Myanmar has a very long shore in Indian Ocean and Gulf of Bengal. You have hundreds of kilometers (thousands?) of virgin beaches, without any hotel, just fishermen villages, and clear water.

Myanmar has a huge potential with superb beaches almost untouched all along its shores. Currently, thereare only a few places open to tourist, but the situation is changing fast and new superb beaches will soon be open south of Ngapali or south of Ngwe Saung.
For us, it is a real pleasure to take our car and drive along the cost to find a remote area, remote beaches to propose to our customers or just for the pleasure to be along on white sand beach.

You have two specific times in Myanmar when bookings are really difficult for hotels at the beach:

Christmas - 5 January: Hotels are usually sold out a long time in advance (especially the nicest hotels). You will have to pay a premium for "Peak season" prices. If you can, avoid this time of the year (either before or after, it is cheaper and less crowded). If you cannot avoid, book a long time in advance. Contact us for advises about hotels and booking.

12-18 April : Every year, from 12 to 18 April, you have in Myanmar national holidays for the Buddhist New Year and Thingyan festival (water festival). Weather is hot, very hot 40C° and above so most of the Myanmar people are going to hill station (to find cool air), are traveling abroad or are going to the beaches (Ngwe Saung and Ngapali). If you plan to go to the beach at his period, book long time in advance, or try to go before or after the water festival.

November and February are quite busy months also. Hotels prices are not as high as in December, but it is quite difficult to find a room in a nice hotel at the last minute. Better to book some months in advance if you want a specific room or hotels (just a reminder, we are cheaper or same price than booking.com, but you get advice and real information about the hotels...)

This is THE most famous beach in Myanmar and has been a popular destination for decades. Water is really nice, clean, warm, the beach is quiet, clean, very relaxing. Motorbike, quad or Jet Ski are forbidden, so you just have to enjoy the place. You have a wide range of hotels, and if you are looking for upscale hotels this is the place where you have the best hotels at a beach.

Be aware:

Some new hotels have arocky beach (not sand), and/or are close to the airport. Obviously, they do not show it on their website.

Going to Ngapali: Mostly by plane from Yangon, Bagan, Inle. You can come by car from Pyay (8 hours) or from Yangon (12-14 hours).You can do it in one day, but it is exhausting.

Recommended for: Family, children, people looking for a quiet place, people looking for middle rang to upscale hotels.

Ngwe Saung beach is a beautiful, very long beach located on the golf of Bengal (like Ngapali) at 6-hour drive west of Yangon. You can go only by car or by bus.
The beach itself is long, white sand, beautiful and quite wild in the southern part.
Hotels are less upscale than in Ngapali (if you are looking for an upscale hotel), and you will more easily  find a cheap or middle range hotel (a lot of choices).

Unfortunately, since few years, there is more and more motorbike, quads, and even Jet Ski on the beach.
Motorbikes and quads are the real problems, they are noisy, people are driving them very fast and there is quite often an accident.

If you go with children, to be honest, it is not very relaxing, you spend your time watching the motorbike... Let's hope they will quickly regulate that, like in Ngapali.

Hotel choice is very limited, and you do not have luxury hotels (for the one who are looking for upscale hotels). Water in this area is brown, muddy because of the mangrove, and you are near of some big rivers too.
If you are near a village, you will also have a lot of plastic....
Seriously, there is a better choice in Myanmar (Ngapali, Ngwe Saung, Dawei peninsula or Mergui archipelagoes).
If you are nearby, and you want to have a look one day, why not.

On the Indian Ocean side, water is really nice, especially on the peninsula south west of Dawei (picture above). Water is clean, clear, really hot, and there is nobody at the beach. Most of the places are still virgin (almost), with very few hotels.

You have two main places:

Maumagan beach: Located west of Dawei, easy to reach in 30 – 40 minutes with a taxi or a motorbike taxi. You have two motel style hotels on the beach, absolutely without any interest. Avoid these 2 hotels. You have nice small hotel 500 m from the beach, The Coconut Groove. The owner is a Myanmar local lady married with a French man. The place is nice, a good spot also if you like fishing

Dawei peninsula. There are just a few hotels (2018), some are merely bamboo hut on the beach, so do not expect 3 or 4 stars services. Water is superb, hotels are mostly isolated in remote beaches, and you may have even to walk 300 or 500 meters through a forest to get to the hotel.
It is a really a nice place if you like to be in a remote area, almost alone with very few amenities (no air con, usually few hours of electricity, if any)...

This is a stunning place, hundreds of inhabited island, clear pristine water and a local ethnic group called Moken who is living on boats...

For staying and beaches:

- Water near the shore is murky, with a lot of mangroves, you have almost no hotel. Not a good place to swim or relax.

- Only beaches located on islands in the archipelago have white sand, clear water, and no one to bother you.

There are only two hotels (2018) located on a separate island, in the southern part of the archipelago (not so far from Thailand). Both places are really beautiful and you can do a day excursion to nearby islands.
You can also do scuba diving.

 

Access from Yangon is by plane, then by boat. It is a little expensive (plane) and you have to calculate your arrival day to catch the boat.
Better ask your local agent to organize the complete journey. You may go out of Myanmar by the kawthaung / Ranong border point. You will not need to come back to Yangon (but after you have to manage to go to Phuket or Bangkok).