G7 Plage Bungalows — Hotel in Pathein

This can be a decent place if you know what you are getting into. It is very remote, very basic and management is a tad… chaotic. Here are the 6 things you need to know to decide if this is the place for you:

1. The trip there is grueling.

It is very remote, and the bus service there is unreliable. On our trip, both busses heading there from Yangon were uncomfortable and broke down. Both G7 groups were stranded on the side of the road in the predawn hours for 4.5 hours. On the return trip, guests were offered plastic chairs in the aisle for the 7 hr night trip. NB: you are expected to take a 30 minute ride on the back of a dirt bike through deep sand to get to the bus station.

MY ADVICE: Get a private car! It will add 400 USD roundtrip, but you will get there and back safely and somewhat refreshed.

2. There is only electricity for a short part of the day/night.

No fan made the one of our two beds boil!

In the end, we opted to push the beds as closely as possible to get airflow. Unfortunately, that made the mosquito nets useless, and while there were no mosquitos, the kids did worry that the rat in the bathroom might have friends that would visit.

MY ADVICE: Either bring a battery powered fan, or opt for the tent on the beach.

3. There are no marketing materials about the area or activities.

There are some decent snorkel sites nearby, and relatively affordable – about 75 USD for a full day boat out snorkeling and fishing with one bamboo rod for the group – but the other guests were very confused about what they could do and the costs involved.

Management would see bottom lines improve with even a basic chalkboard display of possibilities.

MY ADVICE: Discuss your plan at the beginning with management. They are brusque and short on follow-through (see below). Bite the bullet and risk management annoyance to get the experiences you want.

4. The rooms are very basic.

There are 4 hooks on the wall and a clothing drying rack in the family room, making a group of 4 hard to organize. The cabins are exposed to nature – note the rat mentioned before -- and bug spray was our friend battling the biting ants in our beds. Some of the visiting creatures were cute – like the frog in the toilet. If you are bug phobic – well, a remote rustic area in general is probably not the right choice.

MY ADVICE: Bring hangers! The drying rack is wooden and could probably handle 20 hangers – making organization 6x easier.

5. Management is brusque and chaotic.

It is rather jarring to go from friendly Myanmar hospitality to that which you would expect to find in a backpacker hostel in a Central American capitol.

For example, when my mother-in-law asked for an egg over-easy on the first morning, the manager quickly became frustrated and told her that she can “have an egg and explain in Myanmar what she wants in the kitchen if she wants her egg.” (I know – my mother-in-law must have been rude to provoke such a reaction - but I swear it was not the case). The owner\manager was taken aback when I did show the staff how to flip an egg the next day.

Unfortunately, this was not an isolated incident.

This attitude was compounded by the fact that organization was an obvious struggle. Scheduled trips were hours late and many requests were dropped with no follow-through. Asking about the delays or following up just put management on edge.

MY ADVICE: Just get your mind in the right place for jarring change from Myanmar hospitality.

6. There is no internet/phone.

This is a big plus for many, but if you need to connect, buy an MPT SIM card for your smartphone. Don’t buy another provider because that is the only one that gets coverage.

MY ADVICE: Buy an MPT card and top it up before arriving!

Bottom line: There are much better options from Yangon for a beach getaway with pristine beaches and gorgeous diving that would end up costing less.

If you’ve had a great experience here, please, write a review so our fellow travelers can get a fuller picture and management won’t be...

I was stayed there for 2 days. As a virgin beach, views are amazing but facilities need to improve. Thanks for warm welcome and hospitality during my stay. Hotel is 3 star but i give 5 because of...

Very good place to have a holiday with your friends, staff is very friendly and nice. The view of the bungalows is good. Food is good with 3 serve a day. Price is...