17Sep

Planning a motorcycle tour to Myanmar

Myanmar is perhaps the hottest new adventure travel destination in Asia. You can now get 28 days tourist visa and travel to more remote corners than ever before. Road connections are improving rapidly and there are now better maps available and even mobile networks to use your phone as navigator. Intention of this post is to give you some advice on planning a motorcycle adventure in Myanmar. There are many great destinations and routes. We will get into that later. Most importantly one needs to know how to get to Myanmar and what is possible and what is not. There is very little information available so we thought of sharing some of our knowledge and hope to make the country more popular destination for adventurers in the future.

Myanmar border crossings, permits and Myanmar visas

It is now possible to cross several land borders between Myanmar, Thailand, India and China. Travel has become much easier during the last 2 years. Border permits and tour operators EVT invitation letters are no more needed although some officials may still insist on them. You will still need to obtain Myanmar visa in Myanmar embassy abroad.

For the time being Myanmar visas are not available at the borders. Exemption being Asean countries passport holders who have been recently granted visa free entry. We recommend however to check with your nearest embassy. If you wanted to come to Myanmar with your own bike and are Asean passport holder you will still need a local partner for ground handling.

Bringing own motorcycle to Myanmar

It is possible to travel into Myanmar with your own motorcycle and exit same way or from another land border crossing where foreigners are allowed to cross (not all border crossings are open for tourists). The current Myanmar law requires escort to any motorbike convoys entering the country. The permits application process involves government approval of the itinerary, locally registered tour operator or travel agent to handle the passage (escorts will drive along in a car).

The local company handling your passage will apply all necessary permits and licences including import and export permits, local driving licenses and temporary license plates on your behalf. This can be quite costly for just 1 or 2 riders.

Hiring or buying motorbike in Myanmar

This is more hassle free option and less costly way to travel in the country. The down part is that there are not many bikes for rental. Importing anything to Myanmar has been very restricted for years. Lower taxes and import license rules have spiked up car imports and motorbikes as well to some extent but the local demand is mostly for small scooter style motorbikes.

Discovery rides team can help you with motorcycle rental or buying and all travel arrangements in the country. We are owned by Discovery DMC which is one of the leading adventure travel operators in the country.

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