The Burma Road

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DETAILS Dates 12 Days & Nights Road Cycling w/ Full Support All Cycling Abilities 100% Fair Paved Roads Maximum Group Size: 10 Landcost: $2,980 Rental Bike : $125 Single Traveler: +$485 Airline: Approx $1,100 LAX Click for Airline Info ITINERARY BRIEF 1 Arrive Yangon 2 Yangon to Taunggyi 3 Kakku and Inle Lake 4 Inle Lake and Kalaw 5 Kalaw to Pindaya 6 Pindaya to Mandalay 7 Mandalay 8 Mandalay to Monywa 9 Monywa to Bagan 10 Bagan 11 Bagan to Mt. Popa 12 Bagan to Yangon Detailed Itinerary OPTIONAL EXTENSIONS Khao Sok Nature Preserve (3 days) with PaddleAsia Ngapali Beach

Emerging from a forty year slumber, blessed with warm people, wonderful cuisine, picturesque countryside, and most importantly for cyclists, lack of traffic, Myanmar is destined to become Asia's next place to visit. We gave a heads up on Vietnam way back in 1992, and now have the same feeling about Myanmar.

Myanmar straddles two of Asia's great rivers below the mountainous foothills of the Himalayas. As the western gateway to Southeast Asia, the diversity of its people, culture, and topography combined with a rich history make it one of the most fascinating and beautiful countries in the region. Political problems and divisions within the country (to put it lightly), ensured that Myanmar missed out on the economic booms experienced by many of its neighbors, and it remains a rural, undeveloped nation.

Our tour cycles through the sleepy heartland from pious Mandalay on the storied Ayeyarwaddy River and the picturesque Inle Lake, before flying back to the capital, Yangon. On the way we'll visit the ancient city of Bagan, cycling amongst the thousands of pagodas, stupas, and temples that dominate the river valley that was once the center of a powerful and deeply religious empire. Riding through the countryside, we will be greeted by a warm and friendly people few tourists see or meet. In the mountains we'll encounter a variety of tribal people, as well as enjoying the splendid colonial charm of Kalaw, where the officers of the Raj escaped the high heat of the Burmese summer.

At the end of the trip there is a chance to relax in Inle before going back to Rangoon visiting the Shwedagon Paya and enjoying the colonial charm of the capital city.

More of an expedition than cycling tour, these trips are our first in the country. Along with the fascinating and rich cultural environment, you can expect some degree of spontaneity, aka predicaments and setbacks, which are particular to this part of the world, degree of development, and Buddhist nature. Like the first explorers to join us in Vietnam, we hope adapting to the conforms of the local culture will contribute to our experience, rather than vice versa.

Day 1, Arrive Yangon
Morning Yangon arrival from Bangkok. Following a first taste of local cuisine during lunch, we will tour of the vibrant and diverse capital of Myanmar ending with sunset at the spectacular Shwedagon Paya. After orientation dinner, strolling through the night market and downtown area near the hotel.

Day 2, Yangon to Taunggyi
	After breakfast, transfer to the airport for our short flight to Heho and transfer to mile-high Taunggyi, the capital of the Shan state and former British colonial hill station. After lunch, bikes assembly and testing with a brief ride around town to familiarize everyone with Burmese-style roads and traffic (giving wide berth to the oxen). (B,L,D)

Day 3,Kakku and Inle Lake
Early morning departure by bus to Kakku, a lesser known but impressive site comprised of several thousand small stupas in the Pa O region. At last, cycling begins after lunch back to Taunggyi with a magnificent descent of nearly 2,000 feet to Inle Lake. (B,L)

Day 4,Inle Lake and Kalaw

Morning will take us out onto Inle Lake for a boat tour of the picturesque floating gardens and fishing villages. The short but challenging ride up out of the Inle Lake basin takes us through scenic country side to Kalaw, another hill station filled with interesting architecture. Depending on the time, we can wander through the market or ride around the city looking at the decaying colonial mansions. (B,L,D)

Day 5,Kalaw to Pindaya
Today we head north to Pindaya on a road flanked by beautifully manicured fields where much of Myanmar’s produce comes from. Before dinner we will visit the Buddha image filled Pindaya caves and catch the sunset from the hill side. (B,L,D)

Day 6,Pindaya to Mandalay

The most demanding day of the tour goes northwest on a recently paved road through mountains and jungle-lined roads to Kyaukse where the bus will transfer us the remaining distance "on the road to Mandalay." Mandalay is the historic old capital, but remains the center of Myanmar culture and religion. It is also where traditional arts and crafts are centered. Myanmar abounds with historical sites, cultural memorials and Buddhist monuments and we will explore some of them after arrival. In the evening, dinner overlooking the Ayeyarwaddy River. (B,L,D)

Day 7,Mandalay
Day tour of Mandalay, the religious and cultural center of Myanmar. From ancient wooden palaces to massive pagodas to serene monasteries, Mandalay has it all. We will end the day with a sunset view from the peaceful Sagaing Hill across the Ayeyarwaddy River. (B,L,D)

Day 8,Mandalay to Monywa
	After breakfast, transfer out of Mandalay by bus to Ondaw. Today features a ride west into the desert landscape of central Myanmar where bullock carts still significantly out number cars. There are several interesting sites to explore on the way to the provincial capital of Monywa including a pagoda with over 300,000 Buddha images and a monumental reclining Buddha.

Day 9,Monywa to Bagan
Heading south out of Monywa we take a seldom-driven road through a rice growing region along the Chindwind River to Pakokku. Here we take a local ferry across the river and transfer into Bagan by bus for sunset on a pagoda. Dinner and delightful, traditional puppet show in Old Bagan. (B,L,D)

Day 11,Bagan to Mt. Popa

Mt. Popa and the final day of riding. We cycle round trip to an extinct volcano, Mt. Popa, which dominates the area. Mount Popa was for centuries where kings of central Burma made pilgrimages to confer with the sacred statues about the future of their reigns. We'll climb the hundreds of steps to the monkey-populated hill (feeding them if your brave enough), for a expansive, panoramic views of the surrounding area. Optional return ride to Bagan. Another dramatic sunset in Bagan. (B,L)

Cycling Ability
All cycling abilities, this is a fully-supported tour with light traffic and organized to provide for any amount of cycling desired each day. We would be glad to put you in contact with past travelers, of all abilities, if you would like more feedback.

Landcost
Your tour fees cover almost everything, except dinners free when it's appropriate, required visas, and recommended trip cancellation insurance. BIke rentals are not available for Myanmar although full mechanical support, including bicycle assembly and disassembly will be provided.

Airline
Discount pricing through our airline consolidators. Please call for assistance. If you want to use your miles, Cathay Pacific is a member of One World Alliance which includes American Airlines and United offers bookings into Bangkok and through to Yangon.

Note
IMPORTANT: We constantly modify the itinerary by necessity. Delayed flights, adverse weather, an overall diminished sense of urgency, and other conditions that may prove beyond our control all play havoc with our careful preparations. We respectfully ask you carefully consider in advance if traveling under such conditions would be too adverse for your enjoyment of such a tour. Please read our Terms and Conditions for other important information.

Guides
Todd Hanson has lead our Turkey and Vietnam tours. A Seattle native and UC Berkeley graduate in English Literature, Todd compliments our tours with a rich background of writings about our destinations.

Patrick Morris has lead our Vietnam trips for over ten years.

Muang Muang Htwe is the director of the Myanmar National cycling team and has toured the roads of his native land for decades.

Safety, Boycott & Political Issues (Should you go?)
Myanmar is the safest place we've ever traveled and the political situation in Myanmar poses no risk to travelers. Having began our Vietnam tours in 1992, when there were oftens concerns about "visiting and supporting a communist country," yet we have witnessed in just over a decade how travelers have dramatically improved the lives of many of the Vietnamese who they have crossed paths with and how that country has opened to the world..

Indeed, past travelers would tell you of people happy to once again see foreigners coming back to their country. These travelers have also acted as ambassadors, witnesses and simply friends. The staff who have not only worked on VeloAsia tours, but those who sold crafts, cooked meals, and provided other services along the way, have sent their children to school, built new homes, and financed new businesses all of which may never been possible. Rather than applying a political position to your decision to visit Myanmar (which should also certainly apply to China, Laos, Vietnam, and even Thailand), We encourage you to consider the reality of engaging with and having a similar positive impact on local people encountered along the way. A questions we always ask of our travelers when they return home and one we encourage you to ask them is "did anyone tell you it was not a good idea to visit their country?" On the contrary, travelers have reported that people were very happy to see travelers again.

We're not always pleased with Lonely Planet (the bellicose backpacker arguing with the hotel clerk that the price in their Lonely Planet guide differs from the hotels comes to mind) but do we agree with their philosophy for deciding to and how to visit Myanmar.