Money and Costs

Burmese kyat (K)

Budget: Less than US$50

• Hostel or guesthouse: US$10–40
• Local restaurant or street-stall meal: US$2–6
• One day's bicycle hire: US$1–2

Midrange: US$50–150

• Double room in midrange hotel: US$40–70
• Two-course meal in midrange restaurant: US$5–15
• Trekking Kalaw to Inle Lake: US$30 per person per day
• Boat to Bagan: US$42

Top end: More than US$150

• Double room in top-end hotel: US$100–500
• Meal in top-end restaurant: US$25–45
• Driver and guide: US$100 per day
• Fine lacquerware bowl: US$200

A little gentle haggling is fine in markets, antique and curio shops, and in taxis. Don't push it too far, though, and keep in mind that the extra K1000 might be worth far more to the vendor than you. The exception to this is in Mogok where you can expect traders at its gem market to come in with a starting price around 10 times the item's value.

There's an international ATM at KBZ Bank; money can be exchanged here, too. There are also other ATMs that take foreign cards around town.