Mandalay
is a cultural capital
Welcome to Mandalay
Mandalay (မႏၱေလး) will never win any beauty contests. Myanmar's second city is a relatively new creation, founded at the foot of Mandalay Hill in 1857 by King Mindon as his royal capital. The hill, its slopes studded with pagodas, still looms over the city. But Mandalay was bombed flat in WWII and the palace disappeared, along with much else. The palace was rebuilt in the 1990s, and since then Mandalay has undergone a haphazard construction boom that was never about aesthetics. An ever-growing number of motorbikes and cars clog the roads, too, making for a sometimes smoggy city.
Top experiences in Mandalay
Amazing hotels and hostels
We've pre-picked the best hotels, hostels and bed and breakfasts to make your stay as enjoyable as possible.
Travel guides
Starting at $38.99
Mandalay activities
Private Transfer: Mandalay to Bagan
Pre-book your private arrival transfer will ensure you stay relaxed and to avoid the long queue for a taxi after a tiring holiday.Our driver will collect you from your hotel lobby in Mandalay at agreed time and transfer you to your hotel or destination in Bagan. For travelers who arrive at Mandalay Airport or Port, you will meet our driver at the exit gates holding a signboard with your name on it. He will greet you before taking you to the coach and transport you to your hotel or destination in Bagan. Please contact our service line if you are not able to find our representative at the agreed meeting location.Please note that each traveler is allowed a maximum of 1 suitcase and 1 carry-on bag. Oversized or excessive luggage (e.g. surfboards, golf clubs or bikes) may have certain restrictions, please inquire with the operator prior to travel to confirm if your excess luggage is acceptable. Infant seat is not available.
Sightseeing Cruise Between Mandalay and Bagan
Meet your guide and crew at 2 Cannons Jetty in the early morning, 6am and embark on our RV Panorama, a fully air-conditioned teak wood cabin with ultra-comfortable luxury seating. Our captain and crew will provide a short safety briefing and healthy breakfast will be served on upper deck. Enjoy fresh fruit juices, blended coffee and tea under the warm sunlight and gentle breeze.Around 10am, we offer you a special opportunity to experience the country lifestyle by visiting a typical Myanmar village, Lekkapin, on the river bank of Ayeyarwaddy during the down-stream journey (Mandalay to Bagan). This charming village is located in Myint Mu district in Sagaing division with about 1000 inhabitants who are mostly Buddhists. A pagoda, two monasteries and a secondary school are located there. The people there live on traditional hat making and agriculture. Interesting family product of jute hat is their specialty that you can learn step by step from raw material to finished product as you visit from one house to another. You all are warmly welcome to Lekkapin village by the people who are friendly, cheerful and kind just like typical Myanmar people are, and this is really a rare chance for you to observe the simple way of life in Myanmar.Delicious lunch will be served around noon while enjoy the panoramic views as you sunbathe sitting in our unique seats on sun deck. Feel the gentle waves of Mother Ayeyarwaddy and enjoy the bliss of life.You will notice that Myanmar population wear their traditional costume, longyi, for daily wears and some strange yellow motifs as make-up on our face, Thanatkha. These are the important parts of our daily life and we would like to demonstrate the different styles of wearing Longyi and how we apply Thanatkha, our traditional make-up. Everyone is invited to participate on the upper deck after lunch time and enjoy trying Longyi and Thanatkha.We will arrive at Bagan around 5pm and enjoy watching the truly breathtaking sunset views with your family and friends.
Private Transfer: Bagan to Mandalay
Pre-book your private arrival transfer will ensure you stay relaxed and to avoid the long queue for a taxi after a tiring holiday.Our driver will collect you from your hotel lobby in Bagan at agreed time and transfer you to your hotel or destination in Mandalay. For travelers who are departing to Mandalay Airport or Port, you need to provide your flight/port departure time to ensure smooth transfer. Please contact our service line if you are not able to find our representative at the agreed time.Please note that each traveler is allowed a maximum of 1 suitcase and 1 carry-on bag. Oversized or excessive luggage (e.g. surfboards, golf clubs or bikes) may have certain restrictions, please inquire with the operator prior to travel to confirm if your excess luggage is acceptable. Infant seat is not available.
Mandalay Private Full-Day Tour
We will depart from your hotel at 8:30am after breakfast. First, we will go to Mahamuni Buddha, a spectacular and attractive statue of Lord Buddha, completely made of Gold. As one of the most significant sites of Buddhist pilgrimage in Myanmar, it is a place of devotion and meditation. Women are not allowed to enter the innermost chamber (and consequently, to apply gold leaves on the statue).Next, you will visit to a stone carving workshops and see a skilled craftsmen who attack pure white marble or stone with angle grinders and drills to create the most enigmatic Buddha images. From here, we will move on to the puppet workshop and wood carving. Since the gold-leaf is commonly use in Myanmar, it is fascinating to see the traditional way of gold-leaf is produced at Gold Leaf Workshop. You will then enjoy your lunch at a local restaurant with variety of traditional food. A short free and easy time after lunch. After a short break, we will move on to Mandalay Royal Palace followed by Golden Palace Monastery (Shwenandaw Monastery). The Monastery is small and atmospheric and was moved from the old Royal Palace grounds. It gave an idea of what the inside of the old Palace would have looked like in entirety originally and the beauty of the wood cravings from the glory period if Mandalay.Finally, we will explore Kuthodaw Pagoda (the world’s largest book), is a lovely place to visit and really interesting for the history and cultural facts. It's a great place to walk around and soak up the sights and experience of this beautiful place. Before heading back to your hotel, you will enjoy the sun setting at the top of Mandalay Hill.
Private Full-Day Mandalay Heritage Tour
Your tour guide will meet you at your hotel at 8am to drive to a promenade U Bein teak bridge, the world's longest teak structure at 1.2 km / 3.4 miles long. Next, you will visit to Mahar Gandar Yone monastery, where you can see a thousand Buddhist monks and novices line up every morning, at 10:30am, to receive their meal of the day at Mahar Gandar Yone Monastery. Then, go to a “must visit in Mandalay” Mahamuni Buddha Temple. Learn more about the craft work for which Mandalay is famous by visiting workshops and cottage industries. You’ll see gold-leaf techniques, wood carving and kalaga tapestry weaving. For lunch, we’ll go to a popular tea house. Tea houses are centre of social and commercial life in Myanmar. You can see all kinds of people here, from business people and brokers to students and families all doing their daily business or just relaxing and socializing. Try the Mandalay Monte or Khotaung Monte there. After lunch, continue your visit to Mandalay Palace. This Mandalay Palace is the last royal kingdom of Myanmar.We will visit to the famous Golden Palace monastery and the ‘World’s Biggest Book’; the 729 marble stone slabs of Buddhist scripture at Kuthodaw Pagoda. Finally, enjoy panoramic views of the city from the top of Mandalay Hill as the sun begins to set. Your tour will end at around 6pm and your will be transported back to your hotel.
Rural Myanmar and Pottery Tour from Yangon
In the morning, meet your guide at a central meeting point in Yangon, and take a short walk to the river to catch the public ferry. The 10-minute ferry ride on the Twante Canal provides an excellent opportunity to glimpse daily life on the water, with photo ops galore. You might see small wooden boats where fishermen haul in their catches, larger boats transporting cargo to the city and kids playing in riverside villages. When you disembark, take either a private taxi or truck taxi through the countryside to the town of Twante, which is known for its pottery. Stop by local artisans' workshops to see their crafts and observe how they work with traditional tools and kilns. If you wish, you may participate in a hands-on lesson in traditional pottery methods. Next, walk uphill with your guide for about 20 minutes to reach Shwesandaw Pagoda, a 250-foot (76-meter) stupa that is said to be 2,500 years old. A 100-year-old Mandalay-style bronze Buddha statue sits inside, along with several other Buddha statues. You have probably worked up an appetite by now, so head to a popular local restaurant that specializes in vegetarian cuisine, and tuck into a tasty lunch. Afterward, you have time to explore the local market with your guide who shares informative commentary about the people and history of the area.After a stroll around town, return to the ferry to head back to Yangon. As you cruise along the river, your guide points out notable landmarks until you reach the dock in Yangon, where your tour ends.