Tours to Mrauk-U (Myohaung)

The Rakhaing capital from 1430 to 1784, Mrauk-U was once a glittering city of splendid pagodas and palaces, enriched by a piratanical navy of 10,000 ships, and which in its heyday was the centre of a kingdom stretching from the Ganges Delta to the Ayeyarwaddy River. These days, the site lies well off the beaten track and sees far fewer visitors than Bagan (you have to travel by boat for 65km to reach it), but it’s all the more atmospheric for that. Climb one of its low hills early in the morning to watch smoke from village fires hanging like a blanket over the exotic skyline of weed-infested stupa spires and paddy fields.