Travel Myanmar Safety

Give some thought to travel Myanmar safety in advance as to how you're going to organize your finances- whether traveler's cheques, cash, credit and debit cards, or some combination of these within traveling Myanmar. Many travelers favor hidden pouches that can be worn beneath clothing. Hip-pocket wallets are easy marks for thieves in Myanmar. Pick-pockets work markets and crowded Myanmar buses throughout Myanmar country, so it pays to keep your money concealed. It's a good idea not to keep an emergency stash well concealed in a piece of luggage separate from other money for travel Myanmar safety. At the Myanmar airport Security, the X-ray baggage inspection machines at Yangon and Mandalay international airports are all deemed flim-safe. Nevertheless if you're traveling with high speed film (ISO 400 or above), you may want to have your film hand inspected rather than X-rayed, Myanmar Security inspectors are usually happy to comply. Packing your film in see through plastic bags generally speeds up the hand-inspection process. Some photographers pack their film in lead-lined bags to ward off potentially harmful rays. You will be feeling perfectly safe in Myanmar.

You should be aware of the threat from terrorism in Myanmar (Burma). Since April 2005, there have been a number of bomb explosions in Burma (Myanmar). If you are visiting in Myanmar Burma, you should exercise caution in Myanmar public places and ensure that you are comfortable with, and regularly review, you own and your family's security arrangements for travel Myanmar safety. Past targets have included Myanmar commercial interests, Myanmar public transport and places tourists may visit. Most recently on 25 May 2007 there was an explosion at a Myanmar hotel in Namphalong, near the Burma-India border, reportedly killing one and injuring two others.

Other attacks since April 2005 include:

* On 11 and 15 January 2007, four detonators were found wrapped as parcels in Myanmar post offices in Yangon Myanmar. One exploded causing minor injuries.
* Five small explosions in central Rangoon on 20 April 2006, there were no injuries or fatalities in Myanmar.
* Two explosions in Taungoo on 2 March 2006, there were no injuries or fatalities.
* On 7 May 2005, there were three explosions in Yangon, two in Myanmar shopping malls and one in a Myanmar trade fair, which killed at least 23 people and injured at least 149 in Myanmar.

Myanmar terrorists in the South East Asia region have shown their capability to carry out large-scale attacks. In neighboring Indonesia, Westerners were killed and injured following the terrorist attacks in Bali (October 2002 and October 2005) and Jakarta (August 2003 and September 2004). You should be aware of the risk of indiscriminate terrorist attacks, which could be against civilian targets, including places frequented by foreigners. Please read our travel Myanmar safety on our Myanmar travel guide site www.guideformyanmar.com for information and advices.

There are no accurate crime statistics in Myanmar, but anecdotal evidence suggests that muggings, burglaries and petty thefts in Yangon have increased as the Myanmar economic situation has deteriorated. Expatriate homes and Myanmar hotels have been targeted in the past. You should take extra care of your belongings for your Myanmar safety travel. Myanmar have been occasional instances of violent crime against foreigners. You should take sensible security precautions at all times for Myanmar safety while traveling Myanmar.

There is stringent restrictions on freedom of speech, movement, religion, and political activity in Myanmar. Foreign nationals criticizing the Myanmar regime in public are liable to arrest or imprisonment. Two Britons received heavy sentences for such activity in 1999 in Myanmar. You should avoid large crowds and should note that attempts to visit the home of detained pro-democracy leader Daw Aung Sung Suu Kyi or the offices of her National League for Democracy party could attract unwelcome attention from the authorities for your Myanmar safety travel. You are strongly advised not to photograph Myanmar military installations or personnel. The unsettled Myanmar political situation could result in disruption or restriction to your Myanmar travel.

You should exercise caution if traveling to border areas in Burma Myanmar. The Burmese Myanmar government restricts travel to most border areas. There are a limited number of legal crossing points, but these could close without notice:

* Tachilek (Burma Shan State) - Mae Sai (northern Thailand border)
* Kaw Thoung (Burma Tanintharyi) - Ranong-Kawthoung (southern Thailand border)
* Muse (Burma Shan State) - Ruili (China border)
* Tamu (Burma Chin State) - Morei (India border)

You must exit Burma at the same border crossing from which you entered, and Myanmar Burmese immigration officers may request to hold your passport until your Myanmar visit is complete. You should not attempt to cross any border illegally or enter Myanmar restricted areas without the appropriate permissions from the Myanmar Burmese authorities for your Myanmar safety travel.

You should be particularly vigilant if traveling to the Thai/Burma border. There is ongoing Myanmar military activity close to this border, especially in Karen and the southern Shan states. Land mines also pose a threat in several areas. You should be aware that British Embassy officials are not allowed to travel freely outside Yangon without prior permission of the Burmese Myanmar government, except to a limited number of destinations. Consular assistance in an emergency may therefore be restricted or delayed. You may go to officially designated Myanmar tourist areas. You will require prior permission from the Myanmar tourism authorities for treks to remote parts of Myanmar country. You should note that tourists have experienced difficulties with Myanmar authorities even after obtaining such permission.

British or International Driving Licenses are not recognized in Burma Myanmar. Foreigners must apply for a Myanmar Driving License at the Department for Myanmar Road Transport and Administration in Yangon.

Overland Myanmar travel can be hazardous, particularly in the rainy season (May to October). Myanmar roads can become impassable and bridges damaged. You should be aware for travel Myanmar safety that, under Burmese Myanmar government law, the driver of a car involved in an accident with a pedestrian is always at fault. Road safety awareness, among both drivers and pedestrians, barely exists. Many Myanmar vehicles, including Myanmar taxis, are in a poor mechanical state. Although Burma Myanmar drives on the right the majority of cars are right hand drive, which can make driving hazardous.

Myanmar railway equipment is decrepit; fatal rail crashes occur, although they may not always be reported in Myanmar.

We are not able to make a formal assessment of domestic Myanmar airlines in Burma. However, you should be aware that Myanmar Airways has a poor safety record and the British Embassy staffs are advised not to fly with Myanmar airline for Myanmar safety travel. This domestic Myanmar airline should not be confused with Myanmar Airways International (MAI), which operates across South East Asia.

You should ask for, and follow carefully, Myanmar local advice about where it is safe to swim or dive in the sea in Myanmar. You should also be aware that search and rescue facilities are unlikely to meet international standards. During the monsoon season (normally June to September), heavy rains can cause flooding. You should therefore enquire before attempting any river journey for Myanmar safety travel. Myanmar River transport may not conform to internationally recognized safety standards in Myanmar.

In Myanmar no Burmese Myanmar woman would even consider traveling without at least one female companion, so women traveling alone are regarded as slightly peculiar by the Myanmar locals. Women traveling alone and being seen off on Myanmar boats and trains by Burmese friends may find the latter trying to find a suitably responsible older woman to keep them company on the trip.

As in most Buddhist countries, foreign women traveling in Myanmar are rarely hassled on the road as they might be in, for example, India, Malaysia or Indonesia. However, we have received a few reports of foreign women being harassed while traveling in Myanmar. Dressing modestly should help to reduce the risk of sexual harassment. Women traveling in Myanmar during the April Water Festival (Thingyan) should take extra precautions for Myanmar safety travel.

As in neighboring Thailand, drunkness and an "anything goes" atmosphere, combined with Western women in tight, wet, T-shirts, is apparently too much for some Burmese man to bear we've heard of women being groped during the festival in Myanmar . Again, dressing modestly should help to prevent such incidents in Myanmar.