Rajshahi & Rangpur
Mostly in ruins now, the 100-plus-years-old Dinajpur Rajbari still pulls in the crowds not because of its crumbling walls and moss-hewn pillars, but…
Must-see attractions in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Built only in 1992, St Paul’s is an unusual piece of architecture: a Catholic church disguised as a mosque, with touches of Buddhist artwork. Embroidered…
Srimangal & Around
About 60km southwest of Srimangal, this out-of-the-way sanctuary is overseen by the Nishorgo Network and has a similar set-up to Lowacherra National Park…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
This stately, multi-columned, two-storey palace was built in 1895 by Rani Hemanta Kumari Devi in honour of her illustrious mother-in-law, Maharani Sharat…
Bangladesh
This rarely visited wildlife reserve is home to some of the country’s few remaining wild elephants. Your chances of seeing one of them are slim (the best…
Rangamati
This whole area is a Chakma stronghold, but two islands in particular are interesting to visit. Rajbari (which means palace) is where the Chakma king has…
Dhaka
Housed in a beautiful whitewashed colonial-era building, this small museum chronicles the 1971 War of Independence, one of the 20th century’s more deadly…
Dhaka
In 1963 the Pakistanis commissioned Louis Kahn, a world-renowned American architect, to design a regional capitol for East Pakistan. Due to the liberation…
Bangladesh
Built in 1901, this stunning rajbari (Raj-era mansion) is an appropriate building for a folk-art museum, and was undergoing a massive renovation at the…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
This splendid heritage structure dating from 1916 is one of Bangladesh's largest colleges in terms of area and enrolment. Its architectural grandeur…
Bangladesh
The thin stretch of parkland on the waterfront at the western edge of town makes up one of the most enjoyable public spaces in this part of Bangladesh…
Chittagong
As in Dhaka, the city’s oldest area is the waterfront part called Sadarghat, and as in Dhaka, it’s a cacophony of sensual assaults. The early arrival of…
Mohammed Ali Palace Museum & Park
Rajshahi & Rangpur
This museum is housed inside one of only a handful of furnished rajbaris in Bangladesh. This one is the former home of a line of influential nawabs, which…
Sylhet
The more central of the two bridges spanning the Surma River, Kean Bridge hails from the British era and was repaired after being damaged by Pakistani…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
About 100m beyond Sona Masjid, turn left down a signposted lane and keep walking for about 250m until you reach this small complex of ruins overlooking a…
Cox's Bazar
The main reason to come to Cox’s Bazar is for the beach. It’s a very long, very exposed stretch of sand, rather than a picturesque tropical-island type of…
Bangladesh
The most accessible of three workshops in the village that have revived the ancient lost-wax technique of making brass and bronze statues. The owner,…
Dhaka
Dhakeshwari Temple is the centre of the Hindu faith in Bangladesh. It is dedicated to Dhakeswari, the protector of Dhaka and an incarnation of the goddess…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
This small but well-maintained museum has a lively set of objects discovered in the antique-rich surroundings, and is a good place to familiarise yourself…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
The small but well-kept museum gives a good idea of the range of cultures that have used this site. Stucco Buddha heads unearthed here are similar to the…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
Used actively for worship, this interesting architectural folly with red Corinthian pillars is modelled on a Florentine dome (or at least a Bengali vision…
Chittagong Hill Tracts
Perched on a hilltop about three kilometres north of town in Bala Gata village is the large glowing Dhatu Jadi, also known as the Golden Temple (Shorna…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
In the heart of Mahasthangarh town, near the bus stop, is the mausoleum of Shah Sultan Balkhi, a 14th-century Afghan warrior who – according to legend –…
Bangladesh
This small, neatly arranged museum, located within the grounds of the Shait Gumbad Mosque (admission is covered by the mosque entrance fee), contains…
Bangladesh Tea Research Institute
Srimangal & Around
The Bangladesh Tea Research Institute (BTRI) isn’t a commercial estate, but rather the scientific headquarters of Bangladeshi tea production. New strains…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
High on the riverbank in Rajshahi, locked away behind gates and walls, Bodo Kuthi is one of the last remaining examples of the indigo kuthis (factories)…
Bangladesh
The Gangamati Mangrove Forest is 7km due east along the Kuakata beach. You can rent motorbikes (Tk 500) to get here. You'll be mostly riding on the sands,…
Bangladesh
On the western bank of Thakur Dighi, a short walk from the mausleum of Khan Jahan Ali, is the recently repaired Nine-Domed Mosque (also called Noy Gombuj…
Bangladesh
This Buddhist and Hindu temple, situated halfway up a holy hill, is the top sight on Maheskali Island. Round the back of the temple you’ll find two tree…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
About 1km north of Sona Masjid along the main road, turn left down a lane signposted 'Darasbari Mosque'. About 500m along this lane you’ll come to this…
Dhaka
Dating from 1921, Dhaka University, or just DU, has some fine old buildings. The architectural masterpiece is the red-brick Curzon Hall, a highly…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
Just outside Pabna is this splendid 15-dome pre-Mughal mosque, built in 1528 in traditional bangla (pre-Mauryan and Mauryan) style with thick walls and…
Sylhet
This minuscule two-room museum located in the heart of Zinda Bazar was the former family home of mystic, poet and songwriter Dewan Hasan Raja Chowdhury …
Rajshahi & Rangpur
About 15km southwest of Somapuri Vihara, in the small village of Dwipganj, is the impressive and underrated Halud Vihara. The central mound, akin to…
Rangamati
Bana Vihara, which can be reached, either via Rajbari Ghat, or via a bridge slightly further west, houses a large Buddhist monastery, constructed by…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
Opposite the Mahasthangarh Museum, the remains of a 6th-century Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Krishna overlook a picturesque bend in the river. The…
Dhaka
The quasi-Gothic red-brick Curzon Hall, erected in 1905 after the first partition of Bengal is Dhaka University's architectural masterpiece. It's a highly…
Chittagong
This sombre cemetery contains the graves of hundreds of soldiers from both Allied and Japanese forces who died on the Burma front. Many are inscribed with…
Rajshahi & Rangpur
Saheb Bazar, in the immediate vicinity of the central junction known as Zero Point, is a heady mix of winding alleys and colourful stores, and is also…
Chittagong
The Central Bazar is a warren of alleyways between the lower ends of Jubilee and Station Rds. It’s almost impossible not to lose your way among the…
