Saint Martins: The Coral Island in Bangladesh
Saint
Martins is the only coral island in Bangladesh, with beaches fringed with
coconut palms, seashells and laid-back locals. The island is a tropical cliché.
It’s a clean, calm and cool place for soak up the rays.
Location: Approximately 9 km south of
the tip of the Cox’s Bazar-Teknaf peninsula. It is the southernmost part of
Bangladesh located in the Bay of Bengal. It is around 8 km west of the
northwest coast of Myanmar at the mouth of the Naf River. The total distance
from Dhaka to St Martin is around 510 km.
Area: 8 sq. km but it reduces to around
5 sq. km during high tide.
Tourist
Season: November
to February
Original
Name: “Narikel
Jinjira” (Coconut Island) – The local name of the COCONUT is NARIKEL and the
original name of this Island is Narikel Jinjira is derived from that.
Features:
1)Beautiful
Coral Reef
2)Long
Coral Beach
3)Lots
of Coconut Trees
4)Peaceful
Environment
5)Bountiful
Marine Life
6)Deep
Blue Water
7)Sandy
Beach
How
to Reach:
To
reach Saint Martins Island is just three-step process.
Fly
or bus and get down to Cox’s Bazar (400 km from Dhaka).
Catch
a bus to Teknaf.
From
Teknaf, ferries run daily and take around 3 hours.
Ferries
leave the island about 3 pm. Now, three shipping liners run daily trips to St.
Martins. They are Sea-Truck, Kutubdia and Keary-Sindbad. For the regular Eagle
ferries you need not to pre-book. However, for more reliable Keari Sindbad
ferry and if you have not a roundtrip ticket you can book the return ticket at
the Keari Marzaan restaurant. The restaurant only services to day-trippers on
tours arranged by Keari Tours. The one-way fare is Tk 225.
Local
Transport: Cycle-rickshaws
are the only transport besides walking. No motorized vehicles on the island,
even no motorcycles! It is highly advisable that you travel the island on foot;
otherwise, miss a lot of things. St. Martine is a small island. You just cover
it around 3 to 4 hours on foot.
Sunrise
& Sunset: Observing
sunrise and sunset St Martins is a better place. Sunset Point is a rocky
peninsula on the northwest corner of the island.
Village
life: A
slow paced life — most work happens in the morning and evening, whereas midday
is reserved for drying rice and fish. During the day time, some villagers sells
coconuts while others sitting in the shade and chewing paan (battle leaf).
Sea
Turtle Hatchery: Located
on the west side of the island south of Shemana Pereye Resort. The hatchery is
not officially open to tourists; however, it is generally empty and the gate
unlocked.
Stars: Amazingly plentiful stars
get on a moonless night, due to the lack of electricity on St Martine.
Scuba
Diving: Oceanic
Scuba Dive Center, the only dive operation in Bangladesh. To experience the
beauty underwater scuba diving is best but the cost is lit-bit high though
negotiable.
Visit
Chera Dwip:
An
extension part of St. Martins which is divided during tides. You can go to
there on foot during low tide. It is about two and half an hour’s walk from St.
Martins Island. You can also go the place by local boat or tourist boat during
high tide. In Chera dwip you can find living and dead corals all over the
Island. You will also get a small bush which is in the only green part of
Chera-dwip, and enhancing the beauty of the island. No people live in this
Island. That’s why; advisable for the visitors to go there early and back by
afternoon.
Embrace
Moonlight: Make
a tour in St Martins by yourself in the moonlight. The astonishing beauty of
full-moon in St. Martin’s Island never be expressed; you can only feel it. Over
the night feel and listen the sound of the Bay of Bengal.
Watching
Sun Rise: Wake
up early and watch the sun rise.
Campfire: Make a campfire to stay up
at night.
Shopping: A good number of small
shops are near the port and along the main road selling essential commodities,
odd souvenir t-shirts, hats and sunglasses. Various sea shells and things made
from the shells are sold by teens around St Martine. However, it’s illegal as
leads to the depletion of sea life.
Foods: Food is relatively
expensive here than on Cox’s Bazar. The food shacks line the road to the port.
Bill of fare: Parothas - Tk 5, Omelettes - Tk 10 and vegetable curry - Tk 15
for breakfast. Various fish, dal (pulse) rice and vegetables are the rest of
the day. Cha (tea) is Tk 5. Additionally, all the hotels have restaurants with
the same typical Bangladeshi offerings. But higher prices & better quality
than the food near the port. Chickens, lobsters and crabs are also available in
the hotels. The islanders sell dried fish, which is little expensive but much
fresher than those available up-shore in Cox’s Bazar.
Drinks: Coconuts’ tasty water is
available here with very low cost. But if you look for alcohol it’s very rare
except some particular hotels. However, if you ask discreetly for the alcohol
near the port, you may get it.
Accommodations: Accommodations facilities
are very good here. You can easily manage a room according to your budget. Most
of the evenings can be candle-lit as no electricity on St Martins, but a few of
the much expensive hotels have generators services.
Awareness: Avoid eating fish at every
meal on the island.
To know more about Saint Martins, Please visit :
- www.coxs-bazar.com
- www.tourismboard.gov.bd
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