Recent political reform in Burma has stirred an immediate demand from foreign visitors to visit the country; however, its limited infrastructure could leave some tourists unable to find hotel rooms.
Burma lists just 731 hotels around the country—a total of 25,000 rooms, with only 8,000 in Rangoon, the former capital and by far the most common gateway to the country.
According to Maung Maung Swe, who currently sits as both the chairman of the Union of Myanmar Travel Association (UMTA) and the vice-chairman of the Myanmar Tourism Board (MTB), only 3,000 of those hotel rooms are “suitable for tourists.”
Rangoon's hotels and guest houses are already at capacity and most have doubled or trebled their prices as a result. On Feb. 1, the YMCA in central Rangoon said it was fully booked through to the following week, as was the popular Central Hotel on Bogyoke Aung San Road.
“We finally found a cheap guest house down a backstreet for $25 a night,” said a disgruntled Canadian backpacker. “But it was dark and dirty, and there were pigeons nesting above the ceiling.”
But the demand for hotels in Rangoon is not being saturated by foreign tourists. Sources in the former capital say that businesspeople, diplomatic missions, NGO staff, and various facilitators lured by the new air of opportunity in Burma are taking up most of the rooms.
Armin Schoch, a Swiss national who was the first foreigner to be granted a tour operator license in Burma, said that in December he was firmly asked to leave the 5-star Chatrium Hotel along with dozens of other guests when the US secretary of state arrived.
“We were told to move out immediately. The Clinton delegation took over the top three floors, with one floor reserved for armed security. I couldn't find another hotel, and had to go and stay at a friend's house,” said Schoch.
The increased demand for hotel rooms is set to outstrip supply this year. Burma received between 300,000 and 400,000 visitors on tourist visas in 2011; of that figure, Chinese and Thais came in the greatest numbers, with 65,000 and 61,000 visitors respectively. These figures are expected to increase by at least 30 percent in 2012, according to government officials.
Higher numbers of Westerners are also expected to be drawn to the “Golden Land” after several leading publications—The New York Times, Conde Nast Traveler, CNN and Lonely Planet among them—recommended the country as a top travel hotspot in 2012.
“We estimate that in 2012 we will receive 500,000 tourists through Yangon International Airport, and in 2015, we expect over one million tourist arrivals to Myanmar,” said Ohn Myint, the deputy director of the Ministry for Hotels and Tourism for Yangon Region.
However, many tourists may find that flights to Burma are impossible to acquire. At present, few international airlines fly directly to the country, forcing most would-be visitors to route their trips through Bangkok. The other “international” airports in Burma—Mandalay, Pagan and Naypyidaw—can barely cope with minimal traffic as it stands.
A handful of INGOs still support the opposition National League for Democracy's “Boycott Burma” campaign in relation to package tours and cruises. Independent travelers and backpackers are encouraged to make their own way, and many will be tempted to take their chances and arrive in Burma without reservations.
“They might end up walking the streets all night or sleeping in a monastery,” said a Rangoon travel agent. “There will simply be no beds for them.”
Even under such circumstances, Rangoon residents cannot open homestays or spontaneously offer rooms to foreign guests. The law still requires international visitors to register with local authorities before they arrive at a private residence. And, of course, no one has forgotten the commotion caused by a certain US citizen, John W. Yettaw, who swam uninvited one night to Aung San Suu Kyi's lakeside home—an act which resulted in her being charged with “harboring a foreigner.”
However, all is not lost. Rangoon officials are fast-tracking planning permissions and applications in a bid to attract investors. Local entrepreneurs have been invited to open hotels, and several of Rangoon's grand old colonial buildings may be earmarked and offered to hoteliers.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts, which represents worldwide chains such as the Sheraton, the Westin and Le Meridien, announced its intention to invest in Burma at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, last month. According to MTB Vice-chairman Maung Maung Swe, several other chains pledged similar investments.
“Some, like the Marriott, invested before,” he said. “But they withdrew, I think, because of pressure from their governments.
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