Mandalay Classic Tour
4 Days

Itinerary

Day 1 - Mandalay

• Transfer
• Sightseeing Mandalay
• Visit Mandalay Fort
• an imposing walled palace compound constructed in 1857 with a channel from the Mandalay irrigation canal filling the moat. After the British occupied the city in 1885 the compound was named Fort Dufferin and became the colony's government house and British Club.
• Visit Mandalay Museum and Library
a museum and library containing a collection of Mandalay regalia, royally commissioned art and palm-leaf manuscripts that were formerly housed in the palace. Most of the articles date from the reigns of the last two Mandalay kings.
• Visit Kyauktawgyi Pagoda
built between 1853 and 1878 and chiefly interesting for the huge seated image of the Buddha carved from a single block of marble. The marble block from the mines of nearby Sagyin was so colossal that it required 10,000 men laboring for 13 days to transport it from a canal to the current site.
• Visit Sandamani Paya
a cluster of slender whitewashed stupas built on the site of King Mindon's temporary palace - used while the new Mandalay Palace was under construction. The temple enshrines an iron image of the Buddha cast in 1802 by Bodawpaya and transported here from Amarapura in 1874.
• Overnight in Mandalay

Day 2 - Mandalay

• Sightseeing Mandalay
• Visit Mahamuni Paya
originally built by King Bodawpaya in 1784 when a road paved with bricks was constructed from his palace to the paya's eastern gate. The centerpiece of the shrine is the highly venerated Mahamuni image that was transported to Myanmar from Mrauk U in Rakhaing in 1784.
• Visit Kuthodaw Paya
the central stupa here was modeled on the Shwezigon Paya at Nyaung U near Bagan. Building commenced in 1857, at the same time as the royal palace. The paya has been dubbed 'the world's biggest book', for standing around the central stupa are 729 marble slabs on which are inscribed the entire Tripitaka.
• Visit Shwenandaw Kyaung
a monastery of great interest, not only as a fine example of a traditional Burmese wooden monastery, but as a fragile reminder of the old Mandalay Fort. At one time this building was part of the palace compex, and was used as an apartment by King Mindon and his chief queen, and it was here that he died. After Mindon's death, King Thibaw Min had the building dismantled and reassembled on its present site in 1880 as a monastery.
• Visit Shwekyimyint Paya
founded in 1167 by Prince Minshinzaw during the Bagan period. He was the exiled son of King Alaungsithu and settled near the present site of Mandalay. The shrine is notable because it contains the original Buddha image consecrated by the prince.Excursion to Mingun by vehicle and boat
Mingun is located a short distance upriver from Mandalay on the opposite bank of the Ayeyarwady River. It is a pleasant trip and gives one a glimpse of river life - fishing villages, bullock carts, corn fields, market boats and laundering.
• Mingun Paya: thousands of slaves and prisoners of war labored to build the massive stupa, beginning in 1790. Work halted in 1819 when Bodawpaya died, leaving a brick base about a third of its intended height. The earthquake of 1938 damaged the stupa but there is still a lot to see.
• Pondaw Paya: 5 meter high working model of Mingun Paya. It gives a clear picture of just what Bodawpaya intended to achieve with Mingun Paya.
• Mingun Bell: in 1808 Bodawpaya had a gigantic bell cast to go with the gigantic zedi. Weighing 90 tons, it is claimed to be the largest bell in the world.
• Hsinbyume Paya: built by King Bagyidaw in 1816, three years before he succeeded Bodawpaya as king, this stupa was constructed in memory of his senior wife, the Hsinbyume princess.
• Settawya Paya: located close to the river bank and upstream from the Pondaw Paya, this hollow, vaulted shrine has a footprint of the Buddha that was brought to Mingun by King Bodawpaya.
• Overnight in Mandalay

Day 3 - Mandalay

• Excursion to Inwa (Ava), Sagaing and Amarapura
• Inwa: this ancient city, for a long time a capital of Upper Burma after the fall of Bagan, is on the Mandalay side of the Ayeyarwady River close to the Ava Bridge. From 1364 Inwa was the capital of the Burmese kingdom for more than 400 years, until the shift was made to Amarapura in 1783.
• Nanmyin: the 27 meter high masonry watch tower is all that remains of the palace built by Bagyidaw. The upper portion was shattered by the 1838 earthquake and the rest has taken a precarious tilt.
• Maha Aungmye Bonzan: a brick-and-stucco monastery built by King Bagyidaw's chief queen for the royal abbot Nyaunggan Sayadaw in 1818.
• Bagaya Kyaung: a monastery built of teakwood and supported by 267 teak posts. The main hall stands on a raised platform, separate from the monks’ quarters, and is designed so that space between the walls and roof allows air to circulate.
• Ava Bridge: this British-engineered, 16-span bridge dates from 1934 and was the only structure that crossed the Ayeyarwady River until 1998 when a new Chinese-engineered bridge was completed at Pyay.
• Sagaing: located on the right bank of the Ayeyarwady River, it is widely regarded as the religious center of Myanmar. It is popularly known as 'Little Pagan' as the Sagaing ridge is crowded with around 600 pagodas and monasteries in which there are more than 3000 monks. There are also around 100 meditation centers in the area.
• Thabyedan Fort: the fort built by the Burmese as their final resistance against the British forces in the third Anglo-Burmese war in 1886.
• Kaunghmudaw Paya: this is Sagaing's most important temple. It was built by King Thalun in 1636 and styled after a Ceylonese (Sri Lankan) pagoda in commemoration of the re-establishment of Ava as the royal capital.
• Tupayon Paya: contracted by King Narapati of Inwa in 1444, Tupayon is of an unusual style for Myanmar: it consists of three circular stories each encircled by arched niches.
• Aungmyelawka Paya: situated on the river front, this zedi was erected by Bodawpaya in 1783 on the site of his home before he became king. It is built of sandstone and based on Shwezigon Pagoda.
• Datpaungzu Paya: a comparatively recent pagoda which houses many relics from other older temples that were demolished when the railway was built through Sagaing.
• Hsinmyashin Paya: built in 1429 and known as the Pagoda of Many Elephants because of the elephant statues stationed at each entrance-way.
• Amarapura: the name means City of Immortality, but its period as capital was brief. It was founded by Bodawpaya as his new capital in 1783, not long after he ascended the throne, on the advice of court astrologers. His grandson and successor, Bagyidaw, moved back to Ava in 1823. The four pagodas that marked the four corners of the city walls still remain, as well as the watch tower and treasury building.
• Pahtodawgyi: built by King Bagyidaw in 1820, this well preserved pagoda stood outside the old city walls. The lower terraces have marble slabs illustrating jatakas (scenes from the Buddha's life).
• Bagaya Kyaung: built when Bodawpaya moved the capital to Amarapura, it was destroyed by fire in 1821. It was rebuilt several times and it is no longer a monastery, but houses a museum and library, of interest for its collection of palm-leaf manuscripts.
• Palace Ruins: little remains of the palace except for two masonry buildings - the treasury building and the old watch tower. King Bagyidaw and King Bodawpaya were both burnt here on the site of their 'tombs' and their ashes placed in velvet bags and thrown into the Ayeyarwady River.
• U Bein's Bridge: the shallow Taungthaman Lake is crossed by a long and rickety teak bridge, curved to withstand the wind and waves. During the dry season, the bridge crosses mostly dry land.
• Overnight in Mandalay

Day 4 - Bagan

• Transfer

Prices

USD p.p 1 Pax 2 Pax 3-6 Pax SGL S/C Booking Var A 550 290 260 60 Var B 570 310 270 70 Var C 710 370 340 140 All prices are per person in USD, based on twin-sharing in double rooms in the default hotel for the listed category. Above prices are subject to US$14/Person airport tax for all international flights out of Vietnam which will be calculated as a seperate service on top of the international airfares in all quotations and invoices. * Meal plan: ABF. ** Reduction for 3rd pax in triple room Var. A:$18 . *** Child reduction (sharing bed of parents): under 2 years FOC; under 12 years -30%. NOTE: The itinerary can slightly change according to the season, local conditions, climate, flight schedules and room availability. Hotel Var A Var B Var C Mandalay Treasure Hotel Superior Mandalay View Inn Standard Mandalay City Hotel Superior Mandalay Swan Hotel Superior Emerald Land Inn Superior Mandalay Hill Resort Superior Sedona Superior For bookings of roundtrip or module packages, we will confirm one of the hotels mentioned above according to the selected category. Please note that compulsory gala dinners and peak season surcharges may apply during peak periods surrounding the public holidays of Christmas and New Year - these surcharges will be confirmed at the time of booking. Included in the price: Accommodation and meals as described (please note that some hotels provide only CBF). All transfers within the journey, including pick-up at airport. Domestic airfares as states in the itinerary in economy class. All entrance fees. English, French or German speaking guides (other languages available upon request). Not included in the price: Visa fees. Airport taxes. Personal expenses such as drinks, laundry, souvenirs.

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