(9 Days - Departs Daily on a Private Basis) Yangon, Bagan, Mandalay, Inle Lake
This private tour of Burma includes the country's most popular destinations. All touring is with your own private guide and driver, and accommodation is at the country's best luxury hotels.
Begin in Yangon (Rangoon). With your private guide and driver, tour the Shwedagon Pagoda, a 300-foot tall golden Buddhist reliquary and the city's most spectacular landmark, the sprawling Scott Market and the National Museum. Also visit neighborhoods that reflect Yangon's Burmese, British, Indian, Bangladeshi and indigenous influences.
Next, fly to unforgettable, awe-inspiring Bagan, where thousands of pagodas and temples stretch from the Ayeyarwady River out across miles of arid plains. Tour the structures, built between the 11th and 13th centuries when Bagan was a major Buddhist center of Southeast Asia, and learn about the history carved in their layered facades, painted in their interior frescoes and sculpted in their Buddhist statues. Also visit local markets and villages. If desired, take a memorable hot air balloon ride over the temples as the sun rises. One evening, ride in a horse-drawn carriage through Bagan at sunset. Another night, take a sunset cruise on the river. If desired, visit Mt. Popa, a place of pilgrimage for over 700 years that is believed to be the home of Myanmar’s powerful nats, or Burmese spirits associated with natural features.
Continue to fabled Mandalay, the cultural heart of Myanmar. Visit craft districts and markets throughout the city and watch a procession of monks at a monastery in the silk weaving center of Amarapura. Also, tour pagodas and ruins in Ava, Mingun and Sagaing—all ancient capitals.
Next, tour Inle Lake, home of the Intha people, and the surrounding countryside. Take a canoe ride down Inle's canals, pass through floating villages built on stilts, and see how the Intha grow crops on reed islands. Visit local crafts villages to shop for distinctive textiles, ceramics and lacquerware, and tour In Dein, where ancient pagodas overlook the lake. Also visit a local vineyard for wine tasting.
Spend a final night in Yangon before departing Burma.
Itinerary Overview
Day 1
Arrive Yangon
Private arrival transfer to hotel for overnight. Afternoon private city touring
Day 2
Yangon - Bagan
Transfer and flight to Bagan for two-night stay. Full-day private touring of ruins. Horse-drawn carriage ride at sunset
Day 3
Bagan
Full-day private touring in Bagan. Optional excursion to Mt. Popa
Day 4
Bagan - Mandalay
Transfer and flight to Mandalay for two-night stay. Private touring in Amarapura, Ava, Sagaing and Mandalay
Day 5
Mandalay
Full-day private touring in Mandalay and Mingun
Day 6
Mandalay - Inle Lake
Transfer and flight to Inle Lake for two-night stay
Day 7
Inle Lake
Private touring around Inle Lake and In Dein
Day 8
Inle Lake - Yangon
Transfer and flight to Yangon for overnight. Afternoon private city touring
