Tanintharyi Region is situated in the southern part of the Myanmar. It is joined with Thailand to a relatively slender length of land. The Andaman Sea is situated to the western part of Tanintharyi and Thailand is in the eastern part. To the north is Mon state. Dawei and Myeik are the important cities of Tanintharyi Division. Since its location is closed with the sea, it is a major economic part of the Myanmar.

Ethnic Groups and Religion

Most of people who live in Tanintharyi Division are Burma ethnicity but little different features and language from the people from main city; Yangon and Mandalay. Salon is one of the ethnic groups in Myanmar. They are famous in world since they are like the marine organisms. They can stay in underwater around 30 minutes without underwater accessories. Large amount of Mon and a few Thai are also lived in them. Nearly 90% of the population is Buddhism. You can also find some Kayin (Christian) and Indian (often Muslim) in there. Very few people are Hindu.

Transportation

You can take express bus from Yangon to Dawei since Dawei is accessible by land. To reach Myeik, you must fly from Yangon, Dawei or Kawthoung. You can easily reached by boat from Ranong, Thailand. You can go there with train too since rail service run from Yangon to Dawei.

Hotel and Guest house

There are so many hotels and guest houses which will serve as well as they can. Service and facility can be varied according to your money used. Guest houses are started from $12 per day and hotels are from $25. Price may be differentiated according to the seasons. I recommend you to try Myint Mo Hotel (Myeik) that is good service and recive good feedback from customers. https://mingalago.com/hotel/myint-mo-hotel/

Dawei

Dawei was a minor ‘black door’ between ancient Burmese empire and Ayuthaya (ancient Thailand Empire). It is a capital of Tanintharyi Division. It is a tropical seaside town, only recently connected to the rest of Myanmar by road and rail. Some of the architecture in town is quiet impressive, with many old wooden house and colonial style brick houses. Tall, slender sugar palms, coco palms, banana trees and other fruits trees are signatures of Dawei.

Theinwa Kyaung (Payagyi)

It is the main Buddhist monastery in town. According to the name, it is a big pagoda which is built with Mon style architecture. The best time to visit Theinwa Kyaung is in the early morning and just after sunset.

Shwethalyaung Daw Mu

Shwethalyaung Daw Mu Buddha image was completed in 1931. It is the largest Buddha in the country which is 74m long, 21m height. It can be seen from the most part of the city. It is famous because of its impressive sheer scale.

Maungmagan beach

The coast area of Dawei, Maungmagan, is 10 km long and it is one of the best beaches in Myanmar. Beach is usually crowded on the weekends and holiday. If you want to avoid crowded people, I recommend you to choose weekdays.

Myeik

Myeik (also known as Beik in spoken form) was became important port for 500 years ago because of the safe harbour offered by the peninsula and facing islands. The Burmese say there are around 4000 islands in Myeik archipelago but the British surveyors and researchers recognized that there are only 804 islands in there. Myeik is the source of local products; rubber, marine products and very famous Swiftlet bird nest product (also known as Whit Gold).

Kawthoung

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Kawthoung (known as Kawthaung) is the southernmost tip of the Myanmar. Main business in there is trade with Thailand followed by fishing, rubber and etc. And then, Kawthoung is famous as the city of the production some of the outstanding kickboxers. It was 800 km far from main land, Yangon and 2000 km far from the northern part of Myanmar, Kachin State.

Islands in Kawthoung

There are so many islands around the offshore of the Kawthoung. But there is no regular transportation to islands and it may be one of the weak points for tourists to visit there. But you can see the real nature of the island and beach since the transportation around the Kawthoung is not good enough. If you want to visit around the island, you must discuss with boat owner and price may be varied according to the seasons. The famous island is Salon Island (also known as Gypsy Island) which has fine sand and natural beach. You can enjoy the life style of Salon closely in there.

Photo by Noenoe