Your Complete Inle Lake Travel Guide: Boat Rides & Wineries on a Budget

Inle lake is of the most visited destinations in Myanmar. And after visiting I definitely understand the magic. This Inle Lake travel guide will breakdown the costs of your tour on the lake itself, best eats in town, and all the other great attractions around the lake.

Your Travel Guide to Inle Lake

The glassy floodplains of Myanmar. Covering a length of more than 13 miles this massive freshwater lake is one of the main attractions in the country. Great migratory birds soar overhead & the famous stilted houses- entire villages perched on the water reachable only by canoe, create a unique landscape.

Water buffalo regularly submerge in the tributaries & you’ll get a glimpse of daily life for the villagers as they do laundry, bathe, and practice their traditional basket fishing methods.

You have probably seen the famous basket-fishermen of Inle Lake on Instagram before. Unfortunetely, it’s important to understand that they no longer fish this way. Instead they make a living posing for tourist photos. Whether you support this kind of inauthentic photo opportunity or not, you can’t blame them for switching occupations when I’m sure it pays a lot more to be a tourist prop rather than fish all day in the hot sun.

Here’s everything you need to know to make your Inle Lake experience one of the highlights of your trip.

Environmental Preservation Fees

Along with the ancient city of Bagan, Inle lake receives the vast majority of tourism in Myanmar. Unfortunately, this has had an impact on the lake & subsequently the fishermen & farmers that rely on this lake for their livelihood.

To combat this the government charges a foreign entrance fee to the city. It’s $10 per person and in theory, goes toward helping the small local community and offsetting the impact of tourism on this fragile eco-system.

Where to Stay

Inle Lake is technically a region, not a town. Nyaung Shwe however, is the town that contains the majority of the homestays and restaurants & where you will want to stay during your time here.

Nyaung Shwe is crisp & cool due to the high altitude in the region and seems to be permanently covered in a thin sheen of grey dust. This is will be your home base for exploring the Inle region.

We didn’t do a whole lot of exploring in the actual town. It has a few temples that you’ll likely pass through on foot while in search of food but the majority of the attractions lie in the surrounding area.

Travel Tip: We stayed at Lady Princess Motel 2. It’s a great cheap private room with breakfast included. But any guesthouse within Nyaung Shwe will give you easy access to exploring the lake.

Where to Eat

Likely due to the large number of tourists who frequent the area, Inle Lake had some of the most diverse cuisine options in Myanmar & we took full advantage of them here.

Dosa King Indian Food

We ate here three times during our stay. The food was traditional Indian, cheap, & everything we tried was SO GOOD. The owner was always bumping hip-hop tracks & you enter through a nifty circular doorway. This will likely become your go-to food spot.

Live Dim Sum House

Seriously good Dim Sum & again…super budget-friendly. Just thinking about those tasty dumplings makes me want to go back.

Travel Tip: The best meal we had, however, was a small local place situated on Inle Lake itself. During your private boat tour, I highly recommend asking your driver to take you to a local restaurant on the water for lunch.

Attractions

Take a Private Tour of Inle Lake

• 

• 

Inle lake can really only be seen by boat. Temples, stilted communities, and floating gardens are scattered across its surface. Conveniently, the most common profession in town now seems to be boat guides. It should cost about $25 for a full day on the water including a visit to Inthien Village.

Inthien Village is up a small tributary on the opposite side of the lake & has some incredible ancient stupas- as well as a glimpse of a true rural Burmese town. Most canoe captians charge slightly more to include this stop.

All boats follow a very similar route around the lake but the stops should include the fisherman, traditional silk-weaving factory, jumping cat monastery, floating garden, long-necked Karen tribal women (I’ll address this down below), and several temples along the way.

My honest review of the tour of Inle Lake? You MUST include Inthien village & give yourself time to explore the several ancient stupas in the area.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Many stops are interesting but they are trying to sell you their goods. We visited a silversmith, teak woodcarvers, weaving factory, cigar rollers, and a few other small stops. Much of it was interesting to see but we weren’t in the market to buy. Our time out exploring the lake & watching life on the shores was definitely the preferred part of the experience.

Cost of a full day canoe including Inthien Village: $30 per canoe. You should be able to fit at least 4 people per canoe.

Travel Tip: When you arrive in Inthien Village don’t let the motorbike drivers convince you that the walk is 45-60 minutes to the ancient stupas. It’s actually like 15-minutes if you follow the walking trail just to the left of where the motorbike drivers are. Don’t be fooled.

Trek To Kalaw

This is something we didn’t get to do & one of the only things we feel we missed out on. Other travelers raved about their trekking experience and the stunning landscapes they hiked through.

The trek is actually best done Kalaw to Inle Lake. This way the hike has more downhill than uphill you’ll spend less time on a bus if coming from Mandalay, Yangon, or Hpa-An.

Take a Tour of a Local Winery

Wine is the one thing Asia is missing. And after 3 months without a sip, I was shocked to discover Myanmar’s wine scene.

Because it’s actually quite good.

Resting in the hillside overlooking the lake and the rolling hills is the stunning Red Mountain Estate Winery (that in all honesty, we didn’t make it to) with several varietals of great wine.

We did attempt to make it to the winery. Hopped on our rented motorbike (illegally) and headed out on the horrendous roadways ourselves. We didn’t make it far. Our motorbike kept backfiring and even on flat ground could barely maintain 20k/h….so when the road got hilly—we had absolutely no chance. Luckily, just as we got frustrated a coffee shop appeared on the side of the road and low & behold they had the winery wine!! And not too bad of a view if do say so myself.

I recommend hiring a tuk-tuk or just riding an old-fashioned bicycle over the choppy roads to get to the winery. Or if you’re like us and are really only in it for a big glass of wine you can stop halfway at the “Coffee Shop” and enjoy the balcony overlooking their garden & waaaay in the distance glimpse the winery.

Cost (From the Coffee Shop): $7.50 for 2 large glasses of wine & 2 large beers.

Take a Sunset Canoe Ride Through the Maing Thauk Floating Village

On the east side of Inle Lake, you’ll find a very large stilted home community. A large wooden bridge (that’s also known for being a good place to watch the sunset) takes you out over the water and to the locals, who for a fee, take you on a scenic canoe ride through their community.

It was a really neat way to see local life up close & to contribute to the community. Just be respectful if you choose to take photos as you are essentially canoeing through people’s yards.

Cost: Under $3

Check out the Floating Market

Floating markets are neat. Especially when they aren’t specifically catered to tourists. The location of the market alternates making it more accessible to others on certain days of the week.

The best way to find the floating market is to ask a local when the next one is & hire a boat to take you. The floating markets usually occur twice per week.

Visit the Forest Monastery

The Nga Phe Kyaung monastery & Maing Thuak monastery are tucked away into the jungle on the opposite sides of Inle Lake. It would be a great stop to add to your Inle Lake tour. Or for a visit on your own if you dare to risk renting a motorbike in this area.

Take a Dip in the Natural Swimming Pool

Along the way to visiting the Maing Thuak monastery, there is a local swimming hole if you’re interested in a quick dip. The “natural” pool is shaped out of stone & sits right in the forest for a shaded refreshing afternoon swim.

Responsible Tourism, Photography, & the Karen Women

Here I’ll address some of the concerns with Inle Lake as a tourist destination. There are several reasons this region attracts so many tourists.

For one, it’s a very accessible look at local life. & local life living ON the water. The increase in tourism & the subsequent change in local life has slowly shaped the region into what it is today.

And the fact of the matter is— fishermen, Karen women, and silk weavers now spend their day posing for tourist photos because it makes them more money.

• 

• 

If you choose to take photos, tip them.

If you don’t, it’s important to consider that although to us it seems like an inauthentic tourist gimmick–to them it’s an easier way for them to feed their families.

And as always ask permission before you photograph people. During your boat trip on the lake, you’ll be passing through people’s backyards & where they bathe—consider people’s privacy before you take photos.

With all this in mind, you should be able to travel Inle Lake efficiently & have a lovely stay in one of Myanmar’s most scenic regions.

Need Help Planning the Rest of Your Trip to Myanmar?

• Your Complete Guide to Myanmar: Everything you need to know before you go.
• How to find the very best spot for the most magical sunrise of your life in Bagan.
• 17 Must-See Attractions in Myanmar you absolutely cannot miss.
• Hiking in Hpa-An: My favorite town in Myanmar.

• 

•