Your guide will meet you at your hotel.

Start with a visit to the top of Mandalay Hill, which rises 240 metres above the city, for great views of the surrounding countryside, Irrawaddy River and city centre. At the base of the hill you’ll stop to visit Shwe Nandaw Kyuang- or the Golden Palace Monastery- which is noted for its intricate wood carvings and to Kayuk Taw Gyi Pagoda to view the huge marble Buddha. The marble is from Sagyin quarry and took 10,000 men almost two weeks to transfer the rock from the riverside to its current location. Finally we’ll visit Kuthodaw Pagoda, home to ‘the world’s largest book’, a collection of more than 700 marble slabs inscribed with Buddhist teachings. Take a break midday for lunch at a local curry shop or tea house for a chance to experience one of the city’s famous noodle dishes.

This afternoon we’ll explore the craft shops of Mandalay. Mandalay has also long been known as a centre of skilled craftsmanship and in former times supplied the Royal courts. A tour of traditional workshops includes crafts such as marble masonry, Kalaga tapestry and gold leaf making.

OPTIONAL TOURS: Make your own marionette- Visit a local craft shop, select the style and dress of your marionette and put together your unique souvenir. A perfect personalized memory of Mandalay.

Continue to 63rd street in the late afternoon. Located in the city centre, this street comes alive around 16.00 when the locals begin to gather outside the temple. Outside the temple you will find various street stalls selling snacks, temple offerings and small toys or games for children. Inside the temple is busy with Buddhists preparing offerings or earning merit through tasks such as feeding fish, grinding Thanaka on large stones to make scented water and praying at the many shrines.

After this glimpse of local life, return to your Mandalay hotel.

Overnight in Mandalay

This morning, drive to the jetty to board a local boat to Mingun. Your visit begins with the famous Mingun Pahtodawqyi. This huge brick structure was left unfinished after an astrologer predicted the King would die should the temple be completed.  In the 1800s, an earthquake left several large cracks in the structure.  Continue your visit at the beautiful white Hsinbyume Pagoda whose distinctive style is meant to resemble the mythical Mount Meru.  Then, see the Mingun Bell which weighs 90 tons and is considered the world’s largest uncracked ringing bell.

Next visit Sagaing. Covered with 600 white-painted pagodas and monasteries, Sagaing Hill is widely regarded as the religious center of Myanmar.  It is home to 3,000 monks and 100 meditation centers. You will visit pagodas such as Swan Oo Pon Nya Shin and U Min Thone Sae.

We’ll also go to Sagaing’s local market, a typical Burmese market that few tourists visit. Here you will find a range of items for sale including locally made pottery, silver and other handicrafts. We will also stop at a small pottery village to see the process of making the ubiquitous water pots found throughout Myanmar.

Lunch at a local restaurant.

This afternoon drive south to Amarapura, a former capital whose name means ‘City of Immortality’. First, visit a silk weaving workshop which produces exquisite handmade products.

Continue to U Bein Bridge, a 200-year old bridge constructed of 984 teak posts that were once part of the deserted Inwa Palace. It is 1.2 kilometers in length, making it the world’s longest teak span.

Enjoy a stroll along the bridge and the fabulous views of the surrounding farms and streams as the sun begins to set.

Return to Mandalay late this afternoon.               

Overnight in Mandalay

It’s an early morning start today, with your guide and driver picking you up at your hotel at 4.00. Transfer first to Mahamuni Pagoda, Mandalay’s most important religious sites. The main Buddha image here is more than 3.5 metres high and is coated with golf leaf applied by the local pilgrims- in fact, so much gold leaf has been applied over the years that the image is now distorted and appears lumpy in texture. Every morning at 4.30 the monks and locals gather at Mahamuni to wash the statue’s face with scented water and clean his teeth with a soft brush. This bizarre yet beautiful ceremony is worth getting out of bed for!

Next we continue to a local neighborhood to witness the daily alms collection of the monks. Clothed in red robes and carrying their alms bowls, a solemn line of barefoot monks walk along the streets to collect offerings from the locals. The morning alms collection is an important part of daily life for the monks and for the Burmese people as it symbolizes ‘making merit’ and also reminds the Buddhists of their mutual inter-dependence.

After these beautiful ceremonies, it’s time to head to the morning market in central Mandalay. Covering several city blocks, the market is a hive of activity in the early morning hours with vendors selling mounds of fresh produce, meats, flowers and other items and shoppers arriving by trishaw or motorbike. You may even see monks and nuns walking through the market to collect alms or purchase items for the monastery. The setting is incredibly colourful and as you walk through the market you are likely to see things you have never seen before- from exotic fruits and spices to dried meats and prepared sweets.

Finally it’s time for breakfast! We’ll visit a local tea shop- a busy meeting place throughout the day and an integral part of Burmese life. Sip a hot cup of coffee or try the local tea, a strong brew mixed with sweetened condensed milk. You’ll sample a bowl of local noodles- Mandalay is famous for its mee shay (noodles with pork or chicken, bean sprouts, toasted chickpea flour, rice flour gel, soy sauce and various herbs) and nan gyi toke or mont di (rice noodle with a chicken curry- the difference is the size of the noodles). You can also have mohinga or Shan noodles if you wish. Other dishes such as curries, rice and chappati are also available.

Then transfer back to your hotel to freshen up before the day’s other sightseeing or continue to the Airport (Airport transfer not included).