jules39

We think we have decided that Burma is to be our next trip. Possibly mid November this year. Hope to have about 19 nights in Burma. I have read the wonderful reports here by Kathie, NYwoman, Craig etc & my Lonely Planet book is on order & hopefully will be here soon! But I can't wait to start thinking/planning so if you don't mind I will give you some of my thoughts & see what you think.........
1. Mid Nov to start out seems like an OK time. Anyone know of any reason why it would not be a good time?

2. I understand that book of things in Burma can be a hassle so think we will use an agent to help with some of this. Would like to have someone book internal flights, perhaps hotels & maybe some transport where it would be helpful. I see that some of yo have used Santa Maria. I googled & think I have found them but just so I know it is the same place does someone have an email address?

3. Itinerary. So my thoughts are.
Yagoon (Rangoon) probably 4 nights say 2 at the beginning & 2 at the end.
Inle Lake 3 or 4 nights
Bagan 3 or 4 nights
Mandalay 3 nights

I don't have this in any particular order yet. Although think we would like to do the river trip between Mandalay & Bagan if we can work it so that would obviously put them in that order.

This still gives us a few days up our sleeve which I am still contemplating........

Thanks for any of your thoughts.

J

cestgaston

Hi,
I am in the planning stage also for a trip in January 2011 and have been in contact with this guide (warmly recommended by someone on TripAdvisor) [email protected]
He seems like a good,reasonable guide.Check him out .
I am also in contact with a travel agency who seems to be very reasonable also : [email protected]
Good luck!

Kathie

Mid- Nov is just fine.

I'd cut a day (or even 2) from Rangoon.

You want three full days in each Bagan and Inle, IMO. So that may be 4 nights each.

You don't need (or want) a guide with you every minute. At Inle, if you go into Pa-O territory, you'll automatically get a Pa-O guide, and you'll have a boatman. I think that's all you need there.

In Bagan, if you get a knowledgeable horsecart driver, that's all you need. Of course, I highly recommend Minthu.

You'll need a car and driver in Mandalay.

I don't have Santa Maria's email at my finger tips, but if you googled them, you should have a current address. If you have problems, let me know and I'll try to locate it.

I'm sure you'll have a marvelous time!

jules39

Thanks cest for the info on the people you have been in contact with. I will look into it. What kind/length of trip are you planning?

Kathie does this look like the Santa Maria you know ??http://www.myanmartravels.net/

I will not be looking for a guide all the way at all. Probably not very much if at all more thinking of times when we might want drivers or airport pickups etc.

I read what you had to say about Minthu & he does sound like a gem.

My thinking on 4 nights in Rangoon was.....arrive in country have remainder of day & whole of next day. Leave the following day. At end of trip. Arrive back to Rangoon at some time have remainder of day whole of next day & then leave the next day so there would only actually be 2 full days. Depending on how we do the flights we could be in a total jet lag fog the first day!!!

Out of couriosity Kathie if you have a return trip to Burma are there places you did not visit this time that you have on your list for next trip??!

It seems to me a facinating place.

J

Hanuman

Napali beach town look like a nice place to visit if you have time to spare. IMO 3 nights in Mandalay is too long so perhaps 1 or 2 nights there and add a night or two in Napali.

I really enjoyed the Balloon ride in Bagan but I'm not sure if they operate in November or not.

rhkkmk

i think there is plenty to do in yangon for 4 days....we spent 5 there and could have used another day or so....

we used naing, as noted above.....he is a really nice guy...

he will go elsewhere with you if you desire as well...

he can arrange things for you too.....but he is not a travel agent...

Robbietravels

The email address for Santa Maria Travel is [email protected]. The office is closed until 4/22 due to the Water Festival. I've been in regular contact with Zaw at their office in regards to my trip in December. They are handling my internal flights, one hotel I could not book on my own and a car and driver for travel from Mandalay to Maymyo and back.
My first trip I visited the places you mention and for the same amount of time, maybe one less night in Mandalay. This visit is shorter but I am returning to the same haunts: Rangoon, Bagan and Mandalay/Maymyo, no Inle this trip. I am revisiting these same areas because there is so much to do and see and absorb. I will revisit favorite spots and spend lots of time ambling, meandering and poking around.

With 19 days you can easily do 4 to 5 days Rangoon (an excursion to Pego/Bago was wonderful), 3 days Bagan (Balloons over Bagan operates in Nov.), 3 days Mandalay, 4 full days Inle (so it might require 5 nights) and 3 days at the beach at Ngapali (Sandaway Resort Hotel was a fantastic splurge ending for us).
The order of your visits depends on flight schedules and which flights will maximize your time in each locale. I recommend the longer time in Rangoon because heavy touring in heavy humidity after international flights is not, IMO, a vacation. It ca be oppressively hot in Rangoon (even tho November is the cool season) and many visitors repair to their hotels for a swim and rest during the sauna hours of 12-3 pm. The reason you need several days in Mandalay (even though its not an attractive city) is to visit the surrounding ancient capitols.
If you tell us something about your particular interests (ruins, monasteries, villages/markets, shopping, etc. I'm sure more suggestions will be forthcoming.

cestgaston

Arrival in Rangoon(2 days),flight to Bagan (3 days),Boat cruise to Mandalay (2 days) Mandalay (3 days) return to Rangoon (air) and then drive to Golden Rock,Kyaiktiyo,Moulmein (4 days).
So, 14 days(nights,in fact)

Kathie

Jules, Santa Maria has a number of email addresses (all the agencies do, since the junta closes down email access, they need to have a number of options). They emailed me from the domain name you mentioned as well as one that is similar to the one Robbie gives.

So where would I go next trip? I would love to go to Marauk-U and to Kalaw and/or Hsipaw. I'd also go to Mandalay, not for the sights in the city, but for the surrounding old capitols. I'd also reserach which ethnic groups have negotiated agreements with the government to be able to collect admission fees from visitors to support improvements in their infrastructure and go to some of those places.

I recommended you cut time in Yangon, not because there is nothing to do/see there, but because of the places we visited in Burma it was the least amazing. It is also hell hot. We were there in November and the heat prevented us from doing some things we would have enjoyed doing (and I'm someone who doesn't hesitate to walk in Bangkok).

Hanuman

cest - you're not going to Inle? Must visit place IMO.

jules39

Thanks everyone. Great info.

Robbie to answer your question about our interests would it help to know that we spent 11 days in Siem Reap & never bored of temples. We would happily go back there also! We love small towns & great markets to wander around. (not tourist markets but more local) I like the idea of a river trip between Mandalay & Bagan. I need to look into the 2 day trip but 1 will probably be enough. Beach time doesn't tend to be high on our list but if there interesting stuff in the area it would definately rate.

Cest looks like a good trip you have lined up.

Kathie thanks for your thoughts on where you would go next.

I am starting to get pretty excited!

J

Robbietravels

Jules, you could easily spend 5+ days in and around Bagan and 6-8 day around Inle given your interests. We caught a wonderful and very very local market in the far south of Inle (Lont Kant Market) where there were only two other western tourists and spent 5 hours there. How far afield you go, depends on your pace, energy level and tolerance for long drives on dusty, bumpy roads.

I, too, think Rangoon is underrated. I would highly recommend a day tour from Rangoon to Pego (Bego), about 50 miles to the east. The market was wonderfully local, Shwemawdaw Paya was great for people watching and interacting with locals and the monastery (I think the name was something like Ja Kat Waing) offered us a chance to hang out at lunchtime while 700 young and old monks lined up for their rice. Thanlyin is a 1/2 day excursion out of Rangoon worth looking in to.

I had a disappointing experience on the two day Pandaw cruise but that was in large part because it rained heavily for most of the two days (and this was in December). The village visits were interesting. In one village, I would have liked to stay 2-4 hours but the boat group allowed only 45 minutes, frustrating for me.

I found a guide very helpful in the Inle Lake region; he was a local and his knowledge of and entre to minority villages are worthwhile.

There was an interesting village near the beach hotel but it doesn't merit a visit if beach is not a priority for you.

Cest you are making very interesting, well researched ( no doubt) choices in your itinerary and I'll be looking forward to hearing about these areas in your report early next year.

cestgaston

To Hanuman: had to cut Inle due to time constrains. Next time,hopefully...

cestgaston

Robbietravels,thanks for the good words! Will,definitely share results of research here.

live42day

Jules we seem to have the same path for travelling. Our next trip will (hopefully) be Burma as well, most likely end of Dec/early Jan.
We were in India at the same time , same place, but never met.
I say hopefully as my husband is not convinced and is leaning towards Syria and Lebanon which would be fine too.

I will be interested in following your planning however and eventually your trip report, becuase if he wont go with me I will go with someone else next year at some point.

jules39

live42day I had the same thought when I saw your Burma post! So I will be following your planning too!

We have a few places on the list for our next trip but Burma is rising to the top. Especially since I have just confirmed I can take that time off work in Nov so it is looking like it is on the top of the list now!

Happy planning!

jules39

So as I spent some time today looking into things....I think we will have 20 nights in the country. Inle lake area is really grabbing us. There seems to be a lot to see around the area as well as spending time on around the actual lake. For example a day trip out to Kakku. Seems like it would be doable I read a couple of reports that did this?
So I am thinking 5 nights at Inle. Is this crazy??!!! Maybe even 6!

Love the look of Marauk-U. So want to work that into things.

Would like to take a boat say from Mandalay to Bagan but am not sure about the "cruises" How do I know which boat is govt run?

Bagan I think will hold our interest well so 3 or 4 nights. Kathie I value your input on this since I know you were able to spend time in Siem Reap like us so feel we would have similar interest in Bagan. Robbie suggests even more nights which may be the way to go.

A question....as I look at hotels how do I find out if they are govt owned etc??

Thanks for your input

J

Kathie

I envy how much time you will have in Burma! Inle Lake is fascinating. I think I could easily fill 5 days at Inle. Yes, you can do a day trip to Kakku. We went there on our way from the airport to the Inle Lake View.

We were 4 nights at Bagan, so three full days of touring, but we would have loved even more time. There are thousands of temples - no way to see them all! We spent all of our time on the closer in temples (as we were going by horsecart, which I think is a must-do). If we had more time, I'd take a day with a car and driver for the temples farther away (but I wouldn't go to Mt. Popa). As you know, we loved our horsecart driver and recommend him highly. [email protected] His brother drives a taxi, so it would be easy to arrange that with him.

The Lonely Planet has lot of info on what is or isn't government owned. None of the places we stayed were government owned. I highly recommend the Inle Lake View both because it is lovely and because of the owner's commitment to economic development for the local peoples.

The boat used by locals from Mandalay to Bagan is government owned. Myanmar Air is government owned.

jules39

Thanks Kathie. My Lonely Planet book got sidetracked somewhere in delivery so I am still without it which is driving me crazy! I am reading everything I can online but looking forward to getting the book in hand!

We have decided to spend every day we can in Burma. Forgoing any time in Bangkok or the like apart from what we need for flight connections.

Kathie

I hope your LP will get to you soon. Burma is a place where you need lots of background to do your planning. Oh, take a look at my Kathie's Burma Bookshelf post.