Puja holiday fuels boom in domestic tourism

This year's Durga Puja holiday has turned into a windfall for domestic tourism industry.

With an unusually long break on offer, families, friends, and office groups packed their bags and headed for beaches, forests, and hill tracts rather than looking abroad.

Travel agents say the rush has been helped by visa troubles and soaring airfares that made foreign trips less appealing.

At the same time, the timing could not have been better: the Sundarbans has just reopened after its seasonal closure, the haor wetlands are still brimming with water, and the autumn weather has been kind to travellers.

From Cox's Bazar to Sylhet, tourist spots are buzzing with life.

Extended public holidays around Durga Puja have given a significant boost to the domestic tourism sector, industry stakeholders said.

Tourism operators noted that the timing has proved highly favourable, as most destinations, except Saint Martin's Island, are currently open to visitors.

Abdul Mannan, a private bank official, travelled to the Sundarbans for a four-day trip.

"I chose the date at the beginning of this year as the timing is highly suitable," he said, adding that a 40-member team of colleagues and their families joined him. "Unlike other tourist spots, visiting the Sundarbans requires long-term planning and preparation."

Fusion Holidays CEO H M Tariqul Islam told The Financial Express that, in addition to visa restrictions in several destinations, a sharp rise in air ticket prices has also encouraged many travellers to explore their own country.

"Such a trend can help provide a strong foothold for domestic tourism," Mr Islam said.

He noted that holidaymakers have a wide variety of domestic opportunities this year, with the haor regions still filled with water, the Sundarbans reopened, and weather conditions largely favourable.

"There is a higher influx of visitors to Tanguar Haor and other parts of Sylhet division this season," he added.

Cox's Bazar - the country's most popular destination, offering the world's longest sea beach - usually remains crowded in winter. Yet despite not being peak season, it is still drawing huge numbers of tourists this Puja holiday. To facilitate travel to and from the coastal district, Bangladesh Railway is running special trains between Dhaka and Cox's Bazar, and between Chattogram and Dhaka, from September 30 to October 4.

Two additional trains, 'Dhaka Special' and 'Chattogram Special', are operating as part of the initiative.

Tourists with a taste for adventure often prefer the Chattogram Hill Tracts. However, tourism in Khagrachhari and Sajek has suffered setbacks due to a recent eruption of violence.

Despite being fully booked ahead of this week's Puja holidays, nearly all reservations at around 100 resorts in Sajek have since been cancelled. Contacted by The Financial Express, Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB) President Mohammad Rafeuzzaman said this year's extended vacation has allowed many people to visit domestic tourist spots.

He identified difficulties in arranging foreign travel as one of the key drivers behind the surge in local tourism.

"Some countries, including India, Vietnam, Uzbekistan and the UAE, have stopped issuing tourist visas to Bangladeshis in recent times, while there are complexities in securing visas for Turkey, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia," he said.

For many years, India has been the prime destination for Bangladeshi tourists, who travelled there for treatment, business, and leisure. However, despite domestic tourism gaining momentum, the overall tourism business is struggling due to visa restrictions in traditional destinations.

"We hope things will improve when a stable political government takes responsibility after the national election," the TOAB president added.

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