378TRANSPORT
GETTING AROUND^
see the bus ahead of time to
choose the seat you’d like.Restricted Roads
Foreigners are permitted to
buy bus tickets of any class,
using kyat, to any destina-
tion within or near the main
Yangon–Bagan–Mandalay–
Taunggyi quadrangle. We also
found that buses were easily
boarded in most other places
in the country, except for a
couple of tricky areas, like
travel towards the Thai border.Car & Motorcycle
Visitors not wanting to take
planes, or endure overnight-
bus bumps, frequently hire a
car and driver for the bulk or
entirety of a trip. It’s a good
way to go, though not always
cheap. To drive one yourself,
permission must be arranged
via the government-run MTT
and Road Transport Admin-
istration Department (RTAD;
%01-36113), and you must
be accompanied by a local
at all times. (Some expats
bypass this with registration
from the RTAD.)
Driving conditions can
be poor but are often bet-
ter than on many roads in
Vietnam, Cambodia and
Laos – and traffi c is com-
paratively light compared toThai or Vietnamese roads.
Of the 15,000 miles of roads
in Myanmar, about half are
paved; the remainder are
graded gravel, unimproved
dirt or simple vehicle tracks.Hiring a Car & Driver
The best place to arrange a
driver, perhaps for a full trip, is
in Yangon, but it’s possible to
track down a ‘taxi’ or ‘private
car’ from most travel agencies
and guesthouses around the
country, particularly in popu-
lar destinations like Bagan,
Mandalay and Inle Lake.
When trying to fi nd a car
with driver, consider there are
three unoffi cial types of cars:» (^) Tourist cars – these
are reasonably new, air-
conditioned cars run by a
company that provides back-
up or repairs in the event
they break down. These are
the most comfortable – and
that air-con is handy when
it’s dusty and hot out – but
the most expensive, running
to about $80 to $100 a day,
depending on the length of
the trip. This price includes
petrol for up to 12 hours’
driving per day and all of the
driver’s expenses.
» (^) Airport taxis – a midrange
option are the so-called
‘airport taxis’ – often yellow
taxis that will be off ering
you their service for your
trip before you leave Yangon
airport. These are older, may
or may not have working air-
con, and run to about $50 to
$60 per day.
» Private cars – the cheap-
est option are ‘private cars’,
run by entrepreneur drivers.
These go with windows down
(ie no air-conditioning),
vary in condition and price
dramatically, and there’s
less chance that you’ll have
any sort of replacement if
the engine goes out midway
between Bago and Taungoo.
They can be found for as little
as $40 or $50 per day. Some
travellers tell us of great
experiences with this option,
others have problems.
There are no car-rental agen-
cies per se, but most travel
agencies in Yangon, Man-
dalay and Bagan – as well
as guesthouses and hotels
elsewhere – can arrange cars
and drivers.
Among the most popular
and reliable rental cars in the
country are secondhand,
reconditioned Toyota Corona
hatchbacks imported from Ja-
pan from 1988. Such a car can
cost a staggering $40,000.
A slightly better quality car is
the Toyota Chaser (from 1990
to 1992). Myanmar also as-
sembles its own Mazda ‘jeeps’
(MJs) using 85% local parts.
Though mostly a government
monopoly, these jeeps make
decent off -road vehicles. The
old US-made, WWII-era Willys
Jeeps that once characterised
outback Myanmar travel
are becoming few and far
between.
Petrol & Tolls
Fuel stations were privatised
in 2010, but the government
continued to subsidise petrol
at K2500 per gallon. Many
of the private fi lling stations
are owned by domestic
conglomerates such as Htoo
Trading and Max Myanmar
(see p 26 ), but since they are
forced to sell at the artifi cially
capped rate, there has been
no incentive for them to ex-
ROAD DISTANCES (miles)
Approximate distances only
185
265 335
420 430 200
420 500 185 175
795 900 515 465 350
430 590 620 610 605 915
200 380 460 465 450 760 205
155 70 310 480 470 785 565 355
170 355 365 350 335 655 255 120 330
140 315 390 565 615 925 380 165 295 280
390 505 195 175 170 495 485 330 470 215 490
415 485 200 15 175 495 605 450 445 340 545 175
Mawlamyine
Nay Pyi Taw
Nyaungshwe
Mandalay
Myitkyina
Sittwe
Ngapali Beach
Hpa-an
Pyay
Pathein
Nyaung U
Taunggyi
YangonMawlamyineNay Pyi TawNyaungshweMandalay MyitkyinaSittweNgapali BeachHpa-anPyayPatheinNyaung U