Desk Report:
Bangladesh’s only coral island, St. Martin, will be opened to tourists on November 1. According to the new rules, a maximum of 2,000 tourists will be allowed to visit the island every day. This was announced by Civil Aviation and Tourism Advisor Sheikh Bashiruddin at a press conference organized on the occasion of World Tourism Day at the Secretariat today, Thursday (September 25).
Advisor Bashiruddin said that St. Martin will be open to tourists from November to February. However, only daytime travel will be allowed in November and December. And in January and February, tourists will have the opportunity to stay on the island at night.
Bashiruddin also said that a special software has been launched to properly control the travel of tourists. Through this, registration-based travel approval will be given and tourist control will be ensured in coordination with ship transport.
Tourist travel to St. Martin was closed for 9 months by the decision of the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change. This decision was taken to protect biodiversity and prevent the adverse effects of overtourism. The island’s economy and tourism sector were brought to a standstill due to the closure of tourist ships at that time.
The tourism advisor said that the government is relaunching tourism activities by giving utmost importance to environmental conservation. On the one hand, this will benefit the local community, and on the other hand, a limited number of tourists will be able to visit the island and enjoy the beauty of nature.
