Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
January 4
Independence Day
January 10
Kachin New Year
February 12
Union Day
March 2
Peasants' Day
March/April*
Tabaung full moon
March 27
Armed Forces Day
April 13-16
Thingyan (water festival)
April 17
New Year
May 1
Labour Day
May*
Kasong full moon
July 19
Martyrs' Day
July*
Waso full moon (beginning of Buddhist “Lent”)
October*
Thadingyut full moon (end of Buddhist “Lent”)
November*
Tazaungmone full moon
November/December*
National Day
December/January*
Kayin New Year
December 25
Christmas Day
Phones
Mostguesthouseswillletyoumakecalls
withinMyanmar
fromaphoneatreception(check
the cost first), or may even be persuaded to make the call for you if you're worried that the
phone will be answered by a non-English-speaker. Calls made from the in-room IDD phones
found in some top-end hotels always come with a massive mark-up. There are also local call
stands - often just a table with a telephone - in the streets and in some shops. The cheapest
andeasiestwaytocall
internationally
isthroughaVOIP(VoiceOverInternetProtocol)ser-
vice such as Skype or Voipfone. Otherwise you'll need to use public call centres (try asking
at the post office), although international calls are expensive.
International
roaming
is in its infancy in Myanmar, and currently works only with some
AsianSIMcards.Gettingholdofa
localSIMcard
inMyanmarisaproverbialnightmare(in
the mid-noughties cards were changing hands for over $1000). Foreigners were previously
able to buy SIM cards lasting for a month for around $20, but these had been withdrawn at
the time of writing. At the time of writing, your only option was to hire a SIM card plus
phone at either Yangon or Mandalay airports, although this costs a rip-off $10/day. The situ-
