This is part of the Trip Report So Long Mongolia, Hello SE Asia (December-January 2015) which covers:
- Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia
- Bangkok, Thailand
- Chiang Rai, Thailand
- Yangon, Myanmar
- Ngwe Saung, Myanmar
- Mandalay, Myanmar
- Bagan, Myanmar
- Hong Kong
- Orlando, Florida
Catch up by reading the preview, The Banana Pancake Trail to Myanmar Starts This Monday, then the overview, Thailand, Myanmar, Hong Kong, Disney, Home, where the game time decision was made to leave Mongolia for good.
A travel agent is recommended for all bus and transport tickets in Myanmar. Our travel agent in Yangon said that hotels were cheap in Ngwe Saung and advised finding one upon arrival. That proved to be horrible advice. At 4AM the hell bus dropped us off at a Yangon-esque hotel that had no rooms available and wouldn’t have any until 2PM the next day. The bus MC said everything else was sold out.
Exhausted from the journey, we started walking aimlessly down the ‘hotel strip’. One hotel after another we were turned away by no vacancy or by outrageous prices that were well in excess of $300. Exhausted, I begged for the Wi-Fi password which generally does not work in all of Myanmar and searched Agoda for any hotel with availability. Though outside our budget, we decided that $135/night + breakfast at the Ngwe Saung Yacht Club & Resort would be well worth it if we could check in early.
At 9AM after hitching another ride, we arrived at the hotel. Before I get into how beautiful the property is, let me from the outset tell you that the foreign general manager is a jerk and should be avoided at all costs. Upon our departure, he stopped the bus and accused us of running out on our bill. I believed our card was on file and that it would be charged for incidentals. This was an innocent mistake that was handled terribly.
Coming from Yangon, we were surprised how nice the room was. The shower was great and the Wi-Fi was fast. Had we not assumed that prices in Myanmar were going to be way more than Thailand, we would’ve splurged for the ocean view room. Regardless, the infinity pool and beautiful, peaceful beach made every Myanmar kyat spent worth it.
The prices for food and drink were expensive for Myanmar but this was offset by the greatest restaurant of all time which was both affordable and located directly across the street. After two nights off too much food and lots of sun, it was time to hop back on the hell bus to Yangon where we would catch the connection to Mandalay.
<==Back to Yangon Travel Guide – Onto Bus to Mandalay==>
