Itinerary FLT 07

[Name] Myanmar exploration V

23 Days / 22 nights (For people who want to explore the mountainous regions of Shan State with their ethnic groups, see all the classic sites and want to relax at the beach as well)

Day 1. Yangon arrival
Day 2. Yangon - Kyaing Tong (by flight)
Day 3. Kyaing Tong
Day 4. Kyaing Tong
Day 5. Kyaing Tong - Heho - Pindaya - Kalaw (by flight and car)
Day 6. Kalaw - Inle Lake (by car)
Day 7. Inle Lake - Indein (by boat)
Day 8. Inle Lake - Sanghar (by boat)
Day 9. Inle Lake - Kakku - Aye Thar Yar (by car) (trekking to Kakku is possible at additional cost)
Day 10. Aye Thar Yar - Heho - Mandalay (by car and flight)
Day 11. Mandalay - Mingun - Ava - Mandalay (by boat and car)
Day 12. Mandalay - Pyin Oo Lwin (by car)
Day 13. Pyin Oo Lwin - Gotheik Viaduct (by train and car)
Day 14. Pyin Oo Lwin - Mandalay (by car)
Day 15. Mandalay - Bagan (by public boat)
Day 16. Bagan
Day 17. Bagan
Day 18. Bagan - Yangon - Pathein - Ngwe Saung Beach (by flight and car )
Day 19. Ngwe Saung Beach
Day 20. Ngwe Saung Beach
Day 21. Ngwe Saung Beach
Day 22. Ngwe Saung Beach - Yangon (by car)
Day 23. Yangon - International departure

Day 1. Upon arrival in Yangon, you will be welcomed by your FLT Tour guide and transferred to the hotel. Visit Yangon city center with many colonial style buildings, Sule pagoda, the reclining Buddha image of Chauk Htut Gyi, Karaweik Hall, a floating barge on Kandawgyi Lake and stroll around Scott (Bogyoke) Market with hundreds of food, clothes, handicrafts and gems stores. Your visit today will conclude with the Shwedagon Pagoda, one of the most awesome and spectacular monuments of Buddhists.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Yangon.

Day 2. After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your domestic flight to Kyaing Tong, the capital of Eastern Shan State. Main attractions there are the primitive hill tribes such as Khun, Akha, Shan, Wa and Lahu. You can explore the town and One tree hill, with old big trees and a view over the area and Naung Tone Lake in town.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Kyaing Tong.

Day 3. In the early morning, visit the colourful market in Kyaing Tong, visit a Palaung ethnic village. Palaung are wearing red clothes and lacquered waist-bands. Continue visiting another ethnic village, Akha or Wa village.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Kyaing Tong.

Day 4. After breakfast proceed to Loimwe, (33 km - 1 hour) where a number of colonial buildings and a century old Catholic Church exist. Continue visit to nearby ethnic villages on foot. Return to Kyaing Tong in the late afternoon.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Kyaing Tong.

Day 5. After breakfast, transfer to the airport for your domestic flight to Heho. Upon arrival to Heho drive by car to Pindaya (60 km - 2 hours) passing through beautiful scenery of Shan State. Visit a local village on the way.
In Pindaya visit Pindaya cave, 160 m deep inside, enshrining 8,000 Buddha images. Your visit will also include traditional Shan Paper making industry.
In the afternoon drive to Kalaw (52 km - 1.5 hours), which is situated nearly, 1,400 Meter above sea level, a charming former hill station with pine forests.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Kalaw.

Day 6. After breakfast, drive by car to Nyaung Shwe (65 km - 2 hours + diversion to the cave) passing through beautiful scenery of Shan State. You may stop at Aung Ban, a regional trading center for agricultural products.
From Aung Ban, you will drive for around 30 minutes towards Loikaw to visit the still not touristic Myin Ma Hti cave. There are beautiful stalagmites and stalactites. Afterwards you will drive back to Aung Ban and continue to Nyaung Shwe, the gateway to the Inle Lake and transfer to your hotel (1 hour by boat before dawn if your hotel is located on the Lake).
Depending on your arrival time to the Lake, in the afternoon you can still make an excursion on the Lake.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Inle Lake.

Day 7. After breakfast visit the five day's market at nearby village (if coinciding with market day schedule). Continue your journey to the Western bank of Inle Lake upstream on a creek to get to Indein Pagoda where thousands of Shan style stupas exist. You will also get a chance to stroll around bamboo forest and visit local villages to experience village life of tribal people.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Inle Lake.

Day 8. After breakfast, start your private long-tail boat trip to Sanghar village (preferably guests should stay at Golden Island Cottages (30 km - 2 hours from Golden Island Cottages)). Sanghar was in the 18th century one of the larger cities in Shan State (30 km - 2 hours). The highlights of this site are the remote village, stupas that sometimes get flooded in the rainy season and water lilies growing in mass. Have lunch at Thar Kaung village and visit a basic local rice liquor distillery and return to your hotel. The trip leads you through very interesting landscape, the lake becomes a creek to widen to a lake again before Sanghar.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Inle Lake.

Day 9. After breakfast, drive to Kakku Pagoda complex in the territory of the Pa-O ethnic group (70 km from Nyaung Shwe - 2.5 hours; if your hotel is on the Lake, you will need to go by boat to Nyaung Shwe). The highlight of this site is the 2,500 temples and stupas aligned in rows, in a 1 sq-km area. Huge and shady Banyan trees and charming Pa-O villages surround it. A Pa-O guide will also assist you in addition to your tour guide. In the afternoon, drive back via Taunggyi to Aye Thar Yar
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at charming Aye Thar Yar Golf Resort

For guests in very good physical condition, we can arrange trekking from Inle Lake to Naung Khe village (500 Meters difference in elevation - 4 hours fast walking) uphill to continue from there by your car to Kakku. The car will carry your luggage. This is possible at additional cost. The rest of the day from viewing Kakku is the same as above.

Day 10. After breakfast, transfer to Heho airport for your domestic flight to Mandalay. Upon arrival visit to Amarapura, Mahagandayon Monastery, where thousands of monks are studying as well as 200 years old U Bein bridge. Visit will also include silk weaving a factory.
In the afternoon visit to Golden Palace Monastery, world largest stone slab book of Kutodaw Pagoda. Enjoy the sunset over Mandalay Hill.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Mandalay.

Day 11. After breakfast, transfer to jetty and go on a private boat on Ayeyarwady river (11 km - 2 hours) to visit Mingun. See the unfinished pagoda, the 90-ton, ringing bell of Mingun and Myatheintan Pagoda. Return by private boat to Mandalay.
In the afternoon, continue to Ava, the former royal Capital. Sightseeing by horse drawn carriage will take you to a leaning watchtower and Bargayar Monastery, noted for its magnificent wood carvings and teak posts.
In the evening, explore the Night market with many local food stalls and China made items being sold.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Mandalay.

Day 12. After breakfast, drive to Pyin Oo Lwin (67 km - 2 hours). You will leave the Ayeyarwady plains and ascend into the mountains. On the way there is a nice view, overlooking the plains. Further up, there is a place called "21 miles" where many food stalls and street vendors display their agricultural and food products. Shortly before Pyin Oo Lwin, there are flower vendors with a variety of colourful flowers from this region.
Your visit in Pyin Oo Lwin will include a Chinese Temple, hundred year old Candacraig Hotel and the local market.
In the afternoon, visit the beautiful Botanical Garden. A place to relax, one can see variety of trees and flowers, birds and a number of theme gardens. Return to your hotel by horse drawn cart.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Pyin Oo Lwin.

(Guests in very good physical condition can alternatively walk down to Anisakan Waterfalls (300 Meters difference in elevation - 2 hours walking - in parts a steep trek) 10 km before Pyin Oo Lwin. The waterfalls are really beautiful and worth the strenuous walk. The walk way descends in a thickly forested ravine. The view on arrival is stunning, the waterfall comes down to you from a cliff, there is a pool on the bottom - visit not recommended shortly after the rainy season!)

Day 13. After breakfast, transfer to Pyin Oo Lwin railway station to experience a train ride. (Trains are not punctual and not comfortable). The highlight of your train ride is crossing the Gotheik viaduct, This railway Viaduct was built around a 100 years ago and at that time was a masterpiece in engineering. It is an impressive steel structure over a deep valley. The ride is especially interesting as the train coming from Pyin Oo Lwin stops in front of the viaduct to let an oncoming southbound train pass. To put least stress on the structure, the train crawls over the viaduct in snail pace. You can look down into the deep valley from the train windows.
After crossing the viaduct, leave the train at the next station, Naung Pein Station. There you will be picked up by your car and drive back to your hotel (96 km - 2 hours)
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Pyin Oo Lwin.

Day 14. After breakfast, you have time at your leisure in Pyin Oo Lwin. After lunch drive back to Mandalay. The rest of the day is at your leisure in Mandalay, guide and car are at your disposal.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Mandalay.

Day 15. Take away breakfast and very early morning transfer to the jetty for the public boat "Shwe Keinnary" to go downstream on Ayeyarwady River to Bagan. Enjoy a relaxing day with the landscape passing by and observing the people's life along the river. There is an air-conditioned room available. The trip takes approximately 10 hours depending on the river conditions and water levels. Upon arrival to Bagan, transfer to the hotel.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Bagan.

Day 16. Continue the day with visits to the most significant Pagodas and Temples of Bagan including Shwezigone Pagoda, built in the early 11thcentury, Ku Byauk Gyi, a temple with superb mural paintings and Ananda temple with four standing Buddha Images and a huge teak door.
After lunch, visit to one of the lacquer-ware workshop. Visit will follow to Manuha temple, built in Mon style, Nanbayar Temple with a unique sand stone monument. Your visit will also include Myinkaba Gu-Byauk-Gyi Temple, a temple known for its mural paintings.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Bagan.

Day 17. After breakfast visit the site of Tayoke Pyay Temple and some further Temples as you wish. The visit will also include Bagan Archaeological Museum where various styles of Buddha Images and hair knot styles are displayed.
After lunch, continue to a farming village around Bagan to know life of local people and local rice-noodle making. Few tourists go to those villages, you have time to explore the village life. In the late afternoon, return to Bagan.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay in Bagan.

Day 18. After breakfast, transfer to Nyaung Oo airport for domestic flight to  Yangon. Transfer to Ngwe Saung by car (200 km - 5 hours)
Upon your check-in in Bagan, your tour guide's service ends. If you wish your tour guide to accompany you until arrival to Ngwe Saung Beach, it can be arranged at additional cost.
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Ngwe Saung Beach.

Day 19. Leisure at Ngwe Saung Beach
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Ngwe Saung Beach.

Day 20. Leisure at Ngwe Saung Beach
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Ngwe Saung Beach.

Day 21. Leisure at Ngwe Saung Beach
Lunch and Dinner on your own account and overnight stay at Ngwe Saung Beach.

Day 22. Before lunch, drive back to Yangon (230 km - 5 hours) via Pathein town. Optionally if you leave early from Ngwe Saung, you can visit Pathein town, a nice sleepy town with monk's umbrella manufacturing.
Continue your journey back to Yangon, rest of the day is at your leisure for relaxing, shopping or sightseeing, the car will be at your disposal. (Tour Guide will only be provided on request)

Day 23. Yangon - International departure
Day at your leisure for relaxing, shopping or sightseeing until transfer to airport for departure. The car and Tour Guide will be at your disposal.

(Guests arriving to Myanmar by morning or mid-day flight will follow the above-mentioned program. But if you arrive only in the afternoon, you will be directly transferred to your hotel and Yangon sightseeing will be provided on the last day.)

 

Hotels	Aye Thar Yar	Mandalay	Pyin Oo Lwin	Bagan	Ngwe Saung
Standard	Aye Thar Yar Golf Resort (Sup)	Nadi Myanmar	Royal Park View Hotel	Bagan Thande Hotel (Sup)	Yuzana Resort Deluxe Room
Middle	Aye Thar Yar Golf Resort (Jun. Suite)	Mandalay Swan Hotel	Kandawgyi Lounge	Bagan Thande Hotel (Dlx)	Sunny Paradise Standard room
Deluxe	Aye Thar Yar Golf Resort (Dlx. Suite)	Sedona Hotel		Tharabar Gate Hotel	Palm Beach

 

PRICES

Validity: Prices are valid during the high season from 01 October 2006 until 30 April 2007 (there might be surcharges during peak season times, e.g. Christmas and New Year and depending on the hotels chosen – please inquiry with us for your travel date). Please ask for discounted rates for the low season.
All prices are in USD per Person

Add on for German speaking through-out tour guide: 450.-- USD for the whole tour (not per person). Tour guides speaking other languages can be arranged – please check with us)

Included:

- Accommodation (twin shared room)
- Breakfast at hotel
- English speaking local "through out" guide including all miscellaneous cost for the guide (but not at the beach!)
- Additional local trekking guide in Kalaw, Sanghar, Kakku and Kyaing Tong.
- Entrance fees and camera fees
- Transport (domestic flights as advised / car-, train-, boat- and cart transport as mentioned in the itinerary / all airport- and jetty transfers as mentioned, luggage handling included)
-Public boat "Shwe Keinnary" (except Wednesdays and Sundays)
- Bottled drinking water & refreshing towels in normal quantities

Excluded:

- International airport tax (US$ 10 per person)
- Personal expenses such as beverages, laundry and souvenirs and tips
- Meals (Lunch / Dinner)
- trekking to Kakku unless booked
- Personal insurance
- Visa fees for Myanmar
- International flights
- If guest's wish to alter the itinerary, extra charges may apply.
- Tour Guide will not join you from Nyaung Oo airport to the beach unless booked.

• Kindly keep in mind that our itineraries might need to be amended on short notice depending on changes to flight- and boat schedules, condition of roads etc.