Must see attractions in Rakhine State

Shittaung means ‘Shrine of the 80,000 Images’, a reference to the number of holy images inside. King Minbin, the most powerful of Rakhine’s kings, built…

One of Mrauk U’s star attractions, Kothaung Paya is also the area's largest temple. It was built in 1553 by King Minbin’s son, King Mintaikkha, to outdo…

The highlight of this squat, little-visited temple is its passageway with bas-relief illustrations of the tribumi (Buddhist visions of heaven, earth and…

Built by King Minphalaung in 1571, Dukkanthein Paya smacks of a bunker (with stupas). Wide stone steps lead up the southern and eastern side of the…

Twenty miles north of Wethali, just beyond the former ancient capital of Dhanyawady, is Mahamuni Paya, the alleged first home of the buddha image now…

Strand Rd leads about 1.5 miles south to a location called View Point, a paved urban park with a small lighthouse built over the point where the Kaladan…

The highlight at this hilltop monastery, and the temple's namesake, is the Sanda Muhni, a buddha statue said to have been cast from the precious metal…

About 7 miles north of Mrauk U are the barely discernible remains of the kingdom of Wethali. It was founded in AD 327 by King Mahataing Chandra, according…

Andaw Thein takes the form of an eight-sided monument with a linear layout: rectangular prayer hall to the east, multispired sanctuary to the west…

Roughly half a mile northeast of the palace walls, and behind Shwegudaung hill, this graceful Mon-influenced zedi (stupa) was erected in 1629 by King…

Sitting on a hilltop, this unrestored four-door pagoda is thought to predate the Mrauk U period. Climb to the top, push your way past the rubble and…

You can’t miss this big golden pagoda between the airport and the city centre. Its cavernous gilded worship hall, held aloft by decorated pillars, is…

This impressive 1859 building – the oldest mosque in Sittwe – could have been lifted out of the pages of Arabian Nights. Sadly, since the 2012 sectarian…

Focused on the 1956 municipal market building, Sittwe's market has lots of action from dawn to noon and beyond – it’s well worth popping by before your…

Partly housed in a picturesque, ramshackle colonial-era building on a backstreet, this was the monastery of U Ashin Ottama (1880–1939), a leader of the…

This massive stupa (sometimes called Yadanapon) is ringed by 24 smaller stupas. It was apparently built by Queen Shin Htway in 1612. During WWII a bomb…

This compact, highly ornate stone building is one of the seven Mrauk U libraries remaining from the original 48. Today protected by a blue-and-maroon…

Hundreds of noisy fruit bats migrate from these trees on Main Rd every evening at dusk, having spent the day jostling with crows for space in the trees…

A mile west of Thandwe's market, Nandaw Paya was supposedly erected in AD 761 by King Minbra to enshrine a rib fragment of the Buddha. The long shrine…

Southeast of the palace, the ‘Golden Hill Pagoda’ is the highest in Mrauk U. Built by King Minbin in 1553, it’s accessed by a few trails largely lost…