About Mandalay
The Centre of Myanmar Culture
Mandalay, the last capital of the Myanmar Kings, is located in Central Myanmar, 668 km north of Yangon. Also known as Ratanabon-nepyi (meaning Gem City), it was built in 1857 by King Mindon. Today, it is the second largest city boasting its rich culture heritage. It is also the commercial centre with rail, road, river and air links to all parts of the country.
How to get there - Mandalay International Airport is the gateway. Mandalay is only over an hour's flight from Yangon. Myanma Airways, Yangon Airways and Air Mandalay operate daily flights. By road, it takes about 12 hours by Express coaches, and about 14 hours by train.
Where to Stay - Mandalay has a wide choice of accommodation from international standard hotels
to local standard hotels, inns and lodging houses for visitors to suit their taste and budget.

Irrawaddy River
River, Myanmar (Burma).
It flows 1,350 mi (2,170 km) across the centre of the country and empties into the Bay of Bengal. The country's most important commercial waterway, it is formed by the confluence of the Nmai and the Mali rivers; in the central dry zone it is joined by its major tributary, the Chindwin River. Chief ports are Mandalay, Chauk, Prome (Pyè), and Henzada.