10 Great Places to Visit In Chittagong

If you are going to visit Chittagong, an exciting journey waits for you. Chittagong is Bangladesh’s second largest as well as the main port city.

The city caters the interests of all kinds of travelers.

If you love mountains, there are a number of high and beautiful mountains in the city, some of them being located at the very heart of the city. If you love oceans,beaches and rivers, then there are a number of them in Chittagong.

Do you love both mountains as well as seas? Ok, here in Chittagong mountain ties its knot with the sea-Bay of Bengal.

Visiting Chittagong will make a great day-out for you.

If you are a visitor in Chittagong, then this page will help you as a guide. Here I have included the ten best places in Chittagong.

World War II Cemetery

If you want to begin your journey from the middle of the town, then you can start by visiting a place of great historical importance- The World War II cemetry. It lies in Mehedibug. The cemetry, which protected and supervised by the Common Wealth Graves Commission, is dedicated to the memory of 755 soldiers and other about 4000 people, who were killed in the Indo-Burmese front during the Second World War. The soldiers who are in their eternal sleep in the well-preserved tranquil cemetry came from different countries of the world including Britain, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Africa, India, Japan, Netherlands and Myanmar. These soldiers came to Bangladesh during the Second World War. If you go to this tranquil, serene place, your heart will be full of melancholy. So, if you visit Chittagong, you must visit this historical place.

Foy's Lake

The lake, which lies just 8 kilometers away from Chittagong, is a gift of nature. This lake, which was created in 1942 by the Bengal Railways Engineer Mr. Foy for providing drinking water, is located in a picturesque setting surrounded by hills. During the recent years great improvements have been made to the lake and its surrounding areas. The lake is currently supervised by the concord group. Now there is an Amusement World here. You will be able to enjoy all kinds of modern fascilities of an amusement park including park rides and attractions as well as boat rides on the lake, landscaping, restaurants, concerts with floating stages, scenic walking trails and many other fun activities. There are also some beautiful, romantic honeymoon suits in this park. A view overlooking the city from the top of the lake during the sunset is experience that will not fade away from your mind for many years. So, your visit of Chittagong will not be complete untill you go to Foy’s Lake.

Patenga Sea Beach

Chittagong also boasts of the Patenga Sea Beach. The beach, which is located about 14 kilometers south of Chittagong, has a magnificent view of the sea’s blue water. Visiting the beach during the sunset is an experience you will not like to miss here in Chittagong. Thousands of visitors gather each day to see the tranquil beauty of the sunset at Patenga Sea Beach. The beach is located almost at the estuary of the river Karnaphuli and the Bay of Bengal. The beach , which is 22km long, is protected from erosion by the bay with help of boulders. These boulders have formed like benches. So, you can enjoy the magnificent view of the sea or the amazing view of sunset sitting on these boulders.


Boat Ride in Karnafuli

Karnafuli is the swiftest river in Bangladesh. No river in Bangladesh is more romanticized than the river Karnafuli. You can take a boat ride in this river. The journey is safe and not very expensive. If you take a ride, you will see the lifestyle of the people living on the banks of the river. You can take the ride in the morning, at noon or at the evening. Depending on the time and season, you will get different experiences of the river.If you take a ride in the morning, you will see the fishing boats go towards the Bay of Bengal. You can also see the busy hours of the river, if you take a ride at noon. But taking a ride at the evening is most enjoyable. If you take a ride at the evening, you will see the setting sun reflected in Karnafuli. Moreover,the twinkling light of the boats in the river creates an otherworldly environment after the Sun sets.

Sitakunda Eco Park

Located about 37 kilometers away from Chittaging, Sitakundu Eco Park is another destination for the visitors. The Sitakundu Eco Park is not only famous for its great 1,996 acres botanical garden, but also as a great religious place to the Buddhists. Here are the well-known Chandranath temple and the Buddha temple.

The aim of this eco –park is to preserve genetic pool of plants and maintain ecological balance. It was established in 1998. The Sitakundu Eco Park, which has a huge variety of valuable and rare plant species of indigenous and exotic origin and wild fauna, has created scope for eco-tourism and physical infrastructure for tourists and opportunity for education and research by students and researchers. There is a beautiful spring in the park area. You can reach at the bottom of this spring-a thrilling experience you will definately enjoy. Almost 1 million people visit this park each year.

University of Chittagong

Just 22kl north to the city Chittagong lies the University of Chittagong. For more information on the university, plz read the article from wikipedia.

University of Chittagong is the only university in Bangladesh, which is surrounded by the hills and mountains. It lies amidst the nature. If you visit the campus, you will love everything you see. So, take a scenic drive to the University of Chittagong.

D.C. Hill

One of the main cultural areas in Chittagong is the D.C Hill. The hill is located only one km. away from the Zero point. The hill is famous for the celebration of the Bengali new year( Pohela Boisakh). If you happen to the place on this very day, you will feel the touch of the Bengaldeshi folk culture and traditional life style. But you can visit the place anytime of the year.

The Batali Hill

If you want to ride the highest hill within the Chittagong Metropolitan area, then the Batali hill waits for you. The Batali Hill, which is situated in the Tiger Pass area of the city, is only 1 km. from the Zero point. Riding the hill is exciting experience, which will give you the rare apportunity to have a view of the whole city from the top. From the top of the hill, you will see the mouth of the river Karnafuli, a comprehensive portion of the Bay of Bangal and the Chittagong Sea port. Enjoying the breath taking scene of sunset from the top of the Bayali hill is also a experience you will not forget soon.

Tomb of Sultan Bayazid Botani

Chittagong is also called the land of 12 saints. So, visiting the tombs of saints in Chittagong is another experience you will like to have. Tomb of Sultan Bayazid Botani is a famous shrine many people visit everyday. If you visit the place, you will see the hundred years old tortoises, which are believed to carry the evil spirits of the dead, also called the "genii".

Shrine of Shah Amanat

Similar to the Tomb of Sultan Bayazid Botani , the shrine of Shah Amanat is also a favorite place to all kinds of travelers. Thousands of people visit the place everyday. The place is about 4km from the zero point.

Chittagong is the place, which is blessed with natural wonders.

But if you visit Chittagong, you will not miss any modern facilities. There are several star hotels and world class restaurants in Chittagong.

Apart from these ten places , there are also several other beautiful places you can visit in Chittagong. I will touch upon the rest of the places in my next posts on Chittagong.