Do islands, villages, and boats sound exciting to you? Then Sundarbans is the right place for you to visit! There are 102 islands in the Sundarbans, out of which 54 of them are inhabited by people. The people here are very homely, welcoming, and friendly, and their local homemade food is delicious!
– Take a train from Sealdah station to Canning (Trains are available every hour);
– Reach canning in 3 hours;
– Take a bus and reach Gadkhali, walk to the Ferry Ghat, and take a Boat to Gosaba;
– By evening, you will be in Gosaba, the nearest island of Sundarbans;
– Take rest for the day.
– Wake up early in the morning and walk towards the ghat, watch the sea level rise;
– Visit the national park.
– Back to Bangalore by taking an evening flight following the same route.
Spend some time in Kolkata if you would like to.
It takes about 4 hours to reach the beautiful Gosaba from Kolkata, the city of joy. You can take a train from Sealdah to Canning and then a bus to Gadkhali or book a taxi directly to Gadkhali. The cab charges Rs 12/km which will cost an estimated amount of INR 3800 approx.
We stayed at Gateway Resort, which had a beautiful view. The price of rooms here starts from INR 3000, with one large bed and one single bed, which is reasonable for 3 people.
The food here is pretty cheap in the local shops. Any vegetable curry or egg curry and 4 chapatis will cost less than INR 80.
The food here is similar to Bengali cuisine. Sundarban is famous for its Seafood, especially Fish. Tiger Prawn Curry, Crab Curry, Hilsa Fish Curry are the popular dishes you can try here. It is also known for its special local sweets, so make sure you eat them!
In the evening, walk a kilometre from the resort to the Ferry Ghat to enjoy the fresh air. The Ferry Ghats are amazing here. Be careful of the street dogs here at night.
Experience the mesmerizing early sunrise and water level which rises to the ferry ghat platform. Spend around an hour here. Roam around the village a bit and you will find shell spots. Pick a few and use them for decorating your home.
The day starts with a boat journey of 15 minutes to The Sundarbans National Park where you can see the majestic and dangerous red coloured Bengal Tigers. However, the forest is protected using the net around it so that the locals aren’t attacked.
Note:- Please take permission from the Forest Department before going to the National Forest.
Sundarbans is also known for its natural honey that is extracted from the forests. This honey is the purest form of honey available in the market.
Experience the jungle of Sundarbans where you can hear several animal voices, smell the seawater, and relish the lush greenery around.
After you’ve done soaking in the beauty of Sundarbans, pack your bags and take the same route back to Bangalore. Say goodbye to this mesmerising place and depart with amazing everlasting memories!
Due to cyclones and the pandemic, the economy of the local people has entered a recession. Few NGOs are trying to bring their life back to normalcy. Two such NGOs who were helping the residents were Jhatkaa.org and the Kolkata Society of Culture and Heritage.
Sundarbans might also be affected due to climate change in the coming years. Climate Central’s 2019 report projected that the Sundarbans will be completely flooded by 2050, displacing millions. Support the people of Sundarbans by planting Mangroves which is one of the ways that will help stabilize the sea level water. It is also one of the best ways to give back to the place that gave you wonderful memories.
This article was originally written by Chiku Agarwal and the information is trusted. Find him on Instagram!
