Kyaiktiyo Pagoda - the Balancing Rock that is not falling down the Hill

Picture by Arian Zwegers

Only a strand of hair from Buddha are preventing it from falling down the hill, a legend says. On the granite rock covered with thin leaves of gold left by an endless stream of pilgrims and called Golden Rock stands a litte Pagoda, called Kyaiktiyo Pagoda. At the top of Mt. Kyaiktiyo - at an elevation of 700 meters - this is the third most important Buddhist pilgrimage site in Myanmar after the Shwedagon Pagoda in Yangon and the Mahamuni Pagoda in Mandalay. Near the top of the mountain, at Yatetaung, two large lions are guarding the entrance. From here pilgrims and visitors have to climb to the Golden Rock barefoot on a paved track for 1,2 kilometres. The rock is a spectacular sight, especially at sunset.

The town of Kyaiktiyo lies at the foot of the mountain range, between Mawlamyine and Bago.

Nearer to the Golden Rock is the village of Kinpun. From here many pilgrims hike for 11 kilometers to the Golden Rock.
To get from Kinpun to the Golden Rock you can take a truck. The truck stop is to the left of the Sea Sar Hotel.

Buses from Yangon

Buses from Yangon are running to Kyaiktiyo and Kinpun. The trip takes around 5 hours. Start at Aung Mingalar Bus Terminal. Bus company Win Express (one way 700 Kyat, ticket office in Kinput near Sea Sar Guesthouse).

Myanmar National Airlines flies to Mawlamyine daily at 11.45 am. Buses from Mawlamyine take four hours,

Bus from Bago takes 3.5 hours and stops close to the train station.


Trains from Yangon

Trains from Yangon to Kyaiktiyo take four hours, comfort is described by KirstyB.


Guesthouses in Kinpun

Pann Myo Thu

Sea Sar Guest House: A building on the street and bungalows. Small dark rooms for US$ 10 per person with breakfast and rooms with bathroom and balcony for US$ 35 per person accorting to petitefute.uk.com. Meets the basic needs, mixed reviews on tripadvisor.com say.

Picture by Looser Oswald


Hotels on the Mountain Top

Mountain Top Hotel

Golden Rock Hotel

Kyaiktiyo Hotel: USD 45. The closest hotel to the Golden Rock.

Yoe Yoe Lay Guest House

Yoe Yoe Lay Hotel

Kyaw Kyaw Guesthouse

Golden Rock Tours from Yangon by Visit Myanmar from 250 USD/person.

International Airlines flying to Myanmar - Bangkok Airways flies from Chiang Mai to Mandalay

Picture by plynoi

Chiang Mai - Mandalay: Bangkok Airways has direct flights on Thursday, Sunday and Tuesday, starting from October 26 in 2014. Bangkok Airways also operates daily flights out of Suvarnabhumi to the capital of Myanmar, Naypyidaw, and flights to Mandalay.

Chiang Mai - Yangon: Bagan Air flies two times a week on Thursday and Sunday. Golden Myanmar Airlines flies three times a week since October 2014 on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.

From November 1 in 2013 Nok Air has started a service from Bangkok Don Mueang to Yangon, with two flights daily.

Meanwhile Air Asia offers flights from Bangkok’s Don Mueang Airport to Yangon and Mandalay. Air Asia offers a free shuttle bus from the airport in Mandalay to the Railway Station.

THAI Smile, the budget line of Thai Airways International, flies five times a week between Bangkok and Mandalay since April.

MAI Myanmar Airlines International See the Route Map. They offer Visa on arrival for flights from Phnom Penh and Siem Reap (Cambodia) and Guangzhou (China). MAI is majority owned by Kanbawza Bank chairman U Aung Ko Win, with the government holding a minority stake.

All Nippon Airways (ANA) has increased its flight frequency between Tokyo and Yangon from October 2013 to seven per week.

Nok Air has stopped flights from Mae Sot to Mawlamyine: Mae Sot - Mawlamyine (Moulmein) and Mae Sot - Yangon: The Thai carrier Nok Air in 2013 opened two new daily flight routes into Myanmar. Mawlamyine is the Mon State capital. The flights had started on September 1. The way to Kyaiktiyo Pagoda, got much shorter. A route to Yangon was to start on October 1. Both routes were operated by a Saab 340B turboprop, capable of carrying 34 passengers. Meanwhile only the route Mae Sot - Yangon is still operated.

So the competition among the airlines is intense, what is resulting in very attractive promotions - see the homepages of the airlines.


Read more:
The Domestic Airlines in Myanmar and their Safety Record