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Festival Arrangements

Visas

28 day tourist visas can be obtained from embassies of the Union of Myanmar. In London this takes about 10 working days so you should aim to get your application in as soon as possible.

How to get to Rangoon

There are still relatively few direct flights to Burma. Via Bangkok is still a favoured route. But there are now also direct flights to Rangoon from, for example, Singapore and Doha. Search the internet for deals. Overland into Burma is difficult but not necessarily impossible.

Where to stay

Accommodation in Rangoon is becoming more difficult by the day as tourist numbers increase. The Inya Lake Hotel, where the festival will be taking place, is already almost full. Again, the internet is the best bet to discover options. A number of agents come up on a Google search. These include Exotissimo, Golden Express Tours and Myanmar Travel.

Location Map

Participating Local Authors;

  • Zaw Thet Htwe
  • Zeyar Lynn
  • Ju
  • Pandora
  • Mya Thwe Ni
  • Sein Myo Myint
  • Htine Win
  • Soe Thaw Dar
  • Ko Ko Thett
Latest news about the festival …….

A sample of the festival’s packed programme includes Friday’s sessions on Burmese poetry and ethnic literature, Sudha Shah discussing her book on King Thibaw in exile and ‘Wild Swans’ author, Jung Chang, explaining why she became a writer. Dr Thein Naing talks about his life and the once dying art of Puppetry. Other Sessions include Zarganar, Ba Myint, the BBC’s Fergal Keane, William Dalrymple, (direct from the Jaipur Festival) and the famous blogger Nay Phone Latt.

 

This, the first ever international literary festival in Burma/Myanmar will include the best local authors writing in English as well as a substantial number of local authors writing in Burmese and, of course, a rich mixture of international writers.

At present the international list includes:

 


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The Festival’s patron, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, says:

“I am delighted to lend my support and personal participation to this first Irrawaddy Literary Festival. Literature has always been a big part of my life and I hope this festival, which brings together some of the finest talent from Burma, the UK and elsewhere will encourage more people to explore the world of literature and further their understanding of the English language.”