Cycling in Myanmar 1998
In November 1998 we cycled around Central Myanmar; including highlights as Bagan, Mandalay and Pindaya in our itinerary. On this page you will find a description of the route we followed.
Our route
Pyinmana – Yamethin
90 km The road we followed north was highway nr. 1; the main north-south road. Despite its importance, this road is never very busy. Its mostly flat all the way to the town of Yamethin. The quality of the road is reasonable.
There is no licensed accommodation in this town. The Point Guesthouse at the northern end of the main road will accept foreigners though.
Yamethin – Meiktila
64 km The section of road nr. 1 to Meiktila is very similar to the section to Yamethin. There are licensed hotels en guesthouses in this town. Plenty of shops and good places to eat.
Meiktila – Kyauk Padang
99 km The road to Kyauk Padang carries much lesser traffic then highway nr. 1 but is also much narrower. As with all secondary roads we cycled this road is bumpy and rough. On the way to KP you will have to cross a small mountain-range. About 50 % of this section is mainly uphill. The other half mainly downhill to KP.
There are no real villages along this road. Drinking-water en cold drinks are readily available at regular intervals.
There is no licensed accommodation in this town. There are two basic guesthouses that are reluctant to take foreigners because they are “..afraid of the police..” as one of the owners told us. We went to the police station and asked for permission to stay in one of the guesthouses. Which they gave us reluctantly because it was already dark outside and there was no other place they could let us go.
Curious villagers in backcountry Myanmar Larger version
Kyauk Padang – Bagan
59 km After KP there is a small group of hills to be crossed; after this it’s mainly downhill all the way to Bagan. When coming this way it’s a nice option to cycle first in the direction of New Bagan (turn left just after the fee-collection gate). You get a very nice first impression of the Bagan area; cycling through and past numerous pagoda’s etc.
This road ends in New Bagan where there is a very large number of hotels and guesthouses. We especially enjoyed staying in Old Bagan; it is very central and quite and peaceful. Not many hotels here and outside these hotels only two places to eat. We recommend the Tanthe Hotel where economy-rooms were good value for 14 US$ a double (airco + attached bathroom) .
Bagan – Myinyang
67 km Our map showed an unpaved road leading east from Nyaung U to Myinyang through the village of Ngathayauk. Locals told us there was a also a ‘new’ road following the new railway to M. Just outside Nyaung U we arrived at the junction of the new road and the old road (the one that was on our map). The old road looked heavily eroded and barely passable on a touring bike. The new road was wider and smooth. The choice was easy.
The quality of this road was indeed reasonable for many km’s. At the village of Letpanchibaw we found ourselves at the banks of the river again. There is a ferry leaving from this village to the town of Pakokku. It’s possible to continue to M. but the so-called ‘new’ road becomes an ox-cart-track. Numerous dry river beds have to be crossed. Cycling was often impossible due to the soft or extremely bumpy surface. We lost the road several times. Local people brought us back to what they called the Nyaung U – Myinyang Road!
Needless to say we did not make it all the way to M. The sun had gone down already for one hour when we were still pushing our bikes along bumpy paths and through thorny bushes. Fortunately the moon was full. Then we saw a bright light in the distance. M. we thought and rushed towards it. It was a small monastery (only 3 monks) where we were warmly welcomed and stayed that night. The next morning we discovered that we first had to walk across a railway bridge and after that to cycle another two hours on bad roads to arrive in the town of M. proper.
The scenery on this new road was very nice, peaceful and rural, but we strongly advise other cyclists to try another road when going this way.
Update: The new road from Bagan to Myinyan
In January 2001 we received reports from other cyclists who have used this so-called new road without much trouble. It now looks like we lost our way, or the road and signposting have both improved. You should be able to travel to Myinyan in less than a day now.
65 km From M. we continued on an surfaced highway in the direction of Mandalay. The road is narrow and bumpy with virtually no traffic on it. There is even a nice climb over a small mountain range with good views at the top. Shortly after the downhill-section the pavement stops. It’s dirt again for many km’s. The road itself is awful; paved with very large rocks it’s almost impossible to cycle. The good news is that there is almost always a small track next to it which is used by local cyclists. The quality of these tracks is reasonable.
Traffic on this part of the road is almost nonexistent
The small town of Myotha has no accommodation to offer. We stayed at a monastery and had a good diner at a small restaurant opposite the railway-station. Those tired of this bone-shaking road can take a train to Mandalay or Bagan right here.
Myotha – Kyaukse
basic accommodation
74 km From Myotha it’s another 32 km dirt-cycling to the small town of Chaungwa where the pavement starts again. There might be any accommodation in Chaungwa as we saw a sign pointing to a ‘resthouse’. Chaungwa is much larger than Myotha.
Although paved, the road remains narrow and bumpy. There is one opportunity to have some real smooth cycling.
About 15 km before Kyaukse the new Mandaly International Airport is under construction. The road is detouring around it but we followed local cyclists and ended up riding more than 2 km over the new super-smooth runway. Quite an experience!!! We also saw a new road to Mandalay being made. This new road is going to connect just south of Mandalay to highway nr. 1.
U Bein bridge
Kyaukse – Mandalay (66 km)
66 km Cycling again north on main highway nr. 1 we easily reached the outskirts of Mandalay. When coming from Kyaukse there is plenty of time left to include places like Sagaing, U Bein Bridge etc. on the way to the city and still arrive at a decent hour in Mandalay. Mandalay is a sprawling city. We found accommodation relatively expensive here.
Mandalay – Wun Dwin
119 km Riding south on highway nr. 1 we were able to cover some real distance. With Kyaukse Wun Dwin is the only town of significance on the road from Mandalay to Meiktila. There are no hills to climb and the road-quality is quite good. The first 45-50 km the road is still busy with Mandalay-city and suburbs-traffic. After Kyaukse most of the traffic is gone.
There is no licensed accommodation at Wun Dwin but it is possible to stay at the friendly Kyaw Aye Guesthouse at the northern end of town. The owner is very helpful and speaks good English.
Wun Dwin – Pyin Nyaung
84 km About 18 km south of Wun Dwin is a shortcut to Thazi. This means that it is possible to avoid Meiktila on the way to Thazi. This narrow and bumpy, but paved, road ends just before Thazi. The distance Wun Dwin – Thazi is approx. 35 km’s.
The road beyond Thazi remains narrow and very bumpy. There is accommodation in Thazi itself; the next licensed hotels are in Kalaw; 95 km further and at an altitude of 1325 m.
There are a number of villages along the road. No licensed accommodation but every village has a small monastery. We stopped at Pyin Nyaung, which is one of the larger villages on this road.
Pyin Nyaung – Kalaw
45 km The first 20 km the road follows a river. Grades are never steep. Just after the official border of the Shan State (English sign!) the final ascend begins. In about 25 km the steep and very winding road takes you to Kalaw. All traffic on this road is very slow. Our bus (on the way back to Yangon) took 1 1/2 hours to cover the 25 km’s downhill!
In Kalaw there are numerous good places to stay; many new hotels were build in the past few years.
Kalaw – Pindaya
50 km The first 10 km’s to Aungban are mainly downhill. The junction to Pindaya is clearly signposted in Roman script. The road from Aungban to Pindaya follows a plateau. There are views all the way and the climbs are always short an never very steep. Many villages along this road but not much available to eat or drink.
From Pindaya we continued by public transport; back via Bago and Kyaktio to Yangon.
Myanmar is a great country to cycle. The people are friendly and helpful. The scenery beautiful; the sights great. If your time is limited, we think that you should at least go to Bagan and miss out the Inle Lake area.
Questions
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