After Yangon, it was time to experience some history and visit the famous city of Bagan. When you google Myanmar, it is most likely that the first pictures you see are the hot-air balloons rising at sunrise with numerous temples on the background. I happened to visit Myanmar during the monsoon season when the hot-air balloons are not flying because of difficult weather conditions. Nevertheless, Bagan is an amazing place to visit without the balloons as well.

Bagan

Bagan is an ancient city in central Myanmar. More than 2000 Buddhist monuments stand over the fields of Bagan Archaeological Area. From 9th to 13th centuries the city was the capital of Pagan Kingdom. This was the first Kingdom that unified the same regions that nowadays include in modern-day Myanmar. Over the course of 250 years, Bagan’s rulers constructed over 10.000 religious monuments in an area of 104 square kilometres. It became the centre for religious and secular studies.  The city attracted monks and students from India, Sri Lanka and the Khmer Empire. The culture of Pagan was dominated by religion. The empire collapsed in 1287 due to Mongol invasions. Photo. Bagan Archaeological area as seen from Bagan viewing tower.

Getting in

We arrived in Bagan by a bus from Yangon. The VIP buses are really comfortable in Myanmar, so the journey was pretty nice. The road conditions are not the smoothest though, but still relatively good compared to some other journeys I have made. There is an option to take the train as well, but the time spent on the trip is almost twice as long as with the bus. Besides going by land, Bagan also has an airport which has connecting flights to all of the bigger cities in Myanmar. The first thing to consider before arriving in Bagan area is to where to stay. There are three different towns surrounding the temple grounds – Old Bagan, New Bagan and Nyaung U. Nyaung U hosts the airport for the area and all of the long-distance buses stop and have offices next to the airport. The town itself hosts the cheapest accommodation options but at the same time, it is the furthest from most of the temples. The distances are not too long though, so it could be a good option if really on a shoestring budget. Old Bagan is the closest to all of the temple grounds and the centre of the ancient capital. The accommodation options are the most expensive ones as well accordingly. The most comfortable place to stay at would probably be New Bagan. It hosts mid-range accommodations and is relatively close to all of the main sights.

Getting around

There are different ways to get around and discover the areas. It is easily possible to walk in New Bagan but transportation is needed to visit the archaeological sites. So what is the best way to get around in Bagan? There are three main options for that – hire a car with a driver for a day, rent a bicycle or rent an E-Bike/motorbike. Having a car is definitely the most expensive option and a bicycle doesn’t get you too far and might be exhausting in hot weather. The best and most popular option is to rent an e-bike (electric bicycle). Scooters are also available but e-bikes are easier to drive for a beginner and quieter. They have enough range for day and it is a lot of fun to drive around and between the temples. Instead of giving a list of temples to visit I am just going to post some photos. There are just so many of them (more than 2000 intact at this current day) that the best thing is to just drive around and discover yourself. Bagan viewing tower (Bagan Nan Myint Tower) is also worth to visit. The entrance fee is quite expensive (5 USD) but it towering really high up and gives 360-degree views around on the surroundings.

Sunrise and sunset

Bagan is famous for its sunrises and sunsets. It must be a glorious view seeing the sunset or -rise on the forest filled with temples. It is important to choose the season for that though. Being there on the monsoon season, we did not manage to get any good sunrise/sunset experience. Even if it was beautiful weather during the day then the clouds rolled in just in time for the sunset. The wet season is from May/June till October and accordingly, the dry season runs from October to May. There was a time when tourists were climbing all over the stupas to get a better viewing spot for the sunset. Just recently, climbing on the temples/stupas has been forbidden though. Many places have been surrounded with gates and have guards. Well, to be honest, the prohibiting makes a lot of sense. The buildings have been standing there for more than a thousand years so they are not really safe to be on. All of the people climbing them makes the condition of the structures even worse. And mainly, these are religious sites. So it is a common sense not to climb on something which is holy/sacred for somebody. There are still some good places to see the sunset from without illegally climbing the stupas:

• Bagan viewing tower
• Tower no. “860” on MAPS.ME. It is free, easily accessible and has great views.
• “360 rooftop views” tower on MAPS.ME.  There is a temple ground right next to it as well where I went for a sunrise. There were no people but that place requires climbing the walls of the stupa. Great views though 😉
• Bupaya Pagoda. It is next to the river and sunset is upon the river, not on the temples.
• Amenaged viewpoint hill. Some hills have been constructed specially for the purpose of having a view over the temples.

The Bagan area is definitely one the most unique places I have ever seen and visited. It can be easily compared to the Angkor Wat in Cambodia and Machu Picchu in Peru. So when in Myanmar, this simply can’t be missed!