Romance in Myanmar Sample Itinerary
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R O M A N C E I N M Y A N M A R Sample Itinerary ROMANCE IN MYANMAR | OVERVIEW I TINERARY OVERVIEW 11 Days / 10 Nights Yangon - Bagan - Mandalay - Inle - Ngapali -Yangon FEATURED 1 Night Yangon EXPERIENCES 2 Nights Bagan Bagan Temple Visits and Sightseeing Tour Sunset Boat Cruise and Dinner Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Ride and Bagan Sightseeing Tour 2 Nights Mandalay Mandalay Cycling Tour and Evening Visit to Mandalay Hill Mandalay Sightseeing, Sagaing Tour, Horse-drawn Carriage Ride and Sunset at U Bein Bridge 2 Nights Inle Lake Cooking Class on Inle Lake Visit to Red Mountain Vineyard and Sunset Wine Tasting 2 Nights Bgapali Relaxing Beach Day Sunrise Hot Air Balloon Ride 1 Night Yangon Yangon Sightseeing Tour and Sunset over Shwedagon Pagoda TO BOOK THIS ITINERARY OR CUSTOMIZE AN ASIA PACIFIC ITINERARY, CONTACT [email protected] OR YOUR LOCAL TOUR EAST SALES REPRESENTATIVE R O M A N C E I N M Y A N M A R | S A M P L E I T I N E R A R Y 0 1 / 1 0 ITINERARY DAY 1 Welcome to Yangon, Myanmar! Yangon, formerly known as Rangoon, is Myanmar's largest city and commercial center. It is an eclectic mix of traditional British colonial WELCOME TO YANGON architecture, new modern buildings and high-rises and numerous stunning golden Buddhist pagodas. The most famous of these is the famous Shwedagon Paya, which is a huge, shimmering gilded pagaoda complex attracting thousands of visitors. Yangon is also home to other notable religious sites including Botataung and Sule pagodas, both must-sees when visiting this fascinating city. You will be met on arrival at Yangon International Airport and transferred to your hotel of choice. Lunch will be served at a local restaurant after which are free to spend the remainder of your day relaxing, enjoying the facilities and exploring Yangon. DAY 2 Transfer to the airport for a domestic flight to Bagan, the most extensive archaeological site in Asia. You will be collected at your hotel to enjoy a day visiting some of the YANGON TO BAGAN highlights of Bagan with a knowledgeable guide at your side all the way to explain, inform and enlighten. You will be transported in air-conditioned comfort, between some of the most well-known pagodas such Ananda Pagoda, Dhammayangyi Temple and That Byin Nyu Temple to name just a few and you will be shown examples of wonderful architecture and paintings from the 9th to 13th century, which are evident throughout the plains. A Myanmar traditional lunch of rice, curry and salad will be served at a hand-picked restaurant in the area whilst you learn more about the history of Bagan from your guide, before your journey of exploration continues in the afternoon to more archaeological sites including the Manuha Temple. After a short drive, we will arrive at Bu Paya on the banks of the Ayeyarwarddy River and join our cruise boat for a delicious, specially prepared dinner accompanied by spectacular sunset views as we travel slowly down stream. You will then be transported back to your hotel carrying many wonderful memories of the day with you. R O M A N C E I N M Y A N M A R | S A M P L E I T I N E R A R Y 0 1 / 1 0 ITINERARY The best way to see and appreciate the vast expanse and beauty of this area is from a DAY 3 hot air balloon and this is a ‘must do’ when in Bagan. The 5am start really is worth it to BAGAN experience the breathtaking sunrise from this stunning perspective. A private transfer will take you to the departure site and, following a safety briefing, you will take to the skies with a European commercially licensed pilot at the controls. Look out over the magnificent temple-strewn plain form the traditional wicker basket, which only takes a maximum of 12 guests for that truly personal experience. Your flight of a lifetime will last approximately 45 minutes, but as you eventually drift gently back down to earth, you will be greeted by our dedicated staff ready to help you celebrate your trip with a glass of chilled sparkling wine, whilst you enjoy a delicious breakfast. After breakfast, our first visit is to the iconic Shwezigon Pagoda. The graceful bell shape of this pagoda became a prototype for virtually every pagoda all over Myanmar. We will also visit Gu Byauk Gyi Temple, the 13th-century cave temple and afterwards the local market of Nyaung Oo with vendors offering a variety of fresh farm produce and uniquely local items. Next stop is Myinkaba Village, famous for the intricate lacquer ware making and decoration, a tradition passed down through many generations. Close by, we will also visit Sulamani Pahto, an impressive and elegant temple with intricate brickwork throughout and considered to be some of the best in Bagan. After having lunch in a local restaurant, we will visit the agricultural village of Minnanthu, specializing in the production of sesame and peanut oil. We will explore the village where it appears that time has stood still, learning all about the local people, their daily activities, traditions and customs. After this full and interesting day, we will head back to the hotel and enjoy a relaxing evening at your own leisure. R O M A N C E I N M Y A N M A R | S A M P L E I T I N E R A R Y 0 1 / 1 0 ITINERARY DAY 4 We will take an early morning transfer to the airport for a flight to Mandalay and transfer to the hotel. BAGAN - MANDALAY We will enjoy a day of exploring Myanmar's second city by bicycle. Firstly we take a short ride to Shwenandaw monastery, an historic Buddhist monastery and one of the finest examples of traditional 19th century wooden buildings in the country. Both the exterior and interior of the monastery are decorated with intricate wood carvings. The next stop on our ride is Kuthodaw Pagoda, a Buddhist stupa, home to the world's largest book made of 729 marble stone slabs inscribed on both sides with pages from Tipitaka, a Buddhist scripture. On our route we will cycle through areas specializing in local industries such as bamboo weaving and noodle factories and you can enjoy watching the daily routine of the local people along the way, seeing the verdant open rice fields and feel the breeze blowing down from the Shan mountains. We will take a well-earned break for a traditional lunch at a local restaurant, after which we will cycle on to discover Mahamuni Paya, a buddhist temple home to a 4-meter-high seated Buddha, a nationally celebrated image that is believed to be some 2000 years old. Centuries of gold leaf applied by male devotees has left the figure with a 20-cm layer of pure gold except on his gleaming face, which is ceremonially polished daily at 4am. Next we will visit some of the artisan workshops that Mandalay is so well known for and where you can observe skilled craftsmen at work producing wood carvings, gold- leaf and tapestries, using skills and techniques which have remained unchanged from centuries ago. Our bike ride ends here and we take a short drive to Mandalay Hill. Our day concludes with an evening on Mandalay Hill, a 240 meters high hill located to the northeast of the city center of Mandalay and well known for its abundance of pagodas and monasteries. At the top of the hill is the Sutaungpyei Pagoda which provides a stunning panoramic view of Mandalay and is a perfect spot to view the glorious sunset before heading back to the hotel. R O M A N C E I N M Y A N M A R | S A M P L E I T I N E R A R Y 0 1 / 1 0 ITINERARY DAY 5 Our first stop of the day is to a silk workshop where we meet the skillful craftsmen renown for weaving traditional Myanmar silk. We then transfer to Sagaing, the ancient MANDALAY - SAGAING - AVA - capital of the Sagaing Dynasty, which lies 21 km southwest of Mandalay, on the west AMARAPURA bank of Ayeyarwaddy River. It is home to 500 stupas and multiple monasteries and nunneries housing more than 6,000 monk and nuns. We will also take some time to stroll around the local market and discover the products of the region, followed by lunch served at a local restaurant. After eating, we cross over the river and take a horse carriage ride through the ancient teak temples in Ava, where we will have the opportunity to visit the Maha monastery and the beautiful wooden monastery of Bagaya Kyaung. Next stop on our tour is a visit to Amarapura to see the long procession of monks and novices lining up for daily alms. Finally, we will enjoy the sunset as we stroll across the world’s longest teak bridge at U Bein Bridge. After sunset you will be returned back to your hotel. DAY 6 After a leisurely breakfast we will transfer to the airport for our flight to Heho. Once there, we will drive to Inle, around 45 mins by road. Our journey will take us past some MANDALAY - INLE LAKE beautiful colorful Myanmar scenery and varied landscapes of mountains and fields full of crops. Arriving at Inle Lake you will see the Intha fishermen with their unique one- legged rowing style perched on the stern of their boats as you cruise past local villages in a private motorboat.