Yangon

Yangon is Myanmar's largest city and its former capital, a place of gilded pagodas, crumbling colonial buildings and busy street life. The skyline is dominated by the Shwedagon Pagoda, one of the most sacred sites in Buddhism, and the streets below hold some of the richest collections of colonial-era architecture in Southeast Asia.

Before planning a trip, check your government's current travel advice for Myanmar. The political situation has changed significantly since 2021, many governments advise against all or non-essential travel, and some travel insurance policies do not cover trips made against that advice. Conditions can change quickly, so check again shortly before you travel.

The Shwedagon Pagoda is the centrepiece of any visit. The golden stupa rises around a hundred metres over the city from a hilltop platform, surrounded by dozens of smaller shrines, pavilions and prayer halls. Visitors walk clockwise around the platform, often stopping at the planetary posts that correspond to the day of the week they were born. The best time is late afternoon into dusk, when the gold catches the setting sun and families arrive to pray and light candles. Dress conservatively, covering shoulders and knees, and be ready to remove shoes and socks at the entrance.

Downtown Yangon was laid out by the British in a grid, and many of its colonial buildings still stand: the red-brick Secretariat, the High Court, and the Strand Hotel, which opened in 1901. The Sule Pagoda sits at the centre of a busy roundabout, and the surrounding streets are full of tea shops, markets and street food stalls. Bogyoke Aung San Market, built in the 1920s, sells lacquerware, gems, textiles and handicrafts.

Tea shops are the heart of social life. Sit on low plastic stools for sweet milky tea, samosas and fried dough, and watch the city go by. Mohinga, a fish noodle soup flavoured with lemongrass and banana stem, is the national breakfast dish and is sold from stalls all over the city in the mornings.

The Circle Line train, a slow loop around the city and its outskirts, takes about three hours and offers a window into daily life as vendors board and leave with baskets of produce. The Chauk Htat Gyi reclining Buddha, with its intricately decorated feet, and Kandawgyi Lake, with its views of the Shwedagon, are both worth a visit. A short ferry across the river takes you to Dala, a more rural township with village life a world away from the city centre.

The cool and dry season, from November to February, is the most comfortable time to visit. March to May is very hot, and the monsoon brings heavy rain from late May to October. Thingyan, the water festival that marks the Burmese New Year in mid-April, turns the streets into a citywide water fight and shuts down many businesses for several days.

Cash matters here. Card acceptance is limited and ATM access can be unreliable, so carry enough money for your stay. Where US dollars are accepted, they are expected in clean, uncreased notes.

If conditions allow, a two-day outline covers the essentials. Start the first morning with mohinga at a street stall and a walk through the colonial downtown, including the Strand and the Secretariat, then spend the afternoon at Bogyoke Aung San Market and Chauk Htat Gyi. Save the Shwedagon for the late afternoon and stay until after dark, when the stupa is lit and the platform is at its most peaceful. On the second day, ride the Circle Line in the morning, cross to Dala by ferry in the afternoon, and finish with tea at a busy downtown tea shop.

Respect goes a long way here. Monks and nuns should not be touched, and women should not hand objects directly to monks. Pointing your feet at people or Buddha images is considered rude. Ask before photographing people, especially at religious sites. Keep conversations about politics discreet, both for your own sake and for the people you speak with, who may face risks that visitors do not. Local SIM cards are available, but internet access can be restricted or cut without warning, so download maps and key documents before arrival and let someone at home know your plans.

Two to three days is enough to explore Yangon. A local guide makes a real difference here, both for context at the pagodas and for finding the tea shops, markets and neighbourhoods that most visitors miss.