Myanmar - some questions
 

We will be arriving in Myanmar in early February. We planned our trip with Myanmar Shalom. We appreciate the wonderful advice from all of you. I have a few questions.

Tips: Are the guides, drivers, luggage handlers, etc. just as happy to receive tips in U.S. dollars as compared to kyats? Also, what is the recommended tip guideline?

Dress code: Can men wear shorts and short- sleeve knit collared shirts in the pagodas and elsewhere? Also, do you recommend long-sleeve shirts and long pants at Inle Lake to reduce mosquito bites?

Communication: Do hotels have internet access, or are there internet cafes?
Are there places where one can make international phone calls?

Malarone: Do most travel docs recommend Malarone for Bagan and Inle Lake, even in the dry season?

Any other advice is welcome and appreciated. Thank you very much.

I read that it was appropriate to tip the guides $5/per person per day and drivers $5 per day. I don't know if that's the right amount. I bumped it up a little and tipped in kyats.

My husband wore over the knee shorts and they were fine. He had on shirts that covered his shoulders.

For Inle Lake, we didn't have trouble with mosquitos, but we did take malarone anyway. We were there in November, so things in February will be different. I wore a fleece jacket and long pants in the morning because it was chilly. You could always take "bugs off" Ex Officio apparel if you're worried about the the mosquitos.

The internet access at our hotels was horrible, particularly in Bagan, where we barely had access even from the hotel lobby. I think the less you stress out about being able to get online, the more you'll be able to relax and enjoy where you are.

We didn't try to make any international calls. We usually use Viber, and your best bet would be from Yangon.

Our trip was in July 2012 so weather etc was different but we did not take malarone but applied 100% Deet with wipe ons. We tipped in kyat because it was difficult for people there to convert currency. Internet access varied a lot - - can't remember specifics other than it worked best in Mandalay and made some calls using Skype from there. I vaguely recall using it in Bagan at the hotel's restaurant area (Tharabar Gate) but not in the room. DH wore shorts all the time.

Have a terrific time!

We tipped in Kyat. Don't recall the amounts.

My husband also wore over the knee shorts and shirts with some sleeve. It is very chilly even cold in the early am on Inle Lake.

We had no issues with mosquitos, but did take malarone. We were there end of Jan until mid Feb.

As stated above Internet access was hit or miss at most hotels. We found the early morning was the best time to get online and generally it was not in our room. There was always some area of the hotel that had the " best" reception such as it was. Other than the traders hotel in Yangon, Internet access was poor. I won't count on having reliable service. Print off anything you think you might need as access to it online is iffy.

We used ATMs a few times and had no problems. You do need some pristine US dollars to exchange.
Have a great trip!

Never made any international phone calls.

Do tip in kyat. While it isn't as difficult as it once was for locals to exchange money, remember that if you give them dollars you've just added hassle to them being about to spend your tip. I think it is generally a good policy to tip in the local currency everywhere in the world.

Myanmar does have problems with malaria. We took malarian for both of our trips.

Internet speeds are highly variable... mostly slow to non-existent. But from time to time you will stay somewhere that has ok internet speeds. Don't count on being able to make international calls, though you might be able to from your hotel in Yangon. Generally, internet speeds are too slow to support Skype.

Have a wonderful trip!

We were at Inle Lake in February. There were no mosquitoes but I highly recommend you use some sort of sun protection, as most of the boats are not covered. It will be chilly in the morning. We always tip in the local currency.

Thank you all so much for your prompt replies. We appreciate your very helpful advice! Thanks also for your good wishes.

will also travel to Myanmar in February so this topic is very helpful to me.
Thanks!

Tipping in Myanmar is one of many FAQs on Trip Advisor. There are lots of interesting threads to wade through, but this is the one that appears in the FAQ section, and well worth a read...

http://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/ShowTop...r-Myanmar.html

Some guides/drivers/waiters etc will receive more in tips than a brain surgeon gets paid. Something not quite right with that.

I wore shorts and short sleeve tops in Myanmar but always wore long pants when I knew I was going to a pagoda. Interestingly in Myanmar you remove your shoes and socks while in Thailand you just remove your shoes and keep your socks on.

Yes, you do tip the guides. I had a personal guide for 3 days and tipped him what I would have tipped in the US. If it was too much, I don't care. People in Myanmar don't have a lot of money. I also tipped the driver.

Insofar as Myanmar Shalom is concerned, I visited the synagogue and met both Sammy (he is Myanmar Shalom) and his father.

My observations only relate to my 4 days in Yangon. I did not have time to visit other areas.

My blog on my visit is here:

http://altecockertravels.weebly.com/...gon-burma.html

this could be quite helpful, I think it's issued by the Burmese government
http://www.dosanddontsfortourists.com/

"The Dos and Dont's for tourists project was proposed by Dr. Andrea Valentin, Founder and Director of Tourism Transparency, an NGO campaigning for an open and accountable tourism industry in Myanmar. The Hanns Seidel Foundation of Germany passed the proposal to the Myanmar Ministry of Hotels and Tourism and the Myanmar Tourism Federation to implement action immediately following the drafting of the Myanmar Responsible Tourism Policy. The proposal was accepted, and research began in June 2012"

The format is from a book that was produced some years before 2012 and is based on a similar Thai publication.

Incidentally it is one of the Top Questions links on TA which everyone is encouraged to read,.
SS