myanmar
 

deciding whether to go to vietnam or myanmar at christmas with kids(11,8,5)
interested in myanmar -but is it a lot of hassle?
would it be difficult for kids/

It depends very much how you do it snd where you want to go to.

Basically if you are visiting the main tourist sites then it is not a particularly difficult place to visit. It becomes even easier if you pre book a tour with guides etc.

If you want to get off the beaten track then it will become more difficult, and travelling by bus or train can be a lot of hassle.

If you are looking for a beach holiday then do not that the Myanmar beach resorts are not very developed which can be a major plus for people but don't expect much for the kids to do other than build sand castles.

Depends a bit on your kids. Myanmar can be difficult for anyone. The infrastructure is not especially well-developed. How do your kids handle adversity? How well do you handle it? The domestic airports are small and crowded.

Myanmar is a very poor country...or at least the people are generally quite poor. How well will your kids deal with that? It could be a very good learning experience.

I agree that pre-arranging guides and transport can certainly make the trip smoother. The people are very nice and friendly. And as with everywhere else they love kids.

I have no experience at all with kids, but I would vote Vietnam because it would be easier than Burma and also you will see more Christmas related stuff in Vietnam. I haven't been to Burma for a year, but even a year ago it was difficult finding accommodation.

If it were two adults, I would say either one would be fine, but with kids, I would vote Vietnam. Again, I have no experience at all with kids.

thanks -we are also interested in laos but we are just very worried about the chance of little kids picking up any diseases-malaria etc..is this an overreaction??

I had completely passed over the Christmas timeframe. You mean as in next week? For sure finding a place to stay in Myanmar on such short notice would be very difficult.

I really liked Laos. Assume you mean Luang Prabang? Vientiane I was not as impressed with. This was a few years ago now so I am sure that it is more traffic now and maybe a bit more modernized. I wouldn't worry too much about malaria, especially this time of year. Use repellant. Wear long pants and long sleeves especially at dusk time. The place I stayed had a mosquito net on the bed but I am not sure it was really necessary. I was there in November and it was quite cool at night. Very refreshing actually.

If you do you to Luang Prabang drop by Big Brother Mouse (www.bigbrothermouse.com) They publish simple books to help teach Lao kids to read. They distribute them to villages all over. They do really great work.

thanks-are places to stay easy to find at short notice in luang prabang?

Depends upon the time of the year and what you're looking for.

He's apparently looking for next week.

Have you considered visa issues? If you are thinking next week and are US citizens, you'll need visas for both countries. I haven't checked lately, but the last time I looked getting a visa for Burma was time consuming. There is a system for visa on arrival for Viet Nam.

Here's help with on-line visa applications

Vietnam
http://www.vietnamvisacorp.com/
http://www.myvietnamvisa.com/

Burma
http://www.myanmarvisa.com/index.htm

OP didn't say if HCMC or Hanoi? My vote would be for Vietnam...just be careful crossing the streets with all the motorcycle traffic :D

many thanks-considering vietnam (saigon ) or laos now..as cant get a myanmar visa in time for me and wife and kids only need visa for myanmar..
we are leaving on the 26th and sched for saigon but have option to change to laos(or anywhere) as award tickets with united and im a 1k.
very int in laos ,but just worried about booking places for next week /over new yr and any poss health issues for little kids...

For Laos you can get a visa on arrival at the airport. Just have passport size photos and the fee in cash

the myanmar visa link didn't work for me.

One easy option for Myanmar is to plan to stay a day in Bangkok. You can get a same day visa from the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok. Just drop your passports off in the morning. Go do a bit of sightseeing and then pick up your passport with the visa about 4pm in the afternoon. There is still time to go to the airport and get the evening Bangkok AIrways flight to Yangon