Fishery Village of San Hlan in Dawei

awei city is located in the Southern part of Myanmar and is the capital city of Tanintharyi region. San Hlan fishery village is situated in Launglone township, Dawei District and Tanintharyi region. It is located about 18 miles or 28.97 kilometers  away from downtown Dawei Township. San Hlan village is surrounded by blue sea, mountains, hidden beaches and islands. Community based tourism (CBT) was implemented in San Hlan Village  in 2018. It was opened by the Ministry of Hotels and Tourism (MOHT) of Tanintharyi region and Dawei Tourism Enterprise. Community based tourism (CBT)  is a way to improve the livelihood for the local people. 

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Livelihood of Local People in San Hlan Village

Most of the people in San Hlan village work as fishermen. The village is located along the coast and some people work in  the dried seafood industry that includes dried shrimp, dried squid, dried Thunnus tonggol (a big fish) and dried commerson’s anchovy. Dried seafoods are a durable food for local people. People in the village also make Nga Pi (Shrimp paste or fish paste) which is a condiment for Myanmar people. Deep freeze factories are also located in San Hlan village to distribute seafoods to neighboring villages, townships, districts and regions. The village center is located near the mountain and villagers in the area work as planters or gardeners. After CBT was implemented, locals have  employment opportunities as food providers and rental services of boats.

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What you can do in San Hlan village

You can feel  sightseeing of the Adaman sea view by biking along the road or hiking to the mountain and get excited for the boat trip to hidden beaches and islands. And then, you can do activities in San Hlan village which include watching the fishing and dried fish processes, hiking to Myint Mott Latt Khat mountain, a day trip to Moscos island and sightseeing at Community based tourism accommodations..

Fishing and dried fish process 

In the fishery village of San Hlan, you can learn the fishing process everywhere. You can learn how to catch fish with a drag net, freeze some of the fish to distribute to other areas and dry off some fish. Dried fish mainly contains salt, fish and dried with air and then desiccated under the sun. To obtain dried fish, the time takes 3 to 7 days.  Villagers mostly make dried commerson’s anchovy (a small fish) as the main product in the area. Travelers can buy dried commerson’s anchovies with good quality and cheap prices. 

Hiking to Myint Mott Latt Khat Mountain 

The height of Myint Mott Latt Khat Mountain is 1923 feet and it is the highest mountain of Dawei city. Hiking mountains is one of the ways to do sports for your health. The best season for hiking is the cold season. The road of the mountain is fairly steep and you should take drinking water and wear comfortable clothes and shoes. The hiking time of the mountain takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes. At the top of the mountain, you can see the Adaman sea views and the whole village of San Hlan.

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Community Based Tourism (CBT) Site

Community Based Tourism (CBT) can get sustainable development for local people's life in the area and tourism. After CBT was implemented in San Hlan village, it has made some improvements which are maintaining their environment, communication skills  with outsiders, getting employment opportunities related with tourism and finished Jetty bridge for boat trips by CBT in 2020.The Community Based Tourism site is situated at the edge of San Hlan village. It also has three accommodation  options and one food provider. The visitors can take a rest and eat Dawei traditional foods such as Mote Latt Thouk and Thar Kway Yae, Thai foods like Tom Yum and Pat ka Paut and fresh seafood. The price of staying for one night is between 20000 Kyats and 30000 Kyats for locals. For the foreigners, the price of staying in the accommodations is between 20 USD and 30 USD. You can experience the life of the fishery village, sunrise and sunset views and the view of Dawei Peninsula.  You can also do cycling to the village, boat trips to hidden beaches and islands from the CBT site and catch fish with a fishing rod. A day trip to Moscos island is a very popular trip in San Hlan village which is started from the CBT site.You can read the article of A day trip to Moscos island here.

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How you can go to San Hlan village

You are from Yangon, you will firstly go to Dawei township. You can go to Dawei by plane, train and bus. If you want to go by bus, you can travel from Aung Mingalar Bus Station . It will take about 12 hours to arrive Dawei township.  You can also go by plane and you can fly to Mingaladon International Airport. The trip by plane takes about 1 hour to arrive Dawei township, however, its cost is expensive. And then, you can also go by train from Yangon Train Station. The  trip by train will take more time than by plane and bus but it is cheaper than other trips. 

If you are outsiders of Myanmar; you can go to Dawei from Htee Khee Gate which is the Dawei and Kanchanaburi border (Thai-Myanmar Border Gate) and also Yangon International Airport. If you  are a native of Dawei or you have already arrived at Dawei township, you can easily go by motorbike, car, rental transportation services and Dawei Tour services to San Hlan village. The duration from Dawei to San Hlan village takes about 1 hour. 

Dawei has many amazing hidden beaches and islands. Among them, you can do activities like learning about fishing, hiking mountains, boat trips and sightseeing at CBT in San Hlan village. If you travel to Dawei, you should not miss to visit San Hlan village.

You can read the experiences of travelers to San Hlan village below.

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