What is Ngapali like?
Myanmar is world-famous for the temples in Bagan and balancing fishermen at Inle Lake. Getting here can be a little challenging so what better way to close off your Myanmar itinerary than at one of Asia’s most beautiful beaches?!
The whole beach area already offers many hotels but most of them are built in a way they blend with nature pretty well. (Compared to some other beach destinations)
7 Things To Do in Ngapali
Ngapali is all about the beach and its surroundings. Take about 3 to 4 days to really experience and get to know this area. It is not the destination where you can do many tourism activities like parasailing or jet skiing. Ngapali is still as pure as possible. These are 7 things to do in Ngapali.
1. Explore Ngapali by bicycle
Ngapali is a quiet area with one long main road along the coastline. Rent a bike and hop on the bike in the early morning, say 8:30 AM. The road is about 10 kilometers long so you will be back before the heat of the afternoon.
You can rent a bike (sometimes e-bikes) at your hotels, some small tourist shops on the main road or local restaurants. Bike price per day ($3.5)
Tip: At sunset the tide is low and it’s possible to bike down Ngapali Beach.
2. Meet the friendly locals
While driving your bike in the morning, keep an eye open for some small side paths that lead into the jungle area. Get in there and drive around with your bike and interact with the friendly locals who always have a smile for you. They will be fascinated by your appearance and will try to communicate in ‘the’ best language: body language.
Find: Bus/Flight tickets to Ngapali
3. Boat tour in the early morning
The local fishermen on Ngapali Beach offer a boat tour where you can visit local the island just off the coast, visit one of the fishing villages and do a bit of snorkeling.
Find all: Hotels in Ngapali
5. Get a super fresh fish meal
Fresh fish is the signature food at Ngapali, many restaurants offer anything from fish curry, grilled calamari, huge sized shrimps and many many more dishes. These were our favorite places to eat.
We lined up our favorite restaurants ordered by yummy(♥️) rating:
Mingalaba ♥️♥️♥️♥️
PVI ♥️♥️♥️
Jones Pizza ♥️♥️
Two Brothers ♥️♥️ (great food, bad service)
6. Relax a day (or two) on Ngapali Beach
Ngapali is all about the beach. It offers plenty of space for everyone, take your towel with you and find a good spot near the palm tree. :-)
There are a few ladies walking on the beach, selling fruits and in the late afternoon locals come out to play with their children in the sea.
If you’re done with relaxing, there are a few small local stalls down the beach renting things like water floaties and paddleboards to have a sunset paddleboard moment.
7. Get a snap with the famous palm tree
On social media, Ngapali is mainly known for its perfect hanging palm tree. It is located next to Art of Sand Resort.
How to get to Ngapali
Getting to Ngapali is easiest by plane but definitely not the cheapest. A direct flight (45 min) from Yangon to Thandwe airport (15 minutes from Ngapali) is $75 in high season.
Find: Bus/Flight tickets to Ngapali
If you are planning to visit Ngapali from Bagan or Inle Lake you should look to $90 for a direct flight (70 min).
On a budget?
The bus from Yangon to Ngapali takes 15 hours and costs around 14000 kyats ($9) per person.
From Bagan there is no direct bus, it takes 24 hours so you might want to budget a flight from this.
Where to stay at Ngapali
Hotels and guesthouses in Ngapali are not the cheapest in Myanmar. Guesthouses are anywhere from $15 to $30 per night and luxury hotels range from $100 to $250 a night.
Find all: Hotels in Ngapali
Guesthouses in Ngapali
Hotels in Ngapali
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Which app you used to edit those pictures? So gorgeous :)
Hi Stella,
Thanks! We use Adobe Lightroom and our presets which you can buy here https://www.saltinourhair.com/presets/