St Martin's Island to reopen to tourists from Nov 1

The government will reopen St Martin's Island to tourists for four months, starting from November 1, on a limited scale, Civil Aviation and Tourism Secretary Nasreen Jahan said today.

The reopening is being planned in coordination with the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change to ensure environmental protection of the area, she said at a press conference marking World Tourism Day at the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism.

According to the plan, she said only 2,000 tourists per day will be allowed on the island.

In the first two months, only day tours will be permitted, and from January, tourists will be allowed to stay overnight.

A software has been developed to manage the flow of visitors, and integration with the shipping industry is currently in progress, she added.

Highlighting the positive impacts of the restrictions enforced over the past year, the secretary said St Martin's is a national asset and people will see significant signs of coral regeneration.

Tourism Adviser Sk Bashir Uddin clarified that the new code of conduct is not limited to St Martin's alone but will apply to all tourist destinations across Bangladesh.

He added that the government's priority is to make tourism in the country family-friendly, affordable, safe, and enjoyable, with a particular focus on domestic travellers.

Regarding visa and security issues of foreign tourists, Bashir Uddin said that while visa processes are not a major concern, issues such as logistics and infrastructure still pose challenges.

Nasreen Jahan also said the Immigration Department reported over 600,000 foreign visitors came to Bangladesh in 2024 for a variety of reasons.

The government, in collaboration with the Tourism Board and the Statistics Bureau, is working to launch a Tourism Data Satellite System to provide accurate and real-time data in future, she said.