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Burma with kids

5 replies

mmgirish · 20/05/2015 16:08

Hey there,

I am planning a trip to Burma this December. Not sure of the itinerary yet but definitely Mandalay and Bagan. My children will be 3 and 1 when we go. Has anyone been there with children? Any good tips for me?

Cheers!

OP posts:
AttilaTheMeerkat · 20/05/2015 18:33

I would certainly read the Foreign Office travel advice on Burma before you travel.

Burma is a difficult place in which to travel, especially independently.

Bunbaker · 20/05/2015 22:23

Apart from that, isn't Burma a malarial area? How will you get anti-malarial drugs into the children?

TRL · 20/05/2015 23:16

We spent Christmas week there last Xmas - 4 days in Mandalay and 4 in Bagan. We took our five kids who were 12, 10, 8, 4 and 2 then and travelled with my mother and her housekeeper (both live in Phnom Penh).

In order to book flights, hotels, drivers etc, we used an agency - Hanuman Travel based in Phnom Penh. Probably not much help to you but I guess there are agents based in the UK who book things there. I think in order to make a quick trip like we did with lots of kids, everything needs to be booked in advance, but maybe if you have more time you can manage without an agency?

There are wonderful puppet shows in Mandalay, boat trips on the Ayrwaddy, horse cart rides around the countryside and plenty of temples to climb (oops), all things which our kids enjoyed. We had a couple of suites at the Rupar Mandalar hotel in Mandalay both of which had two bedrooms which gave plenty of space with the kids. The hotel runs puppet and dance shows beside dinner most evenings which worked really well with the kids too - something to look at while they ate! In Bagan, it's all about the temples but our kids enjoyed the fact that everywhere we went there, Burmese kids appeared from nowhere ready to try to chat and play.

It's a fascinating place to visit but we were alone travelling with younger children - lots of backpackers and couples - and I wouldn't have liked to try to organise everything as we went along with the children as unless you know where things are, finding out takes ages, particularly in Mandalay which is very spread out ... my main tip would be to sort yourself out well beforehand! I took nappies in from Bangkok so I've no idea how easy it is to get them there. Do not let your kids eat the ice cream they sell around temple sites from large vats - made from local water - and be very, very careful where you eat with them; we had no upset stomachs but I think if you bought food from stalls, your little ones could suffer.

We didn't worry about malaria at all and I think between us we may have had two bites in Myanmar - at that time of year it's chilly at nights and I don't think the little blighters really wake up long enough to bite anyone. (Different story in Krabi where we spent New Year!) We wore fleeces and trousers, thick socks etc to dinner and breakfast, the clothes we'd travelled in from England in December; it was about 30C at the hottest point each day, so big variations in temperature.

It's a fascinating country and the people are very friendly, really keen to talk and share. There were some signs which make scary reading from the army and give a little insight about how the country is run, and we were 'escorted' throughout our time in Mandalay by a 'translator' (we thought he was a minder) but then we were a fairly unusual (and raucous) group.

Have fun!Smile

mmgirish · 21/05/2015 05:02

Hey there,

Thanks for the brilliant tips TRL. That was so useful. Especially about the temperature! I hadn't considered that at all. We went on a road trip of Northern Thailand last Christmas and really enjoyed the cool evenings and mornings.

I actually live in Thailand at the moment and there are lots of agencies here that can help book internal flights etc. Also, as Burma now is open to independent travellers and has been for several years, travel there isn't that difficult anymore.

I won't be giving my children anti-malarials (sp?) as we travel quite a lot in this region and that would mean continuously giving them drugs. It is outside of dengue season and we will be taking the usual mozzie precautions as we do day to day living in SE Asia. (Have lived in the region for 8 years)

Cheers!

OP posts:
TRL · 21/05/2015 17:57

Ah, you're well-sorted if you're living in SE Asia then! I felt very lucky my mother had organised flights and hotels via the travel agency in PP - I think from the UK it would be harder somehow. Whilst independent travel is certainly possible, with five kids in tow it was a lot easier to get the basics sorted out in advance.

We never use anti-malarials either (generally spend a month in SE Asia each year during Dec/early Jan) for the obvious reasons. Most people travelling from the UK have trouble understanding that choice so I always feel slightly wary writing it on mumsnet .... You'll also be used to the water etc; I always have to be quite strict re: street food as we're not there long enough to acclimatise!

Bagan was particularly stunning but overrun with tourists compared with Mandalay. We went hot air ballooning over the temples at dawn which was completely out of this world; only for 8 year olds and over though. The hotel where we spent Christmas Eve/ Day tried really hard for the western tourists and attempted to get Santa to arrive on his sleigh but something got lost in translation and Santa arrived whipping his slaves (yep, they were carrying his chariot and dressed like something out of a Moses film)!! I still grin when I think about it. Grin

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