Savoy (129 Dhammazedi Rd.,
www.savoy-myanmar.com
) in Rangoon, pricey but excellent at $210 a night during the high (dry) season of January to April; the
Bagan Hotel (
www.myanmars.net/baganhotel;
about $55 a night in high season), a comfortable tropical hotel in the archeological zone of Burma's ancient city; and
Golden Island Cottages (011-95-1-571513; $42 a night), built by a local hill tribe on pilings in Inle Lake.
WHAT TO EAT: Burmese food reflects the country's crossroads status between Thailand and India -- rich curried stews, chicken, fish and pork satays, stir-fried vegetables. Excellent Thai and Chinese food is also readily available, particularly in Rangoon. Market lunches cost about $3 per person, nice restaurants, $10; five-star places, $20.
TOURS: The easiest, and probably most common, way to visit Burma is with one of the many package tours. Two that reportedly make in-country arrangements in a politically sensitive way are Rangoon-based Myanmar Travel (www.myanmartravel.net), offering eight-day and longer tours staring at $860 per person, double occupancy; and New York-based Absolute Asia (800-736-8187, www.absoluteasia.com), with eight-day itineraries beginning at $1,860.
Activists, however, say group travel often sends the most hard currency to the regime. Independent travel, on the other hand, allows tourists more chances to target their spending. You may have to make some of your plans after you arrive. Many Rangoon travel agents are savvy and sensitive enough to help you book, for example, privately run Air Mandalay over government-run Myanmar Airways; ask a hotel concierge to recommend a travel agent.
