We’ve found that the lesser known guest houses, those not on the internet or in the lonely planet guide, are almost always the best value for money in Burma. After the disappointment of staying one night at Grace 2 hotel we were pleased to move to on of the much better Pyin oo Lwin Hotels for an identical price…
At Cherry Guest house we picked up a huge double room that was clean with large ensuite bathroom, free wifi (decent speed for the area) and ceiling fan for $20 a night.
It’s the little things that can make a big difference, like having a padlock on the outside of the door for extra security… Towels and soap being provided, decent curtains that actually keep the room dark in the morning and friendly, helpful staff. All of these were present at Cherry Guesthouse, making it our top pick on a budget for Pyin oo Lwin Hotels.
Some places provide breakfast, on the whole this will include fruit, sweet bread toast and an egg. With the awesome selection of breakfasts available at the many street cafes, generally for around 50 cents or less, we decided that we no longer want to be paying guesthouses a compulsory $2 or more for the boring and basic toast and fruit option, so have been pleased to find guesthouses which DON’T offer breakfast.
Look out on the street for Chinese doughnuts, Indian Roti bread filled with egg, Samosas, and a speciality in Pyin oo Lwin is the Indian bread filled with local strawberry Jam. Read more on Burmese food in our full article (Coming late May 2013)
As for Cherry guesthouse, the negatives were:
1. No Breakfast (Which we see as a good thing!)
2. The hot water was luke warm, not hot.
3. No Air Con – but the fan was more than adequate
Cherry Guesthouse
(Read the Full Review with photos and videos – coming soon)
19, 6th block, Mandalay-Lashio Road (Just north of clock tower)
$20 Large Dbl room with ensuite, Ceiling fan, padlock on outside of door, free wifi, great staff, semi hot water. NO breakfast.
+95 (0) 85 21306 / 21911
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Alternative Pyin oo Lwin Hotels:
We took a walk around to choose the best guesthouse, we chose Cherry Guest house but here are some of the others we looked at:
BUDGET
Da Shanghai hotel
Sign on Main road, its one road south of Station Road and is marked on some tourist maps
They have a Very budget super basic room for $10 – just a double bed in a room, not even a fan. The $25 Dbl ensuite rooms were not good value in our opinion, some had fans, some not.
$10 dbl / shared bathroom, dirty, no fan
$25 twin with fan
$25 dbl some with fan, ensuite, hot water evening only
Golden dream
Right next door to Grace hotel 2
Much upgraded since the bad reviews on wiki-travel. Ensuite bathrooms now have very new and clean bathtubs!
$24 dbl with ensuite bathtub hot and cold water / fan / tv / NO wifi / no bfast/ triple room same price as double.
Queen Hotel
Further towards Lashio on the main road than cherry guesthouse, but still central.
Didn’t get to see the rooms as they were full, but pictures in reception looked good. Rooms and hotel have been upgraded somewhat compared to old reviews on wiki-travel.
$20 dbl room, free wifi, hot water, NO bfast.
+95 (0) 85 21465.
mobile: +95 (0) 940 3703661
Grace 1
114(A) Nann Myaing Road
Sister hotel to Grace 2, nothing special, but completely fine. Clean enough, helpful staff.
$25 dbl with ensuite & fan / wifi / 10 minute walk out of town centre – quiet area.
+95 (0) 85 21230 / 21910
Grace Hotel 2
46/48 Mandalay – Lashio Road, Pyin oo Lwin (just south west of clock tower)
We thought grace 2 was in a bad shape and poor value, so we stayed the one night we had paid for and then moved to cherry guesthouse.
$20 dbl dirty sheets no curtain / pvt shower over toilet with hot and cold water / Fan
+95 (0) 85 22081 / 28256
FLASH ($30 +)
Hnin zi khaing hotel
58 Khe-lell st, block 7 (Near Khe-lell monastery just off the main road)
This place is AMAZING. Fantastic staff, full service hotel and very tidy. If you want to spend $40 a night this place is good value.
$40 dbl ensuite / bfast / aircon / tv / very clean /
+95 (0) 85 22856
Mobile: +95 (0) 973 211998
Bravo Hotel
On the main road just north of the clock tower.
Another great hotel that is easily worth the extra money, if you have it. The rooms are way above standard for the price.
$30 dbl ensuite / bfast / aircon / tv / wifi /
+95 (0) 85 21223 / 21826
Star Hotel
Really run-down and definitely not worth $40 for a double room!
$40 dbl/twin aircon/ bfast / bath in bathrm very dirty/ tv / fridge… Not worth it!
+95 (0) 85 23120 / 21312