I went to Myanmar as a complete independent traveller in December last year. I stayed in Yangon and also went to Chaungtha Beach which is next to Ngwe Suang beach featured in the Travelsphere brochure. I haven't seen the reviews mentioned by Bob Gray but I had a fantanstic time. What you have to bear in mind is the infrastructure of the country is very basic. The government has opened up the country but has not really catered for tourists. When I was there I hired at taxi driver as a guide at $30 a day which was good value as organised tours are virtually non existent ( although with a guided tour this shouldn't be a problem) Currency is another problem. The only currencies accepted by the banks are Singapore Dollars, US Dollars and Euros. They simply will not change sterling. The only people who will change sterling are money lenders/changers who give very poor rates. Also the bank notes I mentioned have to be in pristine condition. Any nicks, tears or folds and they will not be accepted. There are ATM's in Yangon but charge about £3 a transaction which is better than dealing with money changers. Credit cards are not accepted except in 'major' hotels and travellers cheques have never been heard of. I found that offering US dollars to traders is a waste of time because they have difficulty changing them. Yangon is a fantastic place to see. Apart from the beach I visited the Commonwealth War Cemetery which was very moving. As regards the beach resort. The Myanmar Government doesn't ask you to save energy it simply cuts the power off during daylight hours. I was told this applied to all beach resorts but was also told it may change soon. The people are the most friendliest I have ever met and its the only country where I saw signs in Burmese and English with the words 'Be kind and courteous to our visitors). Its a fantastic country but like all of South East Asia be prepared for the unexpected.
