January Weather in Bagan

January is a perfect time to visit Bagan as it is during the cool season – the best time to travel to Myanmar. The weather is cool and dry. Sunny days are almost throughout the month.

Weather: The highest temperature for Bagan in January is usually around 90°F (32°C ) with the average high around 80°F (27°C ) and the lowest temperature is about 46°F (8°C ), with the average low around 55°F (13°C ).

Bagan in January

Compared with Mandalay and the Inle Lake region, Bagan is warmer. The temperature is at its highest between 12pm and 4pm, and you will always feel tired and hot at this time. Therefore, we recommend you take a rest in your hotel (most of the hotels have a swimming pool).

Clothing: the temperature there varies greatly between the daytime and nighttime. If you want to watch a sunrise at 6am or 7am, you will probably need to take a coat with you to keep warm. If you want to see a sunrise from the top of the tower, you need to take off your shoes, which will be a little cold if you do not have warm clothes.

Average Temperature Chart for Bagan in January

Quick Facts

The hours of sunshine are long so you need to be aware of this and take a sun hat and sunscreen.
January is in the dry season, so you should drink lots of water to stay hydrated.
January is always the peak tourist season in Bagan, especially around January 1st, which is during the (international) New Year holiday. Due to a large number of tourists, the prices of the hotels in Bagan will be higher, and the room numbers are also limited, so we suggest you book early.

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Things to Do

Bagan is an ancient city with more than 2,000 Buddhist temples and is famous as being a "Temple Town". It is the best place for you to visit temples and enjoy Myanmar's unique culture.

Unfortunately, on August 24th, 2016, an earthquake hit central Burma and Bagan — 400 temples were destroyed, such as Sulamani and Myauk Guni. The rest of them are under repair, thus visitors are prohibited from entering 33 temples in Bagan.

The temples mentioned following were also slightly damaged by the earthquake, which may affect our sightseeing tour because some temples will be covered by protective tarpaulin.

Attend the Ananda Temple Festival

Ananda is one of the largest and finest temples in Bagan. It is a perfectly dimensioned Indian structure and is famous for the four gilded standing Buddhas.

Its annual festival that is held during the month of Pyahto (December to January) draws thousands of devotees worshipping here. Each year, villagers from miles around come here in traditional bullock carts and camp around the temple to celebrate.

Ananda Temple Festival

There will be a non-stop 72-hour chanting of Buddhist scriptures by 1,000 monks and some entertainments such as traditional dance and comedy shows during the festival.

Be aware: Ananda has been under maintenance due to the damage caused by an earthquake in 2016, although it remains open to visitors.

Visit the Shwezigon Pagoda

This is one of the most important religious sites in Myanmar. Believed to enclose relics of Gautama Buddha, the pagoda is well-known for its architecture and structure — it looks like a "golden bell", which is decorated with various designs and topped with a traditional jeweled spire.

Be aware: as with other temples, this pagoda has been damaged by earthquakes over time, but it is always repaired.

Shwezigon Pagoda

Take a Hot Air Balloon Flight

The most famous outdoor activity in Bagan is hot-air ballooning. It's exciting to start a new day with an adventure in the sky. You will be collected from your hotel at around 5am and the ballooning tour will start at around 6:30am, a few minutes after sunrise.

The magical flight provides you a beautiful panorama of the vast plains of Bagan, from the many temples to the Irrawaddy River.

Hot Air Balloon Flight

Be aware: the current ballooning season is from 1st October to 31th March as the ballooning is restricted by the weather and climate.