The railroad to Mandalay...  A train from Lashio to Mandalay crosses the famous Gokteik Viaduct in Shan state, northern Burma.  Photo courtesy of Bernhard Heiser of www.asiaphoto.de, which has excellent pictures of what to see in Burma...
	Click here for interactive train route map

See Burma by train...

Burma is not noted for the attractiveness of its regime, to put it mildly, but things are now improving.  www.burmacampaign.org.uk used to tell tourists not to go to Burma at all, but it changed this advice in 2012.  If you decide to go, you'll find a fascinating country which is easy and safe to visit, with friendly and honest people.  Paradoxically, the lack of mass tourism due to the boycott of the regime has preserved Burma from westernisation, making it one of the most interesting places to visit now, before it's too late.  Burma's British-built railways are less developed than others in Southeast Asia, but you'll find the trains are a wonderful way to get around and experience the country at ground level, avoiding unnecessary domestic flights and cramped buses.  The journeys are as much an adventure as the country itself.

Train times, fares & information...

Yangon - Bago - Naypyitaw - Thazi - Mandalay

Yangon - Bagan

Yangon - Thazi - Kalaw - Shwenyaung (for Inle lake)

Yangon - Bago - Kyaikto - Mawlamyine (Moulmein) - Ye - Dawei

Yangon - Pyay

Mandalay - Pyin Oo Lwin (Maymyo) - Gokteik - Hsipaw - Lashio

Mandalay - Kawlin - Myitkyina

Mandalay - Kalaw - Shwenyaung (for Inle lake)

Mandalay - Bagan by train

Mandalay - Bagan - Pyay - Yangon by Irrawaddy river steamer

Mandalay - Bagan by The Road to Mandalay luxury river cruise

How to buy tickets

What are Burmese trains like?

Yangon Circle Line trains

Map of train routes in Southeast Asia

Useful country information - visas, currency, time zone...

Hotels & accommodation in Burma

Is it Myanmar or Burma?

Myanmar is the Burmese-language name for Burma, and always was, even in colonial times.  Burma is the English-language name for Myanmar, and still is.  The Burmese government switched to using the Burmese-language name for the country in 1948, and in 1989 also switched to using the Burmese-language names for a number of places around the country.  On this webpage, the Burmese names are used first, with the familiar English-language name in brackets, for example Yangon (Rangoon) or Mawlamyine (Moulmein).

International travel to or from Burma...

There are no trains, buses, or ferries between Burma and neighbouring countries.  In fact, it can be difficult to enter Burma overland from India, China or Thailand because almost all borders are closed to foreigners.  Foreigners are not permitted in most border areas.

Can you help? 

The Burmese Railways don't have a website, and this page is kept up to date by feedback from travellers.  If you find that fares or times have changed, or can fill gaps in the information, please email me.  Photos of the fares or timetable boards at stations or photos of the trains are much appreciated!

Sponsored links...

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Useful country information

Train operator:	Myanmar Railways (MR) - No official website, but try agency sites www.myanmarventure.com/train/index.html, www.yangonow.com/eng/transportation/train/fare.html or www.myanmarmtetours.com/myanmar_train_schedule.htm.
Time zone:	GMT+6½ all year.
Dialling code:	+95
Currency:	US$ widely accepted, and foreigners must pay hotel bills & train fares in US$.  Credit cards and travellers' cheques are NOT accepted in Burma.  Local currency is Kyat (pronounced 'chat').
Hotels:	Hotels in Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan, Inle Lake
Flights:	Flights to Burma
Visas:	UK citizens need a visa to visit Burma (Myanmar), obtainable from the Embassy of the Union of Myanmar, 19a Charles Street, London W1X 8ER, visa section open 10:00-13:00 Mon-Fri, visa fee £14.  Call 020 7629 4486 or 24 hour visa info line (premium rates) 0891 600306 or 0891 600 306.  Fax 020 7629 4169.  In 2012 there were rumours of a new 'Visa on arrival' system about to be introduced.  Health & vaccinations
Page last updated:	30 April 2013

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Yangon (Rangoon) to Mandalay

S = upper class sleeping-car   U = upper class seats  1 = first class seats  O = ordinary class seats  R = restaurant

The timetable shown here applies in January 2013, all these trains run daily.  Beware of travel agency websites with outdated times. 

Rangoon to Mandalay is 622 km (388 miles).  Rangoon to Naypitaw is 372 km (233 miles).  Rangoon to Thazi is 493 km (308 miles). 

Train 141/142 runs to/from Kalaw & Shwenyaung, see below.  It's a slow train, and isn't always shown on station timetable boards.

Mandalay ► Yangon
Train number:		8	142	32	12	6	4
Classes:		U,O	U,O	U,O	U,1,O	S,U,1,O,R	S,U,1,O
Mandalay depart:	depart	-	-	-	06:00	15:00	17:00
Thazi	arrive	-	-	-	09:03	17:53	19:58
	depart	-	-	-	09:06	17:56	20:01
Naypyitaw	arrive	-	00:33	-	12:16	20:56	23:16
	depart	20:00	00:36	08:00	12:19	20:59	23:19
Taungoo	arrive	22:48	04:55	10:53	15:17	23:47	02:07
	depart	22:51	05:15	10:56	15:27	23:57	02:17
Bago (Pegu)	arrive	03:34	11:54	15:34	20:19	04:25	07:10
	depart	03:37	12:09	15:37	20:22	04:28	07:13
Yangon (Rangoon) arrive:	arrive	05:30	14:40	17:30	22:30	06:30	09:15

Foreigners must pay fares in US dollars.  Children under 3 years old travel free, children under 10 pay half fare. 

How to buy tickets      What are Burmese trains like?      Hotels & accommodation     Map of train routes in Southeast Asia

Upper class seats:  Upper class cars on a Rangoon to Mandalay express are actually quite comfortable.  There is no air-conditioning, which is almost an advantage because the windows open for a cool breeze and unrivalled views of the Burmese countryside.  Sleeper photos.

Fares
One-way, either direction, US$	Special sleeper	Standard sleeper	Upper class seat	First class seat	Ordinary seat
Rangoon to Mandalay	-	$ 33	$ 30	$22	$ 11
Rangoon to Thazi	-	$ 27	$ 24	$18	$ 9
Rangoon to Naypyitaw	-	$ 20	$ 18	$14	$ 7
Rangoon to Taungoo	-	$15	$13	$10	$ 5
Rangoon to Bago	-	-	$ 4	$ 3	$ 2
Thazi to Mandalay	-	-	$ 7	$ 5	$ 3

How to buy tickets

About the journey...

	Night express to Mandalay...  The afternoon train from Rangoon to Mandalay passes Bago.  The open windows and relatively slow speeds make train travel a great way to see Burma.  The semaphore signals are unmistakably British...

Contrary to what you might read in your guidebook, the Rangoon to Mandalay express trains are a comfortable, fairly fast and reasonably punctual way to travel between Rangoon and Mandalay.  Trains are available for boarding at Rangoon in good time (normally at the platform right in front of you when you enter the station), and they generally depart promptly with whistles blown, flags waved, and a long low hoot from the locomotive.

The train trundles out of Rangoon at just 15mph with the local children trying to hang on to the outside, accelerating to 40-45mph once clear of the city, clickety-clacking past small villages of palm-thatched cottages built on stilts, ox carts trundling slowly along dusty roads, and occasional white or gold stupas.  Burmese children love to wave at trains, especially if they see a western face at the window, and will smile broadly when you wave back.  You'll be travelling along a railway originally built by the British - look out for the old-fashioned semaphore signals and mock-Tudor signal boxes at Bago.

Even when night falls, you'll see the palm trees silhouetted in the moonlight, and the smell of the village cooking fires will drift into your sleeper compartment through the open window.  Make sure you have a jumper or fleece handy if you travel overnight, as it can get very cold a few hours after dark.  The track is not the best in the world and in places it will put your carriage suspension through its paces, but you stand a good chance of arriving at the other end within 5 or 10 minutes of the advertised time.  However, delays of 30 - 60 minutes or more are not uncommon, so make allowances.

Travellers' reports...

Traveller Roger Minns reports from January 2008:  "After a last shower we set off on the midday walk to the station and our rendezvous with our upper class seats of the ’Chinese 29 up train’ from Rangoon bound for Mandalay leaving at 12.30 [this particular train no longer runs].  And there it was!  A spacious carriage with collapsed but still surprisingly comfortable seats (albeit in the permanently fully-reclined mode) some 40 years old but mercifully with windows which opened fully and a ceiling full of fans which worked!  The carriage was full with polite local people including a couple of monks.  We left on time through the outskirts of Rangoon and then through an arid farming area.  People working on the land with oxen but no tractors or farm equipment – unbelievably arduous work.  Occasionally our train slowed or stopped at a station when a multitude of vendors would get on – often emerging from the roof with a range of hot and cold food offerings – including, to Tom’s undisguised delight, a bloke with tins of coldish Myanmar beer.  There was also a restaurant service of sorts on board and Graham in particular took full advantage of the supply of noodles, curries and, inevitably, coffee.  After dark the lights didn’t really work so we tried to sleep in fairly uncomfortable circumstances.  It was chilly, but with the windows closed not excessively so, and we all managed to kip for a bit. Any urge Tom and I might have had to visit the loo rapidly evaporated when a rather shaken-looking Graham returned with a report that there was a loose turd rolling around on the lavatory floor!  Then, suddenly at 3am, our arrival on time at Mandalay Station!  We had worried about arriving at Mandalay at 3 in the morning expecting the place to be dead. Far from it! The station was humming with music, tea houses, people sleeping on the platform and, inevitably, taxi drivers! "

Rangoon's colonial railway station...		The train leaves Rangoon...

A green flag from Bago signal box...		Upper class sleeping-car at Bago...

People walk the tracks...		...you can smell the village fires.

...there's even the odd golden stupa.		Mandalay here we come!

More village scenes from the train...		Mandalay station. Courtesy of Lindsay Stubbs

Yangon to Bagan

S = upper class sleeping-car;  U = upper class seats;  O = ordinary class seats.  How to buy tickets.  What are Burmese trains like?

How to buy tickets in Rangoon

Bagan station is a modern pagoda-style station in the middle of nowhere about 5km southeast of the Nyaung Oo township, roughly 9km from Old Bagan.  It's possibly one of the few stations in the world further from the town it serves than the airport!

To buy tickets in Bagan, you don't have to go all the way out to the station as there's a Myanmar Railways ticket office in Nyaung Oo, on Lanmadaw street, opposite the Grand Empire Hotel.  The office is in a shop for kitchen equipment, called the 'Blue Sea Kitchen Mart'. Tickets are sold up to 3 days in advance.  The office opens at 09:00 and closes late afternoon, around 17:00 or 18:00.

Sleeper on the Yangon to Bagan train.  Courtesy Eckart Spindler.		The Bagan to Yangon train being shunted into the platform at Bagan.  Courtesy of Eckart Spindler.

Restaurant car on the Yangon to Bagan train.  Courtesy of Eckart Spindler.		Bagan railway station.  Courtesy of Eckart Spindler.

Sunset over the Irrawaddy, from the recommended Bagan Thande Hotel.		In Bagan, ancient temples litter the plain as far as the eye can see...

Yangon or Mandalay to Kalaw & Inle Lake

A journey to Inle Lake on the Slow Train From Thazi...

Inle Lake is one of the most beautiful places in Burma, and it's not surprising that it attracts many visitors.  The usual base for exploring the lake is Nyaungshwe, at the north end of the lake.  Trains and buses don't go directly to Nyaungshwe, but go to the main town of Shwenyaung 11 km away, from where there are plenty of local taxis or buses to Nyaungshwe.  So to reach Inle Lake, first take an express train from Rangoon or Mandalay to Thazi and stop overnight, then travel to Shwenyaung on either a bus taking 4-5 hours on bad roads or by far the better option, on an absolutely amazing scenic ride on the 'Slow Train From Thazi' as shown below.  The train ride might be the highlight of your trip!

* Leaves Rangoon the previous day, and has no sleepers, see mainline timetable above.  You may prefer to travel via Thazi, as recommended below.

** Arrives Rangoon the day after leaving Shwenyaung, and has no sleepers.  You may prefer to travel via Thazi, as recommended below.

U = upper class seats  1 = first class seats  O = ordinary class seats  R = Restaurant car    ? = Estimated time. 

How to buy tickets    What are Burmese trains like?     Map of train routes in Southeast Asia

Thazi to Kalaw is 197km (123 miles), Thazi to Shwenyaung is 247km (154 miles).  All the trains shown here run daily. 

Coming from Rangoon, you have a choice.  Train 141 runs direct from Rangoon to Kalaw & Shwenyaung as shown above, but it has no sleeping-car just upper class reclining seats, and it's a very slow train, overtaken by expresses.  It's better to leave Rangoon later, at 15:00 by fast train number 5 with sleeping-car, arriving Thazi at 03:09, and change onto train 143 leaving Thazi at 06:00 for Kalaw & Shwenyaung, as shown above.  Or you can leave Rangoon earlier, at 06:00 by express train number 11 arriving Thazi at 18:59, get a proper night's sleep in the Moonlight guesthouse in Thazi and continue next morning by train 143 leaving Thazi at 06:00 for Kalaw & Shwenyaung, an amazing scenic ride on the Slow Train from Thazi...

Coming from Mandalay:  Take an afternoon or evening train from Mandalay to Thazi (train 6 or 4), see the Rangoon-Mandalay timetable above.  Stay overnight in Thazi, the Moonlight Guesthouse is 15 min walk along the road from the clean, simple, great food.  Next day, take train 143 to Kalaw or Shwenyaung, an amazing scenic ride on the Slow Train from Thazi...

The Moonlight guest house in Thazi is clean & simple with great food, singles with fan $10, doubles $15.  It's 15 minutes walk or short (horse-powered) taxi ride along the road from the station into town, and you'll normally find rooms available without any advance reservation.  They are used to people leaving early for the trains and can make a breakfast bag for you to take.

On arrival at Shwenyaung station, walk 15 minutes (or take a taxi, 1,000 Kyat) along the main road to the Tuk Tuk stop for Nyaungshwe. A Tuk Tuk directly from the railway station to any hotel in downtown Nyaungshwe costs 8,000 Kyat per car.  There's an entrance fee for foreigners for the Inle Lake region, US$ 5 which has to be paid before entering Nyaungshwe.  If you're visiting Nyaungshwe during the high season, make sure you reserve accommodation as soon as you can and to confirm it a week before you arrive, as hotels and guesthouses can sell out.  Feedback appreciated.

How to buy tickets

U = upper class seats  O = ordinary class seats   What are Burmese trains like?    Map of train routes in Southeast Asia

There are no sleepers on any of these trains, just seats.  How to buy tickets

Trains used to terminate at Moatama for a ferry across the Thanlwin river to Moulmein, but the new road+rail bridge and new railway station in Moulmein opened to trains on 18 April 2006.  Trains from Rangoon now run beyond Moatama across the new bridge direct to and from Moulmein itself and one runs on to Ye and Dawei as shown.  The new station is behind the ridge with the pagodas.

Rangoon to Moulmein is 281 km (176 miles).  All the trains shown here run daily. 

How to buy tickets

About the journey...

The train follows the Rangoon-Mandalay main line as far as Bago, where it branches off and heads across the plains to the broad Sittung River which it crosses via a huge and heavily-guarded road/rail bridge.  The scenery becomes more interesting on the other side - look out for primitive brickworks on the left in several locations, with brick kilns and bricks drying in the sun, and of course you'll see lots of stupas especially on the mountain ridge to the east.  Historically, the railway from Rangoon ended at Moatama (Martaban) which was the ferry terminal for ferries across the Thanlwin River to Moulmein itself.  A new road+rail bridge has now been built, opened to road traffic in February 2005 and to trains in April 2006.  Trains now rumble slowly across the bridge into a brand-new station behind the hill with Moulmein pagoda.  The Moatama-Moulmein ferry service has been discontinued.  Expect an arrival generally around 30-60 minutes late. 

A brick factory, seen from the train...		...On board the train from Rangoon to Moulmein

A local bus, outside a mosque in Moulmein		The old British church at Moulmein.

Yangon to Pyay

* Trains 63/64 & 75/76 use Rangoon Kyemyindine station, not Rangoon main station.  Kyemyindine station is a few stops northwest of Rangoon main station on the city's circular train line.  Times for these trains are not confirmed.

U = upper class seats  1 = first class seats  O = ordinary class seats

Rangoon to Pyay is 257 km (161 miles).  All the trains shown here run daily.

How to buy tickets.  What are Burmese trains like?

Mandalay to Pyin Oo Lwin, Hsipaw & Lashio

U = upper class seats   1 = first class seats   O = ordinary class seats.    Map of train routes in Southeast Asia    The train runs daily. 

Mandalay to Pyin Oo Lwin is 67 km (42 miles).  Mandalay to Hsipaw is 206km (129 miles).  Mandalay to Lashio is 280 km (175 miles).

How to buy tickets

About the journey...

Don't let the early start put you off, the ride into the hills as dawn breaks is absolutely fabulous...  It's an early start from Mandalay, but this train ride is easily the best way to reach the old British hill station of Pyin Oo Lwin (Maymyo) and the Shan state towns of Hsipaw (Thibaw) and Lashio.  Leaving Mandalay heading south the train soon turns northeast across the plains.  It's still dark at this time, but traders with torches and fires flock to the train when it calls at wayside stations.  At dawn, the train reaches the foot of the mountains and starts climbing.  It gains height using a series of zig-zags, stopping and reversing up the steep gradient twice to reach the plateau at the top of the escarpment (see the picture below).  Soon after reaching the plateau, the train arrives at Pyin Oo Lwin.

After Pyin Oo Lwin the train snakes its way through pleasant countryside to the highlight of the trip, the crossing of a spectacular valley on the dramatic Gokteik viaduct, just after Gokteik station.  You'll see the viaduct on the left-hand side of the train as you leave Gokteik station,  The train then curves left onto the bridge.  The Gokteik viaduct was built in 1901 by an American firm of contractors who won the tender with a design allegedly far more advanced than any of the other bids.  When built, it had the highest span of any bridge in the British Empire, and was the only American-built bridge in the Empire, too.  Rumour has it that the Burmese government did no maintenance on the bridge whilst a British insurance policy was still in force, but you'll be relieved to hear that the bridge was renovated in the 1990s.  The train passes over at walking pace, and you may be prevented from taking photographs as the Burmese consider the bridge to be of strategic importance.  Don't lean out of the window and look downwards if you suffer from vertigo!  Expect an arrival at the other end around 15-60 minutes late.

If you want to do a day trip over the famous Gokteik viaduct:  Gokteik station is on the Mandalay side of the famous Gokteik viaduct, in other words, coming from Mandalay or Pyin Oo Lwin, the train arrives at Gokteik station before crossing the viaduct.  If you want to cross the viaduct on the train and immediately return south, you should buy a ticket to the station beyond Gokteik, a little place called Nawngpeng, see the timetable above.  This is where the northbound and southbound trains pass each other on the single line, so you can go from Mandalay or Pyin Oo Lwin to the viaduct and back in a day.  Make sure you're ready to jump off the northbound train and onto the southbound train on the adjacent track, as if the northbound train is late and the southbound already waiting, it will leave as soon as the northbound train arrives and it gets the 'right away'.  You won't have time to buy a ticket at Nawngpeng station, just jump onto the southbound train back to Pyin Oo Lwin or Mandalay and pay on board.

Dawn on the train... Having left Mandalay in darkness, the sun now comes up...		Traders flock to the train - some stations on this line seem to specialise in fresh flowers!

Another wayside halt...		...wooden seats in ordinary class.  Cheap and fun.

...up into the hills to Maymyo!		Local transport from the station to your hotel...

Upper class seats on the Mandalay to Lashio train...  Photo courtesy of Richard Herring.

The Gokteik viaduct...  Beyond Pyin oo Lwin, the highlight of the journey to Lashio is the crossing of the famous Gokteik Viaduct across a deep river gorge covered with thick bush.  When built in 1901, it had the highest span of any bridge in the British Empire.  Above, a view of the viaduct seen from the northbound train soon after it leaves Gokteik station on its way towards the bridge.  Photo courtesy of Richard Herring.
Crossing the Gokteik Viaduct en route to Hsipaw & Lashio.  Photos courtesy of Marilyn Le Ruyet.

Mandalay to Kawlin & Myitkyina

All trains take one night.   S = sleeping-car  U = upper class seats  O = ordinary class seats.

Mandalay to Myitkyina costs $36 in a sleeper.   Mandalay to Myitkyina is 539 km (337 miles).

Lux = Privately-run Malika-Mandalar Express.  Runs 4 times a week - From Mandalay on Mon, Wed, Fri, Sun.  Days of operation on return journey not known.  Sleeping-cars only, higher fares charged.

Please check times locally as it has not so far been possible to update this timetable and times may well have changed.  There are reports of a train 37 departing Mandalay at 12:00 that is allegedly now the best train to take.  Feedback or photos of the timetable boards would be much appreciated.

Mandalay to Bagan by train

This is the train service between Mandalay and the temples of Bagan, although you may prefer the river journey aboard the Mandalay-Bagan express ferry service.  Mandalay to Bagan is just 179km, making this a very slow train, even though the line was only built in 1996!  You may prefer to take the excellent Mandalay-Bagan express ferry for this journey, especially in the Mandalay to Bagan direction as the train runs overnight, but has no sleeping-car, and and the ferry runs faster with (rather than against) the flow of the current.

O = ordinary class seats   1 = First class seats  U = upper class seats    How to buy tickets    What are Burmese trains like?

Bagan station is a modern pagoda-style station in the middle of nowhere about 5km southeast of the Nyaung Oo township, 9km from Old Bagan.  It's possibly one of the few stations in the world further from the town it serves than the airport!  The station does, however, feature a spacious if spartan 'tourist lounge' in which to wait.

Mandalay to Bagan is 179 km (112 miles). 

How to buy tickets

What are Burmese trains like?

On the premier Rangoon to Mandalay route, the express trains are reasonably clean, comfortable and even relatively speedy.  On other routes, don't expect western standards, as train travel in Burma is an adventure!  Trains are often wonderfully slow, grubby, and fittings such as lights and seats are usually not in the best state of repair.   But best of all, the glass panes and metal shutters over the windows are normally secured out of the way, giving you a clear and unobstructed view of the countryside and villages of 'real' Burma as it trundles past, with nothing between you and it!

Burmese trains have three classes:  Upper class, First class and Ordinary class.  In addition, Upper Class sleeping-cars operate on several Rangoon to Mandalay trains, on the Rangoon to Bagan overnight train, and in some Mandalay-Myitkyina trains, and they come in two types, standard sleepers and special sleepers, details shown below.  The best Rangoon-Mandalay trains have restaurant cars, with 4-seat tables, serving meals, drinks and snacks.

Upper Class...

Upper class has comfortable reclining seats, sometimes two-abreast on each side of the aisle, sometimes one-abreast on one side of the aisle and two abreast on the other.  The seats normally all face the direction of travel, but can be rotated to face each other (for example, to make a group of 4 seats) if required.  Upper class on the main Rangoon - Mandalay express trains is relatively clean and comfortable, with fresh seat covers and curtains at the window.  Upper class on secondary trains is much grubbier but still quite comfortable, although you will find your seat recline mechanism in various states of repair...

Upper class on a Rangoon - Mandalay express.  The windows have both glass & a metal shutter, normally secured out of the way.		Upper class seats of the most modern type on a Rangoon-Mandalay express.  Trains 3, 4, 5, 6, 11 & 12 have the most modern cars.  The Rangoon-Bagan train also has a fairly smart upper class car.		Upper class seats on secondary lines are grubbier and in a worse state of repair, but still comfortable.  This is Upper class on the Slow Train from Shwenyaung (Inle Lake) to Thazi.

First Class...

First class has basic wooden seats, almost identical to Ordinary class, but with a padded leatherette seat bottom.  For the first half hour, this padding seems to make the extra cost worthwhile.  After that, you wonder if the Ordinary class wooden seats would be less sweaty in the heat!  First class is only available on certain trains.

First class car, Mandalay-Lashio train.		Fairly smart first class seating on a Rangoon-Mandalay express...		Grubbier First class on the Mandalay - Lashio train...

Ordinary class...

Ordinary class has basic wooden seats, and is quite bearable for many journeys such as Mandalay to Pyin Oo Lwin or Hsipaw.  The seats are numbered on the back (in Burmese numerals) and every passenger has a specific seat number written on their ticket, so there's no overcrowding or scrum for seats.  Just watch out for the local produce stacked all over the floor!

Ordinary class on a Rangoon-Mandalay express.		Ordinary class on the Mandalay-Pyin Oo Lwin-Lashio train...		Ordinary class on the Mandalay - Lashio train.

Upper class sleepers...

Upper class sleeping-cars operate on Rangoon to Mandalay trains 3, 4, 5, 6 and on the Rangoon to Bagan overnight train, as well as in some Mandalay-Myitkyina trains.  There's usually just one sleeping-car per train.  These standard sleeping-cars have four largish 4-berth compartments and two smaller 2-berth compartments, opening off a side corridor giving access to the rest of the train.  There are western-style toilets and a washbasin at the end of the corridor, usually kept pretty clean, but bring your own toilet paper.  A sheet, pillow and very thin blanket are provided, but make sure you have a jumper or fleece and socks to hand as it gets very cold at night.  It's a noisy and very bumpy ride, so you will snooze rather than sleep, but it's good to be able to lie down on a flat bed in a safely locked compartment.  More photos & feedback would be appreciated.

An Upper class sleeping-car on train 5 from Rangoon to Mandalay...		Top bunk in a 2-bed sleeper...		Sleeper corridor...

Upper class 'special' sleepers...

These special sleepers may no longer be in service, feedback would be appreciated.  They used to run in the now-discontinued train 17/18.  However, for the record, each of these special sleeping-cars is divided into four separate self-contained compartments, each with its own entrance door, entrance vestibule, toilet, and seating/berth area.  A pair of wide upholstered armchairs face each other by the window on each side of the car.  At night, the seats pull together to form a wide lower berth.  The upper berths are fixed in position above the seats.  There is no corridor, and no access between compartments or from your compartment to the rest of the train, so travellers in special sleepers cannot use the restaurant car.  A pillow, sheet and light blanket are provided, but it gets very cold at night so make sure that socks, a jumper and a fleece are close to hand!  A modern air-conditioning unit is strapped to the bulkhead, which may or may not work.  The ceiling fan and light might work all too well - you may not be able to turn them off!  A sealed pack with flannel and fresh soap is provided, plus a 1 litre bottle of mineral water for each passenger.  The cars are old, and it's a noisy and bumpy ride, so you will snooze rather than sleep, but it's good to be able to lie down on a flat bed in a safely locked compartment.

A special sleeper from Rangoon to Mandalay.		4-berth special sleeper.  The berths run lengthways, along the coach sides.

Foreigners pay higher fares than Burmese citizens, and must pay in US dollars.  Children under 3 years old travel free, children under 10 pay half fare.  Although the Myanmar Railways has no official website, you can check train times & fares on several travel agency websites - try www.myanmarventure.com/train/index.html, www.yangonow.com/eng/transportation/train/fare.html or www.gomoasia.com/train.htm.

How to buy train tickets from outside Burma...

You can't book trains online, in fact the Burmese railways don't even have a website.  It's usually easiest just to buy in person when you're there, booking opens a few days before departure.  However, if you want to secure tickets for departures from Rangoon in advance from outside Burma you can do so by email through a number of Rangoon travel agencies including:

• Exotic Myanmar Travels & Tours, www.exoticmyanmartravel.com.

• Myanmar Tour East, www.myanmartoureast.com.

Pre-booking is no bad thing if you want a sleeper, as these are in relatively short supply.  These agencies will buy your tickets on your behalf and have them delivered to your hotel for a nominal fee.  They'll first ask you to send them a scan of your passport, this is quite normal.  I have not used either agency myself, my own preferred agency Sanay Travel no longer arranges train tickets.  Feedback is always appreciated!

How to buy train tickets when in Burma...

• You can buy train tickets in person at the station ticket office, it's easy.  Reservations are not computerised, but based on hand-written reservation lists, so bookings can only be made at the station where your journey starts, not for journeys starting elsewhere.  Every main station has a clear information board showing train times & fares for foreigners in English

• Upper class bookings open 3 days in advance. Ordinary class bookings open just one day in advance.  You can't buy tickets before bookings open.  At some smaller stations you may be told to come back and buy a ticket just before departure.

• Apart from the train times & fares for foreigners boards there are relatively few signs in English, but don't worry - just ask at the first available ticket window and as a foreigner you will normally be invited inside the ticket office (!) and told to sit down while someone is called to help you.  You will need the names, nationality and passport number of each passenger as these will be written on your ticket.

• I'd recommend buying your ticket at least the day before departure if you can, but it's usually not difficult for a foreigner to secure a Upper class or ordinary class seat on the day of departure.  All passengers get a reserved seat, the coach & seat numbers will be written on the ticket.  Sleepers are in short supply on the main Rangoon to Mandalay route as there's only one sleeping-car per train, so book a day or two ahead if you can.  But you're unlikely to have any trouble getting a sleeper on the direct train from Rangoon to Bagan even on the day of departure.

• To buy train tickets in Rangoon, don't go to the station!  Go to the advance booking office which is not in the main station but in Bogyoke Aung San road on the south side of the tracks, opposite the Sakura Tower and diagonally opposite the Traders Hotel, look for the entrance sign shown in the photo below.  It is open daily 06:00-10:00 & 13:00-16:00.  It looks more like a farmyard than a reservations office!  Walk off the main road, 30m down the track into the booking hall proper, and you'll see a row of about 10 ticket windows.  The window for booking trains from Rangoon to Mandalay is the first one on the left.   You can also book train tickets through your hotel or through the Rangoon MTT office at the Sule Paya. 

• To buy train tickets in Mandalay, the ticket office is on the first floor of the station, above the tracks.

English-language information boards:  All main Burmese stations have English-language information boards showing timetables & fares for foreigners, like this. Courtesy Alex Diment.		Rangoon station.  Surprisingly, Rangoon's impressive station building is on the far (north) side of the tracks from the city centre.  But don't go there to buy tickets!

Entrance to Rangoon advance booking office on Bogyoke Aung San Road, on the southern (city centre) side of the tracks.  At first sight more like a farmyard than a booking office, but look for this sign!		Inside Rangoon advance booking office on Bogyoke Aung San Road.  The far left window is the one for tickets to Mandalay.  Booking opens 3 days before departure.  Feedback would be appreciated!

Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) steamers

Taking a river steamer along the Irrawaddy is perhaps the best way to transfer between Mandalay & Bagan.  The Mandalay-Bagan express ferry is a wonderful way to travel, revealing Burmese life on and along the river.  There are now 3 ferries:  A twice-weekly slow ferry mainly for locals, the original daily Shwekeinnery express ferry for tourists, and a new twice-weekly express ferry Malikha also aimed at tourists. If you want the Orient Express 4-night luxury option, see the Road to Mandalay section below.

Shwekeinnery express ferry = Daily Mandalay-Bagan express ferry Shwe Keinnery, highly recommended, fare US$35 if bought direct, US$40 bought through your hotel.  Just ask at your hotel reception, although the website for this ferry no longer works.

Malikha express ferry = Mandalay-Bagan express ferry Malikha, fare $43, runs on certain dates advertised a month in advance at www.myanmarrivercruises.com.

Local ferry = slow local ferry with cabins, please double-check days & times when you're in Burma, feedback appreciated.

www.myanmarrivercruises.com also seem to run an $80 deluxe ferry on certain dates.

How to buy tickets:  Ferry tickets can be booked through your hotel or via a travel agency, through the MTT (government tourist information) offices in major towns (for example, the MTT office at Mandalay station or in Rangoon near the Sule Paya) or at Inland Water Transport (IWT) offices.  If you have any feedback from travelling on these ferries, please e-mail me.

On board the daily Shwekeinnery Mandalay-Bagan express ferry...

The modern Mandalay-Bagan express ferry.  You'll spend most time on deck...		All passenger get a reclining seat on the lower deck.		There is a bar and café on the upper deck.

On board the Mandalay-Bagan slow ferry...

The Mandalay-Bagan 5am local ferry, an interesting Burmese experience.  This ferry was built in 1955!  Courtesy Marilyn Le Ruyet		Close-up of the Mandalay to Bagan slow ferry.  Photo courtesy of Marilyn Le Ruyet

The Road to Mandalay

Mandalay to Bagan in Orient Express luxury, on a 4-day or 7-day cruise...

A luxury river cruise run by the same company that operates the famous Venice Simplon Orient Express & Eastern & Oriental Express plies the Irrawaddy between Mandalay and Bagan, offering 3 or 4 night one-way and 7-night return river cruises between Mandalay and Bagan.  She also runs occasional 11 night trips covering Bhamo in the North. Originally built in 1964 as the Nederland, she cruised the Rhine Valley for 30 years before being shipped to Burma in 1995, where she was renamed The Road to Mandalay after Rudyard Kipling's poem.  She has just 56 cabins, all with windows.  A 3-night luxury Irrawaddy cruise from Mandalay to Bagan leaving on most Wednesdays costs around £1,640 per person, including private cabin, restaurant meals, tours and transfers.

Prices, departure dates & online booking:  www.orient-express.com/roadtomandalay

The Road to Mandalay, seen from the regular Shwekeinnery express ferry between Mandalay & Bagan...		River life...  The cruise along the Irrawaddy gives a wonderful insight into Burmese culture...

The Yangon Circle Train...

An interesting ride if you've a spare day in Rangoon...

Many visitors take a ride on Rangoon's circle line, a rickety train that gives a great flavour of local life and is the closest thing Rangoon has to a metro.  Circle trains run every 30 minutes during daylight hours, and you simply buy a ticket from the little office on platform 6/7 at Rangoon main station and hop on the next train.  Some trains make the whole circuit, some terminate before completing the circle, so you need to switch trains.

Scenes from Yangon's Circle Line...  Photos courtesy of Eckhart Spindler

Overland travel between Burma and either India, China or Thailand is either difficult or impossible.  That's because the borders, and often the whole border regions, are generally closed to foreigners.  Some regions are also dangerous in some cases because of political unrest.  One border crossing to Thailand is indeed open, at Tachileik north of Chiang Rai in northern Thailand.  There are no regular passenger shipping services from Burma.

Hotels in Rangoon, Mandalay & Burma

Personal hotel recommendations...

In Rangoon, the famous and fabulous Strand Hotel is Rangoon's equivalent of Singapore's Raffles, every bit as historic and almost as expensive, but actually (having stayed at both) much nicer.  If you can't stretch to over $490 a night, at least have a cocktail in the bar!  For a rather more down-to-Earth price, the Thamada Hotel is very near the station and easy walking distance from all of Yangon city centre, from about $85 per night, though there are many other good choices.

In Bagan, the Bagan Thande Hotel has attractive bungalows on the river front, and is walking distance from the sights of Old Bagan, from about $70 per night for a double.

The famous Strand Hotel, Rangoon		...A suite at the Strand.

Flights to Rangoon (Yangon)

Use Skyscanner to compare flight prices & routes across 600 airlines...

Lounge passes...

Make the airport experience a little more bearable with a VIP lounge pass, it's not as expensive as you think!  See www.loungepass.com

You'll need a good guidebook for Burma, and the Lonely Planet series is about the best there is.  Highly recommended, although bear in mind that things are changing fast in Burma at the moment.

Click to buy online at Amazon.co.uk

Alternatively, you can download just the chapters or areas you need in .PDF format from the Lonely Planet Website, from around £2.99 or US$4.95 a chapter.

Travel insurance

Get travel insurance, it's essential...

Never travel overseas without travel insurance from a reliable insurer, with at least £1m or preferably £5m medical cover.  It should also cover cancellation and loss of cash (up to a limit) and belongings.  An annual multi-trip policy is usually cheaper than several single-trip policies even for just 2 or 3 trips a year (I have an annual policy myself).  Here are some suggested insurers.  Seat61 gets a small commission if you buy through these links.

In the UK, try Columbus Direct or use Confused.com to compare prices & policies from many different insurers.

If you have a pre-existing medical condition or are over 65 (no age limit), see www.JustTravelCover.com.

        If you're resident in Australia, New Zealand, Ireland or the EU, try Columbus Direct's other websites.

    If you're resident in the USA or Canada, try Travel Guard USA.

Get a spare credit card, designed for foreign travel with no currency exchange loading & low or no ATM fees...

It costs nothing to take out an extra credit card.  If you keep it in a different part of your luggage so you're not left stranded if your wallet gets stolen, this is a form of extra travel insurance in itself.  In addition, some credit cards are significantly better for overseas travel than others.  Martin Lewis's www.moneysavingexpert.com/travel/cheap-travel-money explains which UK credit cards have the lowest currency exchange commission loadings when you buy something overseas, and the lowest cash withdrawal fees when you use an ATM abroad.  Taking this advice can save you quite a lot on each trip compared to using your normal high-street bank credit card!

You can avoid ATM charges and expensive exchange rates with a Caxton FX euro currency Visa Card, or their multi-currency 'Global Traveller' Visa Card, see www.caxtonfx.com for info.

Get an international SIM card...

Mobile phones can cost a fortune to use abroad, and if you're not careful you can return home to find some huge bills waiting for you.  I've known people run up a £1,000 bill in data charges just by leaving their iPhone connected during a simple trip to Europe.  However, if you buy a global SIM card for your mobile phone from a company such as www.Go-Sim.com you can slash the cost by up to 85% and limit any damage to the amount you have pre-paid.  It cuts call costs in 175 countries worldwide, and you can receive incoming calls and texts for free in 75 countries.  It's pay-as-you-go, so no nasty bills when you get home.  It also works for laptop or PDA data access.  A Go-Sim account and any credit on it doesn't expire if it's not between trips, unlike some others, so a Go-Sim phone number becomes your 'global phone number' for life.