Sundarbans Safari Tour

• On Day – 1 upon arriving at Dhaka airport, after finishing with the immigration and collecting luggage when you come outside using the Green Channel Exit, you’ll find hotel staff and visitors waiting. Look for your guide there. He will be waiting there with a sign in your name, or with a placard with The Reality Escaper logo
• Sometimes the authority restrict visitors inside the airport temporarily. On that case, the guide will be waiting outside on Terminal – 2 (come using Exit – 2).
• For the domestic flight, our guide/driver will be waiting at the domestic terminal exit

• Hotels used on this tour are tourist standard hotels of mostly 2* and 3* standard, with standard facilities for the foreigners e.g. clean room, air-conditioning, hot water, western style toilet and complimentary breakfast
• Bangladesh is full of mosquito. You may find some on your hotels too. Hotels will normally spray aerosol at your room to keep them away. But if they don’t, give a call to the reception instead of spending a sleepless night. They will come and spray as many times as you need. You can also bring a mosquito spray or buy one upon arrival on the beginning of your trip, which will cost less than $5 US and will cover your whole trip
• Hotels in Bangladesh try to provide their best possible service to the foreigners. If there is an issue with your room on any of the hotels, simply let them know while you are there. They will try their best to resolve the issue
• You can book your hotels in Dhaka online to more upscale ones if you like. On that case, you need to arrange the transfers to and from the airport and railway station with your hotel. We’ll deduct the price on that case from the tour price. Please confirm during the time of booking, if you opt-in for this option
• The Reality Escaper reserves the rights to change any hotel listed in the itinerary to a similar standard one if the actual hotel is not available to book

• On Day – 1, the check-in time at Hotel XXX is 14.00 H. if you have an early morning flight, we can arrange an early check-in for an additional half day charge depending on availability
• We have set-aside Day-01 of the itinerary as an ‘arrival day’. For this reason and because tour participants are likely to be arriving at different times, and often from different countries, guided sightseeing or other activities are not included. If you are arriving early or before the start date of the tour and would like to organize some extra arrangements on a private basis, please contact us.
• Check-out time on the last day at hotel XXX is 12.00 H. If you have a late flight, we can arrange late check—out for an additional half day charge within 18.00 H, based on availability

• 1st class tickets of Rocket depends on availability. You might have to travel in the 2nd class if 1st class is not available. The only difference between 1st and 2nd class is located on the back side, and have no air-conditioning. Other facilities are the same. Passengers of the 2nd class can use all the facilities of 1st class, e.g. dining area, toilets, and the sitting area on the front side
• On Monday and Thursday, a traditional ferry comes in services instead of the paddle steamers. If you book for these days, you have to travel on the traditional ferry instead of a paddle wheel steamer
• If for some unexpected reason Rocket ticket is not available at all, we’ll take you up to Barisal by a traditional ferry (overnight part) and from Barisal to Hularhat on the Rocket (daytime journey part) or by car
• Even on the first class cabins of Rocket, sometimes air-conditioning might be broken. We will try to move you in a cabin with working air-conditioning if available. If there is not possible, The Reality Escaper will not have any responsibility regarding this, as this boat is not owned by us.
• There is no shower on the Rocket paddle steamers

• First class train tickets depending on availability. We will try our best to get first class for you. But if that is not possible, second class tickets will be provided, which is without air-conditioning.
• In case of travelling on the 2nd class of train, you’ll have a reserved seat
• It is common for the trains in Bangladesh to be 01-02 hours late. But no matter when they arrive, our drivers will always be waiting for you at the station to take you to your hotel

• We use car only while it is not possible to avoid, e.g, no train, boat, or flight. Roads in Bangladesh are broken and with heavy traffic. Be patient while traveling on car
• Distance mentioned in the itinerary is taken from Google Maps.
• Travel time mentioned in the itinerary is our best judgment. It could be delayed or earlier depending on traffic and road conditions

• Itinerary of Sundarbans Tour is just a general outline, and not fixed. It could be changed depending on the season, moon phase, tide, daylight hours and fog. But we’ll try to include all the activities mentioned in the itinerary as much as possible
• The boat is a very basic boat without air-conditioning, electricity, and running hot water (we will supply them on bucket). It has accommodation facilities for 8 people in max and one English toilet. But we have a larger boat too to arrange a tour for bigger groups.
• The cabins are lit by small lights running on battery. We’ll run the generator in the evening for a couple of hours every day to charge your devices.
• You will get mobile phone signal of GrameenPhone on the first half of day-01. In Kotka, a new mobile phone tower of Teletalk opened recently, so you’ll get full network coverage of only Teletalk in Kotka with 2G internet facilities which is very slow. No other SIM card will work inside other parts of the forest.
• For trekking in the forest on day-2, the land is flat and we will not go through a very dense forest, so it will be easy for most of the people, as long as you can walk about 10 kilometers. The trail is dry, not muddy. Bring covered shoes which is suitable for hiking and can protect you from small grass and trees with spikes.
• If you do not want to walk, you can remain on the boat which will be still enjoyable, as it will go from Kochikhali to Kotka through small canals, which will be a ride of about 03 hours.
• No binocular will be provided at Sundarbans. Bring your own.

Single supplement is applicable for the hotels only. You might not be provided separate cabins on Rocket and on the boat at Sundarbans, even if you pay for the single supplement, based on the availability

• Citizens of EU, USA, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, Russia, Japan, Singapore and some other Asian countries can get Visa on Arrival in Bangladesh, which is a pretty straight-forward process. Although there is a rule to take visa beforehand if you have a Bangladesh mission on the country where you are coming from, this rule is completely overlooked. They only check if you are a national of a country which is eligible for VOA, and directly issue the visa.
• Unless there is a long Queue for VOA, it will take just 10 minutes of your time to et VOA. Fee for most of the countries is $51 USD. You’ll not require any previous application or anything else to get the visa. We will provide you a reservation confirmation letter for the hotel in Dhaka and letter of invitation before your arrival. Present these on the immigration along with our trip document. They will be happy enough to provide you a VOA of maximum 30 days.
• Once you collect your visa, DO NOT GO BACK TO THE QUE AGAIN, rather proceed to the exit directly
• Check here for more information on visa on arrival for Bangladesh

• ATM Availability: Although Bangladesh has many ATMs, some of these do not accept foreign cards – your guide can give advice on which ATM’s to use but we do not advise relying on ATM’s alone for money.
• Credit and Debit Card Acceptance: Cards are generally only accepted in the more expensive shops and restaurants
• Local Currency: Taka
• Recommended Currency for Exchange: US Dollar
• Where to Exchange: There are a number of exchange houses in larger towns and cities. You can also exchange at Dhaka airport upon arrival, who provide good rates

• All the breakfasts, 03 lunches and 02 dinners are included on the trip. You need to pay for the rest of lunches and dinners during your trip. A meal on a decent local restaurant will cost about $2 - $5 US
• Options for vegetarian food on the local restaurants are very limited. You need to go to a more expensive Western restaurant to find good vegetarian food
• Options for food on the trains are very limited. Vegetarian food is non-existent. Bring your own food for the train if you are vegetarian, especially for the long ride to Dhaka from Khulna
• Vegetarian food will not be an issue on our boat at Sundarbans
• Tea and soft drinks are very cheap. Mineral water is widely available
• Bangladesh is a secular Muslim country, and whilst the people are very liberal and friendly, alcohol is not widely available. There are only a couple of hotels on the trip which has a bar, and even at these establishments, you cannot usually drink in the restaurant. Local beer, when available, costs approx. $3 - $4 USD for a 300ml can, and a measure of spirits is similarly priced. Wine is not available. It may sometimes be possible to purchase alcohol outside the hotels, but it is prohibited to consume in public places
• The easiest way to get alcohol in Bangladesh is purchasing from the duty-free shop at the airport. You are allowed to buy 2 bottles per person from there
• In Dhaka there are some wirehouses from where you can buy alcohol showing your foreign passport. But they only sell whole cartons of usually 24 bottles/cans

• Your luggage should not exceed 20kgs (44Ibs). One large suitcase/rucksack, and one small hand luggage/rucksack is acceptable

• You should bear in mind that Bangladesh tends to have a conservative attitude towards dress. Women, and also to certain extent men, will find that the way they dress will often determine the degree of respect they receive from both men and women
• Mosques, temples, churches and synagogue are places of worship and visitors should be modestly dressed. Admission might be denied to men and women wearing short pants/skirts, sleeves t-shirts/blouses. Bare shoulders and midriffs are not permitted and should be covered with shawls. You also need to remove shoes while entering one of these places
• It will not be appropriate inn Bangladesh for women to hide behind bushes for a pee. Any time you need to use a toilet, ask your guide. He will arrange a nearby toilet for you in someone’s house or in a public place

Generally electrical supply is 230V/50 Hz and plugs have two round prongs. Many places also have the English 3 pin sockets. Our advice is travel with a converter and an adapter to check the voltage locally

• Wi-Fi internet is widely available in Bangladesh. You’ll find free Wi-Fi on most of the hotels on this tour. Upscale restaurants will also have free Wi-Fi
• Mobile phone operators have 3G coverage on most of the places and 4G in few places in the country.

ONLY place to buy local SIM card for the foreigners would be at the arrival lounge inside the airport (International Arrivals) where you’ll meet your guide. You’ll find booths of all the mobile phone operators there. From them, you can buy a SIM card with talk time and data. Grameen Phone has the widest network coverage in the country. If you need a local SIM card, remember to buy from there during your arrival. It might be difficult to buy a local SIM card afterward

Tipping is common practice in Asia. In Bangladesh, most workers will expert a small tip, anything from 50 taka upwards depending on the service provided. At the end of the tour, if your principle guide, together with the driver and the boat crew have been helpful then you could think about tipping them. The amount can obviously be left to you

• Bangladesh is a third world country with poor infrastructure. Nothing works here perfectly and as planned. Organizing a long tour in Bangladesh may bring some inconvenience occasionally. Be patient and flexible while travelling Bangladesh
• While travelling on a group, be co-operative and tolerant with the interests and difficulties  of your co-travelers
• Your guide is not your enemy. He is with you to protect you and assist you in every way possible. In case of any issue with anything, simply let him know instead of trying to kill him. He will do his best is association with the whole The Reality Escaper team to resolve the issue
• Bangladesh is not for every regular tourist. Do enough research about Bangladesh, the tour, hotels on the tour and everything else possible before booking this tour, so that you do not have unrealistic expectations and end up disappointed after the tour