Myanmar next January: Sleeping Bag advised?
Replies: 14 - Last Post: Aug 27, 2012 2:08 PM Last Post By: midlifetravel
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Myanmar next January: Sleeping Bag advised?
Hi,(I know it sounds crazy but)
have read several threads about hotels being fully booked, prices hikes, people sleeping on roof tops etc. in Myanmar and I begin to feel a little nervous about my upcoming trip next season,
still, I feel I have to go.
Should I, perhaps, bring a sleeping, so whenever a guest house is fully booked, I might be able to negotiate an indoor stay for just a few dollars, using my sleeping bag to sleep on the floor?
I really hope that the recent influx of tourists will encourage local people to open up new guesthouses, so the situation will return to normal in a few years, but for the time being ... let's be flexible and manage the current situation, right?
Safe travels everyone,
Frank
5
forget the sleeping bag! last November was the busiest I have ever saeen Myanmar in 10 years of going there and a couple of girls who were stuck, had beds put in a cleared out shed at queens hotel Inle to help them out. even if packed at the budget end you will still find up market accommodation everywhereDont Panic All Will Be Well!!
note agents tend to dump you in expensive govt accommodation so I would avoid if possibel samwe same internet bookings through people like ebookers or hostels etc
7
#6 - hey fellow Kiwi - this blog http://viajesconmochila.blogspot.co.nz/2012/03/myanmar-recorrido-precios-de-referencia.html (several posts on Mynamar) - you'll need to translate from Spanish - is from Feb - it convinced me to go without booking. I'll book the first couple of nights in Yangoon and the last in mandalay - and make up the rest as we go.8
Monty, you think upmarket places will be available? That's not what is happening right now. People working with travel agents looking for upmarket accommodations are having difficulty booking anything in some places. I'm sure it will loosen up a bit as tour companies release any unsold rooms. If you opt not to book ahead, you do so at your own risk.9
Thanks for your replies, so far. I am not planning to negotiate for a stay in someone's home, but perhaps when a guest house is full and even the dorm room packed and overbooked, a sleeping bag can make the difference between being able to stay, albeit under improvised conditions or having to go somewhere else.Likewise, a stay on the roof top (other people's reports, not mine) might perhaps be a little more comfortable with my own sleeping bag?
Otherwise, agreed with Cassiecat: at least for the first and second night in Yangon, I would like to book in advance BUT:
Is there any guesthouse other/cheaper than Montherland Inn 2 that I can book via e-mail or internet?
11
@midlifetravel - thanks!! I'll check that out now :)I kind of assume that a lot of the budget places don't have email, and that you have to book from within myanmar. And I'm also assuming that the travel agents don't deal with budget rooms.
I'm happy to rough it to a certain extent... No rats, poo on the walls, yabba addicts or bedbugs hopefully, but I don't NEED a window or a big room, or even a super clean room. Although I do like them! :)
Am I way off the mark? @cassiecat I've been reading some of your posts, and you sound really well informed. Thanks for the info! Does this apply to the sort of rooms I'm talking about, in your opinion?
Cheers,
Joel
13
Kiwijazz, it's really hard to know. The people most likely to go without reservations are the low-budget visitors, the backpackers. So I expect those places may not be pre-booked months out if they have no email, but I would expect they will be quickly booked up as visitors arrive. This past high season the budget folks reserved their first couple of nights, then had the guesthouse call ahead to other guesthouses. While some people said the guesthouses spent a lot of time on the phone trying tom find them a room, it worked for them. This year - it will be tighter.The chances of the government loosening regulations? I wouldn't count on it. A friend who lives in Bagan says there are two hotels under construction there. So I expect more places are being built (but that is slow). The government regulation issue has to do with places being licensed to accept foreigners.
14
I wonder that myself Kiwijazz. Plan B for me is to show up at the police station and get them to find me a place, I've heard rumours that this can result in a temporary license for an un-licenced hotel - if it happens enough - it's gotta annoy! But I suspect more effect in smaller towns too.It's impossible to know Cassie -I'm wondering if in fact there will be a bit of a backlash from the "flashpacker" group - who think they rough it but actually do expect to have a reservation a couple of days in advance.
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