ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the authors focus on the different phases of tourism development and provide an overview of the regional distribution of the centres and characteristics of tourism, including information about visitors’ origins and their arrivals. Myanmar has a number of well-established centres of international tourism that boast significant religious, cultural, and historical sites. These sites have attracted visitors for decades and include the ‘classic four’ destinations: in and around the former capitals Mandalay and Yangon, the pagodas and traditional handicrafts at Sagaing, the archaeological site at Bagan, and Inle Lake in Southern Shan State. The cities of Yangon and Mandalay and their surroundings have witnessed a growing demand for resorts to accommodate domestic visitors and provide amenities for weekend tourism, which is becoming increasingly popular among Myanmar’s upper-middle class and elites, as well as within the expanding international expatriate community.
