We stayed at Bagan Lodge for 2 nights in a deluxe king room and can highly recommend it. The hotel is located just outside of New Bagan (2 min cycle), on the main road in from the airport. The hotel is very new, however the staff are well-trained and incredibly helpful. There were none of the usual ‘new hotel’ jitters.

The rooms are large, well-appointed and very clean. The pool was a godsend in the middle of a hot day of temple-hopping. Having cycled past many of the other hotels in Bagan, we were very grateful to have access to a pool.

Our rate didn’t include breakfast, however we opted to pay for it (hotels always get you either way), and were pleased with the selection and quality. At USD15/person, however, it was quite expensive and given the lack of other options nearby, really should be included for all guests as a matter of course.

The hotel is currently undergoing an expansion, however the noise is minimal and limited to those rooms at the extremities of the property. There remains an issue (which others have spoken of below) with the smell from septic tanks along the walkways, however it is minor and is not present in public areas such as the pool.

A few pointers to remember with every hotel in Myanmar. ATMs are now prevalent everywhere (including throughout Yangon, up and down Inle Lake and in Bagan). They still charge a fee for foreign card withdrawals. Many more places now accept credit card, although some charge a fee for their use (Bagan Lodge does not). The rates for USD are more standard (USD100 : 982,000 kyat at January 2014) across the country. Internet access is widely available, and always free, but is SLOW. Expect it to be all but useless at peak times. Domestic flights must be booked through a local travel agent. We used (and can recommend) Myanmar Shalom Travel (salesdept@myanmarshalom.com). All these situations are fluid and will change rapidly over the coming months and years, but the information is accurate as at January 2014.

This is a brand new hotel with terrific bedrooms which look like safari lodges. Very comfortable and I wanted to take the pillows with me when I left! The pool area was great and the grounds, even at this early stage, were looking good. We had one meal in the Lodge which was excellent and I made use of the spa. A foot massage at the end of a very dusty day was perfect.
The only downside to this lovely place were the smelly drains which rather spoilt the walk through the grounds. However, the problem didn't reach the rooms. This might be more of an issue later in the season when the temperature goes up.

All the staff were delightful and I would certainly recommend.

We stayed for 5 nights.

Positives:
1. The rooms/villas are very well designed and decorated, in addition to being large.
2. The service was of a very high standard with well trained hotel management professionals on duty all the time. We found all the staff spoke excellent English. Nothing was too much trouble and everything was done with a smile.
3. The open air design of the reception area restaurant around the swimming pool is attractive.

Negatives:
1. The location is a good 15 minutes walk outside New Bagan. Taxis in Bagan seem to charge a lot of money relative to everywhere else. We thought we were being ripped off by them sometimes, as a result of which we found ourselves walking to and from the village too often. If you're not worried by greedy taxi drivers, this will not be a problem for you.
2. The blinds in our villa (No. 2) could not be raised without calling for a member of staff to do it, but this is just a teething problem for this new hotel.