Kuakata
Kuakata is at the southernmost tip of Bangladesh.
Locally known as Sagar Kannya (Daughter of the Sea), Kuakata is a picturesque coastal strand about 30 km in length and 6 km in breadth. Derived from the Bengali word 'Kua' for "well" in association with a well that was dug by early Rakhine settlers on the seashore in their quest to find drinking water after being expelled from Arakan (Myanmar) by the Mughals in 1784, today it is home to Hindu and Buddhist communities. Kuakata holds a myriad of elements from sandy beach and forest to sea and sky, and is known for some outstanding sunrises and sunsets over the Bay of Bengal.
Get in
There exists roads between Dhaka and Patuakhali district headquarters. Accessible by road, water or air transport up to Barisal. Then one may travel by road or water to Kuakata or Patuakhali.
Getting in Kuakata is a 2 phase journey. first one is from Dhaka to Barishal. There are launch & bus service available for this journey. The 2nd phase is to travel from Barishal to Kuakata. There are some bus service available in the Barishal Launch Port. These buses render daily trip to Kuakata. This trip takes about 5-6 hours due to bad road condition. In this 2nd phase trip there are 5 Ferries.
See
Buddhist temples, tribal villages of Rakhain along with their lifestyle and handicrafts at Rakhain Market, and sunrises and sunsets are some things to behold in Kuakata, along with the beach, naturally. Also, you're likely to see multitudes of small lobsters running all over the beach if you go in the early morning. Some other localities of note: Coconut Forest, Jhau Forest, Gongamati Reserved Forest (an evergreen mangrove forest, ancient wells, Ganga Motir Char, Labu Bagan/Lebur Chor, Kakrar Chor.
There are some sites that may be visited in Kuakata.
- Sunrise & Sunset point on the beach.
- Jhaubon, alongside the beach.
- Lemur Char, accessible by Motorcycle & Zip-car.
- Fatrar Dip, accessible by Boat & Trawler.
- Misripara - Rakhain Village. It contains a Buddhist Temple which has a statue of Buddha of about 30 feet high, claimed to be the highest in Bangladesh. The road to this village is not good. Motorcycle is the only good choice of transport to visit here.
- Rakhain Market near the beach, with a bronze Buddha.
Do
Try renting a bike or taking a boat ride, or listening to Baul songs at the beach.
Sleep
- Hotel Banani Palace. Located close to the beach, with nice views of sunrise and sunset. Rooms and bathrooms are modern. Tk 800-2500.
Other recommended hotels include "Hotel Kuakata Inn", "Hotel Grevar Inn", "Hotel Sea Palace", "Hotel Al-Hera", "Sagor Konna", "Anondo Bari".