Ngapali
Ngapali is a pristine resort town, its long white sand beaches are surrounded by palm trees from one side and clear waters of Bengal Bay from the other. Currently it is the foremost the best beach getaway in Myanmar with sufficient infrastructure, accommodation and relaxing lifestyle. Also, it might even be between the best from whole Bay of Bangal. Origin of its name is often connected to Italian town of Napoli. However, it is way less crowded and Ngapali maintains a laid-back fishing village vibe with sea food served just several hours after it is caught by local fisherman.
Ngapali is quite a remote town as the best beach resort of the country. On top of that beach length is more than 24 kilometers, there is enough of space for everyone who comes here. Therefore, do not expect bumping into other travelers, most often people get to enjoy the sunset alone here in the most picturesque locations even during the peak season from December to February. The locals are warm, welcoming and do not disturb your rest while here unless you need their help. Just awesome!
The locals remain smiley, and despite the increasing number of hotels, the 15 miles of coast here means there's still a lot of space on the beach.
Helpful tips
Restaurants. There are multiple places in the city where you can find descent food. In most of the local restaurants you will find price and quality ratio alright and food fresh, especially fish as city is close to Bangal Bay. In many restaurants they serve fish which was caught by local fishermen couple hours ago. Stop by and try local food in street markets, look for a cleaner place and enjoy!
We enjoyed snacks in Night market which occurs everyday in the walking street. Although they have many dishes for the main course as well, we had our favorite place a bit closer to our guest house – “North Star Seafood” restaurant, where both food and price quality ratio are great.
Markets. In Ngapali as in almost every other city in Myanmar you will not easily find a lot of cheap souvenirs to put on your fridge. However, we encourage to walk around and look for hand made goods in local markets. Here they will charge you less the less you look like a tourist and if you know some simple Myanmar phrases, that will melt their hearts away. In shops all over city prices vary around same level, thus, choose a more convenient for you. We did not find a shop which would accept card payment, thus, be prepared and have some cash with you!
Transportation. To get to Ngapali you can use car, bus, train or plane as it is the greatest resort Myanmar has to offer. We traveled to Ngapali using hitchhiking from Pyay. Most of the roads are under construction and at some parts you could not even call them roads. We got lucky and reached Ngapali just before the sunset. Either way you choose, be aware that infrastructure is underdeveloped, roads are small and sometimes two-line road (one line each direction) is already considered as a highway. Traveling with trains between major cities are alright, however, if you plan to visit more remote areas, be prepared to spend some quality time in the process. So, at this point you must be able to enjoy the trip not only the destination. If you do not want to spend whole day in a vehicle and you are not on a budget, choose plane, the easiest and fastest way to get here.
Inside the city you will find yourself using local Tuk Tuk’s, bikes or e-bikes which are one of the most convenient transportation devices used to get around. However, exploration is doable on foot if you decide to skip on bike.
Best of luck planning your holidays in Myanmar!
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