Travellers' reviews about Burma

I know most (now all countries) in Southeast Asia but I had never gone to Myanmar before due to restrictions. I heard a few persons who have gone and they all described as a very good experience. Therefore I decided to go. Everything was great -- local tour guides, hotels, visits, adventures, etc. Everything worked perfectly. I wish I had more time in Myanmar. It was a super trip.

I love traveling to Myanmar. It’s a destination with so much variety in culture, landscapes, activities and sightseeing. We saw the highlights of the country (including Yangon, Bagan, Inle, Mandalay, Ngapali) and I totally recommend to explore less touristic parts such as Golden rock and Hpa-An.

The whole trip was very well organised and with no waits. thumbs up for the organisation. The places we visited were previously discussed with our local agency and very well executed. We visited Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, Inle lake, and spent the last few days in Ngapali to swim and relax.

We just completed our 15 days visiting Myanmar through our local agency. At first, i had to admit that i was nervous of not knowing how well this tour agency was doing, but now after finishing the trip, my husband and I are very happy with the agency. They are very responsive, well organized and thorough. The Itinerary is very rich and well diverse which give us opportunity to experience different cultures and landscapes of different part of the country by using different transportation modes from flights to buses and jetty boat. All The tour guides speak English fairly well, knowledgeable, friendly yet very professional and esp very punctual. Drivers are also very good, punctual and careful. They put the safety of passengers as a priority. Accommodations were mostly clean and comfortable and located in the safe areas yet at the walkable distance to central areas. we arrived at the new destination, we always be greeted at the airport/bus station by agency representatives so we feel very safe and comfortable. Overall, i think our local agency had done a great job to give us such a wonderful experience in Myanmar - very good value for the money. We both had a wonderful time visiting Myanmar and are very happy with the service that our local agency provided. We would recommend the local agency to anyone who wants to visit Myanmar. Finally, we also want to thank Evaneos who has done a great job of selecting and training their travel agencies. By using Evaneos, we feel very secure and be certain when working with these wonderful and reputable travel agencies. We have been using Evaneos for 3 of our big trips in the last couple years and none of the travel agencies have ever disappointed us. They all had done fantastic jobs to provide us the best service for our trips. We will continue use them for many more trips to come and would Definitely recommend Evaneos to everyone who would like to explore the world.

We startd in Yangon, went by night bus to Bagan. From Bagan to Mandalay, then Kalaw, Lake Inley and back by plane to Yangon. We had 10 days, which is long and despite this long time our trip was very intense, filled with sightseeing and activities; Our program included cultural sightseeing and activities for the family & kids (elephant camp). We travelled with 3 kids aged 6 to 13.

Myanmar is a fascinating country and we came away both with great memories of our trip as well as a better insight to the current situation there. The country is full of magnificent temples, many dating back to the 11th century but also the local people have retained an impressive range of craftsmanship that is still flourishing today and is not just for the tourists. Our highlights include the magnificent Shawadegon pagoda in Yangon, riding in a horse drawn carriage around the temples in Bagan, watching the sunset over Mandalay from the Irrawaddi river and zipping across Lake Inle surrounded by lush forested hills with the sky reflected in the glass-like lake. Our itinerary was well balanced such that, despite moving between the four main locations every 2 days we never felt overly rushed or too tired and the guides were all both knowledgeable and friendly and the local travel agency very supportive. I would definitely recommend this trip to anyone wanting to visit Myanmar and experience it's old world charm and deep culture before it most likely changes in the future.

Myanmar is an undiscovered gem, I am happy that we visited it until it keeps the authenticity and the unspoiled nature and landscapes. Balloon flight over Bagan is a must ! Hsinbyume Pagoda in Mingun/ Mandalay is awesome and the sunset at U Bein Bridge is spectacular , as Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon. Ngapali Beach is pristine, Inle Lake is a totally different world....

The destination is a spectacular one, still very unspoiled and authentic. It is hard to mention a special attraction, as we enjoyed absolutely every moment of our trip. We are sure that we shall be back in Myanmar, with a larger group of friends, and with your agency .

Great destination - hopefully the political unrest settles soon - stunning trip at Inle lake.

Meeting people and seeing many aspects of their 'everyday life'. Perhaps the biggest factor was having local guides. This enabled us to experience things that we would never have done on our own.

We absolutely loved Myanmar and agreed it exceeded our expectations. Our highlights were visiting real local markets, fascinating local industries, visiting the cool hills of Pindaya and Pin oo Lwin, riding on long tails boats up and down Inle lake, travelling on Tri shaw and horse and carts, local trains and a wonderful boat cruise from Mandalay to Bagan. Cycling round Bagan was wonderful and made up for our cancelled balloon flight then ending our trip on beautiful Ngapali beach watching amazing sunsets and eating in the local fish restaurants was very special and a wonderful way to unwind after an amazing trip.

Burma is really different from the other south East Asian countries. The country is still pretty unspoilt. That makes the people so friendly, open and warm. Visiting Yangon, Mandalay, Inle Lake and Bagan was a great choice. We were glad to do Mandalay to Bagan overland to get even more understanding of the country. To do all this in 8 days was quite intensive but absolutely worth.

I requested specific hotels, destinations and sites and I am grateful for your input. the organisation you provided since landed in Yangon and until departure was perfect our guides: Soe in mandalay was a very knowledgeable chap with a great sense of humour and understanding. we enjoyed his company and explanations / views of the country past and now. definitely will keep in touch with him. Kinsoe in Bagan proved to be very aware of history facts and dates and made our discovery of the Bagan site very interesting as well. As for the chap in Yangon, I feel he has a lot to learn; his tour of the city was boring and apart from some historical facts, he was more interested in talking to the mates he met along the way and shopping for his kids than taking us around. we had to wait for him several times which is not acceptable. his suggestion of a restaurant for lunch was very very bad (and I mean bad) and his ' the company reserved you a special surprise in the afternoon not part of the tour' was part of the agenda anyway ! I did not even tell him I already knew; I dont think he would understand ! hotels: Belmond governor house was perfect; room, location, style, food, service...as expected By the red canal in mandalay is really a 3 stars disguised into a higher level. indian food very good, service slow and amenities were very basic for a hotel of this category. also very steep access to rooms , no handrails; very dangerous. very basic bathroom facilities. breakfast a disaster. The boat trip was superb; boat, accomodation, service, food, the crew and organisation were top. unfortunately the guide was very unprepared, his explanations disjointed and comments (when available)basic and very boring. everyone on board complained about his knowledge and communication skills) Hotel in Bagan was just above basic: had to complain on arrival: dirty room, internet not functionning, room door lock brocken, dirty bathroom. the grounds and steps leading to our room were not clean and unswept during the whole of our stay ! food very average, nylon table cloth with holes... not a 5 stars. service staff very friendly and wanting to please though. the hotel in Nagpali was excellent, both in location and service and hopefully will be preserved as is. food a bit expensive considering the quality and choice. summary: very enjoyable journey discovering Myanmar and thank you for the organisation. hope the demand and development dont ruin the landscape of the country in the years to come. found that the level of service demanding western prices was not always met, specially for the quality of food in some location. it was pleasing to get to know the locals, their views and aspirations and to witness the happiness of the people.

Overall our trip was beyond our expectations. I would definately recommend hot air ballooning over Bagan. The chosen accommodation was excellent. Transport was very comfortable and we experienced a great variety of locations .

Our trip was well managed by the agency. Everything happened according to schedule. Our drivers were friendly & helpful though one spoke no English at all. Our flights on Yardanarbon airlines were all late because of weather conditions but were safe and used new planes. Drivers were always waiting for us and delays did not spoil our trip. Hotels were as described in M D's info package. We stayed in beautiful places at Inle Lake, Ngapali & Bagan. Perhaps it might be worth spending more money to stay in better hotels in the cities. Highlights of our trip were Mandalay Hill, the Irrawaddy Boat trip to Bagan (in a tropical storm!), Inle Lake and Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon. The local agency & their employees did a good job for us.