Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Train
There are as many opinions of Myanmar's oft-maligned train service as there are people
riding it. For some a train ride on narrow-gauge tracks is like going by horse, with the old
carriages rocking back and forth and bouncing everyone lucky enough to have a seat on
the hard chairs - sleep is practically impossible; others dig it, as some routes get to areas
not reached by road and the services provide a chance to interact with locals. 'It's not as
bad as some people say, not as good as you hope,' one wise local told us.
What's certain is that compared to bus trips on the same routes, taking the train means
extra travel time, on top of which likely delays (over 12 hours is not unheard of) have to be
factored in. It also means extra expense. A 1st-class seat between Yangon and Mandalay
is $33; a bus ticket on an air-conditioned bus is about $20.
The Network
First introduced by the British in 1877 with the opening of the 163-mile line between Yan-
gon and Pyay, Myanmar's rail network now has over 3357 miles of 3.3ft-gauge track and
858 train stations. Extensions to the network, adding another 2264 miles of track, are cur-
rently under construction from Sittwe in the west to Myeik in the south.
The 386-mile trip from Yangon to Mandalay, via Bago, Nay Pyi Taw and Thazi, is the
most popular train ride visitors take. Others worth considering:
»
Bagan to Yangon via Taungoo and Kyaukpadaung
»
Mandalay (or Pyin Oo Lwin) to Lashio (or Hsipaw), which takes in hilly terrain the roads
miss (Paul Theroux managed to do this back when foreigners weren't supposed to, as de-
scribed in his book
The Great Railway Bazaar
)
»
Yangon to Mawlamyine via Bago, Kyaiktiyo and Mottawa
»
Pyinmana to Kyaukpadaung (31 miles south of Bagan)
»
Thazi to Shwenyaung (7 miles north of Inle Lake)
»
Yangon to Pyay.
An express line connects Bagan (Nyaung U) with Mandalay from where there are three
other branch lines: one running slightly northwest across the Ava Bridge and up to Ye-U,
one directly north to Myitkyina in Kachin State and one northeast through Pyin Oo Lwin to
Lashio in the northern part of Shan State.
Note trains are classified by a number and the suffix 'Up' for northbound trains or
'Down' for southbound trains. Train numbers are not always used when purchasing tick-
ets.
