How to get to Myanmar: airports, flights and border crossings

Yangon's Mingaladon airport (RGN) is the default entry point. It has the most international airlines, the most daily frequencies and the best domestic connections onward to Bagan, Mandalay, Heho and the coast. If your trip starts in the north — Mandalay, Pyin U Lwin, Hsipaw — Mandalay (MDL) can save you a domestic hop, but the international schedule is thinner and fares are often higher.

Nay Pyi Taw (NYT) is the capital's airport and sees only limited international service; treat it as a domestic hub rather than a way in. Most travellers from Europe, North America and Australasia connect once in Asia: Bangkok, Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Seoul, Guangzhou or Dubai are the usual gateways. Book the long-haul and the regional leg on one ticket where you can, so a delay is the airline's problem, not yours.

There are no nonstop flights between Myanmar and the US, Canada, the UK, Australia or New Zealand. Every route involves at least one connection, usually in Southeast Asia or the Gulf. Times below are total journey times including the connection, and they move with schedules and layover length — treat them as planning bands, not promises.

Myanmar shares borders with Thailand, China, India, Bangladesh and Laos, and several crossings have at times been open to foreign travellers with a valid visa. Which crossings are open, their hours and whether foreigners are allowed through changes with the security situation, sometimes at short notice. Do not build an itinerary around a land crossing without confirming it close to your travel date.

The practical approach: ask your embassy or consulate, check your government's travel advice, and confirm with a local operator on the ground a few days before. If a crossing closes, your fallback is a flight, so keep the budget for one. Sea arrivals are not a normal route for travellers; cruise and ferry options are limited and irregular.

Entry rules, visa conditions and even whether travel is advisable at all can change quickly in Myanmar. Read your own government's travel advice first, then confirm visa requirements with an embassy or the official e-visa portal. This desk does not plan around the security situation, so treat any itinerary here as a starting point to verify, not a green light.

Build in slack. If you are connecting to a domestic flight to Bagan or Heho, leave a night in Yangon rather than a same-day connection. Buy travel insurance that covers the destinations you actually plan to visit, and check the policy's stance on areas your government advises against. Carry a printed copy of your visa, insurance and onward ticket.

Yangon's international terminal has ATMs and money changers, but they can be unreliable or out of cash; arrive with some US dollars in clean, unmarked notes as a backup. Mobile data is easy to set up with a local SIM or an eSIM bought before you fly, which is useful if you need to rebook a flight or reach a hotel on landing.

Taxis and ride-hailing from the airport are the usual way into the city; agree the fare or use the app before you get in. If you are heading straight onward, domestic check-in at Yangon is in a separate terminal area, so allow time to transfer.