The day will begin with a 9:00 AM pickup from your hotel, followed by a visit to The Inle Heritage restaurant where you’ll participate in a cooking experience. Upon arrival, you will be greeted with traditional Shan tea and given a brief introduction to the day’s program. Afterwards, the chef will introduce you to the traditional Inthar cuisine, and you can also explore the organic garden while listening to inspiring stories on how to use food and vegetables for healthy living.

You’ll then head to the organic gardens to handpick the freshest vegetables, before returning to the kitchen to learn how to prepare authentic dishes using traditional recipes and home cooking techniques. The skilled chef, trained by the Inle Heritage Foundation, will share some tips and tricks along the way. Finally, you’ll get to savor the delicious food you’ve cooked.

After the cooking class, you’ll have the opportunity to visit the resort’s conservation and preservation activities, including the Burmese Cats and Lake Species aquarium. You’ll also get to see the vocational training center, where students learn about hospitality business education, as well as the environmentally friendly agricultural practices.

Transfer back to your hotel in the late afternoon. 

More about The Inle Heritage Foundation

The Inle Heritage Foundation, a social enterprise financed by CSR funds and donations, creates value-added services to improve guest experiences (such as cooking classes, spa treatments, and traditional restaurants, among others) and distributes them to about 20 low-income small-scale business owners who employ about 150 people.

The foundation also runs a craft bazaar with 31 stores and has trained roughly 200 people for work in the hotel industry. Even if the foundation’s internal earnings cover 91% of its operational costs, scaling out the business and helping numerous low-income individuals in increasing their earnings will be extremely challenging.