Rangamati is known as one of the prime hill-tracts of Bangladesh. It’s also known as the Lake City as it is situated on the bank of the beautiful Kaptai Lake. It’s the country’s largest artificial lake providing unquestionable beauty and splendid views. A boat trip across this lake would be a memory that would remain ingrained in your and your kids’ memory.
How to go:
Rangamati is located in the southeastern part of Bangladesh, it is 300 km away from Dhaka. As it is a long journey, it is better to travel at night so that your children don’t get much tired. A number of A/C and non A/C bus services are available to Rangamati from Dhaka. Shaymoli, S. Alam, Green Holidays provide better services. Non A/C will cost around 620 taka per person, and A/C will cost 800-1000 taka per person. There is no train to Rangamati, but you can travel by train to Chittagong and then go to Rangamati by bus. Dhaka to Chittagong train service will cost 420-1035 taka for each person. Same thing applies for the airway, Dhaka to Chittagong air service will cost 7000-8000 taka, and then you have to take a bus to Rangamati. That will cost you 300-500 taka per person. Or you can hire a car.
Accommodation:
There are a lot of good hotels in Rangamati, so you will have some choices. Hotel Sufia International, Hotel Green Castle, Hotel Needs Hill View are some of the hotels which provide the best services. These hotels will cost you 500-2500 taka per night.
Where to Visit:
For a long time, Rangamati has been a tourist destination for its location, scenic beauty, colourful tribal people, tribal homespun textiles and ivory jewellery. The journey through the Suvolong point and entering into the widest part of the lake will be an amazing experience which as exciting as that of Kashmir valley and obviously will amaze your children. There are some must visit places.
Kaptai Lake:
Because of permit restrictions, there are only a few places around the lake where boatmen are willing to take. About half way to Shuvolong, you’ll pass the restaurant Peda Ting Ting on a small island, which makes an unusual place for lunch. The Hanging Bridge, not far from the Parjatan Holiday Complex, is another popular boat-trip destination. The small Chakma islands at the other end of Rangamati are another popular boat stop, although, like the Hanging Bridge, they can also be reached by land.
Chakma Island:
This whole area is a Chakma stronghold, but two islands in particular are very interesting to visit. Rajbari is where the Chakma king has his rather unimpressive, recently rebuilt palace. You can’t enter the palace, but you can peek inside the nearby Buddhist temple. There are stalls set up here selling brightly coloured handmade Chakma fabrics, and if you follow the road down behind the stalls you eventually reach some small Chakma settlements. A rowboat brings people across to Rajbari from Rajbari Ghat. You can also be rowed across to Bana Vihara, although a bridge also connects that island to the mainland.
Tribal Cultural Institute Museum:
The museum has well-thought-out displays on the Adivasis (indigenous tribes) of the Hill Tracts, including costumes, bamboo flutes, coins, silver-and-ivory necklaces and animal traps. There is also a map showing where the different people of the region live. Look out for the Marma and Chakma ‘books’ carved on palm leaves, which date from the 1860s.
So, don’t wait too long to make a fabulous trip to this hill-tract with your family. Have a safe journey!