I actually posted the very first review of this hotel on TA after petitioning them to list it on their site. At the time I complained about some its dicey electrical connections. Obviously these have extended to the shower and its water heater. I am amused that the person whose auntie was electrocuted rated the hotel "poor" rather than "terrible"...

All, do check the 'Poor' review if you haven't (Craig, I agree, it was a bit odd that they wouldn't give it the lowest rating) but more importantly check the 'Terrible' review...which is another story--considerably earlier than this one--where almost the exact same thing happened to another family. Luckily they didn't die.

What gives me pause is that any decent business (especially a higher-end one as this one) would absolutely respond to those posts especially when such outrageous and incendiary claims are made (i.e., I almost died, or died, in your hotel.)

Will talk more to Zaw, but honing in on Thiripyitsaya as of now.

Kathie, et al,

What is the verdict on guides? I'm leaning towards NOT using one comprehensive guide with Santa Maria...and just figuring things out as we go from destination to destination in Burma.

I'm trying to save on costs and definitely don't want to pay to have a guide follow us around the entire trip. Plus, given the experience we had with extended-period 'guided tours' in China last April I'm sort of generally opposed to guides who spend too much time with you in a given set time period. It got old very fast.

BUT, that said, I still do want to get guides where we *need* them. We're fairly self-sufficient but where history is imperative I feel like you can't skimp. For example, I never would have wanted to tour Angkor without the history and background we got from our guide, Dara.

So, at the very least, I have a feeling in Bagan we'd want one. Although, I hear in places like Inle you don't really need a guide if you have a boat driver. They kind of are one in the same.

Any guidance in this department would be useful. Thanks!

Ok, I'm like you and don't want a guide following me (or worse yet, trying to lead me!) around all the time.

At Inle, your boatman is unlikely to speak much English, and certainly isn't a guide. When you go to Sankar (and you should) and Kakku, you'll automatically get a Pa-O guide. Otherwise, there is no need for a guide at Inle. At Bagan, of course, I recommend Min Thu who is incredible - best guide we've had anywhere. He can take you by horsecart (highly recommended) and can take you by car as needed to remote places.

Did you arrange him through SM or independently?

I would also suggest one for Yangon, you only need them for 1 day ( or maybe half) but we did go to some interesting places and was a much more efficient way to see the city. When we got back to Yangon a week later we just mooched around on our own (BTW for me Shwedagon is a must visit in the day and at night!) I also have to say when we landed in Yangon from Bagan seeing the familiar face of the SM driver was a welcome relief in the crazy scrum of porters!

Sounds like part-time guides would work for you - someone to help you navigate the 3 or 4 major sites in Yangon and someone (like Min Thu) to give you the history of the temples in Bagan. You don't need a guide at Inle Lake but our time there was greatly enhanced because we had one (see my TR). Guides in Yangon or Inle can be arranged through SM. Min Thu can be contacted directly. SM will do whatever you want so if you only want a guide part-time, that's okay. I highly recommend arranging transport from the airports with SM.

I recently returned from a three week trip to Myanmar. Based on my experience, you do not need to pay SM for a taxi transfer from Yangon airport. It is 3 times more expensive than going to the taxi desk in the airport and getting a taxi. It is fast, easy, and inexpensive. As far as guides go, we used them for the ancient cities in Mandalay, Kakku and Sankar. If you can't book Min Thu, then you probably need a guide in Bagan, as well. You can get a guide on site at Schwedegon Pagoda if you do not want a guide for all of Yangon, which I do not think you need. If you want more details on navigating Myanmar, click on my name for my recent TR.

No, we did not arrange Min Thu through Santa Maria. We found him in Bagan and have since recommended him to many.

We used a driver (but not a guide) in the Ancient Cities areas around Mandalay.

We opted for airport transfers only at Mandalay and HeHo (for Inle).

We did not use a guide in Yangon - it's really easy to get around on your own.

Kathie, unfortunately Mandalay is not on the itinerary. The other two places you mentioned, though...Sankar I know is near Inle but not familiar with Kakku. Another day trip from Inle?

BTW, thanks EVERYONE for such good advice so far. Already contacted and reserved Min Thu (!) for December. Kathie, you mentioned something about a car for "further afield" sights in Bagan. Can Min Thu arrange that as well?

Plan to get airport transfers in Inle and Bagan. Still on the fence about a guide in Yangon. May follow Nicky's suggestion and just get one for a few hours.

FW if your time is short ( and I suspect it will be in Yangon ) I know you can do it on your own but you will get to see so much more, more efficiently. Yep it's a bit of a luxury but I found it easier to get them to whizz me round in a day and then look at other stuff at my leisure when we got back. We didnt have a guide at Shwedagon when we went back at night ( although that didn't stop some old guy walking round with us and showing us all the great photo spots.., :) )

When are you going? Will you be in LA end Nov/ beginning Dec?

Mandalay is the least compelling of the "big four." You have chosen your places to visit wisely, IMO.

Sankar is the southern part of Lake Inle. I wrote a post on my long-neglected travel blog about what to see at Inle: http://www.travelindependently.com/r...-for-inle-lake

Kakku is near Inle. If you go back to my 2009 trip report, you'll see that we visited Kakku on our way from the airport to the hotel.

Min Thu's brother drives a taxi, so Min Thu can arrange airport transfers for you for the standard rate of 6000 kyat. He can also arrange a car for any of the farther away temples you might want to visit. I have to admit, we didn't do that, but Robbietravels did.

Wow - you are moving right along on your trip planning!

Back to the guide question. Sometimes they can make things happen you couldn't on your own. As I wrote in my report, one of our quieter guides still made extra arrangements including special permission, for us to find and visit a Myanmar artist in his home! That was a highlight for us!

Have you all had trouble getting through to Santa Maria via email in the past? I've emailed them 3 times now (once through the website and twice directly) and haven't heard a peep back.

Better to Skype them?

FW - they can be a bit slow , as I believe the email connection can be intermittent. have you made contact at all?

No contact at all, Smeagol. That's why I'm starting to get a little concerned.

Keep trying, using all email addresses you have. I once had to resend my email 4 times before I heard from them.

Internet is not exceptionally reliable in Burma. (now there is an understatement!) While I was there, their internet went down for several days, and I called them for Shelly. I have two email addresses for them, and they said I should always send to both. Also, at their recommendation, I opened a gmail acccount. They sometimes have problems with email to/from aol accounts. I'm still on Kauai, so I don't have all my notes from my planning, but I'll see if I can find the two addresses I used. Also, Zaw said if I didn't hear from them in a couple of days to re-send the emails. I only had to do that a couple of times in our long correspondence.

Bill, I will forward one of the emails I used , which almost always got a response within 24 hours, see if that helps. X

Is it best to book Balloons Over Bagan through SM or independently?