YANGON · MANDALAY · RIVER CRUISE · BAGAN

MARCH 29 to April 4, 2018 ITINERARY

SEVEN DAYS From $6499

Day One ~ Yangon

Arrival: meet and greet by a Zoom Vacations airport representative and private transfer to our hotel in Yangon

Afternoon: Check in at Sule Shangri-La Hotel

Evening: Welcome cocktails

Accommodations: Sule Shangri-La Hotel
Meals Included: Evening Cocktails

Day Two ~ Yangon
Breakfast at leisure in hotel

Late Morning: Tour Yangon: Today, enjoy your first taste of Myanmar, a profoundly Buddhist country, where many ancient traditions still flourish. Its artisans are accomplished craftsmen and the atmosphere here is uncrowded and authentic. Begin with a walking tour of the lively and colorful Chinatown, with its streets filled with woodenshuttered houses, shops and food stalls. Then, tour Musmeah Yeshua, the last remaining Jewish synagogue in Myanmar. Built during Burma’s colonial era, it stands in the heart of city center. Stroll the bazaar at Scott Market (Bogyoke Market) amid shops filled with antiques, old coins, Burmese jade and handicrafts.

Afternoon: Savor lunch in a local restaurant followed by a visit to the Reclining Buddha at Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda, a 213-footlong statue with an expressive enamel face. View the story of the Buddha’s life embossed on the soles of the statue’s staggered feet. Then, onto Shwedagon Pagoda, the most sacred Buddhist site in Myanmar. Tradition holds it has stood for 2,600 years, making it the oldest historical pagoda in the world. Marvel as its round, gilded stupa captures the rays of the warm afternoon sun, lending a crowning moment to your Burmese adventure. 

Accommodations: Sule Shangri-La Hotel
Meals Included: Breakfast and Lunch

Day Three ~ Board the Sanctuary Ananda~MANDALAY & SAGAING HILLS
Breakfast at leisure in hotel

Early morning flight to Mandalay (not included in trip price, but arranged by Zoom Vacations).

Begin with a tour of Mandalay including the Mahamuni Pagoda, Shwenandaw Monastery and Kuthodaw Pagoda, then, after sailing past the monasteries of Sagaing and visiting a Ywataung silversmith, either see silk weavers in Amarapura or witness traditional village life in Sin Kyun.Visit U Bein Bridge, a spectacular place to enjoy the sunset. This long teak
bridge snakes across the Taungthaman Lake. After sunset, catch a boat up the Ayeyarwady River and return to the Sanctuary Ananda.Enjoy a welcome dinner on the sandbank overlooking Mingun, followed by a traditional musical performance.

Accommodations: Sanctuary Ananda
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day Four ~ MINGUN
For those who wish, an early morning visit to the village of Sin Kyun is offered. This wonderful community will show you the typical life of the villagers and see a way of life seldom viewed by outsiders.Explore Mingun by ox cart, taking in the unfinished Mingun Pagoda, huge Mingun Bell and Myatheindan Pagoda. After lunch, sail south, enjoying talks, longyi (sarong) and thanaka (make-up) demonstrations, or a cooking class before dinner.

Accommodations: Sanctuary Ananda
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day Five ~ PAKOKKU TO BAGAN
Early morning yoga and meditation on deck, otherwise breakfast at leisure before taking a trishaw to Pakokku to visit the local market, the traditional shoe and cheroot factories.Return to the ship for lunch, after which take a coach tour of Bagan to see some of the most important temples and pagodas among the 2,000 which comprise this most magnificent archaeological site - the Ananda, the Htilominlo and the Pyathatgyi. Wonder at the sunset from the Pyathatgyi temple before returning to the ship for dinner and a traditional local performance.

Accommodations: Sanctuary Ananda
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day Six ~ BAGAN
Choose one of two early morning optional excursions - a balloon ride over Bagan (at an additional charge) or sunrise meditation at one of the temples. After breakfast sail southwards to Sale where a trishaw awaits to take you to visit Yoke Sone Monastery and the wooden temple of Tha-ta-na Kyaung before returning to the ship for lunch. In the afternoon cruise back to Bagan and visit the sacred Buddhist Shwezigon Pagoda which houses a bone and tooth of the Gautama Buddha and the Gubyaukgyi Temple. Return to the ship by horsecart for a traditional Shan dinner with our Captain.

Accommodations: Sanctuary Ananda
Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner

Day Seven ~ BAGAN
Early morning breakfast and disembark. If there's time before your flight, spend the morning discovering local life in the Bagan plains, visiting village artisans and learning about the ancient methods of making bricks, lacquerware and jaggery

Meals Included: Breakfast

Air: International and domestic airfare not included.

Passports: Your valid passport should have at least two blank visa pages and should be valid for at least six months after your planned departure from the country you are visiting. 
Note: Passport pages titled "Endorsement Pages" are not visa pages.

Visas: Please note that currently US citizens must have a visa to enter Myanmar. If you are or even if you are not a US citizen, please click here to determine your visa requirements.

While Zoom Vacations will assist when possible, please note that passport, visa, and vaccination requirements vary from country to country and are the sole responsibility of the traveler. If you are a US resident, you may click here for more information on passport, visa, and vaccination requirements for various countries.

*Land only Introductory rate, based on double occupancy. Prices are subject to change. Need a roommate? Zoom Vacations® is happy to match you with someone, at no additional charge. Or, you may pay a single supplement and go as a single.

Please read Terms and Conditions prior to booking.

For more information on entry and exit requirements, see here.