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“We want to express our profound gratitude for orchestrating a once-in-a-lifetime trip to Myanmar. Your dedication to ensuring a seamless and memorable experience has left an indelible mark on our hearts.
“A special thanks to Bertie and Mya for their immaculate planning and thoughtfulness. Your meticulous attention to detail and personalized touches transformed this journey into an extraordinary adventure. Our heartfelt thanks go to our incredible guides and hosts, Ko Sai, Ko Thein Lein, and Ko San Win. Your knowledge, passion, and hospitality provided us with an authentic and enriching journey. Your stories and insights brought Myanmar’s history and culture to life.
“This journey was more than a vacation; it was an immersion into the majesty, history, and culture of Myanmar. The authenticity and kindness of the Myanmar people will forever remain in our hearts. We are incredibly grateful for this opportunity and the exceptional experience you provided.
“Thank you, Sampan Travel, for making this dream a reality. We hope to see you soon!”
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“We had the most wonderful time, a truly inspiring, life affirming trip. We also had the best of fun. The group was lovely, and I do believe we will keep in contact in some way. It was a real privilege to journey with Jamling, he was so inspirational and such a good soul, Annie especially gained much from meeting him.”
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“I have just returned from an astonishing trip to north east India for the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Kohima which was carefully planned and guided by dear Bertie. The trip and the battle were brought to life in full detail by two accompanying brilliant military historians, Yaiphaba Kangjam and Dr Robert Lyman who even made it possible for me to access the governor’s property and lay a wreath on the Durham Light Infantry Memorial. This was a very emotional moment for me as my father was in the Durhams and fought at Kohima. Bertie’s excellent research, thoughtfulness and organization made the whole trip, with its quite complicated travel arrangements, fun, doable and worry free. And we had so many laughs too. I would never have been brave enough to even contemplate this trip on my own, and I cannot speak too highly of Bertie and Sampan Travel.”
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“Beyond the Chindwin was a superbly organized, highly enjoyable and thought-provoking trip. It was also a journey of discovery on so many levels – not only giving background context to my father’s RAF pilot’s logbook but providing insights into this mysterious country and her gentle, smiling people. We will be going again!”
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“I feel remiss to have not yet been in touch to say what a tremendous job you did in pulling together all the various strands that made our trip possible. I say possible, as whilst we in the group might all wax lyrical about how great it was, it did still need to be actually put together and organized. Whilst Charlotte may have provided the inspiration, I think it was most certainly predominantly down to you to physically enable it to happen.
“I don’t say that lightly, as to me, for a travel company these days, to organize a trip whose basic feasibility whilst theoretically possible nevertheless involved significant elements of risk, would have been quite an undertaking and so I do take my hat off to you for taking this on.”
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“I booked a tour of Yangon with Sampan for my mother during her visit to the city. I couldn’t recommend them enough, she came back raving about the tour. She had a fantastic time sampling different parts and histories of the city, meeting real communities and trying food and really learnt a lot as well as having a great day. Excellent local guide with genuine and interesting knowledge you’d not pick up in a guide book, with good communication and organization.”
“Yai took us on an amazing six days around the Kohima Battlefield, including a two day excursion out to the East to Jessami and Kharasom. He is incredibly well informed, but also eager to pick up new information and mold his own understanding further. My wife’s grandfather was heavily involved in the campaign, and seeing the places he fought and led was a wonderful experience, enhanced by the insights and experience Yai provides. […] We got the sense that Yai was enjoying this as much as we, and that he is deeply proud of his part of the world.
“This was a great trip, but at a deeper level Yai is keeping the military history of the area (and he is perhaps even more expert on the Imphal aspects of the conflict) alive, whilst also pushing recognition of the area as a destination on the basis of its beauty and its culture.”
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“I travelled to Myanmar on a trip organised by Sampan Travel. The travel organisation was flawless, the service was excellent, and the choice of guides was very good. I had three different guides – all knowledgeable, friendly and with a sense of humour! Great trip – from Yangon’s history and it’s incredible Shwedagon Pagoda to relaxing in Kalaw and a most fascinating stay on and around Inle Lake… I will be back!”
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“I’ve lived here for a decade and done other walking tours – this was by far the best. Lots of information – from architecture to history to hidden gems to photograph[s] and couple of well-timed traditional food stops! A small group so it was easy to hear and to interact with our very knowledgeable guide. Not to be missed!”
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“A really informative and enjoyable tour of parts of Yangon that you might not get to see otherwise. It showcased the diversity of communities that have roots in Yangon, where we got to speak to community leaders. We also walked through some really interesting markets and to top it all off we got to eat some yummy food.”
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“An incredible journey!!! This was my second time to visit Myanmar, and Sampan Travel set up a full week itinerary for me, with great guides in Yangon and several days to relax and unwind on the beach in Gwa. They thought of everything – from a local SIM card to hotel recommendations with the best restaurants. It could not have been more perfect … unless I could have spent another week!! I hope to return again and I will definitely contact Sampan before I do.”
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“I couldn’t recommend Sampan Travel enough. They crafted a beautifully bespoke and thoughtful itinerary for us in Kalaw and Inle Lake complete with stunning accommodation, knowledgeable local guides and a great mixture of activities. It’s clear that the team have a genuine love of Myanmar and its people and want to share that with you by providing an authentic experience that gives back to the community. If you want to see Myanmar in all its beauty through the eyes of a local, try Sampan Travel.”
“We organized a trip through Myanmar for three families with young kids. Bertie and Yadanar made it super easy – they got exactly what we wanted – activities but also enough down time for the kids to rest and relax. Seamless trip from start to finish and Bertie and team extremely friendly and helpful with lots of added extras. Made what could have been a bit of an anxious trip with young kids nothing but relaxing and enjoyable start to finish.”
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“A lovely trip to Burma (Myanmar). Nothing was too much trouble and all of our guides were friendly and welcoming. All of the itinerary was covered, and more, unlike other WW2 trips we have taken in the past. Some stunning hotels and scenery. Such an emotional journey following in the footsteps of our relative who served in Burma during WW2. Sampan were very aware of the reason for our trip and were extremely respectful of that.
“Would definitely travel with Sampan again.”
“I have just completed a 2 week holiday organised by Sampan Travel. It was quite outstanding. The transfer arrangements never failed and we had some excellent guides. In the run up to the holiday both Bertie & Hmone were super efficient. I could not rate Sampan Travel more highly.”
“Bertie and Hmone, thank you for a marvellous week in Burma. The organisation was immaculate from start to finish. We loved the little touches like the local phone and asking if we wanted to meet for an introductory drink. The choice of hotels was good throughout but I particularly want to congratulate you on the guides and drivers we had. The guides were informed, enthusiastic but also knew how to read what our preferences were. For example in Bagan, Mr Aung rescheduled the second day to accommodate my requests. We never felt worried with any of the drivers. Very good. The cooking morning with Mrs May in Bagan was a real highlight, especially having to shop for our own vegetables in the local market.
“We will happily recommend you to anyone thinking of coming to Myanmar. Thank you for a very good holiday.”
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“Bertie, Hmone and team put together a wonderful journey for us to Myitkyina, Indawgyi Lake, Katha and a boat trip to Mandalay on the local ferry. We absolutely loved all of it. They are so attentive to detail, take great care to tailor the holiday to requests made, and do a wonder job of supporting with any needs on the trip. They also thoughtfully followed up for comment afterward. Will definitely slow travel with them again!”
“Many thanks for your excellent organisation of our tour. We enjoyed it immensely, and it is clear that Sampan put a lot of work into making sure it was such a success. The hotels you selected for us were all of very high quality and each had its own distinctive character. It is unlikely that we would have achieved this through online research, e.g. using TripAdvisor. All arrangements that were within Sampan’s control were well managed and you kept track of our whereabouts very discreetly, checking that all was going to plan.
“This was by some way our best trip for a long time and we are very grateful to Sampan for organising it.”
“We want to thank you for a fantastic trip. We are so happy that we arranged this travel with Sampan Travel. The execution of the arrangements was flawless. Thank you for the birthday cake!”
“Bertie and his wonderful team at Sampan put together a perfect introduction to Myanmar for us.
“We cannot recommend Sampan highly enough. From the attention to detail, the excellence of the places and people to which they connected us, their commitment to supporting socially innovative and responsible enterprises, and their willingness to always go the extra mile to make their clients happy, Sampan is truly exceptional. We give them countless gold stars, and highest commendations.”
“Our trip was superbly organised and went amazingly smoothly thanks to the fantastic management and my driver who went out of his way to make every visit a memorable occasion. He took the bother to accompany me up the Golden Rock and see me safely to my hotel, and veered off the itinerary to take me to some very picturesque sites. He also recommended some excellent places to eat; some very quirky and some traditional but all very interesting and offering a good selection of dishes. The hotels were well chosen and offered good service and on Golden Rock, the added bonus of the best view at sunrise!
“I would totally recommend Sampan Travel.”
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“You went out of your way to plan the sort of trip that we wanted with exactly the right balance of culture and leisure. I have been looking at my photographs with great nostalgia and remembering the thrill of seeing Inle Lake, Bagan, Ngapali and Yangon.
“Thank you for all your efforts on our behalf and for a holiday that will always be treasured in our memories.”
“I spent 2 weeks in Myanmar all fantastically arranged by Sampan Travel. I didn’t have to think about a thing! All the hotels, travel, tour guides and days-out were tailored to the experience I was looking for. I didn’t feel like I was just following all other tourists plus I was able to have time to explore on my own accord. It’s a beautiful country and the people are some of the nicest and friendliest I’ve ever met!
“I highly recommend exploring Myanmar with Sampan Travel who will look after you throughout your unique adventure!”
“We came across Sampan Travel last year whilst in Yangon. Having arrived independently, we suddenly realised how time consuming and complicated booking our own internal travel may be. Sampan Travel were wonderful; they totally understood that we wanted – to experience Myanmar away from the crowds. They arranged internal flights, a trip to Inle Lake, our river trip in Rakhine State, and informative and local guides – all of which worked like clockwork.
“We couldn’t recommend them more highly. It was an unforgettable trip….”
