply for a traditional visa in advance. This costs £14 from direct to the Myanmar Embassy in London (020 7499 4340; myanmarembassylondon.com). Make postal orders payable to Myanmar Embassy. Postal processing takes around 10 days or you can apply in person at the Embassy (19a Charles Street, London W1J 5DX) 10am-noon weekdays.
Money matters:
The US dollar is widely used in Burma. It is essential that notes (larger denominations preferred) are in mint condition with no folds, tears or marks of any kind, however small. The exchange rate hovers around 980 Kyats to the dollar. Recently, international ATMs have been installed in the places visited by tourists and some luxury hotels. Visa and Mastercard are accepted; the daily withdrawal limit is Ks 300,000 (£180). Problems occur if the telephone line is down (not unusual) as transactions cannot be processed. Assume that you may need to pay in US dollars and allow around $100 (£60) a day per person for extras such as meals, drinks, souvenirs and entrance fees if you are staying in four-star hotels.
There are over a thousand temples scattered across the countryside in Bagan.
AP
Booking hotels:
Burma has a dearth of tourist-standard hotel rooms. Most so-called four- and five-star hotels would be regarded as three-star properties in neighbouring Thailand. Prices are high due to demand. Between October and March room rates can more than double those quoted in this guide. However, international booking agents - notably agoda.com and booking.com – are now partnering with all grades of hotel to offer online booking and attractive discounts on published room rates. If travelling independently, book via email or through an online booking agent and bring all the paperwork. More hotels are accepting credit cards (Visa and Mastercard only) but they charge a commission of 3-5 per cent. In high season, booking through a tour operator or local agency on arrival in Yangon will give peace of mind.
Local laws and etiquette:
The Burmese dress conservatively and regard sleeveless T-shirts and shorts as underwear. Visitors should wear loose casual clothes (no cleavage, no bare shoulders, no see-through skirts, no leggings). Shoulders and knees must be covered in temples and shoes and socks removed.
Be careful of discussing Burmese politics in public or trying to draw locals into such conversations, as this could get them into trouble.
Following the precepts of Buddhism is a way of life in Burma.
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Even when a town or village is on the open-to-tourists list, local immigration officials (especially on the Chindwin and in the border states) may not allow you to proceed. Employing a local guide can help smooth things over.
Hand over money using your right hand to avoid giving offence.
Time difference:
GMT + 6 1/2 hours
Tipping:
Not expected outside of top hotels and restaurants, where 10 per cent is usual. Temple guardians will look for a small tip if they offer an extra service. Tip guides and drivers at the end of the tour. Tip drivers $3-$5 per day and guides $10-$20 per day if travelling as a couple or in a small group.
Foreign Office advice:
Due to ethnic tensions, the Foreign Office (fco.gov.uk) advises against all but essential travel to Rakhine State excluding Ngapali Beach, and to Kachin State excluding Bhamo; always check the latest advice before travelling.
What to read
River of Lost Footsteps by Thant Myint U (Faber), a readable history; From the Land of Green Ghosts by Pascal Khoo Thwe (Flamingo Books), a revealing autobiography of a student rebel who finds his way to Cambridge; and The Trouser People by Andrew Marshall (Penguin), an account of Burma before the recent reforms, which was updated at the end of 2012. Everyone should dip into Aung San Suu Kyi’s Letters from Burma (Penguin).
Good novels include The Glass Palace by Amitav Ghosh, The Piano Tuner by Daniel Mason, and Burmese Days by George Orwell, a shocking portrait of British colonial life.
Guidebooks
Myanmar (Lonely Planet), published in July 2014, remains the best practical guide.
Myanmar: Burma in Style by Caroline Courtauld (Odyssey Guides) is good on cultural background and the main sites. Nelles publishes the best map of the country.
Films
The Lady, a biopic of the life of Aung San Suu Kyi, directed by Luc Besson, and Beyond Rangoon, the story of the 1988 student uprising based on real accounts, directed by John Boorman.
Source: telegraph
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