Good news for overland travelers (Thais and foreigners):
The latest information I have received from a guesthouse owner and Hpa-an immigration, combined with information from Myawaddy is that around May (or June) as the exact timing is not yet certain, travelers from all countries will be permitted to travel between Myawaddy and Hpa-an on their own, after entering overland at Myawaddy from Mae Sot, Tak province. Initially travel will only be allowed during the day, but there won't be any more checkpoints to stop you from travelling through the restricted Karen areas. It is unclear whether one will still have to travel across to Thailand the same day or whether one will be allowed to stay overnight in Myawaddy; at this point it seems likely that overnight stays may be permitted in Myawaddy since a journey by car from Myawaddy to Hpa-an already takes about 5 hours, expecting to be back in Mae Sot by 6pm Myanmar time seems a bit of a stretch - you'd have to be in Myawaddy at 6am and hopefully be back by evening time for that to work.
Soon after that, also within months, 10 days visas (possibly even 14 day visas or 28 day visas obtained in advance may be accepted too) will be made available upon arrival and will allow full, official and unrestricted access to major Myanmar cities such as Yangon, Mandalay etc. overland from Thailand, via Mae Sot for the first time in modern history. Although other frontier areas may continue to remain closed or with restricted border access for the time being, the fact that at least one major overland route from Thailand will be opened so soon is exciting news for travelers.
As I travel to Kayin State in Myanmar for business often, I will update this thread as soon as more information becomes available.
For those travellers interested, it is currently possible to travel as far as 12 miles (20 km) short of Kawkareik coming from the west (i.e. Yangon or Hpa-an) during the day and about the same distance short of Kawkareik coming from Myawaddy on a day trip. Very shortly these restrictions will become a thing of the past.
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Posted 2013-02-25 23:51:48
tombkk, on 25 Feb 2013 - 21:53, said:
Tomtomtom69, on 24 Feb 2013 - 10:19, said:
Oh and one more piece of good news - a new expressway from Myawaddy to Nyi pyi daw is currently under construction. Once complete, it will allow travellers to travel overland from Thailand via Mae Sot to Nyi pyi daw and Mandalay, thus bypassing Yangon. This road should be complete by 2015. I will post a map with the planned route in the next few days.
I'm looking forward to this map, and the planned timing.
Right now, is it still true that a section of the Myawaddy-Yangon route is one-way - one way on odd days, the the other way on even days?
Yes, but only for trucks. For cars, motorcycles and buses, travel is permitted any day of the week. In any case, the one day up, one day back rule seems to apply only between Hpa-an and Myawaddy or between Thamanya and Myawaddy (most likely the latter). Currently a Thai company is building a new road on the bottom of the hill near Kawkareik that bypasses the notoriously narrow hilly section between Thinnannnaung (about 20km west of Myawaddy) and Kawkareik.
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Posted 2013-02-26 08:32:21
Tomtomtom69, on 25 Feb 2013 - 23:44, said:
tombkk, on 25 Feb 2013 - 21:53, said:
Tomtomtom69, on 24 Feb 2013 - 10:19, said:
Oh and one more piece of good news - a new expressway from Myawaddy to Nyi pyi daw is currently under construction. Once complete, it will allow travellers to travel overland from Thailand via Mae Sot to Nyi pyi daw and Mandalay, thus bypassing Yangon. This road should be complete by 2015. I will post a map with the planned route in the next few days.
I'm looking forward to this map, and the planned timing.
Right now, is it still true that a section of the Myawaddy-Yangon route is one-way - one way on odd days, the the other way on even days?
Yes, but only for trucks. For cars, motorcycles and buses, travel is permitted any day of the week. In any case, the one day up, one day back rule seems to apply only between Hpa-an and Myawaddy or between Thamanya and Myawaddy (most likely the latter). Currently a Thai company is building a new road on the bottom of the hill near Kawkareik that bypasses the notoriously narrow hilly section between Thinnannnaung (about 20km west of Myawaddy) and Kawkareik.
Thanks for the update, mate.
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Posted 2013-02-27 00:10:05
Tomtomtom69, on 25 Feb 2013 - 23:44, said:
Yes, but only for trucks. For cars, motorcycles and buses, travel is permitted any day of the week. In any case, the one day up, one day back rule seems to apply only between Hpa-an and Myawaddy or between Thamanya and Myawaddy (most likely the latter). Currently a Thai company is building a new road on the bottom of the hill near Kawkareik that bypasses the notoriously narrow hilly section between Thinnannnaung (about 20km west of Myawaddy) and Kawkareik.
Tomtomtom69, on 24 Feb 2013 - 10:19, said:
Oh and one more piece of good news - a new expressway from Myawaddy to Nyi pyi daw is currently under construction. Once complete, it will allow travellers to travel overland from Thailand via Mae Sot to Nyi pyi daw and Mandalay, thus bypassing Yangon. This road should be complete by 2015. I will post a map with the planned route in the next few days.
I'm looking forward to this map, and the planned timing.
Right now, is it still true that a section of the Myawaddy-Yangon route is one-way - one way on odd days, the the other way on even days?
Thanks for the update, mate.
No worries - by the way, I checked and the proper English spelling of the checkpoint I mentioned is Gyaing. I should be posting a map of the Myawaddy-Naypyidaw expressway in the next 2-3 days.
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Posted 2013-03-01 12:50:09
As promised, I have attached a map of the proposed expressway from
Myawaddy to Nay Pyi Daw, which joins up to the existing Yangon-Nay Pyi
Daw-Mandalay expressway. I believe the Myawaddy to Nay Pyi Daw
expressway may already be under construction. The roads with lines
through them indicate new or upgraded highways. I apologize that this
map only contains a couple of place names in English, but anyway you get
the picture.
P1050377.JPG 225.94KB 25 downloads
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Posted 2013-03-02 13:53:31
Good news, thanks for the info!
Finally something SUBSTANTIAL (If this materialises) regarding the "opening up" of Burma. Until now it seemingly was a lot of hot air, nothing else.
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Posted 2013-03-02 14:02:15
ARGUSEYE, on 02 Mar 2013 - 13:46, said:
Good news, thanks for the info!
Finally something SUBSTANTIAL (If this materialises) regarding the "opening up" of Burma. Until now it seemingly was a lot of hot air, nothing else.
Hot air, really? The country has been more or less closed off for the better part of 50 years - how fast do you expect this to happen?
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Posted 2013-03-02 23:18:24
I agree that "hot air" is a questionable judgement, I have seen changes faster than in any other country.
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Posted 2013-03-02 23:19:56
Tomtomtom69, on 01 Mar 2013 - 12:43, said:
As promised, I have attached a map of the proposed expressway from
Myawaddy to Nay Pyi Daw, which joins up to the existing Yangon-Nay Pyi
Daw-Mandalay expressway. I believe the Myawaddy to Nay Pyi Daw
expressway may already be under construction. The roads with lines
through them indicate new or upgraded highways. I apologize that this
map only contains a couple of place names in English, but anyway you get
the picture.P1050377.JPG
Wow, thanks a lot for this information! Where did you get it from?
Have you offered it to the CIA yet? - No, just kidding. I just wasn't aware that planning details are available.
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Posted 2013-03-04 10:51:34
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Posted 2013-03-06 12:43:49
Update 3:
Asking the same guy again he now says that the Burmese side opening for overland travel is not dependent on the condition of the road (which will take up to 2 years to finish in time for AEC 2015, but rather on getting the documents signed and acknowledged by Yangon. Apparently the road should have already opened as of the beginning of this month, but being Myanmar delays are to be expected, which is why we're still waiting. Having said that, Thai immigration assured me that the road WILL open soon, pending the Myanmar side getting their act together quickly - a process which could happen as early as about 1-2 weeks from now or as long as 2-3 months, exactly as I first heard from the guesthouse owner in Hpa-an. As I am keen to try this route as soon as it opens for my business which requires importing goods from this region of Myanmar, I will continue to update this thread as new information comes along. I will check again around mid-month and if there is anything new then, I will update everyone.
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Posted 2013-03-06 14:30:05
Archie Pelago, on 02 Mar 2013 - 13:55, said:
ARGUSEYE, on 02 Mar 2013 - 13:46, said:
Good news, thanks for the info!
Finally something SUBSTANTIAL (If this materialises) regarding the "opening up" of Burma. Until now it seemingly was a lot of hot air, nothing else.
Hot air, really? The country has been more or less closed off for the better part of 50 years - how fast do you expect this to happen?
So, tell me what has actually changed for the visitor since the "Opening Of Burma"!!
Can I go anywhere where I was not allowd before?? NO!
Are more hotels open for forieigners than before?? NO! (Please tell me if I'm wrong, I'd LOVE to hear it!)
A few years back I was allowed to cycle from Mong Lar to Geng Tung and Tachi Lek in eastern Shan State. That would land me in jail today.
Archie... Have you BEEN in Burma the last 50 Years???
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Posted 2013-03-06 15:41:12
Actually there have been quite a number of new hotels opening up for foreigners in the past 12-18 months, in various parts of the country.
And I've spent most of the past decade and a half living and working in the country.
As for your bike trip locations - I haven't been to that part of the country in particular, and I can't offer an explanation for why you would be locked up.
I see a lot of improvements in the country in the past few years, and a lot of positive progress. Certainly there is a long way to go - but anyone on the ground there will tell you that there are changes, and many are for the better.
When I first arrived in the country in the late 90's - I was living in a very restricted part of the country, and was not allowed out to work without an armed escort. I can tell you that this is not the case now in that part of the country.
Why not try and add something positive to these discussions? I for one can see a lot of positive steps in a relatively short time. Perhaps other posters have too.
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Posted 2013-03-06 23:42:57
That part of Myanmar is opening up fast too - I doubt there would be any restrictions for cycling there. Locked up for cycling anywhere in Myanmar? Sounds like a bit of scaremongering to me. At most, you'd be turned back if you headed into a restricted area but as it turns out Tachileik to Kengtung and generally onto Mong Lar has been OK for years. There was a guide requirement for a while, but my understanding is that this has been dropped.
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Posted 2013-03-07 16:25:06
I've actually not been back to Burma since early last year, when I had to pay 20 $ for a backpacker - sweatbox room in Rangoon and even was kicked out of there after one night because "we have bookings, sir!"
Jesus, bookings for a window-less box type room with plywood walls??
I would looove to know which hotels have been newly opened to foreigners.... If the situation normalizes I'd be the first one back! However, I could not find any evidence yet of that happening. A look to the "Thorntree" forum confirms that.
The Tachileik - Mong Lar corridor is open again without guide??? That's also new to me, where can I get that confirmed? At least until a few weeks ago this was NOT the case.
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Posted 2013-03-09 17:03:59
ARGUSEYE, on 07 Mar 2013 - 16:18, said:
I've actually not been back to Burma since early last year, when I had to pay 20 $ for a backpacker - sweatbox room in Rangoon and even was kicked out of there after one night because "we have bookings, sir!"
Jesus, bookings for a window-less box type room with plywood walls??
I would looove to know which hotels have been newly opened to foreigners.... If the situation normalizes I'd be the first one back! However, I could not find any evidence yet of that happening. A look to the "Thorntree" forum confirms that.
Not the most positive of posters are you?
Okay - quick lesson in supply vs demand regarding the accommodation market in Myanmar at the moment - particularly in Yangon, where a $20 *ahem* backpacker - sweatbox room is the norm at this time of year.
Myanmar has opened up. A lot. And it has been going at a very rapid rate in the past 12-15 months. The past 3-4 months in particular have been ridiculous in terms of new foreign arrivals.
Why? Changing political climate leading to Myanmar becoming the new darling on the world stage leading to heightened awareness of it as a *new* destination. This caused a rapid increase in foreign arrivals from several key groups"
- tourists (obviously)
- NGO's/Foreign Aid workers/Diplomatic corps/PRESS/etc
- business speculators/interested investors.
This has led to an obvious dire shortage in accommodation at all ends of the market.
This time of year is peak tourist season - as was the period early last year - and this is why you had to pay $20 for your windowless box with plywood walls, and this is why you got kicked out of there because they had 'bookings'. Of course they had bookings. Every piece of short term real estate, from $10 a night dorms, up to $500 a night high end suites - is going to be pretty much fully booked at this time of year.
And if you would 'loooove' to know which new hotels have opened - then do some research, or go and have a look. Sounds like you take Thorn Tree for gospel, while remaining snidely dismissive of any other opinions. (and you do realise Thorn Tree had been closed down, and only just recently re-opened - right?)
In closing - as this thread has gone far enough off topic - try to be more respectful in your posts and attitude towards other members on this forum. If the next post you make is not genuinely polite and respectful, or if it doesn't contribute something useful and factual - then you will very likely be suspended. Consider yourself warned.
Now - back on topic thanks!