Holidays in India & Bangladesh, from tailor made & super luxury - we are the India specialist tour operator from the UK.

TRIBAL BANGLADESH   ( 8 Days / 7 Nights)

Day 01 Fly UK to Bangladesh

Day 02   Dhaka
Arrive at Dhaka airport and transfer to your hotel. You then take a half-day historical tour of old Dhaka city including Sakhari Bazaar (ancient craftsmen), Lal Bagh (Mogul Fort), Ahzan Manjil (the Pink Palace), the privately run Liberation War Museum, all by painted rickshaw (and air-conditioned car). After a dining on fine Bengali cuisine, you return to the hotel for overnight. (L/D)

Day 03 Dhaka - Chittagong - Bandarban, Tribal Culture
At 8am, you catch morning express train to Chittagong by first-class and get an opportunity to observe the rural countryside from relative comfort, arriving in Chittagong at 3pm. Then take a scenic drive up into the Burmese foothills to Bandarban and check into a hillside lodge. Typical evening pastimes are visiting the homes of the locals (with home-brew for the thirsty), tea-stall crawling or perhaps checking out the bazaar. Dinner and overnight in a hillside ecolodge. (B/L/D)

DAY 04    Bandarban: Sangu river cruise, Marma village, Hilltop Buddhist Temple
This morning you take a cruise up the Sangu river in a small wooden country boat to visit one or two small Marma villages on the bank, you enjoy a picnic lunch before returning to Bandarban. The cruise is a great time for pictures or for paddling as there may only be a few feet of water in this river. After returning to Bandarban in the afternoon, you visit a hilltop Buddhist temples with statues of Buddhas of many countries, the Tribal Complex and the Bohmong king's residence (whom we may meet if he is in residence) and have some free time to explore on your own. Dinner and overnight in your hillside ecolodge. (B/L/D)

Days 05/06   Bandarban - Alikadam, a true Mru village experience
After checking out the morning tribal market in Bandarban, you drive south and deeper into the hills to Alikadam, the last portion of this ride can get a wee a bit rough, so hold onto your hats. This is a tiny but interesting small bazaar on the Matamuri river. You can settle in as you'll be here for two days to get a real experience. From here it is an easy walk to an interior Mru tribal village. Here you will spend a day enjoying and experiencing firsthand the unique, self-sufficient Mru culture. In the evenings you'll enjoy a Mru party with youths singing, story telling, and playing their unique bamboo & gourd mouth organs. The next day you'll visit Kalojeeri Para or another hilltop Mru village depending on local conditions and if there are any festivals or events to be seen. Overnights you'll be hosted by the village headman or a Tripura family in Alikadam. (B/L/D)

Day 07     Alikadam - Dhaka via Chittagong, Ethnology, Recycled Ships and Sitakunda Pilgrimage
You take leave of you hosts after an early morning walk to see the Jhoom agriculture and visit a tribal educational hostel we help support. You then drive to Chittagong and visit the Ethnological Museum, drive north to Sitakunda (one of the main Hindu pilgrimage sites in the country), on the way you have an opportunity to witness the ship-breaking yards and see thousands of men re-cycling gigantic ships by hand. Returning to Chittagong to catch the evening flight to Dhaka. Dinner and overnight at the hotel in Dhaka.

Day 08    Dhaka, National Assembly Building, Handicrafts & Bargains, Departure to UK
This morning you'll visit the National Assembly Building (Sangsad Bhavan), the home of the Bangladesh Parliament, designed by the famous architect, Louis Khan in the center of new Dhaka and its surroundings. After lunch you have time for some last minute handicraft shopping at the many NGO fair-trade shops or bargain hunting in the local markets before your airport transfer to catch your flight. (B/L) (This day schedule dependant on flight timings)

Sundarbans Mangrove Discovery Cruise & Historical Tour
(8 Days/ 7 nights)

Day 01   Fly UK to Bangladesh

Day 02      Airport Reception, Historical Dhaka & 'Rocket' Boarding
You arrive at Dhaka airport and transfer to your hotel. You may take an optional half-day historical tour of old Dhaka city including Sakhari Bazaar (ancient craftsmen), Lal Bagh (Moghul Fort), Ahzan Manjil (the Pink Palace), the privately run Liberation War Museum, all by painted rickshaw. Otherwise you are free to recover from jet-lag and re-set your biological clock for a few hours. After a late lunch of fine Bengali cuisine, you drive to the old river port of Sadarghat to board the colonial period paddleboat, the 'Rocket'. This is one of the oldest such paddle propelled boats still in operation in Asia. Overnight in a first-class air conditioned cabin. (L/D)

Day 03     River Cruising, Mongla
You will enjoy all day cruising south along the rivers of Bangladesh and observing the village life on the banks. Bangladesh has over six hundred rivers and may have the planet�s largest delta. You cruise through the confluence of the Padma (Ganges) and Brahmaputra rivers which contains more water than all of the rivers in Europe together. You also paddle down smaller and narrower rivers that will give you a great introduction (and photo opportunities) of the rural countryside and river life. In the evening you arrive in Mongla and we transfer you to the finest hotel in town for dinner and overnight. (B/L/D)

Days 04-06    Sundarbans Cruise
After breakfast you board a launch with cabins to begin a three day cruise of the Sundarbans. The Sundarbans is the planet's largest mangrove forest, the home of the Royal Bengal Tiger and many other mammals and birds. You will be able to go ashore at some points to walk through and experience the forest first-hand - does an optional mud-bath sound interesting? You cruise both the larger rivers and are able to enter smaller canals to get wonderful views and photographs. The first day you will reach the Bay of Bengal and halt at Kachi Kali (Tiger Point) and in the afternoon enjoy a beach walk on the bay front. The next day you will board a smaller wooden country boat to explore the smaller canals and observe the flora, wildlife and birds. You will have a chance to walk through the mangrove forest at low tide. After lunch you will proceed to Katka Wildlife Sanctuary to walk in the forest and climb the wooden observatory. Overnight at Katka. The last morning you will see the deer and other wildlife, after breakfast you will pro-ceed north up the Pasur river and reach Khulna in the evening. Then transfer to the Hotel for dinner and overnight. (B/L/D)

Day 07     Khulna � Bagerhat - Dhaka
This morning you will drive to Bagerhat where you'll see some of the more ancient terracotta buildings in the country including the famous domed masjid, Shad Gambuj Masjid. It was once in the middle of the Sundarbans. There is no stone in Bangladesh, but plenty of fine earth, and this led to the construction of some of the finest examples of terracotta buildings in the world. After lunch at the Hotel you drive one hour north to Jessore and take a short flight to Dhaka. An optional evening rickshaw ride and a visit to the colourful markets or free time before dinner at a popular local restaurant. Overnight at Hotel. (B/L/D)

Day 08    Khulna to Dhaka, Departure to the UK
Depending upon your departure flight you may have time to visit the National Assembly Building designed by American architect Louis Khan, take a more intimate tour of Dhaka or opt for some last minute handicraft shopping at the many shops before your airport transfer and departure. (B/L)