Natural Heritage:

Sundarbans:
The Sundarbans forest is the largest single block of tidal halophytic mangrove forest in the world, located in the southern part of Bangladesh . It lies on the Ganges- Brahmaputra Delta at the point where it merges with the bay of bengal . With its array of trees and wildlife the forest is a showpiece of natural history. It is also a centre of economic activities, such as extraction of timber, fishing and collection of honey . The forest consists of about 200 islands, separated by about 400 interconnected tidal rivers, creeks and canals. Most frequently visited sites in the Sundarbans include Katka , Hiron Point (known commonly as Nilkamal ), Dublar Char and Tiger Point ( Kachi Khali ). Katka attracts tourists for its landscape and wildlife. There is a forest rest house here and an observation tower. Hiron Point also has a rest house and an observation tower. Dublar Char is an island with a beautiful beach. The other attraction of the island is the fishing activities that take place every year between mid-October and mid-February. Boat trips can be organized from Dhaka or Kulna (see Guide Tours link).

Cox's Bazar (Sea Beach):
This is arguably the most attractive tourist resort of the country located on a low range of sand hills between the river bakkhali and the bay of bengal with a long open beach towards the sea. The town was named after Lieutenant Cox, who had rehabilitated here a group of maghs seeking shelter in British territory after the conquest of arakan by the Burmese and died here in 1798. The unbroken 125 km beach at Cox's Bazar is sandy with a gentle slope. Since the rise and fall of the tide here is not great, it is a popular place for sea bathing. A large variety of fish, including excellent pomfret, soles and oysters are also caught here.
Cox's Bazar is about 150 km from chittagong and is connected to the port city by bus, air and steamer services. It is a district town and is also the headquarters of the Cox's Bazar forest division. The town and surrounding places have many colourful pagodas and Buddhist temples and are inhabited by, among others, many tribal people who have their own distinct customs and traditions. Apart from the sea beach, other notable spots in this region for tourists are Himchhari, Sonadia Island, maheshkhali, teknaf and st. martin's island.

St Martin's Island:
St Martin's Island is a small island in the northeast of the bay of bengal, about 9 km south of the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf peninsular tip and forming the southernmost part of Bangladesh. It is about 8 km west of the northwest coast of Myanmar at the mouth of the river naf. The local people call it Narikel Jinjira. Launches and country boats ply between the island and teknaf regularly. The population is about 3,700 and most of them are fishermen belonging to 535 families. One hundred eighty-two species of wildlife are recorded from the island. tourism to the northern part of the island exists during four months (November to February). The most densely populated part is Jinjira. There is scarcity of sweet water on the island. Only a few ponds and a number of tube wells supply sweet water for drinking as well as for cultivation.

Tea Garden:
A number of tea gardens also provide inspiration for the tourists. There are 158 tea gardens which cover 48,300 hectares. Of these gardens, 135 are in sylhet division and 23 are in chittagong division. The tea estates in Bangladesh annually produce about 55 million kilograms of tea.

Madhabkundo Waterfalls:
In Sylhet, there is a finest waterfall in Madhabkundo in Borolekha thana which will satisfy the thirst of the tourists. At almost 250 feet, it is the highest waterfall in the country.

River and Chars:
Almost all the major cities and towns in Bangladesh are located on the banks of rivers, e.g. Dhaka on the bank of buriganga, Narayanganj by the side of shitalakshya, Chittagong by the side of karnafuli, and Mymensingh by the side of Brahmaputra. Rivers with sufficient water volume, velocity and gradient can be used to produce hydroelectric power. At kaptai the river Karnafuli of Chittagong region is being utilised for producing hydroelectricity. Situated in a middle of the rivers, the Chars in Bangladesh have been divided into five sub-areas: the Jamuna, the Ganges, the Padma, the Upper Meghna and the Lower Meghna rivers. There are other areas of riverine chars in Bangladesh, along the Old Brahmaputra and the Tista rivers. It is estimated that in 1993 the total area covered by chars in Bangladesh was 1,722 sq km.

Eco-parks:
Recently, Bangladesh Government has taken initiative to establish ecoparks at different places of the country. The first ecopark has been inaugurated at Chandranath Hill and surrounding areas, located in Sitakunda upazila of Chittagong. The place is rich with tropical evergreen and semi-evergreen forest flora and herbs, shrubs, creepers and climbers of diversified habits. Some threatened plant species have been reported from this place and surrounding area. Of these, three natural Gymnospermous tree species, namely, Podocarpous nerifolia, and species of Gnetum and Cycas grow in the hills and nearby hilly streams. In the vicinity of the Chandranath hill is the famous temple of the Hindu Community. There is a hot water fountain near the hill. From the hilltop, part of the coast of the bay of bengal can be seen. Two other ecoparks are to be established in the Madhabkunda and Muraichara forest areas located respectively in Kulaura and Baralekha upazilas of Maulvi Bazar district. These locations are rich with natural evergreen and semi-evergreen tree species along with plantation forests.