General Information
Duration: 14 days/13 nights
Tour Routine: Yangon – Golden Rock – Bago – Bagan –Salay – Ayardaw – Tant-chi-Taung – Pakokku – Yandaboo – Ava – Sagaing – Amarapura – Mingun – Mandalay – Inle Lake – Indein – Yangon
Start/End: Yangon/Yangon
Tour Style: Landscape, In-depth Cultural
Guides: Myanmar Local Guide (English Speaking Guide, Other Languages upon Request)
Transportation: RV Orient Pandaw, Private First-class Air-conditioned Vehicles
Brief Itinerary:
Pre-cruise
Day 1: Yangon Arrival
Day 2: Yangon – Train Ride – City Tour
Day 3: Yangon – Golden Rock
Day 4: Golden Rock – Bago – Yangon
7-Night Cruise with RV Orient Pandaw
Day 5: Yangon – Fly to Bagan
Day 6: Bagan Temple Visit
Day 7: Bagan – Sail to Salay – Ayardaw – Tant-chi-Taung
Day 8: Pakokku
Day 9: Yandaboo
Day 10: Ava – Sagaing – Amarapura
Day 11: Mingun – Mandalay
Post-cruise
Day 12: Mandalay – Fly to Inle Lake
Day 13: Inle Lake – Indein – Yangon
Day 14: Departure
Full Itinerary:
Day 1: Yangon Arrival
Mingalabar! Welcome to the Golden Land of Myanmar. Today, welcome by Go Myanmar’s local guide at the airport who will transfer you to your hotel. After freshening up, enjoy the rest of the day at leisure.
Day 2: Yangon – Train Ride – City Tour
After breakfast, meet your guide at the hotel lobby and drive to the train station where you will take a 1-hour train ride to the countryside. Enjoy the real lifestyle of locals and see the beautiful scenes along the way. Return to the city after that, take a private tour and drive through downtown to explore the city center and its fabulous mix of architecture and sites. Your private drive gives you a window to the historical buildings many of which have a faded colonial charm not seen elsewhere in Asia. Head to Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda, home to one of the most sacred reclining Buddha images in the country. At the feet of the Buddha are carved with many unique symbols is the place pilgrims often gather to pay homage.
In the afternoon, make your way to the highlight of the day: Shwedagon Pagoda – one of the greatest Buddhist pagodas in the world. The afternoon is the best time to marvel at its beauty covering by the golden light. Take your time to wander around the pagoda land and admire the fantastic architecture.
Day 3: Yangon – Golden Rock
Leave Yangon early this morning to take a drive to Golden Rock (5 hours). Arrive at Golden Rock base camp, continue to transfer to the transit junction with a small open truck for about an hour. Then you will take an hour’s walk to reach the top of Kaikhtiyo Pagoda where you will see the marvelous Golden Rock perched on a rock cliff. Enjoy the spectacular view of the mountain ranges chasing one after another in the sunset.
Day 4: Golden Rock – Bago – Yangon
Rise early this morning to capture the fresh morning scene from the hillside. Then we drive down to the base camp to travel back to Yangon. En route, we stop at Bago town to visit the local market for a glimpse at the local life and trade; KanbawzaThardi Palace, KalayaniSima (Ordination Hall); Shwemawdaw Pagoda – the highest pagoda in Myanmar and Shwethalyaung Pagoda, one of the world’s most beautiful reclining Buddha. Fulfill your Bago trip at Wood Carving Industry to learn more about the local production. Overnight in Yangon.
Day 5: Yangon – Fly to Bagan
Leave Yangon early this morning to take a flight to Bagan, one of the greatest archaeological sites in the world. On arrival, meet your guide and transfer to the jetty to embark on RV Orient Pandaw. Enjoy a welcome lunch on board and have a short break after that.
Following your afternoon sightseeing with a visit to Ananda, regarded by folklore as the finest temple in Bagan in terms of ancient architecture. Follow your guide to explore the high standard of Bagan craftsmanship including niches with statues, glazed plaques, the standing Buddha statues, and murals.
Next head to Myingabar Gubyaukgyi temple to discover the well-preserved murals which depict typical day-to-day life in Pagan.
End of the day, walk through Phwar Saw Village, a small village with just over 500 inhabitants situated between New Bagan and Nyaung U airport. In the village, people mainly rely on bean and pea farming, breeding cattle and producing small lacquerware handicrafts. Under the shimmering sunshine in the late afternoon is the perfect time to see the villagers’ way of life. You will capture the image of the people fetching water, herding cattle back home and preparing for dinner.
Day 6: Bagan Temple Visit
A full day for further exploration of Bagan. Start the day with a visit to Shwesandaw Stupa, the highest temple in Bagan, gaining a 360-degree view over the pagoda-studded plain. The next visit is Shwezigon Pagoda, dating back to 1086 and believed to enshrine a hair relic of the Buddha.
Before returning to the ship for lunch, stroll around the Khay Min Ga pagoda complex – a man-made masterpiece surrounded by natural beauty. Take this chance to learn about the different architectural styles: Indian, Sri Lankan, Myanmar-Mon hybrid and Myanmar.
In the afternoon, gain more local insights with a visit to the Lacquerware workshop to explore the process of making lacquer handicrafts which is the specialty craft of Bagan.
Continue to the unique Payathonezu, the three inter-connected temples noted for a narrow passage built in the late 13th century.
End the day, visit Dhamayangyi Temple, the widest and largest temple in Bagan. From here take a short drive to the sunset hill to marvel at the dramatic sunset over magnificent sites of Bagan.
Day 7: Bagan – Sail to Salay – Ayardaw – Tant-chi-Taung
This early morning, the ship takes us to Salay, a small town that was once a bustling trading port. Today, it is a sleepy village noted for fascinating colonial architectural treasures and timeless teak monasteries. Disembark at the port for a short excursion to the town. Walk to Yoke-Sone Kyaung, the best-known teak carved monastery in Myanmar. Then stop at Salay House, a riverside historical site on the way back.
Next up, sail upriver to the Ayardaw charity clinic supported by Pandaw then drive up the winding road of the Tant-Chi-Taung Mountain to visit the hill-top stupa. Here you will enjoy the traditional paper-mache elephant dance performed by the villagers.
Day 8: Pakokku
Today, get on a local tuk-tuk to explore Pakokku, make your first visit to the local market and town center by Tuk Tuk.
Your guide will introduce you to the main staple including tobacco, cotton, peanuts, Thanatkha (traditional make-up and sun lotion) and textiles. Finally, stop at a cheroot workshop and discover how traditional cheroot cigars are made.
Day 9: Yandaboo
Today, explore Yandabo village, a famous village note for its production of terracotta pottery from the riverbank clay. Stroll through the village and visit a pottery workshop to get the first-hand experience to the production process and try your hands on make the pot on your own! After that, visit the Pandaw supported Yandabo School (if no school holidays).
Day 10: Ava – Sagaing – Amarapura
As the shop reach Ava this morning, get off the board to visit the formal capital of the Burmese kingdom for nearly 400 years. First, cross the Myit Nge River by a small ferry boat then followed by horse carts to Menu Oak Kyaung monastery. Fulfill the morning visit at the splendid Bagaya Kyaung monastery built entirely of teak in 1834.
This afternoon, take an excursion to Sagaing where there are 1000 hermitages and sanctuaries rich in woodcarving and religious art. Head up to the hill to admire the bird’s eye view over the Irrawaddy River curving around Sagaing from Soon U Ponnya Shin Pagoda. Later, visit a nunnery school to learn more about their way of life.
After that, drive to Amarapura, home to the longest and oldest teak bridge in the world. First visit a silk and cotton weaving workshop, which is Amarapura’s major business. End of the day, take a local boat on Taungthaman Lake to capture the majestic beauty of U Bein Bridge.
Day 11: Mingun – Mandalay
This morning, set sail to Mingun for a short excursion around the unfinished stupa of Mingun which was intended to be built as the world’s largest pagoda but was left to abandon due to many earthquakes.
In the afternoon, as the ship reaches to Mandalay, disembark to discover the royal capital of Myanmar. Start at Mahamuni Pagoda, home to one of the most highly revered Buddha images in the country. Stroll around the pagoda land to observe the local pilgrims and learn more about how people carried the image to the pagoda.
Next up continue to Shwenandaw Monastery (also known as the Golden Palace Monastery) – one of the finest examples of Burmese architecture in the 19th century. From here process to the UNESCO listed Kuthodaw Pagoda, the world’s largest Buddhist book carved on 729 marble slabs.
To learn more about the local, let visit the gold leaf hammering workshop and here take the opportunity to try your hands on making the gold leaf under the guidance of the artisan.
Later on, stop by the moat surrounding the Royal Palace to take some photos to the breathtaking backdrop of Mandalay Hill.
Day 12: Mandalay – Fly to Inle Lake
Say goodbye to Mandalay this morning to take a domestic flight to Inle Lake – the gift of nature for the Intha people. On arrival, welcome by your local guide at the airport and then drive to the Taunggyi town. Before lunch, visit a local nunnery school to learn about their daily life and get to know why every child in Myanmar goes to the monastery or the nunnery school.
Following your afternoon sightseeing with a breathtaking boat trip to pass through the endless floating gardens, your guide will introduce you to how people make these exceptional gardens on islands. Then we visit Ngaphechaung Monastery, the largest wooden monastery on Inle Lake which was built on 629 pillars.
Day 13: Inle Lake – Indein – Yangon
The morning of day 13 gives you a chance to pass through the scenic channels to Indein Village, home to the Pa-Oh ethnic group and the exotic Shwe Indein Pagoda. Stroll along the colonnade to gaze out at special Burmese souvenirs and discover thousands of stupas dotted on the top hill.
In the afternoon, follow your guide to the airport to take a domestic flight to Yangon.
Day 14: Departure
After breakfast, enjoy your time at leisure until the driver comes to pick you up to transfer to the airport to take the departure flight. Trip ends. Thank you for making your vacation with Go Myanmar Cruises.
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