Visa for Bangladesh visit:
Visas are required to enter Bangladesh, on some occasions it is possible for certain nationalities to be granted a visa on arrival (VOA @ USD $52). Check with us before you travel as the rules sometimes change.
Preparation for a trip to Bangladesh:
Equipment
Below you will find a general suggestion on what you can take with you. Further down the page you will find information on the available more specific equipment for this particular trip.
• Backpack or suitcase less. A softer bag type duffel bag suited to most destinations
• Small backpack for day use and hand luggage on the flight
• Gym shoes or sandals
• Small towel (suitable towel to use in the boat in Sundarban)
• Hat or cap as sun protection
• Sunglasses
• Flashlight / headlamp
• Alarm (mobile phone usually go well)
• Value belt (for bank cards, passport, and tickets)
• Passport
• Debit/ Credit card (Visa or MasterCard), preferably two
• Copies of passports, airline tickets and proof of insurance from your insurance company
• printed itinerary and our final mailings with information about hotels, etc...
• backpack pharmacy (for health and vaccinations)
• Camera, extra memory cards, extra batteries
• Charger for your electronic devices (phone, camera, etc.) and any adapter
• Any photographs of what it looks like in your country - very good for making contact with the locals!
The most common mistake when it comes to packing is to bring too many things. Pack with common sense. Keep in mind that there is always a small risk of baggage checked in for the flight is delayed or at worst will not up. Therefore take with you that which is absolutely necessary in hand luggage!
Especially for the trip Nature in South Asia Equipment list above is a general list that is adapted to apply to most of our trips. For this trip you do not generally rainwear. You should pack in your backpack, as it is easier to pack the buses. A small backpack, you must bring for day hikes in the nature or the city.
In December there is winter, even in South Asia. The experience of the cold becomes greater during the trip than you are normally accustomed to, because no heating occurs indoors. You do not need a sleeping bag, but have warm clothes for the cold floors and chilly evenings. During the Sundarban safaris, you need to remember not to wear bright or too colorful clothes. For the group to able to get close to wildlife, it is better to dark / dull clothes. We advise some useful things not to forget:
• Windproof jacket preferably with a hood
• Long underwear or underwear, socks, hats and mittens for cold nights
• Warm shirt / fleece
• Few passport size photos (Any worse case if the passport is lost or so)
• Binocular
• Plastic bag or other waterproof bag of good quality to protect the camera/Cell Phone
Economy on the move
Currency The currency in Bangladesh is ‘Taka’. Remember to look at the notes which you get back when you shop, too dirty, different bank notes with confusing same color or crumpled banknotes are not accepted. In the cities there are plenty of ATMs where you can easily take out your regular Visa or MasterCard. Bring an extra card if you lose or accidentally destroy. There is no reason to bring foreign currency into Bangladesh.
Cost of food How much you spend on food of course depends on where you choose to eat. In the cities, it to find everything from simple snack bars to luxury restaurants. If you choose good restaurants that locals go to be you can expect to spend about $ 50 a day.
Tip In Asia, drinking a common way to show appreciation for the services provided by, for example, waiters and guides. Therefore, expect many in the tourism industry, this also by foreign visitors. When Tipper 10% - 15% percent of the total amount is a good guideline. It is of course voluntary to tip. But be aware that drinking is a major of income for many people you meet while traveling and thus a way to supplement low wages.
Climate The trip is conducted during the coldest and driest season (November to beginning of March). Probably you will have hardly any rain at all. At night it’s cold in all over Bangladesh. Expect temperatures down to + 10° at night and 15°-25° (degrees) during the day. So be sure to bring along warm socks for cold floors, and warm clothing. Rest times of the year are fairly hot, humid and rainy. We are open to organize trips all the year round depending on the interested participants interested to avail any trip.
Food and drinksBreakfast is usually Included in all hotels in Bangladesh, depending on which category hotels you are up to, may have a fusion of local Parata, Chapati, Nan Bread with Indian style Daal (Lentils), some vegetables, eggs along with some European items besides .
Drink Chaa, tea boiled with milk and sugar (called “Dhud Chaa”) or with some spices ginger and cinnamon (Called “Rong Chaa”) , drinking everywhere. Bottled water is also available to buy everywhere. Beer is usually found in hotels/ bars, but can sometimes be difficult to find outside major cities. The tax on alcohol is also relatively high. Expect to pay from about 200 taka for a small can of beer.
Food Bangladeshi food is relatively less spicy then Indian food. Masala (Spices) is part of many dishes, the curry mixture including chili, coriander, cloves, cumin, brown mustard seeds, ginger and turmeric. Normally it is rice with some other side dishes of different curries are the main food of Bangladesh, daal plays a very important roles in Bangladeshi meals from very lower to upper levels. Chapati, Parata and Nan Bread is also popular besides rice meal. Vegetarian dishes are not yet so common in this country because of its Muslim majority, but fish, vegetables and eggs are available anywhere in the country. Consider Bangladesh as meat/ fish consuming country.
Take custom to where you're goingTraveling in Bangladesh is not like traveling in Europe. You need to adapt to the different conditions concerning the places you visit. Best is to observe and do the same way as the locals do. Below The following are some etiquette rules that are good to keep in mind to stay in Bangladesh:
• Take off your shoes when you visit someone's home. Also applies for any religious place visit (Covering the head by a scarf of any women guests will be appreciated).
• Drinking, eating and smoking during the Ramadan (fasting month) in public places is not appreciated, better to respect the local custom. Ask your guide for the right place.
• Do not sit so that you show your feet against any person or idol.
• Avoid touching man and woman in public, however, it is good for two women or two men to go hand in hand.
• Do not pat anyone on the body or head, and do not touch anyone with your feet because the feet are considered an unclean body part. Also, avoid touching/ receiving/ giving someone with the left hand. That is not common with the physical contact you may use there at home.
• All over the country, it is very common to eat with your hand - right hand. The left hand is considered as unclean when used in the toilet.
Staying at the home of a family in Bangladesh A nice way to get in touch with the family to offer to help with the housework or with other tasks. Count on being dismissed, when offering. Do not let that stop you, but insist that you want to be involved. Maybe the family needs help with the dishes, prepare the meal. Maybe you can ask to comply with any of the family to the market, to school or temple.
Alcohol Beer can be drunk at the hotel but not in public places. Your tour guide will tell you more about the rules.
Communicating In Bangladesh itself, it is not so good at English (though English is the second language in the country and taught from the very beginning level of schooling) and you may not find it easy to make yourself understood. In rural areas it could be even more difficult to communicate in English but you can ask the tour guide to interpret. Better to have a local English speaking companion along.
Dress In Bangladesh generally women does not shows their legs or shoulders: Long skirts or long trousers and T-shirt or thin shirts are recommended if you want to be treated with respect. Many Bangladeshi women dress in Punjabi dress (Salwar kameez) which is a tunic with pants, and such is the measure of order or buy ready everywhere. When asked on beaches where tourists are, it may be advisable for women to bathe in a long T-shirt or equivalent, and also, it attracts attention because Bangladeshi hands themselves bathed in their saris. Bangladeshi men use long trousers or lungi, a cloth that they wrap around the body, which runs down the calf. Shorts are rare even for men.
Gifts Those who want and think it's nice to bring along some small gifts or gifts to give to family where you live or the people you meet along the journey. We are trying to encourage passengers to buy gifts in place to support domestic production. What should one bring? You can feel free to consult tour leader about what is appreciated. Below are some tips on what can be appreciated as gifts to the villages:
• small kitchen knife or kitchen shears
• toys for children (e.g., soap bubbles, balls, balloons)
• writing pad and pencils / crayons to the children
• postcards or small picture with designs from home
• needle, thread and scissors
• cookware
Practical information (in general)
Electricity: 220-240 V and 50 Hertz. A common European contact works even if the holes are usually a bit bigger which can lead to loose contact. Bangladesh is a temperamental and power fluctuation occurs. A flashlight is great to have on the trip.
Time zone: Bangladesh Standard Time (BST) is offset six hours ahead of Coordinated Universal Time. Bangladesh briefly observed daylight saving time (DST) in 2009 to cope with the ongoing electricity crisis, but in 2010 the decision was cancelled by the government of Bangladesh. Bangladesh Standard Time is calculated on the basis of the 90.00° E longitude, which passes over the Harukandi Union of Harirampur Upazila of the Manikganj District in Dhaka Division.
Opening hours: Government offices are open 9:00 to 17:30 Sunday to Thursday. Banks are open Sunday - Thursday 10-16. Note that this is approximate hours, deviations may occur naturally.
Internet: using Internet is not that difficult in Bangladesh anymore. The connections speed relatively well. Almost all the hotels in every city are offering free Wi-Fi. It is also easy to get a local SIM card with data package. Make sure that your cell phone is being unlocked.
Mobile phone: Any mobile can be used in everywhere but it is usually cheaper to make calls/ using internet and send text messages on you buy a local SIM card. The prices for calling with a Bangladeshi SIM card becoming cheaper day by day. Locally known ‘Grameen Phone’ has the wide range of signals facility and provides very good service. Ask the tour guide for any assistance in this regard.
Security
Violent crimes, we have never come in contact with in Bangladesh. You should however be very careful in traffic, especially in the larger cities. A tip for getting over a busy street is to stand next to a group of locals and go when they walk. Money, passports and air tickets must be kept in a security belt inside the clothes. Be sure luggage on trains and during transport. All thefts we know have been due to carelessness. Keep a photocopy of the passport in separate place. Write the number on the ticket and on your insurance. Always keep the telephone number of your guide in an easy accessible place, so that in any emergency situation your guide can seek for assistance from the respective sources. For current information about security in Bangladesh, please follow the latest advice from the notice of your respective government/ embassy/ Ministry of foreign affairs site.