About
Example Itinerary
Road Trip to Golden Rock and Mawlamyine
- Duration
- 6 days / 5 nights
- Price Per Person
-
Terms & Conditions
Price is based on double or twin hotel room occupancy and includes accommodation, transfers, car/driver, English-speaking guide, activities and entrance fees, breakfasts and some casual lunches while touring. Flights and optional special activities will be quoted separately. Most personal expenses, including dinners, alcoholic beverages, spa treatments and gratuities can be paid on the spot while traveling. Prices may vary depending on season, choice of accommodation and other factors.
- Destinations
- Myanmar
Discover the magical sights of Myanmar on our6-day Road Trip to Golden Rock and Mawlamyine itinerary. You’ll start off in bustling Yangon, before continuing your journey through Bago, Kyaikhtiyo, Hpa An, Mawlamyine, and back to Yangon. Along the way, you’ll catch an array of the country’s natural beauty and ancient sites, from fields of fresh fruit, sunsets over revered pagodas, mountains, caves, and more.
This itinerary is an example. It’s designed to inspire you and provide you with thoughtfully curated ideas. You can choose to do this exact itinerary or completely personalize it. All trips are 100% bespoke.
Highlights
- Kyaiktiyo Pagoda: “Golden Rock”, a gold-leafed boulder balancing on the edge of a cliff, is one of the quintessential sights of Myanmar’s Mon State, a Buddhist monument that seems to defy gravity.
- Kipling’s Kyaikthanlan: It is said the Kyaikthanlan Pagoda of Mawlamyine was the inspiration for the famous poem “Mandalay” by Rudyard Kipling.
- To Yangon in Style: As travelers finish their road trip on the way back to the old capital of Myanmar, there are stops at Zinkyaik Waterfall and Shwesaryan Pagoda.
Day-by-Day
Day 1
Map
Kyaikhtiyo
From Myanmar’s one-time capital of Yangon you will begin your 50-mile overland journey to Bago. Bago is home to many of Myanmar’s famous pagodas. Visit the Allied War Graves cemetery along the way, a memorial to the British Commonwealth soldiers who died in a battle that took place in the country during WWII. Take in the 180-foot-long reclining Buddha at Shwethalyaung Pagoda - the second-largest Buddha in the world! Continue on to Kyaiktiyo, also known as the “Golden Rock”, a gold-leafed boulder balancing on the edge of a cliff that seems to defy gravity. To get there, you’ll get a lift with a private local truck from Kin Pun base camp half-way up the mountain. From there, you’ll continue walking up the challenging-yet-rewarding paths to the summit. If the challenge is too much, you can kick back in a sedan chair, carried by a group of four porters. Watch as the golden sun sets overtop of Kyaikhtiyo - a magical sight. Overnight at a simple lodge in Kaikhtiyo.
Hotel Options
Day 2
Map
Hpa An
After breakfast today, you’ll head to Hpa An, a small city with an eclectic culture and intriguing landscape. You’ll stop at Bayint Nyi and Kawgoon caves, along the way, and marvel at the ancient wall carvings that date back to the 7th-century. Once arrived in Hpa An, get acquainted with the city with a small sightseeing tour, checking out Kyaikalatt, a small rock hill shaped like a wine glass, and Lombumni Garden at the base of Mt. Zawekabin, which houses 1,000 Buddha images. Tonight, you’ll see a second magical sunset, this time over Shweyinmyaw Pagoda.
Hotel Options
About
Hpa An
Day 3
Map
Mawlamyine
Today, you’ll check out of your hotel and drive to Mawlamyine, the capital of Mon State in Southeastern Myanmar, and the first capital of British Burma. Along the way, you’ll stop at Katoe Kotnet, a one-time flourishing timber and steamship-fueled township. Once you arrive in Mawlamyine, you’ll check in to your hotel and get settled in. This afternoon, you’ll take in the town, visiting Mahamuni Pagoda - a major pilgrimage site, and Seindon Mibaya Kyaung, marvelling at its hundred-year-old wood carvings. Finally, check out Kyaikthanlan Pagoda, also known as the Kipling Pagoda, due to rumors the site was the inspiration for Rudyard Kipling’s famous poem, Mandalay. Nearby, another spectacular sunset awaits from a viewpoint. Head back to your hotel and relax for the night.
Hotel Options
About
Day 4
Map
Mawlamyine
You’re back on the road today, this time, to a small town called Mudon. Here, discover nature and spirituality at its best, with fertile plains sprouting fresh fruits and rubber trees, as well as the Pa Auk Forest Monastery, nestled, as the name implies, in a forest near the village. The monastery is known for its unique meditation methods. This afternoon, you’ll return to Mawlamyine, and visit the Mon State National Museum, and get a large dose of the local culture. Spend your evening at leisure, either at your hotel, or perusing the local town after dusk.
Mawlamyine
Day 5
Map
Yangon
For your final full day of your Myanmar journey, start off with a visit to the local Zegyi market, Mawlamyine’s oldest and most important market. Thereafter, you’ll depart Mawlamyine, and head for Yangon. You’ll stop at Zinkyaik Waterfall and Shwesaryan Pagoda to stretch your legs and take in some more natural beauty and culture. Tonight, you’ll spend one more night at a hotel in Yangon.
Hotel Options
Yangon
Day 6
Map
Departure
Relax this morning before your private transfer to the airport for your flight onward.
Why Remote Lands?
Exclusively Asia
With Remote Lands you'll travel with people who have made Asia the solitary focus of their own lifelong adventure. As our guest, you'll discover Asia on a journey that is completely, authentically your own, adapted from our own remarkable experiences and adventures over the years.
With Remote Lands you'll travel with people who have made Asia the solitary focus of their own lifelong adventure. As our guest, in the continent that our north American founders Catherine and Jay have adored and explored for decades, you'll discover Asia on a journey that is completely, authentically your own, adapted from our own remarkable experiences and adventures over the years.
Travelogues
An Asia-focused magazine brought to you by Remote Lands - a platform for adventure, luxury, and authenticity from experts and explorers around the continent.
Trekking the Shan Hills with the Palaung People of Northern Myanmar
- Author
- Elisha Donkin
A trek through the Shan Hills of Myanmar leads to incredible scenery, historical perspective, and a deep, abiding understanding of the Palaung of Northern Myanmar.
The Jews of Yangon: A Look at Myanmar’s Smallest Religion
- Author
- Ronan O'Connell
The Musmeah Yeshua Synagogue serves a small, tight-knit community of 20, but the story and heritage of this site draws travelers from around the globe.
Four Luxe Riverboat Cruises in Myanmar
- Author
- Jim Algie
Myanmar riverboats have been traveling the Irawaddy since Burma’s colonial days, and these four are the premier luxury options for discerning travelers.
What Others Say
Here is a small selection of the kind words our clients have said about us recently.
A Couple from France
I want to thank Remote Lands very much for taking us to such a haven. Everything was perfectly planned
