Riverside Bagan Thande Hotel's claim to fame is that the future King Edward VIII stayed here as Prince of Wales in 1922, so longstanding is an understatement.

Overall this is probably the least flashy of these Old Bagan resorts.

The hotel manages to encompass both decent midrange, low season offers with exaggerated upmarket, high season ones. The wooden, tin-roofed economy rooms are decidedly old school while their delightful riverside cottages, within rainy season spitting distance of the Ayeyarwaddy itself (river levels can of course fall considerably during dry season), were second to none. Compared to their competitors even their top rates are reasonable.

The Prince of Wales lodged in a fantastic teak and brick villa, but this style has sadly not been continued through the resort. We liked the simple old wooden rooms with balconies and coats of fresh white paint, though walls are on the thin side and bathrooms are hardly state of the art. They do have private balconies but don’t expect any river views. Interiors are obviously not as clean and sharp as the newer blocks but they are generally comfortable and look well maintained.

For midrange prices, you can benefit from the great garden area, decently sized pool and excellent poolside cafe. Public areas are more low-key, less fussy and ultimately more comfortable than those at many smarter neighbours. The riverside decking area under a giant acacia was also just about the best we saw.

Superior rooms are newer and roomier with more attention to decor, but lack any views though they are closest to the pool. The most recent blocks of deluxe rooms come in garden or river flavours. These are the most modern, largest and best appointed rooms.

Overall Bagan Thande Hotel is not as sharp, slick and state of the art as newer resorts, but being less ostentatious and with a more homely down to earth feel is precisely why we prefer it.

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Riverside on south side of old city, Bagan