Travel Information

Language & Religion

Myanmar people speak Burmese although quite a few can also speak English. The vast majority of Myanmar people (about 88%) are Buddhist with a minority of Christian, Muslim and Hindu.

Climate and Weather

Myanmar has three “seasons”: Hot Season – March to mid-May with average temperatures 25-38 C Rainy Season – mid-May to September with average temperatures 23-33 C. “Winter” Season – October to February with average temperatures 18-24 C. The main tourist season is during the winter season, but it doesn’t rain much up-country and the travel season is now virtually all year long. In fact many prefer the rainy season for its lack of crowds and the cool weather.

Natural Resources

Myanmar is rich in natural resources such as timber, tin, antimony, zinc, copper, tungsten, lead, coal, limestone, precious stones like jade, ruby and sapphires, natural gas, hydropower, and some petroleum. Also, in Myanmar identified the resources of iron ore and platinum.

Festivals

Myanmar is a very festival filled land. We have one festival at least every month of the year. Some are religions festivals, others seasonal. The festival of Thadinkyut(light festival) marks the end of the Buddhist lent. The most famous festival of Myanmar is the Thingyan Water Festival, which is held from 13 April to 16 April every year.

Food

Burmese food is a blend of Chinese, Indian and Mon influences and the staple food is rice in Myanmar. It is a kind of a non-sticky rice. But in Shan State, sticky rice is eaten. The Myanmar people eat various kinds of noodles too. The main, more traditional noodle is a rice noodle called Mohinga (a dish of rice vermicelli with fish gravy). It is usually served at social and religious functions. Many, but not all, Myanmar dishes are noodles. Both rice and wheat noodles are common and though Buddhism does not forbid eating pork or beef, some do avoid eating it.

General information

• The country code is +95, and the internet access code is .mm.
• Time Zone = MMT (UTC+6:30)
• Electricity is 220 V, 50 Hz.’
• Myanmar Currency is the “Kyat”, shown locally using the abbreviation of “K”. The ISO abbreviation is MMK.
• Visa and Master card are now accepted in ATMs throughout the country, especially in all the major tourist area.
• Foreigners are required to pay in US dollars for hotel, tourist attractions, rail and air tickets and are required to pay in ‘Kyat’ for most other transactions (trishaws, pickups, tips, food, etc)
• International airports are in Yangon and Mandalay.
• Domestic highway bus terminals are Aung-Mingalar and Sawbwargyi-Gone, both about 10 miles from downtown Yangon.
• Modest clothing is highly appreciated and practically required in religious places such as pagodas, temples and monasteries.
• Business hour is usually from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for private companies and 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. for government offices. Working days are from Monday to Friday. Public holidays are also included.
• Taxis are available everywhere. There are over 250 Buses like running through Yangon everyday. For exclusive transport, there are car rental services.
• Tap water in Myanmar is not safe to drink. Bottled water is readily available in all tourist area.
• Medical certificates of inoculations are essential especially for visitors coming from an infected area or yellow fever zones. Vaccination certificate is not necessary.