Bagan

Bagan is a plain of 11th- to 13th-century Buddhist temples on the east bank of the Ayeyarwady (Irrawaddy) River in central Myanmar, the former capital of the Pagan kingdom and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2019. Two to three days covers the zone, and it suits travellers comfortable with heat, sandy tracks and current Myanmar travel advisories.

Bagan, also spelled Pagan, spreads over about 104 square kilometres on the east bank of a bend in the Irrawaddy, in the dry zone of the Mandalay Region. From 1044 to 1287 it was the capital of the Pagan kingdom, the first state to unite the lands that make up modern Myanmar, and from the mid-11th century its kings gave royal patronage to Theravada Buddhism.

During the kingdom's height, kings, nobles and ordinary donors built more than 10,000 temples, stupas and monasteries on the plain as acts of merit. The kingdom collapsed in 1287 during the period of Mongol invasions, and the city lost its role as capital. UNESCO's nomination recorded 3,595 monuments in the protected areas. Earthquakes on 8 July 1975 and 24 August 2016 damaged many of them, and a strong earthquake struck the region again in March 2025. UNESCO inscribed Bagan as a World Heritage Site on 6 July 2019.

Shwezigon Pagoda in Nyaung U, sponsored by King Anawrahta and King Kyansittha and dated to around 1102, is a gilded bell-shaped stupa. The Ananda Temple, built under Kyansittha around 1105, is a white cross-shaped temple with four large standing Buddha images facing the four directions.

Dhammayangyi, built under King Narathu between 1167 and 1170, is the largest temple on the plain, a massive stepped brick temple. Thatbyinnyu, at about 66 metres, is the tallest temple. Shwesandaw Pagoda, dated to around 1057, is a tall terraced stupa near Old Bagan, and Sulamani and Htilominlo are among the many temples whose interiors keep painted murals.

Foreign visitors have paid an archaeological zone fee on arrival, but current amounts and checkpoints are not confirmed, so ask your hotel. Myanmar remains in political crisis after the 2021 military takeover, and many governments advise against travel, so check official advice first. When visiting, cycling or e-bikes suit the dry, flat plain; the cool, dry months from November to February are the most comfortable, and temples should be visited barefoot with shoulders and knees covered.

Nyaung-U Airport, 6 km from the main temple area, takes domestic flights. By road Bagan is four to five hours from Mandalay and nine to ten from Yangon; overnight buses and trains run from both, and boats come down the Ayeyarwady from Mandalay in season. Temples have high thresholds, steep steps and sandy ground, so visitors with limited mobility do best with a car and driver. The Bagan Archaeological Museum in Old Bagan closes on Mondays and public holidays, and around the full moon of Pyatho, in December or January, the Ananda Temple festival brings pilgrims and a large fair.

UNESCO inscribed Bagan at the 43rd session of the World Heritage Committee in Baku, Azerbaijan, almost 25 years after a first nomination in 1995 was turned down. The property is a serial site of eight components on a plain of about 42 square kilometres, listed under criteria (iii), (iv) and (vi). The magnitude 6.8 earthquake of August 2016 damaged 187 pagodas in Bagan alone.