Saint Martins Island – The Coral Island of Bangladesh

Saint Martins Island (Narical Gingira) – The Coral Island of Bangladesh

Saint Martins Island, Bangladesh Video

St. Martin's Island is a small island in the northeastern part of the Bay of Bengal, about 9 km south of the angle of the Cox's Bazar-Teknaf peninsula, and forming the southernmost part of Bangladesh. It is about 8 km west of the northwest coast of Myanmar, at the mouth of the Naf River. Local name of the island is "Narical Gingira", also spelled "Narikel Jinjira/Jinjera", that  means 'Coconut Island' in Bengali. It is the only one coral island in Bangladesh.
St Martin’s Island is perfect for tourist who is truly interested in escaping the holds of a modern world. Do not expect to find taxis, tarred roads or electricity here. Lodges are dependent on generators, as the island is all about sun, sea and palm trees. During the day, the island comes alive with water and beach sports, with beach parties and bonfires lighting up the evening skies. For the use of a phone or a reminder of what a television set looks like, visitors can pop down to the Coast Guard station.
It's possible to walk around the island in a day because it measures only 8 km2 (3 sq. mile), shrinking to about 5 km2 (2 sq. mi) during high tide. The island exists only because of its coral base, so removal of that coral risks erosion of the beaches. Sadly, St. Martin's has lost roughly 25% of its coral reef in the past 7 years.
St. Martin's Island has become a popular tourist place. Currently, some (about 5 in number) shipping liners run daily trips to the island, including Sea-Truck and Keary-Sindbad. Tourists can book their trip either from Chittagong or from Cox's Bazar. The surrounding coral reef of the island has an extension named Chera Dwip.
Attractions at St. Martin's Island:

• Sunrise & Sunset
• Sandy Beach
• Coral
• Moonlit Night
• Engine Boat or Speed Boat Tour around Island
• Walking Through Island
• Scuba Diving

Mobile Phone Network
There’s no landline in the island. But there is mobile phone network there. All the mobile operators have constructed their network in the island. So you can communicate with the world and even you can browse through internet from your mobile phone.

How to Go St. Martin's Island:

• You need to fly or take a direct bus down to Cox's Bazar, and then take a bus to Teknaf, which is the most southern thana of Bangladesh, beside the Myanmar border.
• You can also take the rail to Chittagong and catch a bus to Teknaf via Cox’s bazaar. In this way of transport may cost a little less from the first two mode of transportation. But it may take an hour or two longer to reach Teknaf.
• Sea trucks leaves Teknaf every morning at 9.00 am, and return from St. Martin island in the same day at 3.00 pm.