Discover the culture wonders, natural beauty and unique lifestyles of Inle Lake. Travel by private longtail boat past stilted houses to hidden craftshops and jungle-shrouded temples.

Your guide will greet you at your hotel this morning to embark on your Full Day Inle Lake day trip. Board your private motorboat (on board are cushioned wooden chairs, lifejackets, umbrellas and blankets in the winter months).

Start with a visit to the morning market, which rotates locations on a 5-day basis. (note that there are no markets on full moon or dark moon days). This daily market attracts people from all over the lake’s shores who gather to buy and sell their wares. With luck you may see Pa-Oh, Inthar and Shan people in their traditional outfits. Wander amid the stalls where your guide will explain the local produce and goods for sale.

Then continue across the lake, passing through villages with stilted houses and floating gardens built up from strips of water hyacinth and mud and anchored to the bottom with bamboo poles. Also see the leg‐rowing fishermen who steer their boats with incredible balance.

Visit Phaung Daw Oo Pagoda, the lake’s main sanctuary, which contains 5 sacred Buddha images and houses royal barges used during the pagoda’s annual festival.

Proceed to the village of Inpawkhone to observe the traditional silk weaving techniques of Inthar people. Inpawkhone is also known for its’ weaving from the stems of lotus flowers, a time consuming process that results in high quality materials famous throughout the country. Also visit a cheroot factory where local Burmese cigars are rolled by hand.

Stop for lunch at midday and enjoy traditional Inthar dishes while taking in the views of the lake and its surroundings.

This afternoon travel to Indein, on the Southwestern shores of the lake. The boat will travel down a small canal leading to the Pa-oh village of Indein. Explore the area on foot, strolling around the village and wander through the beautiful Alaung Sitthou area. Alaung Sitthou is filled with picturesque stupas and has magnificent views of the lake.

Should time allow, stop at Inthar Heritage House to learn more about the history and culture of the lake’s indigenous people and enjoy a delicious coffee and cake (snack break not included).

Return to your hotel around 4-5 pm.           

Join an Inthar family in their home and learn to cook delicious traditional dishes exclusive to the region. After breakfast transfer to the floating village of Pauk Par where you will be welcomed by an Inthar family into their local home.

The morning will start with shopping at one of the lakeside markets where a myriad of locally grown fresh produce is on offer.

The family will explain the uses of the different fruits, vegetables and herbs, and will help bargain for the ingredients needed for the cooking class.

Back at their home kitchen, it’s time to learn to cook Inthar-style!

In this interactive class you will discover all about Inthar cuisine and how the food is prepared and cooked.

Have fun using traditional utensils and methods to cook up dishes from recipes that have been handed down through the generations.

Share the finished meal with the family while hearing more about the life and culture of the Inthar people.

After lunch transfer back to the hotel or continue your exploration of Inle Lake with an afternoon tour.

Float with the wind in a hot air balloon for a unique perspective of the spectacular Inle Lake. As the early morning mist rises above the water make your way by boat across the lake to the launch site of the hot air balloon.

After hot drinks, snacks, and a safety briefing from your experienced UK-licensed Commercial Balloon Pilot, board the British-built balloon for lift off through the pre-dawn mist.

As you float in the direction and speed of the wind look down over the shimmering water, undulating mountains, lush marshes and villages of wooden stilt houses.

Watch as life slowly wakes up on the lake. See the motorised canoes transporting visitors along the main canal on a day’s expedition, and Intha fishermen majestically rowing their boats with one leg as they cast their nets.

Depending on the wind you may pass over floating markets, rickety wooden bridges, a colourful festival, teakwood monasteries, steaming hot springs, or even a bird sanctuary rich in wildfowl.

Each and every balloon flight is different and therefore an adventure not to be missed!

After the pilot has brought the balloon to a gentle landing, sip a celebratory glass of chilled champagne as you receive your personalised flight certificate signed by the pilot.

Enjoy an invigorating bike ride to the Red Mountain Vineyard, followed by wine tasting at sunset. Set off in the afternoon and take in the nature and fresh air as you cycle to the outskirts of Nyaung Shwe.

Stop in Tuang Myot village to take photos of Kyauk Phyu Gyi, a huge seated Buddha image painted in white and gold.

Carry on cycling along a trail that leads past a sugarcane farm and to the small village of Payagi.

Red Mountain Vineyard is located on a hillside offering sweeping views over Inle Lake. On arrival, take a well-earned rest while the guide explains how the wine is produced from the locally grown grapes.

Spend some time wandering through the peaceful fields and vineyards, and exploring the winery and cellar.

Enjoy a tasting of some of the delicious wines as the sun sets over the lake and the beautiful surroundings.

Journey into the mountains through beautiful landscapes, passing Pa O villages to the Temple Complex of Kakku with it's collection of over 2,000 Buddhist stupas in the space of 1 square kilometre.

From Inle Lake, pass Pa O Villages, with the opportunity to visit a market on the way (depending on the market date).

Explore the magnificent Kakkua Temple Complex, a collection of over 2000 Buddhist stupas dates from the 12th and 13th centuries and is concentrated in the space of one square kilometer. Many Buddha statues lie scattered in and around the ruins, which are themselves overgrown with vegetation. Return to Nyaung Shwe by vehicle and tranfer by boat to your hotel.

Explore caves set deep in a hillside, lunch with a local family, and visit artisan workshops in rural villages. Drive from Inle Lake to Pindaya passing through scenic fields and villages where the locals make limestone bricks.

Set on a lakeside, Pindaya is a small town inhabited by the Danu tribe, an ethnic group of the Shan people.

The town is famous for its limestone caves set deep in the hillside. Enter into the caves and explore the various chambers that contain thousands of Buddha images made from teakwood, marble, lacquer and plaster.

Visit an artisan family in their workshop to watch them making the famous Shan paper and crafting it into umbrellas, fans and other handicrafts.

Continue to the charming and beautiful village of Thayetpyar, also known as Flat-Mango Village.

Home to many Danu families, here you can observe their way of life up close. Stroll around the cheroot leaf plantations and see how the cheroots are made by hand.

Visit the village school and the monastery where you have the opportunity to receive a blessing by the head monk.

Take a short drive to Thit Ae Pin, where the villagers still use the traditional weaving techniques and head back to Thayetpyar village and meet a family to see how they live and join them for a home-cooked lunch before the drive back to your hotel in Nyaung Shwe or Inle Lake.

Visit a thousand mystical temples accessible by a tiny canal and enjoy a Shan-style forest picnic. Transfer from your hotel to the western part of Inle Lake and sail through the Indein Creek, a long narrow canal that twists and turns through scenic rice fields.

As you glide by, photograph the farmers at work using traditional ploughs pulled by water buffaloes.

At the end of the creek is the intriguing pagoda complex of Indein dating back to the 12th century.

While some of the stupas have been restored to golden splendour, others are still in ruins with plants and bushes growing out of the cracks in the stone.

Explore Nyaung Oak, a group of ancient Buddha statues and crumbling pagodas. They are famous for their ornate stucco carvings of mythical animals and celestial beings.

Walk up a covered stairway to Shwe Inn Dein, a collection of over 1,000 densely packed Shan-style stupas in varying states of decay.

From the top of the hill gaze out across the lake and the surrounding hills. After exploring the temples continue to a beautiful bamboo forest where a luxurious picnic area complete with Belle Epoque hangings has been set up.

Enjoy a delicious lunch of traditional Shan cuisine including the region's signature tofu crackers, kneaded Shan rice and green tomato salad.

After lunch transfer back to your hotel or continue sightseeing around the lake.