Dhaka Travel Mart 2015, a three-day international tourism fair, kicked off at Sonargaon Hotel in the city yesterday.
Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon inaugurated the 12th edition of the event which has been being organised since 2002.
Fifty organisations including airlines, national tourism boards, hotels, resorts, tour operators and travel agents from home and abroad are taking part in the Tarvel Mart.
The participants are making discount offers and packages to attract visitors with the presentations of popular and exotic travel destinations in Bangladesh and other countries.
Bangladesh Monitor, a travel publication, is organising the fair.
Offers are being made for the visits to Sundarbans, Rangamati, Sylhet, Cox’s Bazar, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Nepal, Indonesia, India, Sri lanka and Bhutan.
Offers for the visits to the European tourist destinations like Switzerland and Paris are also available.
Rashed Khan Menon said Bangladesh is rich not only in historical and archeological sites but also in natural attractions like Sundarbans, the world’s biggest mangrove forest, and Cox’s Bazar, the gloablly largest sandy beach.
He hoped the increasing number of tourists in Bangladesh would generate jobs for the unemployed youths.
The inaugural function was also addressed by Bangladesh Monitor editor and chairman of the DTM-2015 organising committee Kazi Wahidul Alam, CEO of Bangladesh Tourism Board Akhteruz Zaman Khan Kabir, CEO and managing director of Biman Bangladesh Airlines Kyle Haywood and chairman of Bangladesh Parjatan Corporation Apurup Chowdhury.
The fair will remain open from 10am to 8pm everyday for the visitors. The entry fee is Tk25.
