Yangon
Twelve miles north of Yangon’s airport is this beautifully maintained cemetery, containing the graves of 6374 Allied soldiers who died in the Burma and…
Must-see attractions in Myanmar (Burma)
Yangon
Off the main road from Yangon to Thanlyin, at the end of a bumpy road leading into the Thaketa Industrial Estate, is this government-run farm that breeds…
Mandalay
Those 1-sq-in gold-leaf sheets that worshippers piously place on sacred buddha images are laboriously hand-pounded in dozens of specialist workshops in…
Myanmar (Burma)
About 17 miles northeast of Pakokku, on the way to Monywa, are the remains of Pakhangyi, a 19th-century wooden monastery. There isn't a lot to see here,…
Yangon
This well-proportioned zedi (stupa), built on General Ne Win's orders in the early 1980s to commemorate the unification of Theravada Buddhism in Myanmar,…
Myanmar (Burma)
About 4 miles southwest of town, you'll find the Bagan-era (but renovated over the years) Shinpinsarkyo Paya (Temple 88), which is full of original…
Yangon
It's a happy ending, sort of, for the long-forlorn Pegu Club. Dating from 1882, this regal teak building was once the most exclusive British club in Burma…
Myanmar (Burma)
Werawsana is reputedly the world’s first pagoda built entirely out of jade. It's a sight to behold in the evening, when it radiates a soft green glow that…
Myanmar (Burma)
Built in 1476 by King Dhammazedi, this impressive temple consists of four 100ft-high sitting buddhas (Gautama Buddha and his three predecessors) placed…
Myanmar (Burma)
On the western bank of the river and a couple of miles north of the bridge, is the small town of Minbu and the fun Nga Ka Pwe Taung (Dragon Lake), a…
Yangon
The tomb of one of Myanmar's most celebrated poets and public intellectuals is the furthest away from Shwedagon Paya in the quartet of mausoleums here…
Yangon
The small gallery of historic photographs here gives an idea of how downtown Yangon used to look. There's a great view of lower Pansodan St's grand…
Yangon
Built in the early 20th century as the grand home of shipping-and-rubber magnate Lim Chin Tsong, this is another decaying but highly evocative slice of…
Myanmar (Burma)
Just over a mile into Twante from the canal stands this gilded, 250ft-tall Mon-built zedi (stupa), believed to be as ancient as the Shwedagon Paya (2500…
Myanmar (Burma)
Built in 1816 by King Bagyidaw, possibly using materials pilfered from Mingun Paya, this unusually striking pagoda rises in seven wavy, whitewashed…
Yangon
Here lies Aung San’s widow and Aung San Suu Kyi's mother Daw Khin Kyi. Her funeral in 1989 was attended by more than 100,000 and was a galvanising moment…
Yangon
Devoted to the Hindu goddess Kali, this temple was built in 1871 before the flood of Indian migrants came to the city during British colonial rule. It…
Myanmar (Burma)
If you want to squeeze full value out of your Mandalay 'combo' ticket, head to this 1996 concrete-pillared reconstruction of an early 19th-century…
Yangon
U Thant, the former UN Secretary General and one of the most respected 20th-century Burmese statesmen, is buried here. A chapter in The River of Lost…
Yangon
More of a one-room exhibition, this compact museum attached to the offices of the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (Burma) focuses on the…
Yangon
Traditional houses of the Kachin, Kayah, Kayin (Karen), Chin, Bamar, Mon, Rakhine and Shan peoples are dotted around this lush, landscaped compound…
Myanmar (Burma)
A mile around the west end of Lake Meiktila, Shwe Kyaung is a walled monastery on the inland side of the road with Japanese signs leading to a WWII…
Myanmar (Burma)
This ‘Sacred Hall of Ordination’ was originally constructed in 1476 by Dhammazedi, the famous alchemist king and son of Queen Shinsawpu. Like almost…
Myanmar (Burma)
At Kyauktan, 12 miles southeast of Thanlyin, is a sparkling temple rising from an islet adrift on a chocolate river. You can feed the massive catfish…
Myanmar Agricultural Development Bank
Yangon
This 1930s building designed by Thomas Oliphant Forster and Basil Ward is one of Pansodan St's grandest buildings. It originally housed the National Bank…
Myanmar (Burma)
Follow Strand Rd north to catch the action at the lively and colourful central market which spreads over several blocks. As you approach, you’ll pass an…
Mandalay
Built in 2011, this remarkable 75ft-tall seated Buddha, with either most of his ribs or a 14-pack showing, is a 'meditation image' that falls…
Yangon
Not far from the airport, this immense seated buddha was carved from a single piece of marble found outside Mandalay in 1999. The partially finished…
Mandalay
Kuthodaw Paya, aka the ‘world’s biggest book’, draws tour-bus crowds to see its 729 slabs that retell the Tripitaka canon, which is effectively part of…
Yangon
If you were wondering where all the street art in Yangon is, you need to start looking down back alleys. This pair of alleys, which can be toured as a…
Myanmar (Burma)
In the pagoda-filled area just east of Youqson Kyaung lies Paya Thonzu, a small trio of brick shrines with sikhara (Indian-style corn-cob-like temple…
Myanmar (Burma)
The monastery and meditation centre Sasanayaunggyi Kyaung, 0.3 miles north of Paya Thonzu, is a stop-off point for day trippers. It features a lovely 19th…
Myanmar (Burma)
In 1808 Bodawpaya continued his biggest-is-best obsession by commissioning a bronze bell weighing 55,555 viss (90 tonnes). It’s 13ft high and more than…
Myanmar (Burma)
Escape the crowds by venturing across to the west bank of the Pathein River and strolling through the village to find this attractive pagoda complex with…
Yangon
The smaller of Yangon's two cemeteries dedicated to the fallen servicemen of WWII in Burma is located down a quiet lane near the Jasmine Palace Hotel…
Myanmar (Burma)
Pakokku's mains Buddhist temple couldn't be any different to the often staid and zestless temple ruins of Bagan. Built by King Alaungsithu some 800 years…
Chin State
This temple with a golden zedi (stupa) and a sitting, white-faced Buddha surrounded by five disciples looms over Falam from almost the highest point above…
Myanmar (Burma)
Around 200yd beyond the eastern end of U-Bein Bridge, this 1847 pagoda, built by Pagan Min, was supposedly modelled on the larger Ananda Pahto at Bagan,…
Yangon
Lording it over the east side of Mahabandoola Garden, the 1911 Queen Anne–style former High Court with its bell clock tower and rooftop lion statues was…
Myanmar (Burma)
This pagoda is centred on a graceful stupa that sweeps inward from a wide, whitewashed base to a gleaming silver superstructure. There's also a new giant…
