Long Eid holidays boost ailing tourism

Infographic: TBS

The pandemic-hit tourism sector is getting back some momentum centring this Eid-ul-Fitr as a likely nine-day break has already provided a much-needed boost to the ailing industry. 

Sector insiders have told The Business Standard that they incurred huge losses during Eid-ul-Fitr in the past two years but the demand for both domestic and outbound travels have picked up considerably this time around.

They expect that around 10 lakh tourists will visit the local tourism sites during this Eid vacation while another several lakh will travel to foreign destinations.  

Holidaymakers have made advance bookings in various sub-sectors of the tourism industry, including hotels, motels, resorts, restaurants, and aviation.

Travellers are likely to enjoy a nine-day Eid vacation between 29 April and 7 May if they can avail a day-off on 5 May, Thursday, or if the government declares the day as a public holiday. 29 and 30 April 30 are official weekends while 1 May is a public holiday on the occasion of International Workers' Day. The government announced a three-day holiday for Eid from 2 May to 4 May while 6 and 7 May are weekends.

And this long nine-day holiday seems to be a beacon of hope for the tourism sector, says Md Rafeuzzaman, president of the Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (Toab), the largest organisation in the tourism sector.

Rafeuzzaman told TBS that a large number of people could not travel in the last two years because of Covid-induced restrictions but many of them will go out to visit during this Eid holiday.

"We hope this time at least 10 lakh people will travel to various domestic tourist destinations. We are trying to make sure they can travel to different destinations with ease. This time we have attached importance to tourism inside the country."

Mentioning that many Bangladeshis go to neighbouring countries to spend their vacations, he said, "We have a lot more places to visit here than abroad. If one goes to Nepal for the hill station, they can enjoy much more by visiting our Rangamati, Khagrachhari, and

Sajek. They can go to our Tanguar Haor, Chalan Beel, and Hakaluki Haor instead of going to Madras to enjoy the Blackwater."

"Similarly, the Sundarbans on our side is more beautiful than the Sundarbans in India. Our sea is very beautiful as well."

Leaders of various organisations in the tourism sector said more than one lakh tourists will visit Cox's Bazar alone during this Eid.

Already, 80% of the rooms of the hotels and motels in Cox's Bazar have been booked, they added.

Abdul Quadir Mishur, director of the 5-star Ocean Paradise Hotel in Cox's Bazar, told TBS that their hotel has 250 rooms and 80% of the rooms have been booked in advance for the forthcoming Eid holidays. Those who have made advance booking have got up to 35% discount, he added.

Mesbahul Islam, head of sales and marketing at Novoair, said, "All our tickets for 4-5 May on the Dhaka-Cox's Bazar route have been sold in advance. Besides, tickets for the Kolkata route have also been sold out in advance."

Kuakata is the only beach in Bangladesh where one can enjoy both sunrise and sunset seating at one place. The hoteliers hope during the Eid holidays this time there will be a good gathering of tourists in Kuakata.

Motaleb Sharif, general secretary of the Kuakata Hotel-Motel Owners Association, told TBS that there are more than 150 hotels and motels in Kuakata. Already, 30% of the hotel rooms have been booked, he said, adding that advance booking is still going on.

"A tourist actually adds to the earnings of every stakeholder beginning from a betel-nut store to those who ride motorbikes. We hope this time there will be an overflowing crowd on the beach," he said.

Resorts see around 60% advance booking 

According to the Bangladesh Tourism Corporation, there are more than 200 resorts in the country. In particular, these resorts have sprung up in the vicinity of Dhaka, including Gazipur, Narayanganj, and Narsingdi.

Around 50-60% of these resorts have been booked in advance, said the Tourism Resort Industries Association of Bangladesh (Triab).

Besides, many will come directly to the resorts for Eid holidays, said Triab President Khabir Uddin Ahmed.

Abul Hossain Abir, head of sales at Joydebpur Holiday Resort in Gazipur, told TBS, "Our resort can accommodate 100 people in 50 rooms. All these rooms have been booked for 4 and 5 May."

It will take a few years for them to recover from the pandemic-induced losses, he said, adding, "However, it can be said that our business has started in a new way with the response we are getting this Eid."

Meanwhile, the ongoing hot weather is not conducive for visiting the Sundarbans, but even then the tour operators concerned are getting good response.

Nazrul Islam Bachchu, adviser to the Tour Operator Association of Sundarban (Toas) and proprietor of Pugmark Tours and Travels, told TBS, "This time we have good bookings for Eid holidays. A team of 16 people has come from abroad to tour the Sundarbans. And domestic tourists have also made bookings."

"This time we will have 6 to 7 boats and 200-250 people will get a chance to visit the Sundarbans," he added.

Hilly sites waiting to welcome hill lovers

Mountain lovers will rush to Rangamati, Bandarban, and Khagrachhari districts during the Eid holidays, while some of them will choose different hilly areas in Sylhet and Moulvibazar.

The unit manager of Parjatan Motel Bandarban said, "We have 25 rooms and 80% of those have already been booked for five days after Eid."

A staffer of Parjatan Holiday Rangamati said 70% of the rooms in their facility have been booked for seven days from 3 May to 9 May.

Jump in outbound tourism 

In the past two years, tourists from Bangladesh could not travel to India by land. But, after the reopening of the land ports for passenger travels to and from both sides of the border in the first week of April this year, applications for visas have increased several times.

Every weekday, long lines of applicants are seen at the Indian visa application centres in different cities, including Dhaka.

According to the Bangladesh Outbound Tour Operators Association, more than five lakh people could visit India during the Eid holidays this time. Besides, many are expected to go to the Maldives, Thailand, Nepal, and Dubai.

According to a recent survey by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS), India is the top choice for Bangladeshis to travel abroad, followed by Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, and Thailand.

According to the survey, in the 2018-19 financial year, 29.21 lakh tourists went abroad from Bangladesh. Each tourist stayed abroad for an average of six days. Around 60% of the tourists visited India.