Arrival of foreign tourists almost at pre-pandemic level

Bangladesh saw a significant decline in the arrival of tourists from abroad in the aftermath of the pandemic. 

However, recent data indicates that the country's tourism industry is showing signs of recovery, according to Bangladesh Tourism Board (BTB).

The BTB recently conducted an analysis highlighting the impacts of Covid-19 on tourist numbers as well as the challenges faced by the tourism sector.

Bangladesh was witnessing a steady rise in foreign tourists before the pandemic arose, with the country having welcomed some 5.53 lakh tourists in 2018.

In 2018, the number of foreign travellers rose to about 6.21 lakh, indicating a year-on-year growth of around 12 per cent, the BTB data shows.

But when the pandemic was at its peak in 2020, just 1.82 lakh tourists arrived from abroad, representing a staggering decline of about 71 per cent compared to the previous year.

The decline continued in 2021, with the number foreign visitors further dwindling to roughly 1.35 lakh, down by some 26 per cent from the year prior. The situation eventually started improving last year, when Bangladesh saw a remarkable rebound in international tourism.

In 2022, the country saw the arrival of about 5.29 lakh foreign tourists, signalling a significant year-on-year growth of around 292 per cent, as per the BTB analysis.

This recovery brought hope to entrepreneurs related to the local tourism industry, which suffered huge losses due to the coronavirus outbreak.

Tousif Uddin, assistant manager for marketing at ShareTrip Limited, an online travel aggregator, emphasised the positive impact on their revenue and profits that come with an increase in foreign travellers.

"As global economies are recovering from Covid-19, people have more money to spend on travel," he said.

"I expect the number of foreign tourists will continue to increase in the future," Uddin added.

Abu Tahir Muhammad Zaber, chief executive officer of the BTB, expressed optimism over the recovery of international tourism in Bangladesh.

But while commercial conditions largely returned to pre-pandemic levels in 2022, the number of tourists from Europe and America remains low due to high inflation.

However, travellers from neighbouring countries like India are contributing to the increase in arrivals, Zaber said.

On the other hand, Rafiqul Islam, executive director of Bengal Tours Limited, questioned the BTB data.

"A maximum of around 80,000 foreign tourists come to Bangladesh each year," he said.

M Mahbub Ali, the state minister for civil aviation and tourism, recently announced that a total of about 19.10 lakh foreign tourists visited the country between 2017 and 2021, generating government revenue of roughly Tk 12,788 crore.

Shiblul Azam Koreshi, president of the Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh, acknowledged the initial setback caused by the pandemic but highlighted the recent upturn in visitor numbers.

"As the tourism sector is returning to normalcy, there is hope for a brighter future. Day by day, the flow of foreign tourists is rising," Koreshi said.

Also, by prioritising branding and enhancing tourism facilities, the country can attract a greater number of foreign travellers, unlocking the full potential of its unique attractions, he added.

Professor Santus Kumar Deb, chairman of the Department of Tourism and Hospitality Management at the University of Dhaka, emphasised the need for proper branding of Bangladesh's unique attractions to draw a greater number of foreign tourists.

He also stressed on the importance of enhancing tourism facilities and opportunities in order to unlock the country's full potential.

"Bangladesh has the world's longest sea beach, Sundarbans mangrove forest and scenic areas such as Sylhet. There are numerous attractions to draw tourists," he said.

"However, the problem is that we have not done proper branding of these places. As a result, foreign tourists are unaware of these spots," Deb added.