Myanmar (Burma) (Insight Guides) by David Abram, Andrew Forbes 9th (ninth) (2013) Paperback

by David Abram

With its glittering pagodas, timeless countryside and gracious people, Myanmar (Burma) is an extraordinarily beautiful destination which has been isolated from the rest of the world for decades. Finally, things are changing and tourism is set to explode in the coming years. This new edition of the Insight Guide Myanmar has been comprehensively overhauled to help inspire and inform, and guide you to the best that this little-known country has to offer.Following on from the inspirational Best Of Myanmar section, the country’s rich past and cultural heritage are described in a series of lively essays. Contemporary aspects of Burmese life – the changing political situation, the economy, food, architecture, wildlife – are also covered in depth.The Places chapters have been completely rewritten for this new edition, describing all the sights worth seeing – from the incomparable temples of Bagan, serene Inle Lake, the lost world of Mrauk U and the beaches along the Bay of Bengal to the fascinating cities of Yangon and Mandalay.At the back of the book, the Travel Tips section contains all the practical information you'll need to make the most of your trip, including dozens of carefully selected hotels.

Genres: Travel

Paperback

First published April 1, 2013

About the author

Freelance travel writer David Abram was born and brought up in south Wales and the Mendip Hills of Somerset. His first foray into the Corsican mountains came in 1986, during the sabbatical year of a French degree, when he stumbled upon some waymarks and followed them blindly for two days until wild pigs polished off his supplies. Since then, as an anthropologist and author of the Rough Guide to India, he's walked extensively in the Himalayas, Europe and North America but still regards Corsica as a benchmark trekking destination.

Reviews

[LaFleurBleue · Rating 3 out of 5]

I bought this guide for 3 reasons:
1. it was the most updated guide of all - the release of the printed copy being April 13 and luckily for me the ebook was available earlier
I had used a Lonely Planet guide that was 2 years old for my previous trip to Myanmar and honestly it was the worst LP ever.
2. it's been quite a while that I wanted to try to find alternatives to the omnipresent Lonely Planet, which make you go to the same places as all the other people, advertise a lot of restaurants cooking burgers, pizzas and pasta, wherever the country and for which the hotel selection always range on the shabby side.
3. the LP paper version sell in Singapore for almost 45 SGD (around 35 USD I guess), with a huge markup from the price I used to pay in Europe. The Insight ebook sold for half the price.

I really liked the historical and cultural section from the Insight Guides, nicely written, quite comprehensive and not too full of political proselytism.
What was great in the eBook version was that the maps could be downloaded with a very high resolution and printed on an A4 paper sheet, which makes it easier to use - especially as the maps were strangely almost impossible to read on my reader.
The section regarding the sites and activities to do in one place was rather good. The addresses selection for restaurants and hotels were also satisfying with some good tips. However, neither the restaurants, nor hotels were positioned on the map which makes it quite awkward to use. The transport advices were almost non existent - outside of price range for taxi hires.
My opinion is that this guide probably targets more the tourist coming with a group or in a package pre-arranged with a local travel agency than a real "independent" traveller finalizing the planning there from day to day.
I may try another one for another destination to check whether it's also reliable and differentiated.

[Jo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I find the Insight Guides really useful. I love the mixture of interesting articles and evocative photographs, alongside practical information about places to see and how to travel well. I bought this book in Yangon and it turned out to be my most up to date and positive commentary.