How to Visit Bagan – The Two Thousand Temple Town of Myanmar

Whether self-guided, on a bike or via horse cart, a Bagan tour at any pace means exploring a city filled with thousands of ancient temples. Here’s how to find the temple wonders of this magnificent city and archaeological zone of Myanmar.

I arrived in Bagan at 4 am following another long overnight bus from Inle Lake, stupas dotting the twilight-cloaked plains. I had two options for finding my hotel – by foot or by horse and carriage. “How wonderfully quaint,” I thought. Sitting in the open cart, feet dangling over the edge, bumping along with the clip-clopping sound down the dark streets in the early morning hours, Bagan was already beginning to feel like a centuries-old time hop.

In the Ancient City of Old Bagan

The temple city of Bagan is one of the four top traveller hotspots in Myanmar, alongside Yangon, Mandalay and Inle Lake, and it still retains an ageless feel, nostalgic of the time when the temples were constructed between the 9th and 13th centuries.

But if you are thinking of a temple complex here that’s similar in size and easy navigation to that of Angkor Wat in Cambodia, think again.

The entire city is filled with temples—over 2,000 of them. The Bagan Archaeological Zone comprises a scattering of stupas, pagodas and monasteries around every corner, alongside every road, behind housing and shopfronts, and pitched across the vast arid plains. Small and nondescript, big and imposing, huge and magnificent, they are there.

A visit to Bagan requires a $10 conservation fee/sightseeing ticket, which is valid for your entire stay. Tickets can be purchased from your hotel or guesthouse upon arrival. Considering the full-day nature of getting around, this is a minimal fee that contributes to the protection of this significant historic site. 

READ MORE: Ethical Myanmar Travel Guide: What To Know Before You Go.

Visiting The Bagan Archaeological Zone

Your hotel or guesthouse will likely be based in New Bagan (half an hour from the main temples, predominantly in Old Bagan). They will help you mark out the most interesting 10 or so temples on a map, tell you the best route to get around, and tell you where to watch sunrise and sunset – an incredible view as you look out across the never-ending landscape and see all the spires of the hundreds and thousands of temples, like stalks sprouting through the undergrowth.

Bagan is extraordinary but completely exhausting, and it pays to go with the flow rather than try to overcram and overexert yourself. I say that after I passed out in bed after five hours of exploration. 

Getting to Bagan

I travelled to Bagan from Inle Lake on a seven-hour overnight bus. Getting to Bagan from the northern city of Mandalay takes four hours on the bus and eight hours from the southern city of Yangon, with many opting for the night bus option to utilise time on the ground with the early arrival. 

Best Time to Visit

Myanmar has three distinct seasons, and Bagan in the north follows these seasonal tropical climates:

• October to March: The dry winter season with optimal temperatures but more crowds. 
• March to May: The hot summer season with fewer crowds but sweltering heat, which I found harder during long cycle rides. 
• May to October: This is the wet, rainy season, making a trip to Bagan’s dusty, arid lands more challenging. 

The best time to visit Bagan is from the beginning of November to the end of February when the weather is cooler and drier. If travelling during the hot and dry seasons, pack sunscreen and bug repellent and carry plenty of water – there are street stalls, but often, you’ll venture out to isolated pockets of Old Bagan with nothing to hand. 

How Many Days Do I Need in Bagan?

Many pass through, arriving in the morning, squeezing in an all-day tour and leaving the next morning. One and a half days were enough for me (including sunrise and sunset), and gave me more downtime between temple hops. 

No matter how long you spend in Bagan, the views are unbeatable, especially when, for most of the time, you may have patches of the rural landscape all to yourself – one of the pros of not riding around the temples really early in the morning (at risk of sunstroke) and visiting during the low tourist season.

Getting Around the Temples

There are two options to get around the vast chunk of main temples (and anything else in between should you be able to muster up the energy): hiring a horse and cart for approximately $15-$20 for the day or hiring a bike for around $3.

I chose the cycle option, which would give me more freedom to stop when I wanted, hang out with the locals at the snack stalls in between, and ride to any hidden little nooks and crannies as and when I found them. Plus, because of my animal hair allergies, the horses there made me sneeze so much that I’m surprised I managed to still breathe. My guess is they are rarely groomed.

Bagan’s Most Beautiful Temples

Where do you start in a vast arid plain with nearly 2,500 temples? Here are some of Bagan’s most sacred and standout temple complexes. 

Cultural Temple Etiquette 

All temples in Bagan must be visited barefoot, as is customary in Buddhist practice. Remove your shoes (and socks) and leave them on the shelf at the temple entrance. Do not touch sacred objects, climb temples (unless it is allowed for sunrise and sunset viewings) or stand with your back facing Buddha. As active places of worship, ask before taking photographs of local people. 

Sunrise in Bagan

Sunset in Bagan

Local Life in Old Bagan