Compare Prices from All US Cities
| From | Airport | Est. Price | Flight Time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
BESTSeattle | SEA | $683 | ~16h | View → |
Portland | PDX | $692 | ~16h | View → |
San Francisco | SFO | $732 | ~17h | View → |
Salt Lake City | SLC | $745 | ~17h | View → |
Minneapolis | MSP | $751 | ~17h | View → |
Las Vegas | LAS | $762 | ~17h | View → |
Los Angeles | LAX | $763 | ~18h | View → |
Boston | BOS | $764 | ~18h | View → |
Denver | DEN | $767 | ~18h | View → |
Detroit | DTW | $772 | ~18h | View → |
Chicago | ORD | $773 | ~18h | View → |
San Diego | SAN | $773 | ~18h | View → |
New York | LGA | $776 | ~18h | View → |
Newark | EWR | $777 | ~18h | View → |
New York | JFK | $777 | ~18h | View → |
Philadelphia | PHL | $783 | ~18h | View → |
Phoenix | PHX | $785 | ~18h | View → |
Baltimore | BWI | $789 | ~18h | View → |
Washington D.C. | DCA | $791 | ~18h | View → |
St. Louis | STL | $792 | ~18h | View → |
Nashville | BNA | $810 | ~19h | View → |
Charlotte | CLT | $816 | ~19h | View → |
Dallas | DFW | $821 | ~19h | View → |
Atlanta | ATL | $827 | ~19h | View → |
Austin | AUS | $837 | ~19h | View → |
Houston | IAH | $842 | ~19h | View → |
Orlando | MCO | $860 | ~20h | View → |
Tampa | TPA | $863 | ~20h | View → |
Fort Lauderdale | FLL | $874 | ~20h | View → |
Miami | MIA | $876 | ~20h | View → |
San Juan | SJU | $897 | ~20h | View → |
About Yangon
Yangon is Southeast Asia's most undervisited major city — a crumbling, gorgeous colonial capital frozen somewhere between 1940 and 2010, with gold-plated pagodas rising from every neighborhood and street food that costs less than a vending machine snack back home. The Shwedagon Pagoda alone is worth the 20+ hours of travel: a 326-foot solid gold stupa surrounded by dozens of smaller shrines, perpetually filled with monks and families leaving flower offerings regardless of the hour. No other city in the region has anything quite like it.
American travelers need to go in with eyes open about the political situation. Since the February 2021 military coup, Myanmar has been under junta rule, and the US State Department maintains a Level 3 'Reconsider Travel' advisory. Tourism has partially resumed, and many independent guesthouses, restaurants, and local guides operate in a kind of parallel economy — but the ethical calculus is real. Most savvy travelers avoid state-owned hotels and businesses, book through locally-owned operators, and stay informed. That said, on-the-ground safety for tourists in Yangon specifically has remained relatively stable compared to upcountry regions.
The city itself rewards slow wandering. The colonial downtown — a grid of British-era teak and brick buildings, many occupied by tea shops at street level — is walkable in a way that Bangkok or Kuala Lumpur simply aren't. Chinatown (19th Street) is where you go at night for skewered meat grilled over charcoal and cold Myanmar Beer. The Circular Train, a rickety loop around the city's outskirts, costs less than a dollar and delivers two hours of suburban Yangon life that no tour bus can replicate.
Flight prices to Yangon remain genuinely cheap because demand hasn't fully recovered post-coup. You'll almost always connect through Bangkok (BKK), Singapore (SIN), or Kuala Lumpur (KUL), and round-trips from the US West Coast regularly dip under $800. The city rewards budget and mid-range travelers most — luxury infrastructure is thin, internet can be unreliable, and the joy here is entirely in the streets, the food, and the unbelievable density of Buddhist art that just… exists on every corner.
Best Time to Fly to Yangon
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Track Yangon flights →Airport to City: How to Get There
Yangon International Airport (RGN) is about 12 miles north of downtown. Option 1 — taxi via the official taxi counter inside arrivals: fixed-rate ~10,000–15,000 MMK ($5–7 USD) to downtown, takes 30–45 minutes in normal traffic; always use the official counter, not touts. Option 2 — grab (the regional Uber equivalent): open the app once you exit arrivals and expect ~8,000–12,000 MMK ($4–6) — slightly cheaper and you see the route live. Option 3 — Airport Bus Line 9 runs to Sule Pagoda in central Yangon for roughly 500 MMK ($0.25) but is slow (60–90 minutes), requires knowing your stop, and involves significant luggage hassle; only worth it if you're traveling ultra-light and have time.
Neighborhoods & Where to Stay
The dense grid of British-era buildings between Sule Pagoda and the Strand waterfront is where backpackers and budget travelers base themselves. Streets like Mahabandoola and Anawrahta are lined with tea shops serving mohinga from dawn; guesthouses like Okinawa Guest House or Beautyland Hotel II run $15–30/night for basic but clean rooms. Walking distance to Shwedagon is feasible in the evening when it cools down.
The leafy mid-city neighborhood where most NGO workers and mid-range hotels cluster, roughly halfway between downtown and Shwedagon. Expect quieter tree-lined streets, decent coffee shops (Union Bar and Grill is a local institution), and hotels like Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon in the $80–150/night range. Best base if you want comfort without paying Sakura Tower prices.
Surrounding Kandawgyi Lake in the city's middle is Yangon's closest thing to an upscale leisure zone — the Belmond Governor's Residence (a restored colonial teak mansion, $250–400/night) sits nearby, and the lake itself offers a rare open-air escape from the city's density. Karaweik Palace, a floating restaurant shaped like a royal barge, does tourist dinner shows here. Pricey by local standards, genuinely atmospheric.
The most alive block in Yangon after dark — 19th Street fills with plastic tables and charcoal grills every evening serving beer and skewers to a mix of locals and travelers. Cheap Chinese-Burmese hotels and guesthouses fill the surrounding blocks; food here is the best value in the city. Don't stay here expecting quiet nights, but do come here every evening regardless of where you're based.
Daily Budget: What to Expect
$12 guesthouse dorm or basic private room, $10 food (mohinga breakfast $1, tea shop lunch $2, 19th Street dinner $5, snacks), $4 transport (Grab rides + Circular Train), $9 activities (Shwedagon entry $8 for foreigners, tea tips)
$50 mid-range hotel in Bahan, $25 food (sit-down Burmese restaurants, one beer per meal), $8 Grab taxis, $7 activities and entrance fees
$150 Belmond Governor's Residence or Chatrium, $40 meals at nicer restaurants like Rangoon Tea House or fine dining Strand Hotel dinner, $15 private car hire for half-day, $15 activities and guides
What to Eat in Yangon
Mohinga at any street tea shop before 9am — Myanmar's de facto national dish is a fish-broth rice noodle soup with crispy fritters, boiled egg, and banana stem; it costs about 500–1,000 MMK and is served from giant pots by vendors who've been making it the same way for decades. Don't overthink which vendor; the volume turnover at busy tea shops guarantees freshness.
Tea leaf salad (lahpet thoke) at Rangoon Tea House on Strand Road — fermented tea leaves tossed with toasted sesame, peanuts, dried shrimp, tomato, and lime. This is Myanmar's most distinctive flavor profile and Rangoon Tea House does an elevated version in a beautifully restored colonial building for about $4.
Grilled skewers on 19th Street in Chinatown — pick your proteins (pork, chicken hearts, quail eggs, tofu) from the ice display, hand them to the grill man, and eat at plastic tables for roughly $3–5 total including a large Myanmar Beer. This is where locals and travelers actually share the same tables.
Shan noodles at any Shan restaurant downtown — cold or hot rice noodles with a slightly sweet tomato-pork sauce and pickled mustard greens, brought to Yangon by Shan State migrants. A$1.50 bowl at a tea shop is one of the city's great cheap eats; San Ma Tau Restaurant near People's Park is a reliable spot.
Mont lin maya (married couples snacks) from street carts near Shwedagon in the late afternoon — small crispy rice flour pancakes filled with quail egg, bean sprouts, and spring onion, cooked in a dimpled iron pan and sold in pairs. They cost almost nothing (a few hundred kyat per pair) and eating them while watching the sun hit the stupa is a peak Yangon moment.
Flying from the US to Yangon
Airlines & Routes
- →Thai Airways via Bangkok (BKK) — most common routing from US gateways including LAX, SFO, JFK
- →Singapore Airlines via Singapore (SIN) — excellent service, slightly longer but premium experience from multiple US hubs
- →AirAsia / Thai AirAsia via Bangkok Don Mueang (DMK) — budget option requiring an overnight or layover in Bangkok, significantly cheaper
- →Malaysia Airlines via Kuala Lumpur (KUL) — solid option especially from the West Coast via their code-share partners
- →Cathay Pacific via Hong Kong (HKG) — good option from the West Coast with frequent onward connections on Myanmar National Airlines or Bangkok Airways
Flight Duration
Safety Tips
For Americans visiting Yangon specifically in 2025-2026: the city is not a war zone, but it is a coup-controlled state. Register with the US Embassy's Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) before you go — this is non-negotiable given the current advisory level. Carry a physical copy of your passport at all times; police checkpoints do occur. Avoid photographing military installations, government buildings, or uniformed personnel — what looks like an interesting architectural shot can become a serious problem. Political discussions with strangers should be approached with extreme caution; locals face real risks for things they say to tourists. ATMs in downtown Yangon (CB Bank and KBZ Bank machines near Sule Pagoda) do work with foreign cards but dispense limited amounts and often run dry — bring more USD cash than you think you need and exchange at official booths (airport and hotels give reasonable rates; the black market is risky and increasingly not worth it). Tap water is not safe to drink; bottled water is available everywhere for trivial cost. Petty theft is uncommon in Yangon compared to regional peers, but be sensible in Chinatown late at night. The political situation can change rapidly; check the State Department website within 48 hours of departure.
The Yangon Circular Train (a colonial-era ring railway around the city's outskirts) costs 200 MMK — about 10 cents — for the full 3-hour loop and is genuinely one of the best experiences in the city. Depart from Yangon Central Railway Station around 7–8am on a weekday and you'll ride with local commuters, vendors selling snacks through windows, monks, farmers with crates of vegetables, and schoolchildren in uniform. Nobody is performing for tourists; it's just daily Burmese life in motion. Stop at Insein or Mingaladon for a quick walk before catching the next train back. Bring small kyat bills to buy snacks from platform vendors — the fried bean fritters passed through the window at suburban stops cost essentially nothing and are excellent.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cheapest way to fly to Yangon?
The cheapest route to Yangon from the US is typically from Seattle (SEA), with estimated round-trip prices around $683. Prices vary significantly by season and booking timing.
What is the best time to visit Yangon?
The best time to visit Yangon is November, December, January, February. November-February is dry season (70-85°F). March-May is brutally hot (95°F+). June-October is monsoon season (daily rain). Best weather is December-January.
Do US citizens need a visa to visit Yangon?
US passport holders need an e-visa (processed online, $50, 28 days). **TRAVEL WARNING: Political instability post-coup, check State Department advisories.**
How long is the flight from the US to Yangon?
Flight time from the US to Yangon (RGN) is approximately 16 hours from Seattle. Flight times vary by departure city — eastern US cities are typically shorter to their destination.
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