Cox's Bazar tourism hard hit by political unrest

Ongoing political unrest, is taking a toll on the business of the country's prime tourist town, Cox's Bazar.

Many people willing to come to the tourist spot have apparently shelved their plan for now, leading to a notable fall in the earnings of tour operators, hotels and motels.

People related to tourism said that the time between October and March is considered as the tourist season. During this time thousands of tourists come to Cox's Bazar on special holidays, including weekends. But there exists a poor inflow of tourists due to the continuous disruptive political programmes, including blockades.

During a visit to the Cox's Bazar beach and other tourist centres last weekend, this scribe found a very small number of tourists. Hotels, motels, guest houses, restaurants and shops were almost empty.

Shamsul Alam, an oyster trader on the beach, said that there were no tourists in Cox's Bazar even in the peak season of tourism. Their daily earnings during normal time are around 3-4 thousand taka.

"But now it is not possible to earn more than 500 taka. If the situation continues like this, my family will have to go without food," he said.

Easybike driver Rafiq Uddin said he hardly finds tourists these days. As a result, it is becoming difficult to run the household expenses. Due to crisis of passengers, many vehicles have stopped plying, he said.

Restaurant businessman Aminul Islam Mukul said that tourists are not coming to Cox's Bazar due to political situation.

President of Cox's Bazar Hotel-Restaurant Owners Association Naemul Haque Chowdhury Tutul said, there are at least 1,200 hotels and restaurants in Cox's Bazar. Most restaurants are dependent on tourists. Some eateries have been forced to close down due to the lack of tourists.