Travel Guide and Transport Info for Tachilek & Keng Tung, Myanmar by Hobo Maps -

Street scenes of Tachilek in Oct. 2011 below.

Visiting Tachilek (Tha Khi Lek), Myanmar
- Union of Myanmar clocks are 30 minutes behind those of Thailand and they drive on the right side of the road in Myanmar. The Thai baht is the common accepted currency for use by visitors to Tachilek and there is usually no need to buy or use the Myanmar kyat. When crossing the Mae Sai River Friendship Bridge after departing Thailand immigration you immediately arrive at Myanmar immigration where you have some options. For "visa runners" who only want to get a Myanmar stamp on their passport and immediately walk back across the bridge to get a new Thai visa all they have to do is pay $10 U.S. or 500 baht (depending on the mood of the day with immigration) have your picture taken and head back across the bridge. No forms to fill out, no signature required and no need to bring a passport photo. Couldn't be easier. If you want to go shopping in Tachilek for a couple hours or stay overnight there then you pay the same fee but will be issued a travel permit card with your picture on it to use while in Tachilek for identification and they keep your passport at the immigration office for you to get back when you return to Thailand. Still quite easy and you have 14 days to stay. But if you want to do a little travelling outside of Tachilek such as take a 160 km trip to Keng Tung (Kyainge Tong) then you need to follow the procedure described below.

Flights from Tachilek
- There is an airport a few km northeast of Tachilek (THK airport code) that has 3 or 4 airlines offering direct flights to four destinations as of Nov. 2011 - Yangon (RGN), Mandalay (MDL), Heho (HEH) & Lashio (LSH). We're not sure but think the visa on arrival most visitors get at the bridge in Tachilek will not allow them to fly out of Tachilek. It's possible Thai nationals may be able to do so. The flight schedules may be found at the following websites - www.yangonair.com, www.airmandalay.com, asianwingsair.com & www.airmyanmar.com.

Visiting Keng Tung (Kyaing Tong), Myanmar
- In Nov. 2011 I was informed that if you want to visit Keng Tung you should check in with the Myanmar Travel office as the first thing upon arrival in Myanmar after walking over the bridge from Thailand, even before checking in with Myanmar Immigration. Myanmar Travel is a small office located a mere 5 meters past the Myanmar Immigration office and has a sign saying "Tourist Information". Mr. Aung Kyaw Moe is the manager and his phone number is 085-6249883. He can arrange the entire trip and provide the required guide to accompany you at 1,000 baht per day. You will need to bring 3 passport photos and a photocopy of the front page of your passport. The special visa (for 2 weeks I think) costs $10 US plus a 50 baht process fee. The application form asks for your address as well as other basic info. You will need to choose whether to hire a vehicle for the trip or to take a local bus. The local buses leave from the bus station outside Tachilek 3 times a day at 08:00, 11:00 & 12:00. You will have to pay for the guide's transport, food and lodging as well but if you stay in an upscale hotel in Kengtung they may provide free lodging for the guide. The New Kentung Hotel has double rooms for 550 baht including breakfast and cheaper hotels have rooms for 200 baht per night. While in Kengtung you are free to walk around town on your own but trips outside of town need to be with a guide. Seems like a bit of a hassle and expense but because of it you may not see any other tourists up in Keng Tung which has an old history including being part of the Lanna Kingdom and ruled from Chiang Mai long ago when it was called Chiang Tung. You may see some Chinese visitors in Keng Tung since there is a road to the Mekong River and a border crossing to China not far away.

The brochure immediately below was given to us by Myanmar Immigration office Sept. 2011 but the e-mail address seems to be inactive.