Upon arrival at Yangon airport, your tour guide will meet and welcome you. Start your downtown tour at the historic Post Office followed by Strand Hotel, Mahabandoola Garden and Independence Monument. Visit the famous Chauk Htat Gyi, home to a 70-meter long reclining Buddha. Take photos at the picturesque Karaweik Hall royal floating barge. End your day with an amazing sunset view at Shwedagon Pagoda, noted for its glittering gold stupa.
Morning domestic flight to Bagan and immerse in the bustling atmosphere of a local market. Explore the town’s architectural masterpieces by visiting the most important pagodas and temples. Climb to the top of the temple for magical sunset views.
Explore a colorful morning market at Chauk, en route to Salay. Upon arrival at Salay, learn more about monastic life, Burmese Buddhism and Salay’s unique architectural style. Among the sights you will visit is Yoke Sone Kyaung monastery. Thereafter, head to Mount Popa, which is an extinct volcano standing 1518 meters high. Be treated to remarkable views as you have lunch at Popa Mountain Resort. Mount Popa’s shrine is dedicated to the worship of 37 Nats, the Burmese ancient animist spirits. Learn about nats and nat worship as you climb the stairs to the top and be rewarded with an impressive view over the Myingyan Plain from the volcanic peak.
Transfer to the airport for your domestic flight to Mandalay. Visit Mahamuni Pagoda and local artisanal gold leaf making, wood carving and marble carving workshops. Admire Golden Palace Monastery famous for its intricate wood carvings. Continue to Kuthodaw Pagoda, known as the world’s largest book due to the Buddhist scripture carved on 729 marble slabs. End your day with a visit to a 200-year-old teak bridge, the most photographic site in Myanmar.
Take a boat trip up Irrawaddy River to Mingun, home to the impressive Mingun Bell and the unfinished Mingun Paya. Explore Ava and cross Ayeyawaddy River over Ava Bridge to visit Sagaing Hill where there are about six hundred monasteries. Stop by silverware and clay pot making village shops and a nunnery to learn the daily life of Buddhist nuns. Enjoy the sunset from the top of Sagaing Hill.
Visit Pyin Oo Lwin’s local market where there is a colorful array of merchandise including locally-produced jams and fruit wines. Enjoy a traditional horse and carriage ride through town to see the historical houses including Candacraig, and alight at the Botanical Gardens to take a relaxing walk through the beautifully-landscaped gardens.
Take a morning domestic flight to Heho. Proceed to Pindaya and visit a quaint village where you will discover skilled craftsmen weaving cotton, bamboo mats and making brooms. Take a trip to the west part of Pindaya to visit the famous Pindaya Cave. Visit a local craft shop that produces paper from mulberry trees.
Enjoy a scenic drive to NyaungShwe and take a private boat tour at Inle Lake. Visit Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda, the holiest religious site in southern Shan State. Be enthralled by cats trained by local monks to jump through hoops at a unique monastery now affectionately known as the Jumping Cat Monastery. Proceed to Nampan village to visit a local cheroot factory (where Burmese cigars are made) and see canoe carving.
Visit the market where hill tribe people dress in colorful, traditional outfits as they barter. Continue sightseeing in Inle Lake by boat. Visit Indein village and walk though exotic colonnades of stairways and shop stalls. Visit the “long neck” tribal women and weaving and craft villages perched on stilts. See the lake’s unique “leg rowers” – the Intha people row standing up with one leg wrapped around an oar.
Take a morning domestic flight to Yangon. Visit the sprawling Scott Market, where you will find interesting Burmese souvenirs. Drive through the city and observe the influences of other cultures through various religious sites such as St Mary's Cathedral, Sule Paya and Rangoon Synagogue, where you will meet with Trustee of the Synagogue to learn about the Jewish life in Myanmar. End your tour with a visit to Little India and Chinatown.
Free till departure transfer to Yangon airport for homebound flight.
