4 Best Sights in Myanmar

Although the inboard motors make boat trips around Inle Lake loud (we recommend earplugs), they're still languid and, more importantly, the reason visitors come here in the first place. Inle is Myanmar's second largest lake, 44.9 square miles at an altitude of 2,900 feet. Boats leave from the jetty in the village of Nyaung Shwe, where you'll be dropped off after the trip in from the airport; the ride from the airport is an hour, and it takes almost an hour to get to the southern end of the lake. Lining the narrow road where the airport vans leave you off are a handful of tiny travel agencies through which you can arrange boat trips, bicycle hire, and airport drop-off service. Expect to pay around K25,000 for a full-day boat tour and K19,000 for half a day. The only way to get to hotels on the lake is by boat; depending on how far south you are, expect to pay up to K63,000, though the price will drop significantly if you're using the same boatman for touring.

This 325-foot-tall gilded pagoda is Yangon's top tourist attraction and, at 2,500 years old, the world's oldest pagoda. It is simply stunning. Admission is free for locals, and you'll see families, kids, groups of teenagers, and solo visitors milling around the pagoda all day, every day—praying, meditating, and just hanging out. The space is massive and never feels crowded. Women need a longyi (traditional sarong) or knee-length skirt to enter the pagoda, and all visitors are required to remove their shoes in the parking lot. During Yangon's hot days the pagoda glistens in the sun—it can be truly sweltering, and the floor can burn your bare feet. A better option is to come after the sun's gone down, when the Shwedagon is beautifully illuminated. There is an elevator for those who do not wish to climb up.

The world's longest teak bridge runs three-quarters of a mile over Taungthaman Lake in Amarapura, Burma's former capital and now part of Mandalay. More than 1,000 teak poles make up the bridge, each scavenged from the former royal palace by then-mayor U Bein. During dry season (November to April) the lake is quite shallow but, during summer, it nearly doubles in height, with water reaching up to just below the bridge's planks. Around sunrise is the best time to come, when a stream of monks and villagers, some on bike, cross back and forth. Most visitors are dropped off at the western end and then walk across; at the eastern end is a small village where you can munch on hot, fresh chapatis and sip very sweet tea. If you're staying near Mandalay Hill and heading to the bridge for sunrise, book a cab the night before; it will run you around K18,000.