First you will be
carried to the new Myanmar Yangon
International
Airport, a pretty
new building without
bell and whistles
but all
the environment a
new airport must
contain in the 21.
century, plus a
Burmese
touch in form of
huge wall paintings
of typical Myanmar
scenes. This is one
of the two
Myanmar airports
where international
flights are landing,
the other is
Mandalay.
The Yangon International
Airport arrival
procedure at immigration
is done quick,
much quicker than on any US or UK airport on
an international arrival, only to get the
luggage out to the conveyer belt is very
time consuming since they let every piece of
luggage through the x-ray machine and it
looks like there is only minimal capacity.
Once you have your belongings just head to
the exit, there is the
red and
green
channel
usually the
airport
custom
people are
very
friendly and
if having
not more
than one
hand luggage
plus one
more piece
of other
luggage they
"wink" you
through.
Myanmar
people are
very helpful
- also the
guys in
uniform -and
never do
anything
negative to
a foreigner
if the
foreigner
just behaves
according he
or she
behaves
normal like
elsewhere.
At the airport
you wont be
held up very
much while
waiting to
pass
through.
Just be nice
to the
airport
officials
and they be
nice to you.
Yangon
Airport IATA:
RGN,
is at
Mingaladon,
about 16 km
north of
Yangon
center,
Myanmar has
two
international
Airports,
the other is
in Mandalay
but most of
international
passengers
come via
Bangkok o
Yangon.
Domestic
flights are
handled in
the old
terminal
about 100m
to the
north.
The new
terminal
pictured
here, is in
operation
since May
2007 and
handles
international
flights
only. The
airport
could handle
2.7 million
passengers a
year. Four
Myanmar
airlines and
about 15
international
airlines
operate out
of Yangon
International.
Most tourist come
via Bangkok to Yangon, outside the Yangon
international airport
arrival hall are
some counters for
taxi and limousine.
If you want to go to
downtown in a good
car take one of the
limousines, it's
around $ 10,- one
way to the city
center.
If
you
want
to
have
a
cheaper
ride
to
down
town
and
your
hotel
you
could
use
one
of
the
airport taxis
waiting
just
outside.
This
taxis
take
about
$
5,-
-negotiate-
for
the
trip
from
the
airport
to
down
town
but
they
usually
are
really
rotten,
moving
junk
and
also
have
Airport Arrival Bus
no aircon.
Amazingly
all
this
is
better
organized
as
in
many
other
Asian
countries,
all
together
the
new
Rangoon
airport
functions
quite
ok.
If
you
fly
out
to a
other
destination
in
Myanmar
you
must
use
the
domestic
terminal
which
is
about
100
meters
to
the
north.
Use
Yangon
airways,
they
fly
to
all
mayor
destinations.
Other
destinations
are
served
by
Bagan
Airlines
and
Myanma
Airways.
Myanma
Airways
is
the
government
owned
domestic
airline,
they
don't
fly
Bangkok
to
Yangon
Airport
The
airport
is
getting
more
busy
by
the
day,
new
airlines,
in
particular
from
China
Travel to Myanmar at
Kawthaung - Ranong,
for your Myanmar travel
preparation try
e-books
on Myanmar
are opening new flights to Myanmar.
Myanmar airlines are replacing old airplanes with new ones, as Air Bagan has
done some time ago with Airbus 320,Myanmar Airways International or MAI replaced their old DC9 equipment with
Airbus 310.
The Myanmar airline business is currently (2012) experiencing a real passenger boom.
On
your trip to downtown
you
will already see
that
Myanmar
is
rather
Indian
oriented
and
quite
different
to
other
south
east
Asian
cities,
this
is a
legacy
of
British
colonial
times.
If
you
travel
to
Myanmar
and
Yangon
international
airport there
is
no
way
around
to
have
a
excellent
travel
insurance.
It
is
not
because
of
any
particular
problem
but
accidents
can
happen
everywhere
and
in
Myanmar
a
lot
of
the
environment
is
very
rotten
this
produce
a
higher
risk
of
an
accident.
A
example
what
happen
to
me.
I
walked
on a
piece
of
wood
from
the
beach
to a
boat
this
wooden
board
looked
very
strong
but
when
I
was
about
half
way
through
it
just
broke,
I
fell
about
half
meter
down,
nothing
serious
happen,
but
it
gave
me
pain
for
about
3
days.
But
one
thing
is
for
sure,
Myanmar
people
are
more
civilized
than
Swiss
e.g.
because
Swiss
let
you
die
in
the
ditch
if
you
wont
hand
over
money
first
in
case
of
an
accident,
but
they
are
the
home
of
the
red
cross
and
the
red
cross
run
around
with
the
open
hand
and
ask
for
donation,
but
if a
foreigner
has
a
problem
in
Geneva,
that's
the
place
where
the
red
cross
headquarter
is.
No
one
of
this
mentally
corrupt
people
who
funnel
5
digit
$
salaries
into
their
pockets
paid
by
donations
will
help
a
foreigner
!!
No
excuse
by
any
means
is
accepted,
I
lived
in
Geneva
for
3
years
and
this
happen
to
me 2
times.
If
you
have
a
health
problem
during
travel
in
Myanmar
because
of
an
accident
or
whatever
the
hospital
environment
might
be
not
as
expected
and
in
Myanmar
cash
-$-
is
requested
afterwards
!
they
wont
take
your
medical
insurance
for
payment
later
as
they
do
in
Thailand
because
the
US
and
EU
embargo
(still
in
place)
doesn't
allow
money
transfer
in
or
out.
There
are
some
quite
good
clinics
and
hospitals
in
Yangon
and
Mandalay,
the
most
modern
is
Pun
Hlaing
Hospital
a
little
bit
outside
Yangon,
to
the
north,
a
other
is
Bahosi
in
the
city
center.
Bahosi
is
quite
ok
for
minor
accidents,
they
speak
English,
don't
go
to a
state
hospital
they
are
on a
very
poor
material
level.
Its
easy to slip
somewhere because of
this notorious
slippers which are
not good at all in a
rather dirty street
environment and so
on.
Especially
in Rangoon the guys
spit the betel onto
the street, they
never look,
sometimes someone
nearby gets this
stuff onto the feet,
although betel
spiting is
forbidden, nobody
cares, this is not
so at the airport, that's
really clean.
Bangkok to Yangon check
in.
When there are
some Chinese, Japanese or
Koreans in the same flight, they
try to push their way
through just to be in front
at the immigration counter, they
even run. After they stay 30
minutes at the conveyor belt
and wait, so what.
Yangon Airport
show a
interesting thing in the
morning, the newest MIG 29
aircrafts of the Myanmar Air Force
are seen starting on their missions to
somewhere in Myanmar or just on
a training flight. Basically
the Myanmar Air Force
operating out of Yangon is depending
on old MIG 21 junk, but
recent years some MIG 29
have been added to the
Myanmar Air Force.
The Russians do some business in Myanmar as
do the Chinese, since due to the political
situation Myanmar is one of the very few
countries they can sell their inferior
military junk. Nobody, beside of political
consideration will ever buy this Russian
junk.
day when I
waited at Yangon
International Airport for a
flight
Bangkok
to Yangon
a
group of Russians where just
sending one of them home. They were all drunk by
drinking the vodka hidden in
some bottles
in a brown
shopping bag
poured into
tea cups,
airport ID
card hanging
around their
neck, it tells
a lot about this people from Moscow.
If you don't
know which
hotel to go
after
arriving at
the Yangon
International
Airport tell
the taxi
driver to
drive to the
Central
Hotel or
Asia Plaza Hotel in the city center.
Immigration
Departure
Lounge at
Yangon
international
airport.
Yangon
Hotel prices
in those two hotels are around $ 35.-.If you have more to spend try the Kandawgyi
Palace Hotel on the Kandawgyi or Royal Lake,
this is the best hotel in Yangon, its not
too expensive, about $ 50,- to $ 100.- and
has a real great location right on the
lakeshore, its owned and managed by a local
company. There are several other hotels in
the upper price region and
lower
price regions. A good
alternative could be to take
accommodations in one
of the small family run
guesthouses which are on various
parts of the city, usually below $
30,- per night and quite ok. A
typical area where this
accommodations are is Windermere, at
the other hand, its very difficult
to get a taxi there. Also apartments
are available at the high end such
as Sakura, MiCasa and
Grand MeeYaHta
Hotel & Apartment.
