Kuakata Bustles with Puja Holiday and Beach Carnival, 300,000 Tourists Expected in Two Days

The Kuakata beach resort in Patuakhali has come alive with tourists during the long Durga Puja holiday. Added to that is the colourful Beach Carnival organised by the Tourism Corporation on 23 and 24 October. Hotels, motels and resorts are already full; altogether, Kuakata now wears a festive look.

Tourist spots including the confluence of three rivers, Lembur Char forest, the dried-fish village, the jhau groves, Gangamati, the two-hundred-year-old shipwreck and the red crab beach are all drawing extra crowds.

Visitors are revelling at the beach's Zero Point, splashing in the sea. Some sit on the beach benches enjoying the natural beauty, while others stroll hand in hand with loved ones from one end of the beach to the other.

There is also the rare attraction of watching both sunrise and sunset over the horizon from the same beach. A giant digital LED screen has been installed at Zero Point, showing stills and videos of Kuakata's most attractive spots.

Kuakata's appeal is not limited to the sea beach. The heritage of the Rakhine community, local culture and food add a different dimension to visitors' trips. Tourist footfall has also increased in the Rakhine neighbourhoods and Mishripara areas.

The Rakhine market, Rakhine-made products, shell and pickle sellers and local food shops have all prepared in hopes of extra sales. Tourists do not only boost hotel and resort business; they also create livelihood opportunities for small shopkeepers, transport workers, food vendors and local guides. So expectations around the Puja holiday and the carnival run high among small local entrepreneurs as well as big businesses.

Anticipating a possible record number of tourists from 20 to 24 October, hotels, motels, resorts, restaurants and local businesses in Kuakata prepared in advance. Around three hundred hotels there can accommodate roughly 50,000 people.

To handle the extra pressure of tourists, families in about 600 homes in five nearby villages are also ready, it is reported. Importance is being given to ensuring guests can stay in comfort.

Those concerned have taken necessary measures to ensure tourists' safety and quality service. Large numbers of district police, thana police, river police, SRB and tourist police have been deployed for visitors' overall security.

Organisers expect that around 300,000 tourists may come to Kuakata over the two carnival days starting 22 October. That single figure shows the scale of the event that the holiday and the carnival together have created.

Kuakata is thus buzzing with extra life around the Durga Puja holiday and the tourism carnival. The beach, the markets and nearby sights are thronged with visitors — and the local economy is feeling that festive touch as well.