What's on in Bagan, Myanmar through the year

Busy — Ananda Pagoda Festival, school holidays in 6 of the markets that fill it

Nothing new starts in January.

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually)), Cool season on the plain (1 Nov – 20 Feb (usually)), Ananda Pagoda Festival (25 Dec – 31 Jan (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in February.

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually)), Cool season on the plain (1 Nov – 20 Feb (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

Nothing new starts in March.

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Festival

  Thingyan, Burmese New Year

  13–16 AprWater-festival New YearClosures

  Four days of water throwing, then a national shutdown: buses stop, offices and most restaurants close, and the temple plain empties of everyone but pilgrims. Source ↗

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually))

Quiet — school holidays in 2 of the markets that fill it, one of its worst months for weather

• Season

  Southwest monsoon

  20 May – 10 Oct · usually

  Bagan sits in the country's dry belt, so the rain arrives as short late-day storms rather than a wall of water. The scrub greens up and the plain is close to empty.

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in June.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (20 May – 10 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in July.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (20 May – 10 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 4 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in August.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (20 May – 10 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

Nothing new starts in September.

Still on: Southwest monsoon (20 May – 10 Oct (usually))

Shoulder season — school holidays in 3 of the markets that fill it, an ordinary month

• Festival

  Thadingyut, festival of lights

  1–31 Oct · usuallyMajor festival

  The end of Buddhist Lent, marked with candles and paper lanterns on pagoda platforms for three nights. Balloon operators traditionally open their season on the back of it. Source ↗

• Opening

  Balloon season

  15 Oct – 10 Apr · usuallyDry seasonBook early

  Operators fly at sunrise only, from around the Thadingyut full moon to the first week of April, and stand down for the rains. Seats are limited and go months ahead. Source ↗

Still on: Southwest monsoon (20 May – 10 Oct (usually))

Busy — one of its best months for weather

• Season

  Cool season on the plain

  1 Nov – 20 Feb · usuallyDry season

  The dry-zone haze thins, the mornings are cold enough for a jacket on a scooter, and the light on the brick is the reason everyone comes at this time. The busiest stretch of the year.

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually))

Busy — Ananda Pagoda Festival, school holidays in 5 of the markets that fill it

• Festival

  Ananda Pagoda Festival

  25 Dec – 31 Jan · usuallyMajor festivalCrowded

  Fifteen days of temple fair around the full moon of Pyatho: bullock carts camped on the plain, stalls the length of the approach, and monks receiving alms in a line before dawn. Source ↗

Still on: Balloon season (15 Oct – 10 Apr (usually)), Cool season on the plain (1 Nov – 20 Feb (usually))