We spent a little over two weeks in Myanmar with a stop in Bangkok during November of 2018. It was a really fulfilling and fascinating trip that we had our sights on for a while before we were able to make it happen. I think we really nailed it with our itinerary – it came together with a few serendipitous events that made it super exciting and special. That’s not even mentioning the fact that we got engaged!! Which was also a delightful part of the trip 🙂 but engagement or not, I think this ended up being an awesome trip 10/10! Here’s what it looked like:
Our Schedule:
November 9th – November 26th (19 Days)
Nov 9 (Day 1) – Travel RNO to LAX and LAX onto TPE
Nov 10 (Day 2) – TPE to BKK. We landed at 10pm so went straight to AirBnB.
Nov 11 (Day 3) – Bangkok. Explored during the day and took a tour with Backstreet Street Food Tour in the evening.
Nov 12 (Day 4) – Bangkok. Free day to explore and hangout in Bangkok.
Nov 13 (Day 5) – BKK to RGN. This was a quick flight so we checked into the hotel and then walked around Yangon. We also took a food tour this evening with Sa Ba Street Food Tours. Great way to see the area on our first night!
Nov 14 (Day 6) – Yangon. Took the Yangon Circular Train to some super interesting markets.
Nov 15 (Day 7) – RGN to NYU. Early flight so we landed early, checked into the hotel, and rented e-bikes. Then we had the whole day to start exploring Bagan.
Nov 16 (Day 8) – Bagan
Nov 17 (Day 9) – Bagan
Nov 18 (Day 10) – Bagan
Nov 19 (Day 11) – NYU to HEH. Left Bagan mid-day for Kalaw, the starting point for our trek to Inle, and spent the afternoon exploring Kalaw.
Nov 20 (Day 12) – Trek to Inle Lake
Nov 21 (Day 13) – Trek to Inle and spend a night in Inle
Nov 22 (Day 14) – Spend the day in Inle and drive to Taungghyi in the afternoon. Check into the hotel and get ready for the balloon festival!
Nov 23 (Day 15) – HEH to RGN. Back to Yangon after a wild night at the balloon festival. Arrived in the early afternoon and had the rest of the day to sight see.
Nov 24 (Day 16) – Yangon. Full day of exploring, relaxing, and antique shopping.
Nov 25 (Day 17) – RGN to BKK and BKK to TPE. Spent the night in Taipei.
Nov 26 (Day 18) – TPE to LAX and LAX to RNO!
Wow! Looking at that now it sounds a little rushed, but a lot of the hopping around was between domestic locations with minimal travel time. For example, the drive from Inle Lake to Taungghyi was like 45 minutes so we were able to get a full morning in Inle, make the drive, and get a full afternoon/evening in Taungghyi. Also, of all the places we stopped, Inle was my least favorite, so I’m SO glad we didn’t decide to spend a full day there.
We got very lucky with the balloon festival! Taungghyi isn’t particularly easy to get to or on the the main tourist path. We had conveniently planned to be in the area at exactly the right time (the festival is held on the full moon day in November.) As we were researching Inle and the surrounding area, I happened to see that the festival was taking place while we were there so with minimal adjustment we were able to fit it in. 100000% worth it, I would highly recommend. Truly unlike anything I’ve ever done.
Where We Stayed:
Bangkok: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/18155163?s=67&unique_share_id=87ec9216-c226-4728-999f-31d5eae94e8a
This airbnb was really fun. The hosts were great and so was the location.
Yangon: https://www.booking.com/hotel/mm/yangon-heritage.html
Good deal, comfortable and a good location.
Bagan: http://bluebirdhotelbagan.com/
I loved our stay here. Was great to take a break and dip in the pool at the hottest time of the afternoon. Awesome service and good food and drinks.
Kalaw: https://www.booking.com/hotel/mm/thitaw-lay-house.html
If we had more time I would have definitely enjoyed a couple more nights here. Very pretty, surrounded by nature.
Inle: https://www.myanmartreasureresortinle.com/
This spot gets great reviews, but we had a poor experience. I wouldn’t personally recommend, but maybe our stay way a fluke.
Taungghyi: https://www.booking.com/hotel/mm/mountain-star.html
Nice, comfortable. It was difficult to find a room during the balloon festival and prices were high in all of Taungghyi. With that said I am SO glad we spent the money and stayed! Definitely worth it. You do not want to drive there and back from Inle the night of the festival.
Yangon: https://www.savoy-myanmar.com/
Absolutely beautiful! It was nice to stay at two different places in Yangon with two very different feels. Staying somewhere nice for the last night or two of a trip is such a great send off and this was really special!
Taipei: I’m not even going to list our Taipei hotel, we just looked for something in the area we wanted to be in. It was a good enough spot, but not worth noting.
Whew! That was a lot of info and a great trip. More to come on Myanmar later, highly recommend for the “adventurous” traveler.