I am starting to think about an itinerary for a possible trip to Burma next Jan. and I have a few questions-

1-Has anyone been to Monywa? Is it worth spending a day and a night there to see the caves? Are the caves similar to Pindaya caves which we are including on our itinerary..

2-Has anyone taken the all day boat from Mandalay to Bagan? Is the scenery worth spending 10-12 hours on the boat or should we fly? Time and money are not considerations. for making this decision.

3-Has anyone taken a day hike around Kalaw. Is it worth spending the time and effort of making the hike or should we skip it. It won't take time away from our itinerary, but if it won't add a lot to our trip, then I am leaning toward skipping it.

Thanks.

Hi Shelly,

I'll soon be posting my own questions about out Nov/Dec trip to Burma.

I haven't done the all day boat trip from mandalay to Bagan. I always thought it would be something I would enjoy. But hearing from other travelers about their experience convinced me to cut it from the list of possibilities. Reviews were almost uniformly negative, many terming it something to endure rather than enjoy.

I'll look forward to seeing how your itinerary takes shape.

Kathy, thanks for your reply and I'll be looking forward to seeing how your itinerary takes shape, as well.

I wish there were another guidebook besides Lonely Planet to help me make more informed decisions. The lack of guidebooks makes this forum an even more important resource for planning a trip to Burma.

shelley we too thought about the boat trip & after a lot of reading decided not to do it. We did however drive that leg. Took about 6 hours I think & we enjoyed it because we got to see something of what lies between the destinations! At one point we got out & walked for about 40 minutes. Our drvier parked for a while then drove ahead of us & waited. We had a fun interaction with some school kids & a local lady.

Hi Shelly,

We have been to Monywa and the Caves are just amazing. I have not been to Pindaya so I can not compare. What I can say about the caves near Monywa is that they are well preserved and very authentic, there is no any renovation and you can see the site as it was may be centuries ago. There are some very beautiful frescoes, with very bright colors. I'm happy that we visited this place.

We traveled by car from Monywa to Pakkoku, then by boat to Bagan (2 hours may be). It was a good way to travel because we stopped in two villages and we had a great time with the local people. Pakkoku has very colorful market also.

Thanks svetulka. That is the way were planning to get from Monywa to Bagan. I think we will keep that in our itinerary unless I am told that the caves are very similar to Pindaya. Did you use a travel agent to book the caves tour and transfer and if so who did you use? Did you stay overnight in Monywa and if so where? I'm considering Win Unity Resort.

We used Exotissimo and we were very happy with their service. The hotel we were staying was Monywa Hotel. It's very basic, but clean. It was OK for one night. The hotel has very nice garden. The service was good. Also it is closer to the city center than Win Unity Resort.

If you have any other questions - please write

Hi again,

Have a look at this:

http://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntre...readID=1467885

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