Visiting St Martin’s Island in 2021

St Martin's Island, a popular tourist destination of Bangladesh, is the perfect spot for people who love an abundance of the sun, sea, and sand. People living on the island claim that a day tour is never enough to appreciate the true beauty of the land; one must stay the night or more to fully appreciate the exquisiteness.

Bards, poets and novelists swear by a night of full moon on the majestic island. With the waves crashing and the silver rays of the lustrous moon shining over one's tresses, there's not many words that can explain the grandeur of the beauty.

The cruise ships leave for St Martin's island from Teknaf. So, if the visitors are staying at Cox's Bazaar, they need to drive to Teknaf really early in the morning. Locals usually use the trawler and the big ships a.k.a. the cruise ships, are especially meant for the tourists. We would definitely recommend the latter for travel. 

The weather is usually sunny, with the sea calm because in any other circumstance the cruise ship will refuse to leave the dock. You can take lots of selfies with friends and family while on the ship and beauty of the surroundings will only add on to the glamour of the photo.

There are quite a few comfortable hotels near the jetty, where you can opt for the perfect night-stay. The food on the island is fantastic and a fest for sea food lovers. Late afternoons are suggested for beach hopping --- we do suggest that a tourist never miss the sunset on St Martin's Island. It's the prime time to connect with the islet itself, its natives and the beauty that it manifests.

Day 2 can be reserved for hours at Chera Dwip. The island is detached from St Martins and can be walked over to if needed. The beauty of Chera Dwip is in the remoteness, the feelings of detachment from the rest of the world. Because sitting on a thousand-year-old coral stone and sipping tea with friends in quite inexplicable.

With stars blinking from the heavens, aroma of a fresh barbeque, music playing under the moonlight and waves crashing gently onto flowing skirts – this is simply a place to be. A place where one's troubles can be let loose and drowned along the sea.

Photo: Raisul Islam Bappy