Historic Bengal Tour

TBD102: 10 Days Dhaka - Sonargaon - Comilla - Manikganj - Tangail - Sirajganj - Bogra - Rangpur - Paharpur - Rajshahi - Khulna - Bagerhat - Jessore - Dhaka
Tour Type: Private tour, with English-speaking guide & skilled driver
Departure: Daily departure all year round
Accommodation: Selected 4-star hotels

Highlights:
  • All-around Dhaka: historic sites & local life, with a boat ride by Sadarghat River.
  • Visualize the past glory of abandoned old capital Panam Nagar city at Sonargaon.
  • Witness Mahasthangarh, capital of an ancient kingdom over 2,000 years ago.
  • Visit pilgrimage sites: Comilla Buddhist ruins, Puthia, Paharpur Buddhist Vihara.
  • Look into Bangladesh’s Islamic culture by mosques like Sixty Dome Mosque.
This trip can be customized to meet your individual needs!
From USD1829USD1646Free Inquiry
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Day 1 Arrive in Dhaka; Pick Up from Airport
On arrival at Dhaka’s airport, be greeted by your local guide and then escorted to the hotel for check-in. Arrange the next hours of today by yourself.

Accommodation: Sky City Hotel Dhaka (4 stars) / FARS Hotel & Resorts (4 stars)
Day 2 Visit City Highlights & Traditional Marketplace
Dhaka, the bustling capital, is the starting point of your 10 days Bangladesh historic tour. Our first stop after breakfast is Kawranbazar Vegetable Market, the agricultural wholesale marketplace in Dhaka with a lively vibe found nowhere else. Next, stop by National Assembly (Parliament Building) to take pictures of its modernist architecture. We will then go to Dhaka University and spend a while learning about a little of history at Curzon Hall, the cradle of the country’s freedom. Afterwards, head for Lalbagh Fort, a palace built by a Mughal prince yet unfinished and considered haunted for the death of Pari Bibi, the daughter of Dhaka’s then governor, in 1684.

In a city as historic as Dhaka, of course we will also visit these sites: Dhakaswari Temple, the 800-year-old center of Hindu religion, Star Mosque, famous for the star patterns covering its domes, Armenian Church, the only relic left by the extinct Armenian community, and Ahsan Manzil, a boldly pink palace telling the country’s colonial history.

We will end today’s tour with a boat ride by Sadarghat River, where countless commutes and river trades take place. The ride will give us a different perspective to feel the exhilarating vibrancy onshore. Then, get back to the hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Sky City Hotel Dhaka (4 stars) / FARS Hotel & Resorts (4 stars)
Day 3 Same Day Trip to Sonargaon Historic Sites & Comilla Buddhist Ruins from Dhaka
After breakfast, we will drive for an hour to visit Panam Nagar city in Sonargaon. Although its prosperity was powered by the Hindu community and the textile industry has lost in a fire, remains of the past buildings, some aged 500 years old, still stand dignified for us to visualize its past glory. Here, visit Folklore Museum and Bara Sardar Bari, the latter a grand residential complex and a representative restored heritage site.

In the afternoon, drive again for around 1.5 hours to explore all the important Buddhist ruins at Mainamati of Comilla district. We will visit Shalbon Vihara, the greatest of all, and other distinctive ones like Kotila Mura, Itakhola Mura & Rupban Mura. The Vihara was constructed in the 8th century and a popular place of worship until 12th century. Now, you can see a ground plan of 115 cells and a temple in the center, with fascinating sculptural art on terracotta walls to appreciate. Most excavated relics are now stored in a museum nearby. We will drive back to Dhaka after visiting the World War II Cemetery in Comilla. Overnight in Dhaka.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Sky City Hotel Dhaka (4 stars) / FARS Hotel & Resorts (4 stars)
Day 4 Dhaka - Manikganj - Tangail - Sirajganj - Bogra
Today, we are going to visit some historical sites on the way to Bogra. First, after about 2 hours’ driving, we will arrive in Manikganj to visit the Baliati Zaminder Palace, a monumental white palace complex founded by a wealthy salt merchant during the 19th century. Later, continue to drive for around 1.5 hours to Tangail for Mohera Zamindar Bari, a magnificent palace once housing local landlords and now the Police Training Center, as well as the 400-year-old Atiya Mosque.

After crossing the longest bridge Jamuna Bridge in Bangladesh, we will arrive in Sirajganj. Head for Navaratna Temple. Though its nine minarets were destroyed in history, its famous ornately-carved terracotta walls are still a feast for your eyes. Followed will be a visit to Kherua Mosque, a three-domed Mughal construction of the 16th century. Then, keep moving forward to Bogra and stay one night there.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Hotel Naz Garden Bogra (4 stars)
Day 5 Bogra: Ancient City Mahasthangarh; Drive to Rangpur
After breakfast, go for a 30-minute drive to Mahasthangarh, the capital of the ancient Pundra kingdom with a history dating back 2,300 years. Before going back in time, we will first spend some time enjoying the present by experiencing local life in a vegetable market. Then, go on to explore the historical ruins left by Pundra ancestors and wildly imagine the past glory they suggest.

Next, drive for about 4 hours and visit the Kantajew Temple. Built in the early 1700s by the local royal family, it once had nine spires on the top and exhibits sophisticated terracotta art, just as the Navaratna Temple you’ve visited. After that, continue with a 1.5-hour drive to Rangpur for the night stay.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Hotel Grand Palace Rangpur (4 stars)
Day 6 Rangpur: Visit Tajhat Palace; Drive to Rajshahi
Head to Tajhat Palace after breakfast. White, structurally similar to the pink palace you’ve witnessed, it was constructed in the 19th century by a Hindu jeweler who later became the local landlord. We will then drive for 3-plus hours to Sompura Mahavihara or Paharpur Buddhist Vihara. The Vihara, or the Buddhist monastery, was once the largest of its genre to the south of the Himalayas, serving as a Buddhist center for followers from neighboring countries, China and even Indonesia included, from the 9th to 12th century. No wonder it’s so important an archaeological site that was honored as a UNSECO World Heritage site.

Next, we will drive for 1.5 hours to Rajshahi with stops by Kushumba Mosque, a rare stone type and which you might’ve seen on a five taka note, and a “paan” (betel leaf) garden, from which farmers contribute to the emerging market of the cash crop. Overnight in Rajshahi.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Royal Raj Hotel (4 stars) / Hotel X Rajshahi (4 stars)
Day 7 Rajshahi City Sightseeing: Chapai Nawabganj, Choto Sona Masjid
Today will see us spending most of our time visiting mosques in the Rajshahi area. First, we will drive for around 1.5 hours to Chapai Nawabganj to visit some of the old mosques scattering across the district. Then drive for one hour to Choto Sona Masjid, a representative Sultanate mosque in the city of Gaur. It’s a pity 500 years of weathering has reduced the gold cover of the exterior to a copper appearance. Next, we are going to visit Darasbari Mosque and Khania Dighi Mosque, both of a same age as the Choto Sona.

After lunch, we will head downtown and take a stroll at some markets to appreciate locally-made silk goods. We should keep in mind that Rajshahi, the “City of Silk”, played a central role in the country’s silk industry. After dinner, take a relaxing walk around Bank of Padma riverside area. Sleep in Rajshahi.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Royal Raj Hotel (4 stars) / Hotel X Rajshahi (4 stars)
Day 8 Drive to Puthia and Visit the Temple Complex; Train Journey from Rajshahi to Khulna
After breakfast, we will drive to Puthia and arrive in 50 minutes. Puthia, the Temple City, owns the biggest group of Hindu temples in Bengal, built one after another since the late 1500s by the local royal family or the landlord. Shiva Temple, the largest of its kind in the country, will wait for us to appreciate its grand architecture and the stories carved on terracotta walls. Varendra Research Museum, the oldest in Bangladesh, is our next stop. Exquisite Buddhist sculptures and statues are featured here.

After lunch, your guide will escort you to take a train bound for Khulna, from 2:00 pm to 8:30 pm. On arrival, check into the hotel.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: City Inn Hotel Khulna (4 stars) / Tiger Garden International Hotel (4 Stars)
Day 9 Visit Mosque City of Bagerhat; Fly to Dhaka from Jessore
This morning, reach Bagerhat after a 1.5-hour drive. The first stop of our today’s agenda is Sixty Dome Mosque. As Bangladesh’s grandest mosque since the Sultanate era (1204-1576), its stunning sixty-domed brick architecture and cultural connotations have made it a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We will also pay a visit to Shrine of Khan Jahan Ali and the adjoining Nine Dome Mosque, both frequently visited in memory of the great Muslim preacher of Khan Jahan Ali (1380-1459).

After lunch, drive to Jessore to visit Chachra Shiva Temple and Collectorate Building, all landmarks of the city. Then, go for a flight from Jessore to Dhaka and check into a hotel close to the airport.

Meals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Accommodation: Marino Royal Hotel Dhaka (4 stars)
Day 10 See Off at Dhaka Airport
After breakfast, we will transfer you to the airport for your flight home. Hope you’ve had a great time with us. Bon voyage!

Meals: Breakfast
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This trip can be customized to meet your individual needs!
Tour Prices
2024 & 2025 Special: 10% off - Book before Apr 30, 2024
Travelers2-3 travelers4-5 travelers
Year RoundUSD1979 USD1781USD1829 USD1646
  • Prices are per person on twin sharing basis.
  • The prices in red reflect 10% discount.
Price Includes
  • Hotel accommodation with daily breakfast.
  • Domestic air and train as per itinerary.
  • Entrance fees for mentioned sights visited.
  • English-speaking guide service for the entire trip.
  • Service of private driver with A/C vehicle.
  • Meals as mentioned in the itinerary.
Price Excludes
  • International flight into and out of Bangladesh.
  • Personal expenses and tips to guide/drivers.
  • Personal travel insurance.
  • Bangladesh Visa fee.
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