WORLDCLASS DRIVES MYANMAR t t o o Ital-ThaiItal-Thai Y Y e ConstructionConstruction Village Village e Dawei Mudu Buddha Mudu Buddha BawahBawah FootprintFootprint 8 8 Highlights Nabule petro-petro- Nabule chemicalchemical mediummedium Located around 375 kilometers Ma YinMa Gyi Yin Gyioil &oil gas & gas 3 industryindustry DaungDaung PagodaPagoda ShaungShaung flying distance south from Yangon (village)(village) port port light (almost double that distance by “KM0+000” light “KM0+000” industryindustry ProjectedProjected dam dam & lake & lake heavyheavy YebyuYebyu (approximate(approximate area) area) road), Dawei and its friendly DaweiDawei Deep-sea Port Port industryindustry & Special Economic Zone people enjoy a distinctive southern & Special Economic Zone ShinShin Zalun Zalun DevelopmentDevelopment Project Project 3 PagodaPagoda Myanmar culture. (approximate(approximate area area ) ) Pandin-in Pandin-in a A city of around 140,000 people of Hotspring ta t it it y y Myanmar Buddhist and Karen MaungmaganMaungmagan Kudo M M Kudo o 2 SeikSeik 2 TVY to t Christian descent, much of Dawei Thabyechaung (Section 1) has an atmosphere of a ShineShine Thar Thar Yar Yar Beach Beach (TVY) Thabyechaung Boa BoaSay Say bygone era thanks to many wooden MyawMyaw Yit Yit 1 4 PagagyiPagagyi PagodaPagoda buildings that have survived. SamaraSamara Beach Beach DaweiDawei “Popa East” From a centrally-located hotel, the “Popa East” town center is small enough to walk KyauntKyaunt Mae MaeOo Oo Shin Mok Htee PagodaPagoda PagodaShin Mok Htee around, but a car becomes conve- RecliningPagoda Reclining nient for cross-town trips and PanyitPanyit Buddha Image Buddha Image 2 indispensable for longer day-return Shan Maw NyaungzinNyaungzin 4 Shan Maw LaunglonLaunglon journeys (see “Overnight in the t t o o M Dawei Area” page 4 for hotels). Lee LeeKhant Khant Hill Hill M y y San Hlan e San Hlan PagodaPagoda e i i k Fishing Village k Out-of-town sightseeing covers three areas. Foremost is the 60-ki- Tizit Shin Taut Pone Tizit Pagoda lometer-long peninsular west the Shin Taut Pone Dawei River Estuary (Section 2). Its YebyuYebyu Pagoda ThayetchaungThayetchaung rugged west coast landscape of scenic bays backed by sandy beach- 8 8 es and picturesque fishing villages is of outstanding natural beauty. 2 North of the peninsular, an almost N N straight 22-kilometer beach is divided by two inlets. This is where TakyettawTakyettaw the Dawei Deep-sea Port and Special Economic Zone is sched- 0 0 kilometers kilometers 10 10 SinSin uled for construction (Section 3). Sin Htauk Beach Htauk Sin Htauk Beach Htauk KyaukKyauk WatWat Pyin Pyin Hilltop pagodas on the moun- Po PoPo Kyauk Po Kyauk 1 1SectionSection start in drive (Grandfather Beach) tains to the east of Dawei are easy (Grandfather Beach) KyaukKyauk SightseeingSightseeing locations locations NyauNyau Pyin Pyin Ni MawNi Maw to reach (Section 4), but day return Aut restaurantsrestaurants SuggestedDescribed sealed routes routes journeys to places in the scenic hills KyaukAut Wap in villagein village Unsealed routes San SanSa Aw Sa Aw Kyauk Wap Unsealed routes along the road to Myitta and the Unsealed/4WDUnsealed/4WD only only SealedSealed road/highway road/highway Htee Pee border crossing to Thai- FishingFishing village village land are limited by a lack of accom- BeachBeach relatively with close to modation inland and the time Myin Kaw Aw MyatMyat Shin Shin Maw Maw 4-wheelcar parkingvehicle parkingnearby Myin Kaw Aw PagodaPagoda required for a return journey. slowly and be ultra-cautious—pedestrians, vehicles with About this Guide no lights, confusing road works (at night), piles of rocks and are other unlit hazards are common! Page This guide is designed to make self-drive touring in Section 1: Dawei 3 Myanmar easier and must be used together with an online navigation application—though we recom- Section 2: The Dawei Penisular 4 mend Google Maps® in general, Maps.me using West to Maungmagan Beach (± 17 kms) & OpenStreetMap data may be better for the Dawei South to the Myat Shin Maw Pagoda (±85 kms) area. This guide uses Google Maps® spelling conven- Section 3: Nabule & The Dawei Deepsea Port 6 tions for place names and distances, but actual Special Economic Zone (± 40 kms) distances from those shown in this guide may vary Section 4: Inland from Dawei 7 (±) by 2.5kms depending on starting point. Religious sites south on the Myeik Road & Tip: Google Maps is not always as up-to-date as their satellite East toward Myitta (± 50 kms) imagery. Revert to the satellite view for road networks when & the Htee Kee Border Crossing (± 145 kms) such is missing from maps, or try Maps.me. Use media such as Lonely Planet’s Myanmar guide or Driving in Myanmar Travelfish.org, or hire a guide for detailed informa- tion—this guide only lists sights. Suggestions for All Yomacarshare rental vehicles are left-hand drive restaurants, hotels (upscale USD75+/mid-range (right -hand shift) for driving on the right in Myanmar. USD30–60+) and guides are given on pages 3 & 4. Traffic Speeds are relatively slow. Myanmar drivers are usually polite and often give way, especially Before You Arrive & Drive outside of major cities like Yangon and Mandalay. Due to old policy, more than 80 percent of vehicles Valid Driver’s License are right-hand drive vehicles. This may contribute to To legally drive in Myanmar, you must have a valid uncertainty and greater caution. Approach intersec- international driver’s permit or ASEAN driver’s license. tions and circles cautiously and you will get through. Smart Phone and Navigation Application Lane discipline approaching intersections is strict. Your smart phone should be preloaded with Google Drivers do not enter empty left-turn lanes and then Maps® or other navigation applications. cut back in—they may pass on the inside (right side)! Myanmar Sim Card Sealed main roads are generally good, but uneven Getting a Myanmar sim card on arrival (essential for road surfaces and abrupt gradient changes are com- Google Maps®) is recommended—wifi in mid-range mon—do not drive faster than the speed limit of 100 hotels is often inoperable. MPT coverage is good. kph! Narrow one-lane provincial highways require Removable Device Holder extra care; drivers must slow and put offside wheels Bring a detachable holder suitable to attach your on the hard shoulder to pass oncoming traffic! device to the windscreen for driver’s ease of vision Tolls are common on Myanmar’s roads and usually and minimal distraction from the road. vary from MMK 200–1000+. Keep plenty of small notes of Myanmar currency to hand in your vehicle. Contents/Planning Your Drive Night Driving should be avoided since unlit vehi- cles and other hazards raise the accident risk factor. Average journey speeds will be far less than 30 kph on many of the roads in the Dawei area. Unless plan- Gas Stations: Please only top up your tank at new ning to stay in Maungmagan or Sin Htauk (4WD gas stations near large towns. These are less likely to only), routes in this guide require returning to Dawei. serve contaminated fuel from old storage tanks that Always fill your tank in Dawei—a convenient gas can lead to a breakdown of your vehicle! station is on Ka Myaw Kin Road to Maungmagan, ± 600m east of the bridge over the Dawei River. Hotline - 09 966235338 (09 YOMAFLEET) Returning to a hotel in Dawei before dark requires Contact: [email protected] leaving out of town destinations in the afternoon Further information: yomacarshare.com well before sunset (repeating outbound distances). If traveling after dark (not recommended), drive very Dawei 2 1841) and contemporary government offices oppo- Section 1 site. At the far west end of Azarni Street is the fish Dawei market. About 1500m on Seikkan Thar St northwest from the Dawei airport is northeast of the town center and, fish market is theThanintharyi Region Cultural depending on traffic, only a few minutes’ drive (± 3.5 Museum (09:30–16:30 closed Mondays). The muse- kms) from downtown. um is worth visiting for the insights it provides into The capital of Thanintharyi Division, Dawei’s former local history and culture. English appellation of Tavoy (reflected in the city’s Other places in town a guide may lead you to are a airport code TVY) was changed in 1989. When shop that produces crisps made out of fish, a cashew spoken in Burmese, the D of Dawei becomes a T. nut factory, and one of the last shops in town where women still weave on handlooms—finely woven cloth Dawei for use in women’s tube skirts is a specialty of Dawei. That said, on whichever street in Dawei you may be, For most of its history the town has been part of the you are almost certain to see fine examples of wood- Myanmar polity, whether under the kings of Bagan in en houses with hipped roofs covering second floor the 11–13th centuries, the Toungoo Dynasty in the balconies, a style typical of this town. late 16th century or the Konbaung Dynasty from 1760, or as part of British Burma and then Myanmar Apart from the charm of local people, it is the since independence in 1948. abundance of well-preserved wooden and colonial architecture that makes Dawei special and helps give However, the area was also part of former Siam three the town an ambience and more traditional appear- times in its history; under the Kingdom of Ayutthaya ance compared with other large Myanmar towns. from 1287 to 1564, from 1594 to 1614 and from 1740 to 1757. The heritage from Siam may be seen in some Given the economic development that has swept of the town’s pagodas. through Myanmar in recent years, that so much With the Myanmar government giving the green light wooden architectural heritage remains in Dawei is a to the Dawei Deep-sea Port and Special Economic blessing for visitors.