- Myanmar to allow tourists through Kayin border
- Peninsula group to open hotel in Yangon
- French firm to invest in Myanmar’s tourism industry
- Japanese business travellers flock to Myanmar
- Tourists to Inle region surge 50 percent
- Inle floating market nearly disappearing
- Mandalay to build 20 hotels providing over 1400 rooms
- More passports issued in this summer
- Myanmar starts online tour guide services
- Discovering traditional water festival in Myanmar
Capital opens door to tourists ahead of SEA Games
Published on Thursday, 24 January 2013 15:56
Uppatasanti Pagoda, a replica of Shwedagon Pagoda, seen in Nay Pyi Taw (Photo - EMG)
Once off-limits to tourists, the administrative capital Nay Pyi Taw is now being marketed as a destination for international travelers, the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism said.
Nay Pyi Taw, located about 320 kilometres north of Yangon, is preparing for an influx of visitors as Myanmar hosts the SEA Games later this year and moves to the chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations next year. New package tours offer sightseeing in the capital and surrounding areas, a ministry official said.
Travel agents say most foreign nationals who visit the capital do so for business. Both houses of Parliament and the head offices of all ministries are located in Nay Pyi Taw, which is one of the fastest growing cities in the world. Many buildings in the capital remain under construction. Its landmarks include a replica of Shwedagon Pagoda, Uppatasanti Pagoda, which includes a Buddha tooth relic from China. The capital’s name means “Royal Palace”.