8 Things to Do in Yangon That Go Beyond the Golden Pagoda
Yangon doesn't make many bucket lists. It should. Myanmar's largest city has the most significant Buddhist monument in Southeast Asia, the densest collection of colonial architecture in the region, street food that costs almost nothing and tastes extraordinary, and a cultural atmosphere that feels untouched by the homogenization affecting Bangkok, KL, and Singapore.
Here's what's worth your time.
1. Shwedagon Pagoda at Sunrise
Let's get the obvious one out of the way first — because skipping Shwedagon would be like skipping the Eiffel Tower in Paris, except Shwedagon is 2,500 years old and covered in actual gold and diamonds.
The stupa is 99 meters tall, plated in real gold leaf, and crowned with 4,531 diamonds including a 76-carat stone at the very top. Entry: 10,000 MMK for foreigners. Open 4AM-10PM.
Go at sunrise. The morning light turns the gold from warm amber to blazing white as the sun rises. Monks circle the base chanting. Devotees pour water over their planetary birth stations. The atmosphere is simultaneously ancient, spiritual, and alive.
Dress code: long pants, covered shoulders, bare feet (remove shoes AND socks at the entrance). Walk clockwise.
2. Ride the Yangon Circular Train
This is my single favorite experience in Yangon. A 46-km loop through the city's suburbs and surrounding countryside on a rickety colonial-era railway. The journey takes about 3 hours if you ride the full circle.
Tickets: 200 MMK (about $0.10) at Yangon Central Station, Platform 7. Departures roughly every hour.
The train passes through local markets where vendors lean out of the train doors to buy vegetables being handed up from the tracks. You'll see rice paddies, small villages, temples, and the daily rhythm of a city that most tourists never experience. The carriage rocks violently on old tracks — hold on.
Hop off at Insein station for the market, or ride the full loop and watch Yangon unfold through the open windows.
3. Walk the Colonial Heritage District
Yangon was the capital of British Burma, and the colonial architecture is staggering in both scale and state of preservation (or more accurately, atmospheric decay).
The Secretariat Building — where Aung San was assassinated in 1947, precipitating independence — is a massive red-brick complex that was closed for decades and is now partially open for tours. The Strand Hotel, the High Court, Yangon City Hall, and dozens of crumbling merchant houses line the streets between Sule Pagoda and the river.
The Yangon Heritage Trust runs guided walking tours for about 15,000 MMK ($7.50) — 2.5 hours through the district with historical context. Self-guided: walk south from Sule Pagoda along Pansodan Street to the river, then east along Strand Road.
The buildings are magnificent in their decay — moss-covered facades, trees growing from windows, faded painted signs in Burmese and English. It feels like a film set that nobody has maintained.
4. Eat Mohinga for Breakfast (And Everything Else)
Mohinga is Myanmar's national dish and the country's default breakfast. Catfish-based broth with rice noodles, banana stem, lemongrass, and crispy chickpea fritters. Every neighborhood has a mohinga stall from 5AM. A bowl costs 1,000-2,000 MMK ($0.50-1).
The best mohinga stalls:
Street carts near 19th Street in Chinatown
The vendor outside the YMCA on Mahabandoola Road
Rangoon Tea House for a modern version (5,000 MMK)
Shan noodles — at Bogyoke Market food court. 2,000 MMK.
19th Street BBQ — Chinatown's nightly BBQ strip where skewers of everything imaginable sizzle over charcoal. 500-1,000 MMK per stick.
Tea shop culture — order lahpet yay (sweet milky tea) for 300-500 MMK and sit for an hour. Myanmar's teahouses are its social infrastructure.
5. Explore Bogyoke Aung San Market
The city's premier market — 2,000+ shops under one colonial roof. The gem and jade section is fascinating even without buying (Myanmar is the world's primary source of jade). Lacquerware, textiles, and antiques fill other wings.
Open 10AM-5PM, closed Mondays and public holidays. Bargaining expected — start at 40% of asking. The food court serves excellent Shan noodles and Burmese curries.
Buy lacquerware here. Bagan produces the finest, but Bogyoke's selection is excellent and you can compare quality across vendors.
6. Watch Sunset from Kandawgyi Lake
A serene lake in the city center with Shwedagon Pagoda reflected in the water on clear evenings. The Karaweik Palace — a concrete replica of a royal barge — is dramatically lit after dark.
Free to walk around the lake. The Karaweik hosts a cultural buffet dinner show (30,000 MMK) that's touristy but provides traditional music and dance in a memorable setting.
The adjacent Kandawgyi Nature Park has shaded walking paths. Best at sunset when the light turns the water and pagoda gold.
7. Visit Sule Pagoda at Rush Hour
This 2,600-year-old pagoda sits in the middle of a traffic roundabout in downtown Yangon. During rush hour, motorbikes and cars swirl around a golden stupa that predates everything around it by two millennia. The contrast is surreal.
Entry: 3,000 MMK. Open 6AM-10PM. It's smaller and less famous than Shwedagon but has its own atmosphere — more urban, more integrated into daily life. Office workers stop in for quick prayers between meetings.
8. 19th Street BBQ After Dark
Every evening, 19th Street in Chinatown transforms into an open-air BBQ strip. Plastic tables and stools line both sides of the street. Vendors grill skewers of meat, seafood, organs, and vegetables over charcoal. Beer flows from Myanmar Brewery.
Skewers: 500-1,000 MMK each. A Myanmar Beer: 1,500-2,000 MMK. A full dinner of grilled everything plus beer plus a bowl of noodles: 8,000-12,000 MMK ($4-6).
The atmosphere is raucous, smoky, and genuinely fun. It's the most alive Yangon feels after dark.
Practical Notes
Political situation: Check your government's travel advisory before visiting. The 2021 military coup has created ongoing instability. Yangon is calmer than rural areas but protests and curfews occur.
VPN: Essential. Many websites and social media platforms are blocked. Download a VPN before arriving.
Currency: Bring crisp, post-2006 USD bills. Exchange at licensed money changers. ATMs dispense MMK with $5 fees.
Grab: Works in Yangon. Cheapest transport option. Cross-city rides: 3,000-5,000 MMK.
SIM card: Buy Ooredoo or Telenor at the airport. ~10,000 MMK for a tourist data pack.
Dress code: Cover shoulders and knees at all pagodas. Remove shoes AND socks. Travelers who enjoy this often also love Vientiane. If you're exploring the region, Phnom Penh offers a compelling comparison.
Yangon is not an easy city. It's hot, chaotic, politically complicated, and its infrastructure hasn't kept pace with its ambitions. But it's also one of the most authentic, affordable, and spiritually powerful cities in Southeast Asia. The golden pagodas, the mohinga at dawn, the circular train through the paddy fields — these experiences haven't been packaged, sanitized, or optimized for tourists. And that, in 2026, is increasingly rare. For a different perspective, consider Bangkok as well. Travelers who enjoy this often also love Kolkata.
