Chittagong

Chittagong is Bangladesh's second-largest city and the country's largest port. It's a gritty, polluted and congested place, but as the gateway to the Chittagong Hill Tracts – one of the most beautiful and fascinating corners of the country – it's somewhere that many visitors pass through at some point. As well as a place to sort your travel permits for the Hill Tracts, it also makes sense to rest up here for at least one night if you're planning to hit the beaches of Cox's Bazar or St Martin's Island.