Entering the country in yangoon, exit in kawthoung

[IkarusDelpaso]

Hey Guys,

we are planning a trip to Myanmar next year in march. We will get a visa at the embassy in germany....

We have three weeks at all for travelling...so our plan is to fly to Yangon, enter the country

travel around Yangon for 5 days, then we want to travel in south direction to kawthoung for another 5 days, to exit the country after 10 days to Thailand.

Does anybody know if that works?

In different travelguides is written, that it is not a problem to exit via kawthoung, although it is officially not allowed....

maybe it is not a probelm since the 28th of august?

Can anybody give me an information?

Thank you very much

Stefan

[Tomtomtom69]

Haven't you read the news? There is another thread on this very forum that says you can do it since Aug 28 with numerous news articles and trips reports confirming this. So next time, please consider doing a search before you ask the same questions that have already been answered. Otherwise, nobody will want to take the time to reply, but I'll be kind enough to do it this time.

So yes, you can go out overland via Kawthoung, no problems at all. The only proviso is that you take a ferry or a flight from MYEIK down to Kawthoung. Everything north of Myeik is accessible overland by bus, car, taxi or from Dawei northbound, train (or you could still take a ferry to Dawei or internal flight(s) if you wish). In Kawthoung your visa will be cancelled and you'll receive an exit stamp and you can then proceed into Ranong, Thailand from there.

[IkarusDelpaso]

Hey Tom,

thank you for your reply....i tried to search a lot about our plans, but i didnt find an answer if it is possible to leave to country via kawthoung.

There are several threads, which discuss about entering the country there, and leave in yangoon...but not in other direction.

So plese excuse, if i didnt research enough on this topic...

Thanks

Stefan

[Tomtomtom69]

Hey Tom,

thank you for your reply....i tried to search a lot about our plans, but i didnt find an answer if it is possible to leave to country via kawthoung.

There are several threads, which discuss about entering the country there, and leave in yangoon...but not in other direction.

So plese excuse, if i didnt research enough on this topic...

Thanks

Stefan

Yes no problem, Myanmar has traditionally had some bizarre entry requirements/restrictions. However, since August this year and in general, one would expect some consistency like most of the rest of the world and that is indeed the way Myanmar is heading. So yes, of course travelling in either direction is fine (entering via Yangon and then leaving by land), the threads and news articles on this topic have clearly indicated so.

A lot of travellers ask about flying in or out one way and then going the other way overland. As just mentioned this is fine. However, what I would be more concerned about is whether the airline will let you fly into Yangon on a one way ticket (this has nothing to do with the recent land border openings and being a holdover of the days when you had to fly in, but rather, it's the same as in many other countries: does a one way ticket satisfy immigration requirements?) In the case of Myanmar for most visitors, it should be OK. Leaving Myanmar on a one way ticket to say, Thailand etc. it's almost always OK - it seems the Myanmar authorities automatically assume that foreigners departing Myanmar will be allowed to gain entry to the country they are heading for and returns to Myanmar due to ineligibility to enter don't occur. In Mandalay earlier this year myself and my Vietnamese friend didn't have our passports checked for visas, stamps or anything and were just issued our boarding passes straight away.

[IkarusDelpaso]

i think the visa and the flights should not be a huge problem...our trip is from germany with malaysia airline....Flying to Kuala Lumpur, than directly to Yangoon....three weeks later from Kuala Lumpur to Frankfurt...

i think if we attach a copy of this flight ticket to the visa application, it should work....

may i ask you a question about our planned timetable? Do you think 10 days myanmar, and 10 days Thailand/Malaysia is ok? or is it too much for only three weeks? We have much travel experience in Southeast asia....but not really an idea about travelling in myanmar...maybe it is such a beautiful country, that it would be better to stay there for the whole three weeks, without thailand and malaysia?

Cheers

[Tomtomtom69]

It's doable and gives you a good sampler of each destination. However, if you'd rather focus in-depth on one country, then you might want to consider only visiting Myanmar on this trip and see Thailand and Malaysia on another trip. But since most tourists only visit the main tourist sites anyway, with a couple of domestic flights and/or car with driver in Myanmar or self-drive in Malaysia/Thailand it could be doable.

[SeaVisionBurma]

No problem to fly in to Yangon on a one way ticket, allowing for exit from Kawthoung. This of course assumes that you have a prior embassy issued tourist visa before you fly in to Myanmar.

Suggest you visit Myanmar Tours and Travel (Ministry of Tourism) in Yangon when you arrive to inform them that you wish to exit via Kawthoung.

Overland travel is now allowed, but it still pays to ensure the border locations are aware of your intentions before you arrive (eg before you fly to Kawthoung)

One more point - tomtomtom69 pointed out that you will need to catch a ferry from Myeik to Kawthoung, however you can also fly direct to Kawthoung from Yangon if you do not wish to fly via Myeik.

Hope this helps - let us know how your trip goes if you end up deciding to travel this way.

SVB

[phuketrichard]

flight from and to Yangoon -Kawthoung $192 one way, was there yesterday and asked the price.

[SeaVisionBurma]

flight from and to Yangoon -Kawthoung $192 one way, was there yesterday and asked the price.

Many thanks for posting this phuktrichard - it has gone up again since the low season. (was $165 a few months back)

Good to know.