To get off the beaten tourist track — on wheels — look for Yangon tour agencies specialising in bicycle tours. Uncharted Horizons offers a half-day “Wild West” cycling tour that lets you soak in the vivacious energy of the streets. You’ll also get a chance to interact with friendly locals and experience village life away from the city centre. 

For a full-day rural adventure, you can be a “Twantay Explorer,” where you will visit the tranquil Twantay (or Twante) township to meet the “Oh-Bo” potters—artisans who work with traditional tools, local materials, and kilns.

For the eco-conscious, sign up with Bamboo Bicycle Tours—their bikes are made from bamboo, sustainable wood, rattan, and hemp! 

Their half-day “Discover Dala” tour promises to be a treat for your soul, as you ride on quiet roads through local communities and lush terrain. You’ll even spot the occasional temple along the way. Your destination: Dala, a fishing village that harks back to an earlier era. 

If you’re up for some culinary adventures as well, choose the Bike & Bite tours instead—doing so allows you to combine calorie-burning cycling action with the chance to sample nosh-worthy Burmese delicacies.  

Book tickets with Uncharted Horizons

Book tickets with Bamboo Bicycle Tours

Although the Shwedagon Pagoda has become Yangon’s top tourist attraction, the crowds shouldn’t put you off from experiencing the sheer beauty and majesty of this sacred site, where the main stupa alone is plated with nearly 22,000 solid gold bars. 

According to the temple’s origin story, two brothers met Buddha and were given eight of his hairs. They later discovered a place that housed relics from previous Buddhas, and there, they stored the hairs in a golden casket. This place later became the Shwedagon Pagoda. (Archaeological evidence suggests that the Shwedagon Pagoda’s original stupa could have been built as early as in the 6th century.)

Apart from the Shwedagon Pagoda, culture buffs should also visit these Yangon temples:

• Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda: Famous for its 65-metre long statue of the reclining Buddha, the Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda is a revered monument for locals.

• Kaba Aye Pagoda: With the name “Kaba Aye” meaning “world peace,” this tranquil temple was built for the Sixth Buddhist Council in 1952.

• Koe Htat Gyi Pagoda: This temple features a 20-metre high statue of a seated Buddha, which is known as the “Nine-Storey Buddha.”

• Sule Pagoda: The Sule Pagoda is a Burmese stupa located in the heart of downtown Yangon—it’s been hailed as Myanmar’s equivalent of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. The pagoda’s defining trademark is its octagonal shape, and this is thought to be the site where former Myanmese king Okkalapa held meetings to discuss the construction of the Shwedagon Pagoda.

Do note that visitors to any pagoda (in particular the Shwedagon Pagoda) are expected to be conservatively dressed in sleeved tops and knee-length bottoms. If you do visit the Shwedagon Pagoda, you can purchase or borrow a longyi (traditional sarong-style garment) at the entrance.

If you prefer a guided experience, Urban Adventures has a “Tradition and Culture in Yangon” tour that covers the Shwedagon and Chauk Htat Gyi pagodas. 

Those who enjoy museums can make time for the National Museum of Myanmar and the Bogyoke Aung San Museum, which is dedicated to General Aung San, the founder of modern Myanmar. Both museums are popular and highly rated. 

For a quirkier experience, include these on your cultural travel itinerary: the Drug Elimination Museum, the Myanmar Motion Picture Museum, and U Thant House. (U Thant was a Burmese diplomat and the third Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1961 to 1971—the first non-European to hold the position.)

Guests at PARKROYAL Yangon who are also Black Pan Pacific DISCOVERY members can redeem a breakfast visit for three to an ethnic park in Yangon. Here, you can learn about the different ethnic groups that contribute to Myanmar’s diversity. The experience also includes a traditional Burmese breakfast at the famous Shwe Pu Zun Cake House, listed as a top bakery to visit by the Myanmar Times.

Get directions to Shwedagon Pagoda (10-minute drive away)

Get directions to Chauk Htat Gyi Pagoda (15-minute drive away)

Get directions to Kaba Aye Pagoda (30-minute drive away)

Get directions to Koe Htat Gyi Pagoda (20-minute drive away)

Get directions to Sule Pagoda (5-minute drive away)

Get directions to National Museum of Myanmar (10-minute drive away)

Get directions to Bogyoke Aung San Museum (7-minute drive away)

Get directions to Drug Elimination Museum (20-minute drive away)

Get directions to Myanmar Motion Picture Museum (7-minute drive away)

Get directions to U Thant House (15-minute drive away)

The best and quickest way to get an overview of Yangon food is to join a food tour. Sa Ba Street Food Tours runs breakfast and evening walking tours, where you can get to try mohinga, the traditional Burmese fish noodle breakfast. The fish broth will be a treat for your senses, as it is typically prepared with a heady mix of spices—lemongrass, turmeric, and coriander, to name a few. 

If you opt for the evening tour, you will have the opportunity to visit a street food market near the Maha Bandula Park, which is off the tourist radar. There, you can try a local salad, barbequed freshwater fish (stuffed with lime, chilli, and coriander), and si chet (oily) noodles—a local favourite served with braised chicken or pork so soft that you can eat the bones too! You can also opt to join a trishaw food tour, or a market tour that includes a cooking class.

Need more appetite-inducing tour recommendations? Yangon Food Tours has even more options for you to choose from. This includes a Social Business Food Tour, which allows you to try delicious local offerings at restaurants that support the social well-being of the local community, as well as lunch tours and nightlife tours.

Some travellers also recommend A Chef’s Tour, which is a boutique travel outfit that runs tours across Asia and beyond. It is notable for its mission to run tours that do not pander to Western palates, to help travellers truly understand and appreciate the sights, sounds, and scents of local cuisines.

If you are short on time, you must do at least this one thing: savour your mohinga at the ever-popular Rangoon Teahouse (a seven-minute drive from PARKROYAL Yangon). The teahouse remains open till 10:00 p.m. on weekdays and 12:00 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, so you can tuck into a hearty fish broth at all hours.

Guests at PARKROYAL Yangon can also take a five-minute walk to the Aung Mingalar Shan Noodle Shop for a highly rated local food experience. Shan cuisine is said to be similar to Chinese cuisine—Shan noodles are either flat or thick, and served in soup or with a tomato-based sauce. Diners at Aung Mingalar should also try its acclaimed fried dumplings.

Book tickets with Sa Ba Street Food Tours

Book tickets with Yangon Food Tours

Book tickets with A Chef’s Tour

Get directions to Rangoon Teahouse

Get directions to Aung Mingalar Shan Noodle Shop

New in Yangon and looking for a place to get a drink that also closes late while offering a rooftop view? The Penthouse is open till 1:00am on most nights (and 2:00am on Thursdays and Fridays), while Yankin Heights Rooftop Restaurant opens till midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.

If you want drinks, company, and the local vibe, head to Chinatown’s 19th Street, which is where the locals go to let loose and make merry. It attracts crowds every night of the week—a sure sign that it’s the place to be. 

For something that is highly recommended by the Condé Nast Traveller (as well as the PARKROYAL Yangon team), Gekko Restaurant is a snug Japanese-inspired yakitori grill and whisky bar located in the historic Sofaer Building, the hub of a Baghdadi-Jewish family enterprise during Rangoon’s turn-of-century heyday. Fun fact: Singapore’s 28 HongKong Street, counted among Asia’s 50 Best Bars, consulted on Gekko’s drinks list, so you can expect a respectable showing here. (Gekko opens till 11:00pm daily.)

To see more nightlife suggestions from the PARKROYAL Yangon team, read our Destination Insights guide here.

Get directions to The Penthouse (20-minute drive away)

Get directions to Yankin Heights Rooftop Restaurant (20-minute drive away)

Get directions to 19th Street, Chinatown (15-minute drive away)

Get directions to Gekko Restaurant (10-minute drive away)

Located near the Yangon city centre, PARKROYAL Yangon is the ideal starting point for travellers who want a luxurious stay that lies within easy reach of the city’s finest attractions. Need more Yangon travel tips? View our accommodation offers, read our itinerary suggestions, or get in touch with our friendly team today!