Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation has launched a tour package for the people in Dhaka to go on a half-day-long tour to the Padma Bridge. The initiative will begin today (Friday).
For Tk 999 per person, the Parjatan Corporation will take tourists from Dhaka to the Padma Bridge and back to the capital in six hours. The package will run two days a week – Friday and Saturday.
Two air conditioned tourist coasters, with 29 seats each, will start the journey from the Parjatan Bhaban in Agargaon at 4:00pm and will return to Dhaka by 10:00pm.
The coasters will cross the Padma Bridge and go till the Bhanga point in Faridpur. There the coasters will make a two-hour stop, some light refreshments and snacks will be served to the tourists and they will be free to roam around and take in the scenery. Then, the coasters will start for the journey back to Dhaka.
The corporation said, initially they will run this package for two days a week but are willing to extend it to other days of the week if there is a demand from the tourists.
Since the Padma Bridge’s inauguration on 25 June, people from the capital have been flocking to the bridge during holidays. A large majority of the visitors are crossing the bridge and are also visiting the Dhaka-Bhanga expressway. Seeing the interest from tourists, the Parjatan Corporation has started this package.
The corporation has offered a 50 per cent discount for the opening day of the package. After that, the discount will be reduced to 40 per cent and the tourists will have to spend Tk 1,200 each for the tour.
The tourists can pay for the tour in person or through BKash. Children aged below five can travel for free.
The package, named ‘Swapner Padma Shetu Bhromon’, will be officially inaugurated by state minister for civil aviation and tourism Mahbub Ali.
Parjatan Corporation deputy manager Sheikh Mehdi Hasan told Prothom Alo, “Through Padma Bridge, new doors have opened in the tourism sector of the southern region. With that in mind, we have announced the first ever tour package to Padma Bridge. We have received a good response from the tourists. If the tourists want, we will continue running this package.”