A two-week Burma itinerary with kids
Realistically, if you’re travelling all the way to South East Asia, you’re unlikely to be planning a flying visit. And to visit a country as fascinating and varied as Burma (Myanmar*) with kids, anything less than a fortnight means you’ll miss out on something.
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But even taking it at a slow enough pace for a three-year-old, you can still get a good taste of the whole country in two weeks as I found putting together our Burma itinerary, as long as you’re happy to factor in plenty of internal flights.
Because that’s just what we did. From city to ancient temples, colonial hill town to tribal villages and a slice of beach, here’s our family-friendly two week Burma itinerary.
EDIT: Sadly, official guidance advises against visiting the majority of Myanmar at present – check the latest information here
We flew between each of the destinations below with Air KBZ, with most flights taking less than an hour. You’ll also need to allow two days flying either side if you’re travelling from the UK – we went via Bangkok, and the journey time was 15 to 17 hours, excluding check-in.
I deliberately chose more luxurious hotels for this trip as well but there’s plenty of choice for different budgets – although you’ll also find your money goes further here.
As we travelled during the hottest part of the year, I knew I needed somewhere I was happy to retreat to for several hours in the middle of every day, with good aircon and a nice pool to cool off in as well.
With a daughter who’s a particularly fussy eater, restaurants with a few Western dishes on the menu (for her…) was a bonus.
Contents - click to jump to a section
Burma itinerary: Day 1-3 – Yangon
With the main international airport, Burma’s biggest city is your inevitable starting point (unless you’re flying in to Mandalay’s International airport) but it’s worth at least a few days in iteself.
We kept the first day completely clear to acclimatise to the new time zone and heat – expect high temperatures and humidity.
Don’t miss the Shwedagon pagoda, Kandawgyi Lake, Yangon’s colonial buildings, the Chaukhtatgyi reclining Buddha and a quick stop at the National Museum.
For more ideas of things to do in Yangon, check out my post
Where to stay in Yangon with kids
We stayed at: Kandawgyi Palace Hotel Set right on the lake, it’s got a pool and a dinosaur in the gardens for kids (a relic of the building’s time as a museum) – plus a great location so you can avoid a lot of Yangon’s traffic.
Having all the facilities meant a much easier introduction with a jetlagged three-year-old so if you only splurge once, this is a great place to do it. [EDIT: A fire in 2017 means this is currently closed – find more hotels near Kandawgyi Lake here]
Burma itinerary: Day 4-5 – Bagan
One of the country’s two biggest tourist hotspots, there’s no way you should visit without seeing the endless temples, pagodas and stupas in this ancient city.
In Burma’s ‘dry zone’, it’s also one of the hottest destinations in the trip, reaching 42C when we visited. There’s no way you could visit all the ancient buildings (over 4,000) even without kids, so stick to the key sites with a guide and plan to visit in the early morning and later afternoon.
At cooler times and with older kids, you can hire bikes to explore the archaeological zone.
Here’s what we got up to during two days in Bagan.
Don’t miss watching the sun set over the endless temples – some of the most popular spots get very busy and are very steep to climb back down with younger kids, but you’ll get great views from almost anywhere (take a torch though).
EDIT: Since our visit, there’s been a crackdown on which temples you can climb for the sunset views so check in advance – guides will know some of the quieter spots.
Where to stay in Bagan with kids
We stayed at: Aureum Palace Bagan One of relatively few hotels in Old Bagan (all of which are at the luxury end), you’re right in the heart of the Archaeological Preservation Zone and the (controversial) viewing tower looks right out across the landscape if you’d rather not climb a temple at sunset. They make a mean mojito as well.
Burma itinerary: Day 6-7 – Inle Lake
Burma’s second major tourist destination, it’s another unmissable option on the itinerary. 13.5 miles long and 7 miles wide, the still waters of the main lake are stunning – the famous leg rowing fishermen still head out with nets along with some photo-friendly lookalikes posing on their boats.
But it’s down the tributaries where you’ll find the lakeside villages with their own traditional crafts – silversmiths, lotus weaving, cigar making, the list goes on – not to mention the floating gardens.
Don’t miss visiting In Dein – although this village isn’t off the regular tourist track, once you emerge from the covered walkway lined with stalls, you’ll feel like you’re in a lost city.
Trees wind around stupas carved with elephants and Buddhas, in every shade from white and gold to deep red and faded black. Visit early or out of season and you might even get it to yourself.
Read more about what we did during our visit to Inle Lake
Where to stay in Inle Lake with kids
We stayed at: Aureum Inle Part of the same group as the Bagan hotel, it’s set right on the lake itself which cuts journey times as you explore, with a pool and terrace, and some of the villas looking right out onto the waters (albeit rather low ones during the hotter months).
Not even the most determined mosquito made it through the floaty nets around the beds either.
Burma itinerary: Day 8-10 – Pyin Oo Lwin
Up in the cooler hills outside Mandalay, Pyin Oo Lwin (previously called Maymyo) was the equivalent of India’s hill stations for the British. The coldest place in the country during winter, temperatures are more bearable in the hottest months here too.
With colonial architecture, lakeside restaurants and some beautiful botanical gardens, it’s a relaxing break with kids – I stayed for three days as I was travelling with family and as a cooler break for my daughter but two days is plenty to explore.
Don’t miss the horse and carriage rides to take you around the town – and you could spend the spare day in Mandalay, or in any of the other destinations instead.
Here’s what we got up to during our stay at Pyin Oo Lwin
Where to stay in Pyin Oo Lwin with kids
We stayed at: Hotel Pyin Oo Lwin. Not far from the lake and the botanic gardens, it’s got big chalets with shady verandahs… and big fireplaces for winter.
Or try this: Day 8-10 – Kalaw
For another cool hill station, head to Kalaw which is closer to Inle Lake – visit the Green Hill Valley Elephant Camp which cares for elephants too old to work.
Burma itinerary: Day 11-12 – Ngapali Beach
On Burma’s west coast, the beaches on the Bay of Bengal have the same white sand and turquoise waters as the rest of the Indian Ocean – here you won’t have to share them with nearly as many people, especially if you visit out of season.
Ngapali Beach is the most ‘developed’ of the beach resorts along the coast but it’s still a sleepy escape to relax at the end of the trip and unlike Ngwe Saung (which is even quieter), it has a small airport nearby.
Don’t miss hitting the beach itself and the great seafood at the string of restaurants.
Read more about what we discovered during our stay at Ngapali Beach
Where to stay in Ngapali Beach with kids
We stayed at: Hilton Ngapali Beach One of the newer hotels, it’s also got one of the best pools in the area – with an infinity edge blending right in to the ocean, plus some beautiful villas.
The trade-off is the fact you’re staying a little way north of the main beach, so there’s relatively small stretch of sand, but it’s a short taxi ride (around $5 one-way) to the main beach around Bayview and Sandoway resorts.
*My sister-in-law, who comes from the country, calls it Burma so for simplicity, so do I.
**First published 2016, updated 2024**
PIN FOR LATER: TWO WEEK BURMA ITINERARY
Images copyright MummyTravels
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission. All sites and hotels are ones I have used and stayed in personally during my own two weeks in Burma.
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Lovely to read about your trip, Cathy. The Inle Lake sounds like an incredible experience. I think the beach is a brilliant idea at the end of a busy itinerary so that you can all feel a bit chilled out after lots of sightseeing. #TheWeeklyPostcard
It was wonderful, definitely one of my favourite parts – I’ll be blogging more about each destination as well. And I think it worked really well to end at the beach and have a bit of a relax before the long flight home (and a treat for my daughter after lots of temples!)
We’ve never really had Burma on our radar and don’t really know why. Looking at your wonderful photos and reading your post you have made us reconsider this area. Thanks for linking up with #TheWeeklyPostcard Cathy.
Thank you! And I’m so pleased to hear that, it’s an amazing place.
This looks like a workable itinerary. We’ve been wanting to get to Bagan for some time now and just never works out. Soon, though, I hope we’ll make it.
I hope you do – it’s incredible to see.
I would absolutely love this trip! I’m a bit of a nervous flyer, how did you find the internal flights?
You’re so close as well (comparatively). I was pleasantly surprised by the internal flights – they’re all smallish planes but not tiny, short flights and in general it was very smooth. One or two slightly bumpy moments but nothing like some turbulence I’ve had on long-haul flights before.
Sounds like an amazing trip Cathy – a great mix of activities and some lovely hotels to relax in after a day sightseeing. You have certainly tempted me. I’d be interested to hear how you found the internal flight too…I know my husband would not be a huge fan of them. #citytripping
I think we got a good balance in the end – it’s useful to have a three-year-old to make you slow down occasionally I think, otherwise I’d have tried to fill every minute. The internal flights were fine actually – I’m not a nervous flyer at all, but it wasn’t anything like the rickety planes I’d half imagined. I had a smaller plane/bumpier ride going to the Isles of Scilly, these were all very straightforward. And I loved the fact that if the passenger complement was checked in and the plane ready, they took off early as soon as everyone was on board, no complex holding patterns at the airports to negotiate!
love the first photo, monks and a cat:)
Thanks! That was one of my favourite moments – these boys laughing and joking between their chanting, the cats prowling around utterly unconcerned.
I’m so jealous of this trip as Bagan really is on my bucket list (and I don’t say that lightly…I hate the phrase and how over used it is but Bagan is somewhere I want to see before I die!) I (sort of) regret not getting to Burma when I lived in South-East Asia but my conscience wouldn’t let me go there under the military junta back then but now that things are better politically I’d love to go.
It is an astonishing place, and if anything does deserve to be on a bucket list, this is definitely one. I agree that I would have felt very uncomfortable visiting before a few years ago as well but definitely worth the flight out.
Every time I look at your posts about Burma I am tempted more and more! We are still debating on honeymoon locations so this could make it on the list! #citytripping
Oh that would be a real once-in-a-lifetime trip for your honeymoon. I’m so glad I can keep tempting you too.
The thing that has always kept me out of the region is the heat and humidity, and my kids ae even worse than me when it comes to wilting under these conditions. But I have to say that I do very much like the idea of seeing Bagan and the Inle Lake one day. I really enjoyed following your travels around Burma on instagram.
Thank you! There’s no getting away from the fact it’s hot – although for various practical reasons, we impractically chose the hottest month of the year, so you could avoid some of the worst of it if you went in eg November/December. I didn’t find the humidity too bad, as I think that’s much harder than the heat, so early morning/late afternoon outings then hiding indoors for lunch/early afternoon nap seemed to get us through. One thing with a three-year-old is you have to slow down a bit, whether you want to or not.
Reading about your flight there, I almost feel guilty that I have never thought of visiting Burma when it is so near me. Love the garden and colourful flowers with the golden temple in the background! #CityTripping
I think we do all tend to look further afield – I’m sure I don’t make the most of all the European destinations within a few hours of me (although as it is practically on your doorstep, I hope I can tempt you!)
Some great practical information, plus wow, what amazing things to see. Sometimes it can seem daunting to tackle a destination like Burma, especially with kids. You’ve made it seem easy!
Thank you! It did take a fair bit of planning but from day 1 of the blog, I’ve wanted to show that you really can do a lot more with kids than you think – so that’s great to hear that’s coming across in the posts.
42 degrees – wow, that’s some heat! It’s good to know that you can visit a country that hot with a child, and still manage to get out and about to visit lots of interesting places. Fascinating post!
Thank you! That was definitely high even for me, so there was a lot of sheltering indoors at lunchtime and early afternoon. But a bit of planning, perseverance and a good parasol, and we managed to fit a lot in still. I am a bit pinker in a couple of photos than I realised at the time!
Burma looks amazing. Its rising fast on my list of places to go. We will have a trip to Asia looming sometime in 2017 and just maybe we will have to slip Burma into it.
#citytrippin
It is such an amazing country – and one where I think the sooner you can visit, the better as it’s changing so fast. I hope you are able to get there next year…
Wow, wow, wow! I can’t believe you’ve been Cathy – what an epic trip. Burma has been on my list for a while and it looks stunning. Well done for surviving the plane journeys and thanks for the inspiration…want to go more than ever now!
It did seem to be a very long time in the planning and wishing – but definitely lived up to the dreams. It’s easily worth the flight (although I admit, I was glad when our mammoth return trip was over…)
This looks like a good itinerary 🙂 Ngapali beach looks lovely
Thanks – and it was gorgeous, the perfect place to finish.
I’ve very much been looking forward to this post – after Cambodia this is high up on our list to explore next – though maybe when the Globetrotters are just a tiny bit bigger, there’s a lot of distance to cover! #citytripping
Thank you! There is a lot to fit in, although if you have more time it’s definitely easier – we had such a great time though, I’m sure the small Globetrotters would love it too.
Oh my WOW, your photos don’t even look real!! I’m not entirely convinced this beautiful place exists! 😉 Thanks for spotlighting such an incredible country, I hope I get to go someday!
Thank you! You should see my photo post 🙂 It really is an amazing place, so beautiful and so much to see, I hope you get there too.
looks absolutely amazing! one of those places id live to go to at some point #citytripping
It really was – I hope you do get there one day.
More wonderful photos, it really looks like a wonderful country to discover. Although I’m not a great flyer and Air KBZ sounds rather scary to me! #citytripping
Thank you – it really is. You can skip the internal flights if you have time and are happy for some long journeys (not for me with a three-year-old!) but Air KBZ really wasn’t that scary…
What a magical trip. I am sure you will be reliving the memories and stories for years to come. Burma now looks doable for our family too #citytripping
Absolutely – after dreaming and planning it for so long, it really did live to up everything I’d hoped.
What a fascinating place to visit for you and your daughter. Love your photos – particularly of the monks. The beach looks pretty special too. I’ve shared this post on my FB page.
Thank you – that’s one of my favourites (and the beach was very lovely). Thanks too for sharing it.
Beautiful!!
Thanks!
Your trip itinerary and tips are so helpful, thanks for sharing. I’ve enjoyed your posts and photos of Burma and learning more about visiting the various sights. Such a fascinating place and great that you balanced the sightseeing with some relaxation too. Thanks for hosting #CityTripping
Thank you! That’s lovely to hear – and definitely, there’s nothing like a three-year-old to make you slow down and relax a bit more.
Wow! This must have been one of those travels of a lifetime. Agree you should spend some time in a country if you are traveling from a far place. I had the opportunity to get a small taste of Burma by crossing to the country from Thailand. Everything was so different. I hope I can explore more of it in the future.
It really was – I have been wanting to go for years and dreaming of the trip, so to finally make it was incredible. I hope you can get back to see a bit more too one day.
Thank you so much for sharing such a detailed itinerary. With kids, I find figuring out where to go the hardest part: before, we could just get a bus or an overnight train, but with kids you can’t improvise to such an extent and the temptation to just stay in one place is strong. I hope to go to Burma one day, am saving this post for when that trip finally happens!
My pleasure – I think half the time I plan what I’d like, then figure out how she’ll cope with it/how to make it more fun for her. But I agree, I find it much harder to be spontaneous when there’s a three-year-old involved!
What made you choose Burma? I’m curious as it’s a destination that wasn’t even really on my radar. It is now. Looks very different to any tourist destinations. Interested to read about it.
It’s a country that has fascinated me for a long time – my sister-in-law is also from Burma, and some of my family have already visited (I was grounded while pregnant) so that’s given me the added connection, and hearing all about some of the attractions. I think sometimes a destination just catches your fancy, and that’s definitely true here. It is very unlike any other tourist destinations, and quite different too to even neighbouring countries. More posts to come!
I find your articles very inspiring. You make the traveling-with-kids task look so easy and comfortable. When I travel with my kids, I always get stressed about different things but I am trying to improve by reading different articles online.
Thank You!
Thank you! It’s certainly not always easy (and I won’t pretend I never get stressed!) but planning and practice definitely helps.
Oh, I would love to visit Myanmar! I used to work in China right on the Myanmar border and was always tempted to hop over. I’ve pinned this itinerary to use for when my son is a bit older (only 9 mo now). You are totally spiking my wanderlust though!!
Visiting from #citytripping 🙂
It is such a wonderful country – in about three years, your son will be the same age as my daughter so not too long to wait 🙂 Thanks for pinning, and I hope you get there!
I would love to visit! There are so many areas of Asia I’m yet to explore. The photos are lovely! #citytripping
Thank you! It’s a wonderful country to discover, I hope you do get there.
Though I don’t have plans to visit Burma in the near future, I saved your post because it’s a country that I’d love to explore and your post is a great guide 😀 Lovely photos btw!
Thanks! Lots more to blog about still but glad this is tempting you one day 😀
Oh wow Myanmar is on top of my list now.
I hope i can visit this beautiful country soon!
Thanks for the tips! (even though i dont have kids, i can still use these tips LOL)
x
Thanks! It is an amazing country – I hope you can get there (and definitely, lots of tips that work for everyone I hope)