Half a kilometre west of Nyaung Shwe town, you’ll find A Little Eco Lodge, one of Myanmar’s best boutique, family-run and genuinely responsible eco lodges.
The sun rises over A Little Eco Lodge
Set up by husband and wife team U Kyaw Swar and Ma Mee Mee, every bamboo pole, wooden plank and brick used for the construction of this property has been laid with purpose. There’s nothing excessive or wasteful about it, and going off the night we recently spent there, you’ll leave feeling confident that A Little Eco Lodge gives back more than it takes.
Designed in keeping with its surrounds
Actively recruiting and training staff from the surrounding communities, A Little Eco Lodge does more than just cater for tourists. It’s effectively a hospitality training centre, providing myriad developmental opportunities to those employed. Alongside the accommodation it operates ‘A Little Loom’ weaving centre, the Tree House Restaurant, a well-equipped spa, cooking classes, trekking activities and a spacious organic vegetable garden. Needless to say, this makes spending two or three nights here easy to justify.
Textile enthusiasts will be in heaven at ‘A Little Loom’ weaving centre
Although we can’t guarantee his presence, it’s also worth spending some time here just to meet with U Kyaw Swar alone. Being the co-founder of Inle Heritage Foundation, Principal of Inle Heritage Private School and board member of Myanmar Responsible Tourism Institute (MRTI), he’s one of the most influential travel and tourism professionals in the region; if you’re keen to learn more about how the money made from tourism can make a positive difference to Myanmar’s short and long-term progress, U Kyaw Swar is extremely well placed.
U Kyaw Swar attending a wedding in Chaing Mai
In keeping with traditional Inthar style, the lodge has been built on stilts using mostly locally sourced and sustainable natural materials. That theme continues inside each of the five en suite guest rooms, with the only non-traditional elements being the comfortable beds, air-conditioning units, glass paned windows and elaborately draped mosquito nets.
One of the five guest rooms at A Little Eco Lodge
With its rain shower, stylish wash basin and large wall mirror, the bathroom in contrast is mostly modern in style; a sense of balance is retained thanks to the “traditional” sewerage system, which explains why no toilet paper can be flushed down the drains.
The modern style en suite bathroom
A Little Eco Lodge prides itself on being a quiet retreat, however it’s important to point out that during the day looms are in operation so it’s likely you’ll hear the clickety-clack sound of the weaving shuttle crashing back and forth. In the case you require an afternoon nap, these can be silenced on request, so we don’t feel this should be a cause for concern. You never know, perhaps you’ll even find the sound therapeutic.
A Little Eco Lodge’s Tree House Restaurant at night
No stay is complete without lunch or dinner at the eye-catching and architecturally brilliant Tree House Restaurant. Aiming to provide diners with a real taste of authentic, home cooked Inthar cuisine, this is possibly up there in the top five best Myanmar dining experiences. Even if you’re not staying at A Little Eco Lodge, it’s worth making a reservation here just to get a sense of the project first-hand. As an added bonus, you’ll get to taste some of the fresh garden vegetables.
Sourcing lunch from A Little Eco Lodge’s garden
Lunch served at Tree Top Restaurant
Spending a night or two at A Little Eco Lodge will be sure to provide you with an Inle Lake experience that’s unquestionably unique in style and at one with its local surrounds. Tour Mandalay would whole-heartedly recommend.
