Monday, 30 November 2015

Cox's Bazar MBA Term paper Dhaka University




Cox’s Bazar A destination for future
A descriptive analysis submitted to the purpose of “Destination & Facilities Management (ETHM-5001)”

10th April 2015
University of Dhaka

Abstract

The study is descriptive in nature. The main purpose of this assignment is to find out the importance factors while tourists’ choosing Cox’s Bazaar Sea beach as a tourist destination. The study revealed that tourists assign great importance to natural attraction with enjoying sea waves and sunset view of the beach. Tourists’ importance ranges also expanded with medium class accommodation facility, safety and security, sanitation and cleaning, caring and waste disposal facility and emergency service. Tourists also give more importance on amenities, accessibilities and activities than other factors while they wish to visit Cox’s Bazar sea beach.

 So, the tourism managers and marketers should provide up to mark services with these factors. This finding can be useful to the policy makers and marketers of sea beach tourism at Cox’s bazar in formulating strategies to attract, maintain and retain more tourists or enhance their competitiveness.





1.0 Introduction
Tourism Destination Management to develop tourism industry has a key impact on economic growth in developing countries. Globally, tourism is the only sector which is growing very fast. So to gain the maximum benefit from tourism sector, there should be some good strategies developed to survive in competition in this competitive area. Now a days traditional patterns of travelling, long holidays are being replaced with more frequent and shorter length stay. Activities have also been modified in greater extent. People now travel not only for the sake of pleasure but also to learn something new and to watch something exceptional and exciting. Again individuality has increased rather than mass standardization of products.

Now tourists are more conscious about security, safety, environmental issues, and quality of services, available information and expenses rather than visiting a place without proper prior information. Distance is no more a big obstacle to visit a place while available information and branding of the destination is more important.
Bangladesh, a south Asian country crisscrossed with great streaming rivers, is indeed a land of green and natural beauty. Despite having lots of potentialities, the tourism industry of this country is growing very slowly. Forty years have has passed of Bangladesh’s tourism industry, but still its tourism is in a nascent position compared to its neighboring countries. At present Bangladesh is not known as a tourist destination in the international market. The number of tourist’s arrival in Bangladesh is very low and tourism growth is very slow. In 2010 only 300,000 tourists came to Bangladesh. Among them more than 70% came for business and official purposes. The contribution of tourism in country’s total economy is less than 1%. Though, tourism as an industry got recognition in Bangladesh in 1999, it never got so much attention by the government to become a vibrant sector. Many countries like Maldives, Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia and Lao PRD who stated to develop their tourism sector later than Bangladesh has developed much faster than Bangladesh. For example, in 1998 Bangladesh received 171,961 international tourists whereas Cambodia received only 96,000 tourists. But after 11 years, within a same span of time, Cambodia developed its tourism sector in such a level that it could attract more than 2 million tourists whereas Bangladesh attracted only 267,000 tourists. It indicates that there were not enough steps by Bangladesh government to raise its tourism sector and to compete with others. Bangladesh lags behind in project to market its own tourist’s attractions through advertisement and electronic media which its neighboring countries do.
As Bangladesh is not known as tourism brand in international market, first it needs to work to rebuild its tourism sector to introduce it as a tourism brand in the international market. Because branding in tourism not only attract tourists but also attract international investors to invest money. (Newage, 2012.)

To make a tourism brand appropriate; infrastructure development, proper management and marketing is essential. Even Cox’s Bazar which is the longest unbroken sea beach in the world and known as the tourists’ capital in Bangladesh has grown in an unplanned and uncontrolled way. Appropriate regulation is absent there. There is no easy communication system to this tourist destination and not enough steps to discover its hidden beauty to domestic and international tourists. While the most important foreign revenue earning sectors in Bangladesh like RMG (readymade garments product), shrimp and jute are facing huge competition in the global market, tourism can be an effective tool to earn foreign remittance and develop the country. No other sector except garments can create so many jobs opportunity as tourism can do. The effect of tourism development starts from grassroots level and helps to reduce poverty and overall development of the country very rapidly. (Newage, 2012.)
In Bangladesh, overall some 40% tourists come from Asian countries, mainly from China, followed by India, Thailand, Singapore and other 20% come from Europe, mainly from France and Italy and 10% from North America. So, we can see that the tourist arrivals in Bangladesh from other continents and from many different countries are minor.






2.0 Tourism and Hospitality Management
Tourism is complex, perhaps the most complex term of social science which discusses human behavior, social phenomenon, and economic change policy field and so on. It can bring a big change in the society by creating job opportunities very fast or can destroy them in the other way. It brings people in the same platform or can divide them into many groups. (Smith 2010,1.) To understand tourism and its activities, studying tourism is a must. Hence, the goal of this chapter is to review some important terms of tourism which are closely related to this research work. These literatures will help to understand the research work theoretically and to implement them practically.
2.1 Tourism destination management
A tourist destination is a place which is very often visited by many domestic and international tourists. It can be a city, town, historical place, sea beach, mountain, an amusement park, museum or some kinds of religiously important place. A tourism destination may contain one or more tourist attractions and sometimes some tourist traps. For many reasons, a place can be very important to domestic and international tourists. These can be natural tourist attractions like forest, river, big waterfall, hill or lake. Again, people can make an ordinary place into an important tourist destination by their own effort like making amusement park, statue, big hotels or by making a new city or town. Tourists have different choices and that is why different tourists choose different kinds of tourist destinations. Like a simple place can be the most important and illusive place to someone who love sports if any big sports event is arranged in that place. (Yeoman 2008, 4-13.)
Destinations are places with some form of actual or perceived boundary, such as the physical boundary of a blend, political boundaries or even market created boundaries. The desire to become a recognized destination presents difficult marketing challenges. The most visible benefit of tourism are employment in hotels, restaurants, retail establishment and transportation, and the second benefit consist of supporting industries and professions and finally is the multiple effect as tourists’ expenditures are recycled through the local economy. Tourism also helps to shift the tax burden to non-residents of a place. It also creates or stimulates exports of local products such as handicraft, looms, food and showpieces. Many tourist destinations also find government supported market areas for the sale of locally produced handicrafts. Destinations may not welcome tourists unfortunately because of the location, climate, limited resources, size and cultural heritage. “Some places have few economic choices other than to participate in tourism” (Kotler, Bowen &Makens 2010, 750-752.)
Destinations that fail to maintain the necessary infrastructure or build inappropriate infrastructure face significant risks. A destination’s attractiveness can be diminished by violence, political instability, natural catastrophe, and adverse environmental factors and overcrowding. So destination marketing is an important part of developing and retaining a particular location’s popularity. Tourism marketing is called service marketing. Services industry varies greatly and service marketing has some specific criteria than others commercial product marketing. Government offer service through employment services, hospitals, police and fire departments. Many non- profit organizations also offer services through social work, healthcare, charity etc. Business organizations offer services by different organizations like airlines, banks, hotels, insurance companies and others. (Kotler & Armstrong 2010, 244).
The hospitality and travel industry is just one part of the service industries. But in service sector, hospitality and travel industry cannot grow so quickly as others service sectors. Most of the times, the marketing of tourism products are done by the manufacturer and the seller has less control over the product. Moreover, the hospitality and travel industries are complexes in nature and it is dominated or controlled by small businesses like restaurants, motels, resorts, travel agencies etc. Again, for the lack of training, it is very difficult for the service industry to find the right person for the right place. (Morrison 2009, 30-31.)
2.2 Tourism marketing
At present tourism is being a very competitive business. Now the customers’ demand to a service provider is more than before. Only providing the basic things and service is not enough because someone will provide something extra. So, tour operators are conscious about some additional factors like comfort, safety, entertainment and environmental issues along with the services available to them. On the other hand, customers expect something more than usual. They always look for the service which is better in cheap price. They have lot of options to choose and the best one will get the preference. Hence, the term hospitality marketing appears.
Hospitality is described and measured by the amount of care, handling to detail towards an excellent reception to your customers who are the tourists. However, everyone does not want the same kind of package being offered by the service provider and it creates the environment for market segments in hospitality marketing. These categories are budget, mid-market and luxury. With the changing environment in the business world there will always be high and low points in the tourism industry capacity and this affects the acceptable volume and value. This is hospitality marketing capacity which includes organizations that offer star rating classification for hotels and restaurants, intention of travel to the choice of destination, emerging markets that offer different experiences. (Bowie &Buttle 2004, 4-10.)
It is always nice to have a preplanned holiday trip to an unknown place. When tourists plan for a trip, they look for available information, services and facilities, tour operators, things to see and do, safety and security, accommodation and transportation and others necessary information about the location from different sources. Internet is the mostly used media for getting information in this modern age. Besides surfing on internet, people also visit travel agents, tour operator and other organizations to get reliable and realistic information. Here stands the term of tourism marketing. All these above tools which are used for the publicity of tourism destinations are known as tourism marketing. (Weiermair&Mathies 2004, 97-100.)
To be successful in tourism marketing, it is highly important to meet the demands of tourists. Firstly to attract the travelers to a certain destination and then providing necessary information, available services and information about what the resort, city, state or region has to offer in an appealing and honest manner. Again it is important to highlight the destination in a demanding way. It is not wise to describe a location with too lofty promises or painting an unrealistic picture for the tourists whom might fails to meet the expectations of the tourists. This will lead to a negative impression to the destination.
2.3 Tourism Marketing Promotion
Advertising is the best way for initial publicity of tourist attractions. Advertising is defined as any paid marketing activity which motivates potential customers to take the goods and services. Advertising is precisely timed for general public. The result of advertising may be short term or long term and it is very difficult to get feedback from the customers instantly. This promotion tools is used to generate publicity and it gives basic idea of goods and services. (Belch 2004, 13-16.) There are many different advertising methods that organizations can choose according to their needs and demands. These methods are printed media, broadcasting media and online. Printed Medias are magazine, newspaper, journal, billboard etc. These are used mainly for faster marketing and to give a quick message to the people. Printed media are sometime more expensive than online marketing. It is mainly used for local and domestic marketing.
Broadcasting marketing tools are advertisement on TV and radio. It is very expensive way of marketing. But the advantages of these methods are; it can cover large area at the same time, audience can depend on the source of information and it gives a brief idea about the whole package which might increase the interest to the listeners. Some tour operators who telecast their own television shows about traveling to different destinations around the world, while participating in activities, events that are integrated in the cultures of the people living in the area. This generates large following and the audience can rely on information provided by the companies to travel to such destinations.
Electronic media are websites, emails, YouTube, Facebook etc. These kinds of marketing tools are used highly in this modern age. These are also some effective ways of international marketing. These marketing methods do not have any border limit. Sometimes these are the cheapest way of marketing goods and services. Again customers can get all information like price, facilities, opening time, contract information, and recent activities of the company and history of the company very easily through those links. Customers can mail to the service provider for any information if they needed. (Sweeney 2008, 3-10.)
2.3.1 Branding in Tourism
Before we know branding, we must know what is brand and also the elements of branding. Marketing concepts constantly are being improved and renamed by the researchers. The concept of brand and branding is also changing. A brand is a name, term, sign or symbol or the combination of them and that is to know the goods and services of one seller to differentiate them from others. (Keller 2011, 24.)
But it is very much old definition now and out of date. Now we find the modified definition of brand and it is the summation of all perceptions, experiences and beliefs that is linked with a product, service or anything that make it unique. It is actually an offer for satisfying customer needs and it is also like a container for a customer full of experiences with the offer and the company. A brand is more than a product and it create a good image for the company because, it continuously innovate new brands to become market leader. Brands differentiate through performances. Moreover, brands create image in customer minds. Brands may have some identities and those are brand name, logo, symbol, character, packaging and slogan etc.







GRAPH 1. Place branding (adapted from Allan 2007)
The graph shows the importance of place branding. Place branding leads to economic, cultural, educational and social development. It encourage the private investors to invest money in tourism field when they see that a place is expanding its reputation very quickly and get the attention of people from different nook and corner of the world.
Branding is the process or act of transforming product into customer satisfying value added propositions to create preferences in one’s favor and against rivals. It is everything a marketer does to its offer so that customers discriminate a brand in its favor. It is also a company’s combined effort which is shown or presented to the customer.

GRAPH 2.Marketing and other activities affecting the company’s brand and consumer (adapted from Keller 2011)
This graph shows the marketing activities of a company affecting the company’s brand along with other activities which raise the popularity of a product and leads the consumer to take those services.
So after knowing this discussion we definitely say that branding should be applied in tourism or destination marketing because everything depends on branding. If people can make or create good brand image about a tourist attraction, then it will be popular in the world overnight. Branding is like a life blood for any product or destination (Keller 2011, 25-26.)
2.3.2 Using websites as a marketing tool
When someone buys a computer he/she may buy different parts of computer from different companies. The manufacturer of the computer, printer and software are different similarly a traveler will use air travel, a rental car, a hotel room and purchase meals from different companies providing these services. It means the goal of the traveler is to have enjoyable experiences. A properly designed web site can facilitate the travelers’ planning, helping to ensure they make the right choices and have an enjoyable experience. It can also serve as the distribution point for all the services they will need as they plan their vacation. Tourism destination emerges as umbrella brands and they will need to be promoted in the global market place as one entity for each target market they try to attract. The emerging globalization and concentration of supply increase the level of competition and require new internet marketing strategies for destination. A vertical marketing system should be in place, bringing together a set of products related with each destination available for selection.
This implies that each tourist destination must have a major portal website acting as a gateway to the destination rather than relying solely on a fragmented number of individual websites to put on line by the trade. This would have links from and to the websites of the other organization that have business related to the destination. A portal site for marketing tourism destinations should provide information on four core areas. Such as; how to get there, getting around, places to stay and things to do.(Kotler, Bowen &Makens 2010, 716-717.)
2.3.3 Using social media for tourism marketing
Nowadays, the Internet has become a part of our life. People spend a big portion of their time everyday using the internet, chatting with friends and acquaintances and always want to be connected with them by different social media like Facebook, YouTube, and different blogs and so on. Again the number of internet users is increasing day by day. Hence, for tourism marketing, social media can be effective tools. We can already see that most of the tourism organizations have their videos or online advertisement in YouTube, similarly they have different pages on Facebook to connect people and give up-to-date information about their services. The concept of social media marketing means optimizing the site in which the written content garners links which act as trust endorsement in the purpose of listening to what the community often does and responses. It helps to boost up the brand awareness and raise the visibility of product or services in the targeted customers. In addition, social media is defined as a process that empowers individuals to promote their websites, products or services through online social channels and to communicate with and tap into a much larger community that may not have been available via traditional advertising channels. (Scott 2010, 77-79.)
2.4 Sustainable tourism marketing
People who make the plan may take into account the capacity of a location’s environment to support all. Without this planning a destination can be damaged to the point that travelers will stay away. Sustainable tourism can mean giving up current revenues from tourism by limiting capacity to ensure that there will be demand for tourism in the future. It means to prevent problems that occur when capacity is exceeded. This carrying capacity can be determined by an environmental impact assessment (EIA) and it follows inventory the social, political, physical and economic environment and also project trends.
In tourism, there are two main industries and those are hospitality and travel industries. Hospitality marketing is highly dependent on the entire travel industry. Fox example in many hotels on resort guests purchase travel hospitality packages assembled by travel agents. There are few industries that are as interdependent as the travel hospitality and it makes or increase complexity in this sector. In the hospitality sector in particular, marketing is a term often used when referring to selling and advertising. (Kotler & Bowen 2010, 35-37.)
If sustainability in tourism industry is not maintained tightly, the sector will destroy very soon causing huge negative effect on environment and in surrounding areas. Polluting the nature, destruction of forest and wildlife, excessive use of chemical may destroy the ecological balance and in return it will hamper the normal way of life. Again, if a tourist destination is not environment friendly, safe and clean, then conscious tourists will keep them aloof from visiting that place. So, sustainability should have higher importance as different branches of service industry are developing very fast. (George, Mair& Reid 2009, 7-8.)

3.0 Cox’s Bazar at Glance
3.1 History of Cox's Bazar
The greater Chittagong breadth including Cox's Bazar was beneath the aphorism of Arakan Kings from the aboriginal 9th aeon until its acquisition by the Mughals in 1666 AD. When the Mughal Prince Shah Shuja was casual through the arresting breadth of the present day Cox's Bazar on his way to Arakan, he was admiring to the breathtaking and arresting adorableness of the place. He allowable his armament to affected there. His aggregation of one thousand palanquins chock-full there for some time. A abode called Dulahazara, acceptation "one thousand palanquins," still exists in the area. Afterwards the Mughals, the abode came beneath the ascendancy of the Tipras and the Arakanese,followed by the Portuguese and again the British.The name Cox's Bazar originated from the name of a British East India Company officer, Captain Hiram Cox who was appointed as the Superintendent of Palonki(today's Cox's Bazar) beginning afterwards Warren Hastings became the Governor of Bengal afterward the British East India Company Act in 1773.Captain Cox was abnormally mobilized to accord with a aeon continued battle amid Arakan refugees & bounded Rakhains at Palonki. The Captain fabricated cogent progress in rehabilitation of refugees in the area, but had died (in 1799) afore he could accomplishment his work. To admire his role in rehabilitation plan a market / exchange was accustomed and was called afterwards him as Cox's Bazar (market of Cox). Cox's Bazar than was aboriginal accustomed in 1854 and a city was constituted in 1869. After the Sepoy Mutiny (Indian Rebellion of 1857) in 1857, the British East India Company was awful criticized and questioned on altruistic grounds, specially for its Opium barter cartel over the Indian Sub-Continent. However, afterwards its dissolution on 1 January 1874, all of the company's assets including its Armed Armament were acquired by the British Crown. Afterwards this celebrated yield over, Cox's Bazar was declared a commune of the Bengal Province beneath the British Crown. After the end of British aphorism in 1947, Cox's Bazar remained as a allotment of East Pakistan. Captain Advocate Fazlul Karim, the aboriginal Chairman (after ability from the British) of Cox's Bazar City accustomed the Tamarisk Forest forth the bank to draw day-tripper absorption in this boondocks and aswell to assure the bank from flat waves. He aswell donated abounding of his father-in-law's and his own acreage for establishing a Public Library and a Boondocks Hall for the town. He was aggressive to body Cox's Bazar as a day-tripper atom afterwards seeing beaches of Bombay and Karachi, and one of the antecedents in developing Cox's Bazar as such. He founded a Maternity Hospital, the Stadium and the arising arrangement by accretion grants from the Ford Foundation and Rockefeller Foundation through correspondence. Mr. T. H. Matthews, the arch of the Dacca Engineering College (1949~1954) was his acquaintance who had helped him in doing this. Architect ChandiCharan Das was the government civilian architect who had formed on all these projects. In 1959 the city was angry into a town committee. In 1961 the bygone Geological Survey of Pakistan accomplished analysis of radioactive minerals like monazite about the Cox's Bazar sea-beach breadth and a amount of adored abundant minerals were articular the aforementioned year.
3.2 Geographical View
Often termed as the world's longest beach,Cox's Bazar has yet to become a major tourist destination in Asia.Cox's Bazar District has an area of 2491.86 square km. It is located at 21°35' N 92°01' E and is bounded by Chittagong District on the north, Bay of Bengal in the south, Bandarban District on the east, and the Bay of Bengal on the west. Major rivers include Matamuhuri, Bakkhali, RejuKhal, Naf River, Maheshkhali channel and Kutubdia channel. The area of the city of Cox's Bazar is 6.85 square km.  The town with an area of 6.85 square km, and bounded by Bakkhali River on the north and East, Bay of Bengal in the West, and Jhilwanj Union in the south.


3.3 Environment
The main attraction of Cox's Bazar is the world longest but least-crowded sandy beach which stretches from the mouth of the Bakkhali River and going all the way to Teknaf. Though normally known as Cox's Bazar beach, but the beach stretches far beyond the regiondesignated as Cox's Bazar town. The setting for the beach with its silvery gold sand is tropical-forested hills. "Miles of golden sands, surfing waves, rare conch shells, towering cliffs, delightful seafood, tribes, colorful pagodas and Buddhist temples" this is not a literary description for Cox's Bazar beach, it's an illustration for the eager person who want to imagine the beach. The beauty of the beach cannot be described by writing as no suitable word you can get to describe it.
3.4 Climate
The climate of Bangladesh has a tropical monsoon-type, with a hot and rainy summer whereas a dry winter. Often excessive humidity, heavy rainfall, high temperature, and distinct seasonal variations are common here. January is the coolest month with averaging around 26 ° C. whereas April is the warmest one with temperatures averaging from 33 to 36 ° C .The climate is one of the wettest in the world. Most rains occur during the monsoon (June to September) and little in winter (November to February).The climate of Cox's Bazar is typically similar to the rest of the country. However, it characterized by the location in the coastal region. The annual average temperature in here remains at approximately highest 34.8 °C and lowest 16.1 °C. The average amount rainfall is at 4,285mm.



















4.0 Attraction of Cox’s Bazar

4.1 Laboni Beach




Laboni Beach is the main beach of Cox's Bazar. At here we can easily enjoy the scenic beauty of Bay of Bengal. It’s a place for enjoyment; many people come here including the foreigners. The beach is well appreciated during sunsets and sunrise, where people can witness the sea as it changes its colors twice in a day. Visitors can sunbathe, surf, jog, cycle, and swim. It is best for swimming and relaxation. Close to the beach, there are a lot of small shops selling souvenirs, locally made cigars & beauty products (sandal wood based), handmade clothes, bed sheets, dresses, shoes and beach accessories to the tourists. It is a nice place for our tourism.


4.2 Kolatoli Beach
Kolatoli beach is another attractive beach for the tourist. Every year different age’s people come here to take the real taste of taking sea-bath. Vistor's can taking sea bath, driving sea ski boat, can take fresh and appealing various kinds of sea foods. Walking beside the sea shore on moonlit night is always pleasant for all aged tourist. A slow paced life - most work happens in the morning and evening, whereas midday is reserved for drying rice and fish. During the day time, some villagers sells coconuts while others sitting in the shade and chewing paan (battle leaf).




4.3 Inani Beach
Inani Beach is within Ukhia Thana, 35 km. to the south of Cox's Bazar. With green hills to the east, the golden beach of Inani casts a music spell on anyone stepping on to its fine golden sands. The clean blue waters of the Bay are ideal for swimming. It is considered the world's longest and broadest beach: 180m at high tide and 300m at low tide.
How to Go:
To get here, take a bus to Teknaf and get off at Court Bazar (30km), a tiny village 2km before Ukhia. From there, you can rickshaw or tempo west to the beach, 10 km away. If you're headed for the guesthouse, ask the rickshaw driver to let you off at the tiny village of Sonarpara. From there, walk south until you reach the guesthouse. Alternatively, hire a jeep from Cox's Bazar to take you directly to Inani using the scenic beach route.
Attraction:
1)    Backdrop of lush green hills rising on the east.
2)     The sea stretching out endless to the west.
3)    Unusual shaped rock and coral boulders scattered lavishly in the beach and through the sea.
4)    Fringed with tall palm trees swaying gently in the breeze.
5)    Seashells of different colors, shapes, and sizes are found along here.
6)    Calm lagoon which is wonderful for the little ones to paddle in.
7)    Getting on the rock & coral boulders with the waves washing up on the shore around you, will be an extremely therapeutic experience .7) Getting on the rock & coral boulders with the waves washing up on the shore around you, will be an extremely therapeutic experience.
8)    Beachcombing.
9)    Shark free water is suitable for sea bathing.
Every year numerous foreign and local tourists come here to spend their leisure in Inani Beach. People who have taken the time to explore the beach can testify that its beauty and cool breeze far outweighs anything it might be lacking in amenities.
4.4 Himchori
Many attractions are for the tourists around Cox's Bazar. You can go Himchori to see it's Waterfall, this is famous for waterfall, though in the winter season it dwindles but during the rainy season it's really a fabulous and full waterfall can be enjoyed.
Location:
Located 12 km south of Bazar Town and 6 km from the Kalatali beach by the hill.
Area: 1,729 hectares.
Getting there:
From Kalatali stand, it is only 15-minute ride to entry; if you take a taxi or chandergari (local transport). You can also rent a car from Bazar.
Outstanding Features:
a)Beautiful-waterfall.
b)HimchariNationalPark.
c)Broken Hill.
d) Christmas Tree.

a)Beautiful Waterfall:
The amazing waterfall of Himchari is a very rare scene to enjoy. The waterfall from the green hill is relatively extraordinary to look at. However, in the winter it dwindles whereas in the rainy season it is really wonderful and full waterfall could be enjoyed. The spot is ideal for picnic, shooting, relaxing and sunbathing. But whenever you have sunbathing locals can rush around you as Bangladeshis' are not used to see women in swim costume. Here you get beautiful hilltop resort centre where you can stay for relaxing and can hear the shore of the Bay of Bengal.
b) Himchari National Park:
Park is a beautiful tropical rain forest (evergreen & semi-ever-green) around the South Asia. The park was established in 1980. This place is maintained, protected and secured by the government for the foreign tourists and the local visitors. The Park is not only attractive for the tourists it is also attractive for the biologist.
The park gets high forest, low forest & grasslands with a few trees. Around 58 species of trees, 4 species grasses, 15 species of shrubs, 19 climbers and 21 species of herbs altogether 117 plant species are available here. In the forest area there are at least twenty kinds of important herbs like Curculigorecurvata, Swintonia floribunda and Alpinianigra are available which most valuable plant are for the biologist.
The park is also considered as a paradise of birdwatcher. A lot of bird watchers are gathered here for the seeing the different kinds of birds, as more than 286 species of birds found there. Additionally, 55 species of mammals, 56 species of reptiles and 13 species of amphibians are found in the evergreen forest. A small number of elephants and leopard also found here. The US administration already made an agreement with Bangladesh government to induct tigers in to the forest areas.
Wild life: Elephant, Tigers, Capped Langur, Gibbon, Rhesus Macaque, Dhole, Sloth Bear, HirundoRustica, Indian Muntjac, Wild Boar, CypsiurrusParvus Leopard Cat, Jungle Cat, Fishing Cat, and Acridotheres.
Adventure: Picnic, Shooting and Bird safari .
Entry Fee: Tk. 5.00/ Person.
Present Visitors: 2,00,000 / Year.
c) Broken Hill
It is also an attraction for most of the visitors. Come and see what wonder waiting for you.


d) Christmas Tree
Christmas tree of here is another famous attraction for the tourist.
Accommodation:
After visiting Himchari if you want to stay at night, should stay in Cox's Bazar. You will get a number of hotels and restaurants there with different budget.
4.5 Radar Station
Bangladesh is visited by natural disasters every year. That's why Bangladesh is called the land of natural calamities. The common natural disaster in our country are floods, storms, cyclones, drought and famine and in pre- and post-monsoon season. Natural calamities cannot be prevented. Timely forecast RADAR station could minimize damage of natural disaster. In coxs bazar newly built radar station. Constructed by Japanthe station under overseas development agreement. Cox's Bazar RADAR Station discoversBangladesh sea beach tourism.




4.6 Teknaf
Teknaf, a romantic old-world border township in the southern tip of Bangladesh territory looking up to the Myanmar high hill ranges across the river Naf. Teknaf is 85 km from Cox's Bazar by road and 120 km by the beach along the sea. One can reach there by public transport that leaves Cox's Bazar every hour. It is about 2 hours' journey each way.
Because of tropical weather of Bangladesh most of the tourist usually goes to visit this place during winter or in between winter and autumn (October to March). It is about 100 km far away from Cox's Bazar and well connected with various kinds of luxurious bus services.
4.7 Sonadia Dip
Sonadia (a crescent island), about with an area of 9 Square Kilometer. It is the north-west of Cox's Bazar. Sonadia Island is very rich for different kinds of shells. Thousands of fishermen camp here in every winter and make large hauls. Sonadia Island is famous for the industry of dry fish.
Area: 9 square km.
Location: 7-km north-west of Cox's Bazar.
Attraction:
·       The sight of game birds migrating Sonadia Island in huge numbers through the winter seasons.
·       Turtle nests.
·       Various bird species (More than 52 bird species including resident and migratory).
·       Wildlife.
·       Live fishing and fishermen lifestyle.
·       Shrimp Farm.


4.8 Saint Martin
St. Martins Island is the most beautiful Coral Island where you will find live corals. Its only 30 km from Teknaf and you can go there by local motorboat, tourist boats, or sea truck.This small coral island about 10km (6mi) southwest of the southern tip of the mainland is a tropical cliché, with beaches fringed with coconut palms and bountiful marine life. There's nothing more strenuous to do here than soak up the rays, but it's a clean and peaceful place without even a mosquito to disrupt your serenity.
Tourist Season: November to February.
Original Name: "NarikelJinjira" (Coconut Island) - The local name of the COCONUT is NARIKEL and the original name of this Island is NarikelJinjira is derived from that.
Features:
1) Beautiful Coral Reef
2) Long Coral Beach
3) Lots of Coconut Trees
4) Peaceful Environment
5) Bountiful Marine Life
6) Deep Blue Water
7) Sandy Beach
Sunrise & Sunset: Observing sunrise and sunset St Martin’s is a better place. Sunset Point is a rocky peninsula on the northwest corner of the island.
Village life: A slow paced life - most work happens in the morning and evening, whereas midday is reserved for drying rice and fish. During the day time, some villagers sells coconuts while others sitting in the shade and chewing paan (battle leaf).
Sea Turtle Hatchery: Located on the west side of the island south of ShemanaPereye Resort. The hatchery is not officially open to tourists; however, it is generally empty and the gate unlocked.
Stars: Amazingly plentiful stars get on a moonless night, due to the lack of electricity on St Martine.
Scuba Diving: Oceanic Scuba Dive Center, the only dive operation in Bangladesh. To experience the beauty underwater scuba diving is best but the cost is lit-bit high though negotiable.
Embrace Moonlight: Make a tour in St Martin’s by yourself in the moonlight. The astonishing beauty of full-moon in St. Martin's Island never be expressed; you can only feel it. Over the night feel and listen the sound of the Bay of Bengal.
Watching Sun Rise: Wake up early and watch the sun rise.
Campfire: Make a campfire to stay up at night.
Shopping: A good number of small shops are near the port and along the main road selling essential commodities, odd souvenir t-shirts, hats and sunglasses. Various sea shells and things made from the shells are sold by teens around St Martine. However, it's illegal as leads to the depletion of sea life.
Accommodations: Accommodations facilities are very good here. You can easily manage a room according to your budget. Most of the evenings can be candle-lit as no electricity on St Martin’s, but a few of the much expensive hotels have generators services.


4.9 Moheskhali
It is another attraction for the tourists who go to Cox's Bazaar. An island off the coast of Cox's Bazar. Through the center of the island and along the eastern coastline rises, a range of low hills, 300 feet high; but the coast to the west and north is a low-lying treat, fringed by mangrove jungle. In the hills on the coast is built the shrine of Adinath, dedicated to Siva.
Area: 268 square km
Attraction:
·       Breathtaking Mangrove Forest.
·       Spectacular Hilly Areas (around 300 ft. high).
·       Salt Fields.
·       Striking Landscapes.
·       Picturesque & Peaceful Beaches.
·       Colorful Buddhist Temple & Pagoda.
·       Shrimp.
·       Battle Leaf.
·       Simple Island Lifestyle.
4.10 Rakhain villages
Adinath Temple:
Located on the top of the Mainak Hill on Moheshkhali. The Shrine of Adinath is dedicated to the Hindu god, Shiva, who is worshipped as Adinath. The place is famous for the annual fair held in the month of Phalgun according to the Bengali Calendar. The fair is taken place at the foot of the Mainak Hill and lasts 13 days. Thousands of Hindus participate here from all over Bangladesh.
Waterway:
You can reach the Moheshkhali by trawler (local motorboat) or by speedboat. By trawler, it is one hour and half an hour journey whereas speedboat takes just half an hour to reach the Island.
By Road:
ShaheedZiaur Rahman BirUttam Bridge connects the island to the mainland. So, you can easily reach their by road.
5.0 Transportation, Accommodation & Life
Address:
GMGAIR 8, Kemal Ataturk Avenue,
Banani C/A., Dhaka-1213.
Contact Information:
Tel: 8140275-80,
Airport Office: 8917220-3 -(International),
8915699 - (Domestic).
Address:
BalakaBhaban, Kurmitola,
Dhaka-1229, Bangladesh.
Contact Information :
Tel : : 8917400-19 (Head Office) 9560151, 9559610 ,
Airport Office : 8917400.
Web  :
www.biman-airlines.com
Corporate Office is in Uttara other Sales Offices are Gulshan and Dilkusha. Best Aviation Limited. Address:
House # 43, Road # 1/, Block-J, Baridhara ,
Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Contact Information :
Tell : +880-2-9888780, 8860248, 8855254, 9882404.
Head Office
9/2, Outer Circular Road, MomenBagh,
Rajarbagh, Dhaka - 1217 .
Tel :8331302-4, 8353004-5, 9339623, 9342580
Fex : +088-02-8350003
Email : greenline@greenlineparibahan.com.
Dhaka Office :
Fakirapool, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Tel :02-41558,02- 9346478, 02-9333606 Chittagong Office :
K.C.DeRoad,Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tel :615161
Cox's Bazar Office :
Laldhighir Par, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
Tel :0341-3611, 0341-3888
Dhaka Office :
3 No Fakirapul, Dhaka-1000, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-02-9331864, +88-02-8315087, +88-02-9002702
Chittagong Office :
2119 S. AlamBhaban, Asadganj, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-031-636997, +88-031-636649
Cox's Bazar Office :
Laldighir Par, Main road, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-0341-64286
Head Office :
114 Malibagh, DIT Road, (Near Mouchak Rail Gate)
Dhaka-1217, Bangladesh.
Tel :9334152, 418458, 8316766
Chittagong Office :
34 Zakir Hossain Road, Dampara, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tel ::031-618930,031-616520,0171-798344
Dhaka Office:
167/8, CircularRoad,EdenBuilding,Motijheel(Ground Floor),Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-02-7102461, 0189-202028,0171-811694
Chittagong Office :
dampara main road, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-031-615257, 01714087562
Cox's Bazar Office :
Hotel Albatross ,Kolatoli Road, Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.
Tel :01714087561
Dhaka Office :
22/3, College gate,Dhaka, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-02-8125340, 8122707
Chittagong Office :
9/2, BRTC Market, Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Tel :+88-031-638322,658088
Subarna express start from dhaka at 4.20am and arrival to 10.10pm and Back to Dhaka 7.00am to 12.40pm without FRIDAY.

MahanagarProbhati start from dhaka at 7.50am and arrival to 2.20pm.
From Chittagong Mahanagargodhuli back to Dhaka at 3.00pm to 11.25pm.
Turna Express start from dhaka at 11.00pm and arrival to 6.00am.
From Chittagong Turna Express back to Dhaka at 11.00pm to 6.15pm.

Cox's Bazar Accommodation

Cox's Bazar, questionably the hot day-tripper atom in Bangladesh. The abode visited by abundant day-tripper from all over the apple every year including UK, Korea, Japan, USA, India, Australia, Nepal, Pakistan. There is no absolute almanac in Bangladesh Porjatan Corporation (BPC) on usually how abounding day-tripper appointment Cox's Bazar every year. However, an AFP address says during the winter added than 10,000 accessible apartment in Cox's Bazar bank breadth hotels about abide occupied about seven canicule anniversary week. Most of the Cox's Bazar hotels accommodate superior account with reasonable cost. Accommodation abutting to the bank differs from a cher ambit to an affordable price. It is consistently acceptable to book a allowance afore you appear actuality as your budget. Here we provide you some hotel address to book your reservation to avoid any hassle.
Life in Cox’s Bazar
Nightlife
Bangladesh is a very strict place for enjoying the nightlife as a Muslim country. It’s not open just like other Asian destination like Bangkok, Singapore or Goa. However, opportunity is not rare. If you are looking for any bar then you can get bar in special places in Cox’s Bazar for example Hotel Seagull, Sea Palace or some others. You can also enjoy local made drinks. Heart break news for the western tourist as no nightclub and Spa facilities are available in here; though DJ is available inside Other Places of Interest along the Cox’s Bazar Beach.
Required Dress:
  • Lightweight cottons and linens throughout the year.
  • Warmer outfits are needed in the evenings of the winter season.
  • Waterproof dresses are necessary during the monsoon season.
Mineral content in beach sand:
  • Hornblende
  • Garnet
  • Epidote
  • Ilmenites
  • Magnetite
  • Rutile
  • Pyrite
  • Hydroxides
Bathing: The rise & fall of the tide is not great here; so, it is a better place for sea-bathing. However, the shark free warm waters are good for swimming & bathing. On the other hand, the sandy beaches offer sun-bathing opportunity.
Best Time for Tour: September and October
Best Time to Visit: The best time to visit here is at sunrise and sunset while the sand changes colors.
Activities: Watching the sun set; it is fabulous and everybody watches it. Best place for capturing photos.
6.0 Ecologically Critical Area
Ecologically Critical Area ecologically defined areas or ecosystems affected adversely by the changes brought through human activities. The Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act (BECA), 1995 has provision for Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) declarations by the Director General of the Department of Environment in certain cases where ecosystem is considered to be threatened to reach a critical state. If the government is satisfied that due to degradation of environment, the ecosystem of any area has reached or is threatened to reach a critical state, the government may by notification in the official gazette declare such areas as Ecologically Critical Areas. The government shall specify, through the notification provided in sub-clause (1) or by separate notification, which of the operations or processes cannot be initiated or continued in the Ecologically Critical Area (Bangladesh Environment Conservation Act/BECA), 1995.
In April 1999, the Director General of the Department of Environment (DOE) officially declared nearly 40,000 ha, within seven separate wetland areas, as ECAs. These sites are HakalukiHaor, Sonadia Island, st martin's island, and Teknaf Peninsula (cox's bazar Sea Beach) but not their buffer zones. tanguarhaor, Marjatbaor (oxbow lake) at Jhenaidaha and outside of Sundarbans Reserved Forest at 10 km extent all of which were deemed to meet the 'urgency criterion' required by BECA, ie, they were "threatened to reach a critical state". Although a large number of ecosystems in Bangladesh could accurately be described as "threatened", it would be impossible for the government to declare and manage all of them as ECAs. In order to identify priority sites, a series of biodiversity 'importance criteria' have been taken into account in addition to the above 'urgency criterion'. This led to the selection of two additional sites as ECAs: Tanguarhaor, an important wetland area located in northeastern Bangladesh, and Marjatbaor, a small but biologically significant oxbow lake. All ECAs thus far selected include a combination of public and private lands, with relevant restrictions equally applicable to both.
ECA site at Cox's Bazar lies at the extreme southeastern corner of Bangladesh on the border with Myanmar. The site consists of three component areas: (i) the western, coastal zone of Teknaf Peninsula (10,465 ha in area), which is a long, narrow and forested peninsula separating the bay of bengalfrom the estuary of the naf river and neighboring Myanmar; (ii) St Martin's Island (590 ha), a sedimentary continental island located 10 km south of Teknaf Peninsula, and; (iii) Sonadia Island (4,924 ha), a barrier island a few km north of Teknaf Peninsula. The coastal and island habitats represent the site's 'focal areas' and total approximately 16,000 ha. An additional 30,000 ha, consisting of degraded but still biodiversity-rich upland forest watershed on Teknaf Peninsula, will be considered as the 'buffer zone'. While the project is designed to address and remove all threats to biodiversity within its focal areas, threats within the wider 'buffer zone' will be mitigated in order to provide additional protection for the 'focal areas'. People living within the Cox's Bazar site are heavily dependent on fisheries, marine products and, to a lesser extent, agriculture for their livelihood. The ECA area encompassed by the site contains biodiversity of global significance. Over 800 species of wildlife have been identified from the ECA areas, more than 20 of which are globally threatened.The following are the important areas in terms of biodiversity:
Teknaf Peninsula one of the longest sandy beach ecosystems (80 km) in the world. It represents a transitional ground for the fauna of the Indo-Himalayan and Indo-Malayan ecological sub-regions. The peninsula provides breeding areas for four globally threatened species of marine turtles and, lying along international bird migration flyways, serves as a significant bird area, with over 81 species recorded. Finally, its inshore water hosts globally threatened marine mammals.
St Martin's Island one of the few areas in the world where coral-algal communities dominate rocky reefs. This unique set of environmental conditions, biotic and abiotic, has no parallel in Bangladesh and perhaps not worldwide. The island also supports significant breeding areas for globally threatened marine turtle species and serving as a stepping stone for several globally threatened migratory waders.
Sonadia Island supports the last remaining remnant of mangrove forest in southeast Bangladesh, which once stretched along much of the coastline of Chittagong and Cox's Bazar. Sonadia's mangroves are distinct from the well-known sundarbans in Southwest Bangladesh, due to their development in a coastal lagoon setting rather than in a delta. This has led to the domination of different mangrove species, ones that were able to tolerate higher levels of salinity than their Sundarbans cousins. In addition to this important mangrove area, the island supports a large number of waterbirds, mollusks, echinoderms, and marine turtles. 
Cox's Bazar sea beach, the longest and unbroken seaboard of the world, is now in danger of being laid to waste. The present sight of the beach is shocking as it is littered with unplanned structures from makeshift sheds of bamboo and hay to permanent cement and brick buildings running as hotels, restaurants, gift shops and so on. One can also spot piles of brick and various construction materials on the coastline as well as signboards at different places declaring the names of title-holders of those sites.
If development of tourism in Cox's Bazar is the main objective of the government, how could it then allow such construction spree to go on unchecked? As reported in this paper's lead news, the district administration, despite the Department of Environment (DoE)'s directive, was not forthcoming with action to stop the senseless grabbing of land and construction work on the beach.
On the other hand, the district authorities, are trying to excuse themselves on a plea of government bodies like the forest department's as well as the government high-ups' involvement in the grabbing activities on the seashore.
Sadly though, the government's continued inaction in stopping such illegal construction activities and demolishing those structures already built is only contributing to encouraging the despoilers of the Cox's Bazar beach to go on with their encroachment uninhibited.
There is no gainsaying the fact that increasing its attractiveness is part and parcel of the beach's development. But destroying the landscape of the seashore with unauthorized structures is not the way to do that. As reported, both the government itself and the private individuals and organizations are at fault in destroying the topography of the beach.
Ironically though, there is already a government order since 1999 that declares the entire beach area from Cox's Bazar to Teknaf 'ecologically critical.' How then is it possible that government organizations themselves, let alone the private companies and individuals, are carrying out such activities that are detrimental to the beauty and ecological balance of the seashore in violation of that government order? The government must put its foot down to stop such activities forthwith.
While we are also for the private sector's involvement in the development of sea beach that does not mean it should take anarchistic proportions through its over-commercialization in private hands. Moreover, under no circumstances, the beauty and the unspoiled virginity of the landscape can be compromised. So, in order to develop the seaside with an eye to keeping the panoramic view, the environment and the biodiversity of the landscape intact, the government should think up a guideline involving local and international experts on the subject and ensure that its observance is made mandatory for the public as well as private sector entrepreneurs.
7.0 Recommendations
1.There is a statistically significant relationship inseabeach choice with respects to respondents‟ demographic and travel behavior characteristics. On the other hand, there is significant relationship between length of stay and advance planned to visit with sea beach choice. So this has given clear idea about target segment and target market of beach tourism specially Cox‟s Bazar sea beach.
2. Tourists who visit Cox‟s Bazar sea beach are somewhat heterogeneous. Therefore, differentiated segmentation and marketing strategies should be stressed and executed by the relevant parties. Key player in the beach tourism, tour operators and stake holders have pursued successful positioning strategies which have been driven by effective market segmentation and brand management.
3. In addition, number of important implications for policy makers for planning and marketing in the industry. Individual factor analyze was conducted under 6 A‟s dimension. According to factor mean result, the most important factor that could be unique natural attraction, accommodation and accessibilities such as easy accessibility, cleanliness of the sea beach area, accommodation facility and reasonable price, food and beverage outlets should be provided to the tourists. Therefore, concerned authority should do the necessary actions to improve the derived services and facilities provided at the Cox‟s bazaar sea beach in the effort to change and increase the perception of the tourists. In planning these facilities, identity and biodiversity of the area must be considered since tourists pay great attention to feel the nature of sea areas.
4. There is another point that security, quality transportation service, watch tower facility, water base activities, health and area guiding services must be provided to the tourist who are visiting Cox‟s bazaar sea beach. The concerned authority for this destination needs to allocate a suitable budget to be used to improve the sea beach activities, restaurants and signage, especially during the peak seasons, because of the bigger number of tourists are visiting this place at that time. Thus, any future infrastructure development should be properly planned and implemented to avoid its negative impacts to the sea beach area. Illegal logging activities must be seriously investigated and should have taken necessary actions against to ensure a well preservation of the natural surroundings. In addition, those people who are involved in the development of the tourist destination have to contribute more in term of their creativity to produce a variety of unique products which could attract the tourists.
5. Furthermore, managers also need to emphasize on the factor “emergency and caring service” such as tourist caring facility, waste disposal facility, lifeboat and ambulance service, local people behavior towards tourists. Because, tourists have given highest importance on this factors. For 1km. Sea beach area only three police members, one watch tower, 2 speed boats are employed for managing, monitoring and maintaining emergency service and security. These are not sufficient for maintaining security and saving lives from unexpected hazards. Except Kolatoli beach (seagull point), others sea beaches point like Laboni point, Jhauban point are closed every day before 6.00 pm. due to lack of security. So, responsible authority should ensure proper security in this point.
6. Side by side tourists provide highest importance on the behavior of travel personnel, service quality of tour operators and cost of tour operators under package tour service. So tour operators must try to touch tourist perception to satisfy them speciously. Local tourist guidance, online information about Cox‟s Bazar is the important attributes to tourists. Although the tourist attractions and facilities have somewhat been promoted in the mass media (e.g., television, newspaper, and internet) as well as by word-of-mouth but these are not sufficient to attract tourists. In the age of media concerned authority should take initiative to promote Cox‟s Bazaar to all over the world through proper media.
7. Apart from above suggestions, such a new approach is not sufficient if these are not implemented effectively. Therefore, marketers and patrons of this destination should stress on carrying out promotional campaigns of Cox‟s Bazar sea beach in Bangladesh as a world longest sea beach to foreigners. To occupy the significant position in customers mind these suggestions are hoped to assist both managers and marketers of the Cox‟s Bazaar sea beach as a destinations in Bangladesh to gain a better understanding of the different perceptions hold by the local and foreign tourists, and thus implement more strategic marketing decisions.

8.0 Conclusion
Cox‟s Bazar sea beach is the most attractive and highly visited tourist destination in Bangladesh and it has significant economic contribution to the local economy as well as country. The tourism policy makers and marketers should provide and ensure up to mark services to some areas of services and facilities to specific segment as per above recommendation.

9.0 Reference
Azam Shah and et al, (2010), Factors Affecting the Selection of Tour Destination in Bangladesh: An Empirical Analysis” International journal of Business and Management, Vol 5, No3, March 2010.

Ahammed Sheikh Saleh (2010), “Impact of Tourism in Cox‟s Bazar, Bangladesh” Masters Thesis, Master in Public Policy and Governance Program, Department of General and Continuing Education, North South University, Bangladesh.

Kotler ,P. & Armstrong, G.2010.Principle of Marketing. USA: Pearson
Kuakatatours. Available: http://www.kuakatatours.com/ Accessed 20 January 2013
Keller, K., L.2011-2012. Strategic Brand Management. India: Pearson
Kotler, P., Bowen J., T. &Makens, J., C.2010. Marketing for Hospitality and Tourism. USA: Pearson.
Scott D. M. 2010. The new rules of marketing and PR. New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
Ozgen, S. (2003) ‘Designing for Sustainable Tourism Development’ In: Anno. 5th European
Academy of Design Conference, DESIGN WISDOM, April 28-30, 2003. Barcelona.

Pacific Asia Travel Association (PTTA) and the Asia Pacific Cooperation (APEC) (n.d.)
Code for sustainable tourism [online] Available at: <http://www.gdrc.org/uem/ecotour/
apec_pata-code.html> [Accessed 17 June 2010]. 

Department of Tourism & Hospitality Management
University of Dhaka


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