Travelogue of St. Martin and Cox’s Bazar.
Time: 4 days 5 nights.
Cost: 4900 rupees per person.
I have been planning a St. Martin tour since I heard that there will be no overnight stay in St. Martin from next year. I was so excited about this tour that we watched the Cinnamon Island movie a few times before the tour 😁 and that’s how I planned. The way they go to St. Martin in the movie, we will go the same way. If we go in this way, the cost will be a bit less. However, it is better to go directly to Teknaf by bus from Dhaka without para. Of course, we have fun to go this way. At first, the plan was to go directly to St. Martin, after St. Martin, I will come to Cox’s Bazar. So I decided to go to St. Martin before Cox’s Bazar.
First night: There were 4 of us. The train ticket was already cut. We started our journey to Chittagong by ‘Mahanagar Express’ at 9 pm on the 3rd. Although the name was Express, the train was running like a local bus 😞 finally the train dropped us off at Chittagong around 4.20 am. After walking for a while from the station towards New Market, I saw a bus of Hanif going to Cox’s Bazar. At that time I could not even think of getting a bus from Oikhan, so I hurriedly bought 4 tickets and got on the bus. Let’s get there.
Cost: Train ticket = 345 (per person)
Chittagong – Cox’s Bazar (bus) = 250
Food and other = 225
Total = 720 (per person)
Day 1: We got off the bus at the Dolphin junction and started looking for a hotel. From Laboni Point, Sugandha Point, meanwhile, the hotel rent is a bit lower. After searching for a while, we get up at Dynamic SH Resort. Double bed room rent is 1000, the sea can be seen through the windows. There are many hotels nearby, you must get up early. Freshened up from the hotel, I had breakfast at Radhuni Restaurant around 9.30 am and left for C Beach. After rushing there for about 3 hours, we came back to the hotel. After freshening up from the hotel, we ate light food and went to the corner of Kalatali. We fix an auto from Kalatali junction to get to and from Himchhari and Inani. Since we were there for 4, we go by auto. If there are more people, it is better to go to Chander’s car. I fixed the fare at 400 rupees, but on various pretexts he took 100 rupees more. I like this road inside Cox’s Bazar very much, the sea on one side and the mountains on the other side – aha! I came to Himchhari to see this scene. I started climbing the stairs by paying 4 rupees for 30 rupees to climb Himchhari hill. You must have a bottle of water in your hand while climbing here. After walking around Himchhari for 1 hour we went to Inani beach. In the afternoon there is no other place like Inani beach. After watching the sunset, we drove to the hotel. After a short rest at the hotel, we ate dinner at Radhuni Restaurant. The food of Radhuni Restaurant is good, the package starts from 110 rupees. After dinner we went to Aslam Beach. I came to the hotel from the beach at half past eleven to sleep, as I had to go to Teknaf very early the next morning.
Cost = Rs. 890 per person
Day 2: Leaving the hotel at around 5.50 in the morning, I took an auto and drove to the corner of Laldighi. I left early to catch the bus at 8.30. From there I got on a bus called Special Service. This bus leaves every half an hour, ticket 140 Money. The name is special service, but it is actually a local bus. Aslam left at 9 am at Teknaf bus terminal. From there I rented an auto for 10 rupees and left for Aslam Trawler Ghat. There was a problem when I went out to have breakfast at a restaurant called Dhaka Kasturi. I said I would fly to St. Martin from Dhaka. I took the lanterns and saw that they were not there. I sent 2 people to cut the trawler ticket and 2 went to the terminal where the bus stopped After seeing that my fortune was good, I went and got a trawler ticket for Tk. 8,230 (Tk. 200 for trawler rent + 30 for ferry fare). I went to St. Martin by trawler. It takes about 2.30 hours to get to the trawler. Freight trawler Gula Safe. A maximum of 35-40 people can sit in one, each trawler has a life jacket. At first 1.30 hours, when the trawler is in the Naf River, the sun costs a little. When the trawler comes to the sea from the Naf River, the fun begins. Huge big waves with the sea air. The trawler just sways here and there, when a different feeling works. After walking like this for 40-45 minutes, I finally left for St. Martin’s dream
Another name for St. Martin’s Island is Cinnamon Island. Once the Portuguese came here, so they named it Dardiusi. The locals could no longer call it Dardiusi, they called it Cinnamon. Cinnamon from Dardiusi, Cinnamon from Cinnamon, Cinnamon from Ultimately is now Cinnamon Island.
What is there to see here?
What’s not here! The whole St. Martin’s Island tie is a mystery. There is so much to see in St. Martin. One look in the morning and another in the afternoon. In the evening it is different, at night it is different. One form in the tide is another form in the ebb.
After getting up at the jetty, many people can ask for 20 rupees fare, don’t give any money to anyone. Now it’s time to fix the hotel. Of course, we didn’t have to hurry much for this. Since we had not booked in advance, we went with him to see the hotel. There is no need to book a hotel on days other than holidays.
The man took us to see the hotel and we got up there. He is the owner of the hotel. The name ‘Hotel Sea Heart’ is on the market. What’s more, we stayed in a double bed room there for only 1300 rupees for 2 days. The man’s name is Mujib Bhai, a very helpful person. If anyone needs, you can take the number from me. But to get a sea view, you have to stay in West Beach. So without wasting time from there, I hurried to the beach to dive in the clear blue water of the sea. After bathing in the sea for about 2 hours, I came to the hotel to freshen up and go to have lunch. Everything is a little more expensive here. So it was almost afternoon after lunch. After finishing the meal I thought I would go out with a bicycle but in the afternoon there was a lot of demand for bicycles so I didn’t get a bicycle that day. The tidal waters are rising. The western side is very crowded at night. The roar of the sea below and millions of stars in the sky above, at this time walking along the sea! In a word, great feeling খেয়ে I ate Rupchada fry and crab fry from this side and started walking east again. When I was coming, there was less water here, there were people around. , And got the slightest fear. So from there I flew a lantern near Main Beach and walked for 2 more hours and went to the hotel like that day. The plan for the next day was to walk to Chheradwip so I fell asleep at 11.30 am.
Cost = Rs. 955 per person
Day 3: Since I am going to walk to Chheradwip, I left the hotel at around 5.30 in the morning and started walking from the jetty ghat to the east. After seeing the sunrise from here, I started walking towards Chheradwip after eating light food. It takes time. You can go to Chheradwip by bicycle at low tide. Most people go to Chheradwip by trawler. Trawler fare is 150 rupees. But if you can walk well, you must know the tidal time from the locals. Around 8 o’clock we reached near Cheradwip. The tidal water was still a bit so we crossed the boat for 30 rupees. The water here is very blue and clear. Perhaps the most beautiful place in St. Martin is Cheradwip. The coral reefs here are very lively. After walking around Chheradwip for about 2 hours, I ate a dab and started walking west. If you want to walk around St. Martin’s Island (including Chheradwip) you have to walk 15/16 km. If you don’t walk around the whole island you can’t enjoy its real beauty. The more I walked towards the west, the more I was amazed. To the west, it is really understood why this island is called Natural Coral Island. All the corals are huge, small and strange. Seeing these, I walked in front of Humayun Ahmed Sir’s house. After eating one by one, I started walking again. If you go from west to north, you will understand why this island is also called Coconut Ginger. Finally I walked for 8 hours (8 am to 1 pm) and came back to the previous place. At that time everyone was very tired, so I went down to the sea to get rid of this fatigue. I got up from the sea, ate lunch and went out with a bicycle for 40 rupees per hour I’m not late today – I went to the west again by bicycle, from there I ate dab and came here again. At night I sat by the beach and sang songs. In the evening I was allowed to do coral bar-b-que at the restaurant, at 9.30 am. After eating, I went to the beach again. After walking for a while, I flew the lantern and came to the hotel like that day and slept.
Cost = 60 rupees per person
Day 4: Today, since I have to leave, I wake up very early. I rent a bicycle in the morning, ride a bicycle for about 2 hours, eat a dab and go to the hotel. Today the waves were a little higher. After getting on the trawler, I heard that the trawler would stop at Shah Pari Island. You can go to Teknaf by CNG from Shah Pari Island, the fare is 100 rupees. Less. After shopping, I drove to Aslam bus terminal. I got on the CNG from the bus terminal and went to Cox’s Bazar via Marine Drive, the fare is 250 rupees per person. In fact, no one will miss this part of St. Martin. In the afternoon, it feels impossibly good to go by Marine Drive. Ah! I left for Cox’s Bazar around 7 pm. I bought a return ticket to Dhaka and went to Radhuni Restaurant for dinner. After dinner I walked along the beach and went to the bus counter. There was a bus at 10.15 am. The reserve bus came from Dhaka, so I left the bus at the appointed time. I got on the bus and got up at 6 o’clock in the morning and saw that the bus had arrived in Dhaka at 8 o’clock in the morning.
Cost = 160 per person
Total Cost: 720 + 890 + 955 + 80 + 160 = 4900 (Approx.)
**** Don’t bring coral with anyone from St. Martin. Do not throw indigestible items including water bottles, chips / food packets in the designated place. A plastic bottle keeps the soil polluted for about 450 years. St. Martin is our resource so it is the responsibility of all of us to protect it.
Source: Tanvir Fuyad <Travelers of Ba