Burma, a country of Southeast Asia, is a mysterious and strange region, which has become a great destination to many travelers recently. This country is changing dramatically. However, due to the bad road infrastructure, traveling by domestic flights within this nation may be a comfortable choice. Here are some noticeable points for travelers who tend to take an active travel to Burma.
PAPER TICKET
Serious? Yes, of course! Nowadays, you may not find any “paper ticket” in other Southeast Asia countries. However, Burma domestic airlines still use them. Particularly, if you lose the ticket, they will not check through computer, you will have to buy a new one. So let’s keep your tickets carefully.
Seating is not allocated as well so you can choose your seat at any position you want. Luggage allowance is usually 20 kilograms.
Update on August 2014 by myanmartour.com, Air Bagan and KBZ Airlines now uses e-tickets. We hope to see this change in other airlines shortly. You can refer list of some primary domestic airlines in Burma here.
BOOKING FLIGHT
At the present time in Burma, electronic ticket is not used commonly and most airlines do not yet offer online booking, so you have to book locally. You should plan to get an airline issued ticket.
Where to book
There are several to book locally.
- Hotel – You can show your travel plan to your hotel concierge. They will research the options and book flight tickets on your behalf as a small commission.
- Travel Agent – Contacting travel agents is another good choice, especially in case your hotel cannot help.
- Plan and purchase – You can review flight schedules online then confirming with the airline office by a phone call. You will need to go to the office or have it sent to you to make payment and purchase the ticket.
If you know exactly your travel plan, you can purchase your tickets at the airport when you arrive in Burma. This will permit you to review many different choices and buy immediately as soon as you make the decision. Remember to transfer from international terminal to domestic terminal to buy.
When to book
Booking several weeks in advance is highly recommended. If it is a holiday, festival or peak day, you should book a month in advance. Most the domestic tourist flights depart around the same time. Thus, even if the airline you opt is sold out, you can purchase the ticket at the same time, destination or itinerary of other airlines.
Currency
Tickets are quoted and paid for USD. If you try to pay by Burma Kyat, you still have to exchange the currency BACK to USD.
ROUTES AND SCHEDULES
Most Burma tourist destinations are accessible by plane. One thing you need to pay attention when booking is how many layovers in each route because this can add a significant amount of time for the journey.
Most of carriers operate as commuter planes and circle around primary tourist destinations of Yangon, Mandalay, Bagan and Heho. Some can skip a city or fly to other directions. Therefore, you should know surely the route and not just the direction, to avoid the case that you can disembark at a wrong place. However, you will be attached stickers on your chest to verify which flight you are on.
As Burma domestic airlines is small with a few aircrafts so most routes are only available once a day or less. From Yangon, you usually leave in the morning and come back in the afternoon.
You should prepare, plan and be ready in the situation of delay. They usually wait until last minutes to see how many travelers book, and unless there are enough passengers, they will cancel. In recent year, thanks to many tourists travel to Burma, flight cancellation is not taken place frequently anymore. They can cancel because of weather as well, particularly during heavy fog of winter months or low cloud during rainy season.
At busy destinations, they will simply regroup passengers from different flights onto one flight, so Air Bagan, Asian Wings and air Mandalay for instance will use just one plane, so even if you book with Asian Wings, you can be on a Mandalay flight. Similarly, if there are insufficient people on a Yangon – Mandalay flight, they will combine it with a Yangon – Bagan flight, so you will realize that you stop at Bagan too.
AIRPORT
Most domestic airports are relatively small, but some have nice cafés with good coffee and decent pastries so you can rest and enjoy here before boarding. Domestic airports also have some souvenir shops and money changers.
Some airports have X-ray scanners, other do not. There is free wifi, but it is really erratic. 
ON BOARD
The cabin overhead is smaller than usual, so your regular-sized trolley will not fit up.
Some airlines will serve passengers with in-flight magazine, delicious fruit, yummy (pizza candy) or pastry but some do not have magazines for you.
