Up until 2010 visiting the various wonders of Myanmar
(Officially Burma) were done in a much
different manner. The government had a
Hercules type grip on the influx of tourists (and the Burmese people for that
matter) and what they were allowed to do. Now tourists and backpackers a like
are allowed to roam much of the beautiful country all without a tour guide at
their hip side. So what happened in 2010? Well in laments terms, the government
changed. With that change new laws were enforced not only for the adventurous
blood-thirsty backpackers but the Burmese people as well.
The first guesthouse I stayed at in Myanmar I was met with
an extremely intelligent and informative Burmese guesthouse owner, named Anun, who
cleared up some things for me on how life has changed for them as Burmese
citizens and for the average traveler over the last decade. Here are a few
tidbits of information I sucked out of him just hours before leaving his
guesthouse.
Before the government change the people of Myanmar were on
strict supervision and completely isolated from the rest of the world. By
supervision I literally mean there were government spies roaming about the
country monitoring citizens by restricting any talk open conversation about the government, good or bad. The isolation factor comes into play with the media, modes of
transportation and domestic lines of communication. Up until 2012 the people of
Myanmar had three channels of television to watch, all government run. Three!!
Present day they have close to hundred raising the number quite a bit in a just
a few years. Well sure enough they had internet to see what was going around
the world too right? Nope! Internet was released in Myanmar in 2003/2004 but
was also monitored by the government and still is. Their current infrastructure
for internet is absolutely horrendous so I could only imagine what it was like
when it first started ten years ago. Before the government change Anun told me running a business without the
direct hand of the government was nearly impossible due to the lack of
available personal transportation and lack of telephones. Just a few years back
to buy a used car in Myanmar cost around $100,000! Also to purchase any sort of
sim-card for a cell phone was nearly $2,000! So in-turn starting up a personal
business was not easy with costs like these weighing you down. The good news is
cars have already become exponentially cheaper and in two months time sim-cards
will be as low $2. These changes along with a few others are the reason Anun
was finally able to open his two guesthouses with much greater success then if
he would have done it prior to 2010.
Now has all this changed effected tourism?
Well for starters Anun told me that in 2011 there were
500,000 tourists that came through the country. In 2012 the number jumped to
1,000,000 and in 2013 it rose to 2,000,000 with over 3,000,000 projected for
2014. This number will continue to rise as more and more of Myanmar opens up to
foreigners. Anun didn't tell me the exact territories or regions that have been
released to tourism but I know for a fact places like Inle Lake (pictured
below) were only accessible with special permits prior to 2010.
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| Inle Lake, Myanmar |
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| Inle Lake, Myanmar |
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| Inle Lake, Myanmar |
The new government is also making it easier for tourists to
get into the country, physically and logistically. This last January there were
three Myanmar-Thai land boarders that opened up and are creating a lot of buzz
in the backpacker world. Anun also said that in a just few weeks foreigners
will be eligible for Electronic-Visas so it will eliminate the hassle of
running to a Burmese embassy in a neighboring country for your visa. There is
no time table set but Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Cambodia citizens are
not going to be in need of a visa to visit Myanmar in the near future. Citizens
of those countries will need just a passport from their respective countries.
Myanmar is showing the wiliness to attract not just western tourists but their
neighboring friends as well.
All of this change combined is making a Myanmar a VERY
popular destination. With this popularity it does though create a double edged
sword. Sure infrastructure will improve and more hostels will be scattered
around the country making accommodation cheaper but this will also take away
from the countries purity. I can only imagine Myanmar is similar to what
Thailand was three decades ago. My point being is get to Myanmar ASAP before it
gets “Thailandized”.
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| Bagan, Myanmar |
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| Hsipaw, Myanmar |
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| Traditional Shan State (Northern Myanmar) dish |
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| Feasting monkeys outside of Hsipaw, Myanmar |
