Tourism in Cox’s Bazar gaining momentum
With temperatures around Bangladesh dropping ahead of winter, hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions around Cox's Bazar are being crowded by visitors.
The longest unbroken beach in the world was relatively quiet even a few days ago, but now the air is alive with the bustle of holidaymakers.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. This has breathed fresh life into the businesses of tom-tom riders, photographers, jet ski riders, horse riders and roaming vendors that dot the beachside city.
The local tourism industry has been left out in the lurch since July, when student-led protests against the Awami League government caused disruptions in transport.
Since then, political uncertainty and inclement weather have repeatedly led to disruptions in tourist movement.
This prolonged lack of visitors to the country's premier tourist destination plunged the local economy into a sort of recession, industry insiders said.
Now, with crisp wintry winds filling the air, business appears to have come back on track, bringing smiles to the many big and small stakeholders.
They now expect plentiful business, especially with many students set to get holidays after examinations in the winter.
Akram Hossain, who takes tourists along to ride the waves on a jet ski, said there are around 40 jet skis along the beach. Most earn Tk 15,000 to Tk 20,000 per day if they find an adequate number of customers.
He was beaming, saying that the brisk business he was enjoying had already earned him a Tk 700 bonus.
Another smiling face belonged to Saiful, a horse rider at the Shughandah beach.
He said they earn Tk 1,500 to Tk 1,800 per day from offering rides on local horses while rides on imported foreign breeds can fetch over Tk 5,000 per day.
For the past few months, they could earn only Tk 300 to Tk 400 per day he lamented.
Nazmul Hossain said he and his family had come to enjoy their vacation just prior to the peak season as he was concerned that costs would escalate when business was in full swing.
Abul Kasim Sikdar, president of the Cox's Bazar Hotel Motel Resort Owners' Association, said: "Every day around 30,000 to 35,000 tourists are visiting Cox's Bazar. But even more are expected to arrive after the end of the examinations in December."
He hoped for good business in December, January and February.
"A tourism fair with attractive cultural programmes will kick off possibly in mid-December. The tourists will surely enjoy that fair," he said.
He added that the law-and-order situation is much better now.
Many hotels and resorts are also giving discounts to tourists this month, he said.
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