General Information

Capital

Yangon, the capital of The Union of Myanmar is situated on the Yangon River 21 miles away from the sea. Yangon covers 77 square miles and has population of 5 million people. The capital city is famous for its great golden Shwedagon pagoda, a richly gilded Buddhist Stupa which rises 326 feet above Singuttara hill, about 4 miles north of the city centre. According to legend, the pagoda is believed to be 2500 years old but, in common with many other ancient pagoda, it has been rebuilt many times and its current form dates back only to 1769 A. D.

New Capital

New capital “Naypyitaw“, established in 2006 is situated about 260 miles North of Yangon.
It is an administrative capital.

Currency

Local currency is Kyat (approx. 1 U.S. Dollar = 6.00 Kyats ) US Dollars in cash or travelers' chaque, as well as other major foreign currencies can be exchanged only at hotels, airport or Foreign Trade Banks. The monetary unit of Myanmar is the " Kyat " which is divided into 100 pyas. Currency notes are available in denominations of Kyats 1000, Kyats 500, Kyats 200, Kyats 100, Kyats 50,  Kyats 20, Kyats 10, Kyats 5, Kyat 1.

Credit Card

Visa card, Master card and JCB cards are accepted at a few 4 star Hotels and international airlines. US Dollar Travelers cheques are not accepted.

Visa Formalities

Tourist visas are issued at all Myanmar Embassies and Consulates abroad.
Myanmar has increased its TOURIST VISA to 28 days to allow tourists to stay longer at each famous cultural sites as well as visits to newly introduced areas. Tourist visas can be obtained within a day or two. Entry to Myanmar and departure are permissible through Yangon International Airport, Mandalay International Airport, Sea Port and China and Thai boarder points. Visa fees are US$20.00 per person.

Visa on Arrival Permit

Visa on arrival Permit can be done on prior basis for tourists from countries, where Myanmar Embassies do not exist.  We would need passport number, passport date of issue, passport date of expire,nationality, occupation, address and two photos to apply visa on arrival permit.

Formalities

Duty free shopping for arrival passengers at the Yangon Airport has been introduced.

International flights

Yangon has direct air-link with Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Singapore, Dhaka, Kuala Lumpur, Hong Kong, Kumming, Guangzhou, New Delhi. The operating airlines are Myanmar Airways International (8M), Thai Airways International (TG), Silk Air (MI), Biman Bangladesh Airlines (BG), Air China (CA), China Airlines (CI), Mandarin Airlines (AE), Air India (AI), Malaysia Airlines (MH).
More international airlines have extended their flights to Myanmar. They are Bangkok Airways (PG), China Eastern Airline (MU), Thai Air Asia (FD), China Southern Airlines (CZ) and Vietnam Airlines (VN).

4 countries 1 destination (ASEAN)

Myanmar already has air-link with Thailand and Cambodia. According to 4countries 1 destination program, we plan to have air route connection within 4 countries i.e MYANMAR, THAILAND, LAOS and CAMBODIA in the very near future.

Domestic flights

Myanmar Airways, Air Mandalay, Yangon Airways and Air Bagan are major domestic carriers.
The airlines use ATR and Fokker aircrafts.

Myanmar Airways - http://www.maiair.com/
Air Mandalay - http://www.airmandalay.com/
Yangon Airways - http://www.yangonair.com/
Air Bagan - http://www.airbagan.com/

Climate

There are three general seasons :
Hot season - March to May
Rainy season - May to October in lower Myanmar and the Delta area only.
(Almost no rain in Central Myanmar i.e. Bagan and Mandalay)
Cool season - October to February

Suitable Clothing to wear

Visitors should wear casual and polite dress. Any kind of shoes that can be easily removed since neither shoes nor socks are allowed when entering religious monuments. Precipitation in Upper Burma (Bagan / Mandalay) is much less than in Lower Burma (Yangon and the South). All year round we recommend sun protection, dress code everywhere is casual, light cotton garb is recommended. Weather is rather cold from November to February in Shan state, Inle Lake, Kalaw, Chin state and Kachin state. Recommend to bring warm cloths for this area.

Border-crossing

Border-crossing permit is given to nationals from third country, who wishes to enter to Myanmar from border points. Myanmar, having bordered with Thailand, China, India and Laos, the entry points are opened between neighbouring countries for centuries. A Tourist who wishes to enter from the border point will need prior approval from the authorities.  The border points from China entry are MUSE, NAMKHAN, MONG-LA and from Thailand entry is TACHILEIK and RANONG. The border point from India is opened at TAMU border town.

Travel tips

All kinds of transport such as buses, trains, flights, boats are available in Myanmar. Due to lack of infrastructure, local buses and trains cannot consider as easy traveling but profitable to meet people and see landscape through out the journey. The best part to travel by train is Yangon – Mandalay (OR) Mandalay – Yangon. Each way takes about 14 hrs. Travel by flight is the best and easiest way to travel. Three airlines (Air Mandalay, Yangon Air and Air Bagan) run the main tourist sites. The airlines use ATR 72 and ATR 42 French aircrafts and Fokker 100.

Shopping

Best souvenirs to buy are Myanmar handicrafts made of lacquer wares, silver, mother of pearl, wood and stone carvings, hand-woven silk and cotton materials, gems and jewellery, embroidered tapestries ‘Kalaga’, traditional Myanmar puppets and tribal handcrafts.

Taking Photos

Take plenty of film, as locally available supplies are not always reliable. Photography in airports, railway stations and near any military installation is forbidden. For close-up shots of people always ask for permission first.

Health Card

Protective vaccination is generally not required for Myanmar unless you enter the country from a region with incidence of yellow fever. It is, however, recommended to have polio, tetanus and hepatitis shots as well as malaria prophylaxis. It is best to bring your own small first-aid kit including medication. It is sometimes difficult to find even common Western drugs. Some of the big hotels avail medical assistance.

Emergency Health Care and Emergency evacuation

Recommended places are:

Pan Hlaing International
Pan Hlaing Golf Course Housing, Hlaing Tha Yar.
Phone: 684325

International SOS
37, Kaba Aye Pagoda Road, Inya Lake Hotel, Mayangon Township, Yangon
Phone: 667871

Health Care

You should take adequate supplies of prescription medicines with you as such medicine might not be available while you are touring. There are no SARS infections in Myanmar.

Transportation

We provide air-conditioned coaches, minivans and cars for all tours and transfers inside the country. In remote areas, however, air-conditioned vehicles may not always be available.

Voltage

Voltage throughout Myanmar is 220 Volt A.C. International standard hotels have their own generator and the voltage is constant.  Voltage drop or electricity cut occurs in some hotels, it is advisable to travel with a protection for your electrical devices.

Time in Myanmar

Myanmar Local Time = GMT + 6 ½ hours. Between November and March (the main season for travelling) the   sun sets at 5.30pm.

Insurance

Visitors are advised to buy travel insurance from abroad. Hospitals in Myanmar are good enough for local people. Pan Hlaing Hospital is the only hospital for international. A few International medical assistance companies are in Yangon. The companies provide medical and technical support services.

Cellular Telephones or Mobile Telephones

Cellular Telephones or Mobile Telephones from other countries are unable to operate in Myanmar. Prepaid GSM telephone cards are available at Yangon International Airport, Myanmar Shopping Mall and mobile phone shops. One card cost - 20USD.