lonely-planet-myanmar-burma-11-edition

120BAGAN & CENTRAL MYANMAR BAGANBoatBoats to Mandalay go from either Nyaung U orOld Bagan, depending on water levels. The NyaungU jetty is about half a mile northeast of theNyaung U market.The government-run IWT ferry (aka ‘slow boat’)heads to Mandalay on Monday and Thursday at5am ($10, two days) and overnights near Pakokku.Meanwhile the south-bound governmentferry leaves weekly to Magwe ($5, two days) andPyay ($9, three days). If open (unlikely!) the IWToffi ce, about 300yd inland from the jetty, sellstickets; alternatively book a ticket through yourhotel or one of the agencies listed above, who canalso secure tickets for the faster Malikha 2 ($32;11 hours) boat to Mandalay.From the Nyaung U jetty, small local boats leavefor Pakokku (K4000, 2½ hours) a few times daily(at research time: 6am, 9am and noon), the lastreturning to Nyaung U at 2pm. To charter a privateboat to Pakokku costs about K10,000 one way.BusThe main bus station serving Bagan is on themain road in Nyaung U.During peak season, it’s wise to book bustickets for Mandalay, Taunggyi (for Inle Lake)and Yangon a couple of days in advance. Youcan call %60743 for information on the Magwe,Mandalay and Taunggyi buses, but it’s better todrop by the offi ce at the bus station.Note, some Mandalay-bound buses go viaMyingyan, others via Kyaukpadaung and Meiktila;if you want to get off at these intermediatestops, you still pay the full fare to Mandalay. TheYangon-bound service goes via Meiktila and NayPyi Taw. Services:Magwe (K6500; four to five hours; 7am; minibus)Mandalay (K6500; seven to eight hours; 4am,7am, 8.30am, 9am, 7pm; local, no air-con)Meiktila (K6500; three to four hours; 7am,9am, 7pm; local, no air-con)Myingyan (K6500; three hours; 4am, 8.30am,8am; local, no air-con)Kalaw (K10,500; nine to 10 hours; 4am; Taunggyibus)Taunggyi (K10,500; nine to 10 hours; 4am;local)Yangon (K15,000; 11 hours; 5pm; air-con)Pick-Up TrucksThe lone daily pick-up service to Mt Popa (K3000each way, one hour) leaves at 8.30am from infront of the south entrance to the market, andreturns at 1pm. From the bus station half-hourlypick-ups go to Chauk (two hours), where you canconnect via pick-up to Salay (one hour).Pick-ups between Nyaung U, Old Bagan and NewBagan run along the main street, starting from theroundabout outside the Nyaung U market.TaxiAs Bagan has limited bus connections to othermajor destinations, many travellers hire sharetaxis – often quite old cars, some with openbacks, most without air-con and seating up tothree people – to destinations around the country.Ask at Ever Sky (p 119 ) or at your hotel. Somesample taxi fares: Inle Lake ($170, 12 hours),Kalaw ($150, 10 hours), Magwe ($70, fi ve hours),Mt Popa ($35, 1½ hours), Salay ($35, two hours),Mt Popa and Salay ($55).TrainThe Bagan train station is about 2.5 miles southeastof Nyaung U. The shop Blue Sea (%60949;Main Rd) sells tickets and charges a $2 commission.The train to Mandalay takes eighthours and departs at 7am (ordinary/upper class$5/10), while the train to Yangon takes 16 hoursand departs at 4.30pm (ordinary/upper class/sleeper $30/40/50).MALIKHA 2 BOAT TO MANDALAY DEE MACPHERSON ANDBONNIE MCMILLAN‘It was a pretty nice boat – part of the outside deck is open and part is covered. There’salso an upstairs and downstairs inside part that is air-conditioned. The boat left at 6am(promptly!) and the trip upriver took about 11½ hours. There is free coffee/tea andtoast/jam available for a few hours after departure, which was nice. Halfway through themorning, they come around and take your order for lunch – fried noodle or fried rice for3000K. It was actually quite good food! There is also beer/pop/water available for sale.‘Our boat was maybe half full, so it was quite comfortable. There was outside seatingavailable for pretty much everyone who wanted it, either in a chair or on the benchesaround the back. When you buy your ticket, you are assigned a seat inside the airconditionedpart. We were told by someone to go outside immediately and lay claim toa chair to ensure we got one – good advice because there aren’t enough for everyone,especially if the boat is full. The boat has a capacity of 129, and if you choose to sitinside, you certainly can see outside – the windows are fairly large.’