Last Updated on March 13, 2023 by PowersToTravel
In December 2017 we visited Myanmar as a part of a 63-day odyssey across southeast Asia. You can see lots of videos here and and stories about our trip here. As you may know from other articles and my about-me article, I am a Type 1-insulin-dependent diabetic, aged 55 at the time of the trip. My biggest concern in traveling is not getting sick from the water/food and having a support system as we visit places none of our friends would care to venture to!
Combine those stresses with trying to be budget-conscious, I tend to engage with local travel companies, versus large “Choose one of a million destinations from our pull-down”-types of operation. We’re happier with more of our money going to the country and the hard-working individuals there.
I searched for tour operators for Myanmar and quickly bumped into One Stop Travel and Tours. One major attraction was the many sample itineraries on their website which included price options. I hate to talk/write to an agency and have no idea much the trip is going to cost. I don’t want to appear to be a “cost is no object person”, yet at the same time, we are “we must have double beds, not twins, with air-conditioning” type of people. You just don’t know how much a company is jacking up the price, as they assess what level of person you are and what costs you can be convinced to pay.
One Stop Travel and Tours publishes a full price/option page for each tour: Star-level of hotel, with/without meals, with “Station” guides or “One guide”. They even identify their hotels at each star level so you can assess that as well.
I simply found our preferred tour/option and learned the approximate cost. Of course, I had decided we should see Monywa and the Phowintaung Caves, and we wanted a morning balloon ride in Bagan, and we wanted an extra free day in Bagan as well, all of which would increase the original price. At least we knew the starting point. We chose generally 3-star hotels, station guides and no-meals included.
“Station Guide” versus “One Guide” – what did that actually mean? Which would be better? Ultimately price dictated our choice as the Station Guide was less expensive. We were a little afraid that a station guide might be the guide you get when you arrive at a tourist location, and that we would just have a non-English-speaking driver taking us around the city. Foolish concerns – we learned on our trip that a “Station Guide” is a guide who assists you with all arrangements and acts as a tour guide IN ONE CITY only. You don’t have to pay for his plane fare to get to the next city. The Pros? Obviously cost. The Cons? One guide gets to know your preferences and idiosyncrasies.
Upon conclusion of our trip, I can easily tell you the Pros of having Station Guides:
- He knows his city very well.
- He knows his driver well.
- He is full of information and stories particular to his city, and gives you his own insights.
- With multiple guides the tourist gets to experience multiple points of view. That so easily offset having to explain to three different guides that I am a diabetic, and also that I must take great care of my feet in the temples.
One Stop organized our travel with three different guides: Boo-Boo in Mandalay and Monywa to Bagan by car, Min in Bagan, and Zaw in Yangon. Each guide competently handed us off either to the next guide or to airport security. We loved our guides. Perhaps we loved Boo-Boo the best because he was our first guide in Myanmar, and we were with him the longest. We were sad to be with Zaw for just one day, in Yangon.
I had read on a Tripadvisor review that One Stop does not require an up-front deposit, that you must carry the entire fee in cash to your first contact with them. One reader was concerned in creating such an important trip hoping that the agency, since it did not require a deposit, would be there when the time came. I was not in the least worried, considering the excellent reviews I’d read.
Indeed, One Stop was there! We too carried cash with us to the meeting at our first hotel. Our guide, Boo-Boo, and driver, Chit, took us to our first hotel, in Mandalay. There the money-person met us to count and take our cash and give us our receipt. All was in order.
Our trip through Myanmar far exceeded any expectations we had. We stayed at the hotels which were promised us. That in and of itself was outstanding, as we have in the past worked with other agencies who feel it is fine to swap hotels. Upon arrival in the city, when it is too late for us to do anything about it, we have ended up in different places. But no, we were promised the Yandarpon Dynasty Hotel (Deluxe) in Mandalay, and that’s what we received. That was so helpful, as I tend to research evening dinner restaurants around our hotels. When the agency does a switch-er-roo on you, it can be inconvenient, to say the least.
In Monywa there was really only one choice, The King and Queen. It had adequate reviews and we did get a double bed, so we were satisfied.
We stayed at the Bagan Thande Hotel (Deluxe Garden View) in just the room quality promised. Actually, our room was in the first row of rooms closest to the river. We had awesome views of the river and were so happy we chose to spend our free day there.
I upped the ante in Yangon, choosing the 4-star Sule Shangri-La (Deluxe). Greg might ask, “Why did you choose that?” Sometimes I can remember, other times I just can’t remember why I chose a particular feature in a trip. So, I must say about this, “I haven’t a clue.” But we were very happy there.
In addition to the hotels, and the guides, a unique feature of our trip was the unexpected interactions with the locals. One of the days in Mandalay Boo-Boo took us on a visit to a local monastery, not just a shutter-snapping awful wall of tourists taking a picture of a parade of monks through the streets, no, we visited the classrooms and Boo-Boo brought balloons for the children for recess. It was quite a circus and quite educational too. I suspected that some of the cultural exchange was with the hope that rich western tourists might donate to the school, but that did not subtract from our experience a bit.
On our drive to Monywa, Boo-boo took us to a truly authentic village, to walk through the town, meet the old men, women and children (those of working age were out in the fields or town working, and the school children were at school.) We were invited to see a home, and wandered throughout the village, Boo-Boo distributing his ever-present balloons to children and old people alike.
We learned so much about how the people live, and about the growing role of technology in their lives, at the same time seeing the appalling lack of hygiene and healthcare support available to them. We saw homes with tiny solar battery chargers sitting in the yard to charge their cellphones. In the village, everyone had a cell phone however certainly no-one had an indoor toilet, or had access to a doctor. But they were so excited to have access to the outside world via their cell phone. That was emphasized universally by all our guides.
Our visit to Myanmar was an extraordinary experience made possible by a team of very excellent people at One Stop – our sales coordinator Khine Lay, the guides and the drivers, even the man who took our money!
Related Links
Yandarpon Dynasty Hotel in Mandalay
King and Queen Hotel in Monywa
Thande Hotel in Old Bagan
Sule Shangri-La Hotel in Yangon
Check out this article of mine too
Myanmar Travel Blog – Itinerary, Impressions and Diabetic Travel Tips
