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Sonargaon and Old Dhaka Trip
$50 per person
Sonargaon and Old Dhaka trip is an ideal day trip for short-time visitors who only have a day to explore old Dhaka and Sonargaon. This full-day trip would give you an orientation of both, Sonargaon and Old Dhaka. Dhaka and Sonargaon have an exciting history, rich cultural heritage, and exotic cuisine.
Sonargaon was the country’s first capital from the 13th to 17th century, located about 30km southeastern direction from the Dhaka city center. In its prime time, the Sonar – Ga (Golden City) was also an important river port and the trading center for the world-famous muslin cloth. The remains of several mosques, tombs, stupas, and a bridge in Panam Nagar, the Shiv Mandir (Hindu temple), and the well-maintained Folk-Art Museum are well worth visiting.
The scholar artist of Nawapara has been weaving their dreams on saree. Jamdani Saree is an ancient tradition, also known as Dhakai Jamdani Saree. It started its journey from the Mughal era as Muslin. Now Jamdani represents one of the finest and most ancient forms of weaving that originated in Bengal. Narayangonj is the birth and main place for Jamdani sari in this sub-continent. Outstanding fine artworks of traditional handmade Jamdani by magic fingers. Recently this unique technique has got UNESCO recognition for its ultra-fine fabric, transparency, and design. It is always a dream for Bengali women to have one pure cotton & silk hand-loomed Jamdani saree in their collection.
A trip to Sonargaon and Old Dhaka is specially designed to meet people and explore more of life and culture, rather than just visiting the tourist sites and museums. This trip will drive you through the insights, which usually a tourist may not find by themselves or even by many locals.
An expert guide and driver will come to pick you up from your hotel/ residence at 8:00 AM and immediately drive towards Sonargaon. Our first stop will be in Nawapara Jamdani sari weaving village to enjoy the unique technique of weaving such a saree by handloom. Continue driving towards the old capital of Bengal to visit Sonargaon, Panam Nagar, beautiful Sadarbari, and the well-maintained Folk-Art Museum. Continue driving towards Old Dhaka; lunch will be served at a local restaurant, chosen by our guide according to the time, situation, and your dietarian preference. You will meet one of the last remaining rickshaw artists in Oldtown. Once upon a time, this art and the artists were very famous for their fascinating and colorful works, which has taken over by modern digitalization technology. Now we shall give you a very brief exploration of Old Dhaka begun. Your guide will take you to as many places as possible within this short time, including the Armenian Church, Pink Palace, Sadarghat Riverfront, Star Mosque, and Curzon Hall. Walkthrough Shankharia & Tanti Bazar (Hindu Street), Bongshal Cycle Street, and the residential area. If we are allowed by time, your guide may offer you quick shopping from a very well-known handicraft marketplace or from another place according to your wish. Drive back to your hotel for an overnight stay.
- Tour Price
- $ 50
starts from
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Group Size Per-person price in USD Or in BDT 1 PAX $140.00 16,800.00 2 PAX $90.00 10800.00 4 PAX $70.00 8,400.00 6+ PAX $55.00 6600.00 +15% VAT and 2% charges will be applicable while paying by credit card.
- Reserved vehicle and driver
- A knowledgeable English-speaking guide
- A light lunch at a local restaurant
- All entrance fees and necessary permits
- Bottled water, soft drinks, tea seasonal fruits and old Dhaka special snacks
- All rickshaw and boat rides
Personal expenses, gratuities, and any activity not specifically mentioned in the itinerary.
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Destination
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Departure
Your hotel/ residence (anywhere in Dhaka city) -
Departure Time
8:00 AM (pickup time may change according to your hotel/ residence location) -
Return Time
5:30 PM or later; depending on your interests and the traffic situation -
Dress Code
Casual, comfortable athletic clothing, closed shoes, hat. Warm jacket during the winter (November to February). Raincoat/ umbrella during the rainy season (May to August). Full sleeves are always necessary while visiting any religious place, mosque, temple, church or a trip during Ramadan.
Nils M | Bern, Switzerland
Fantastic Dhaka City Tour
Mar 2017 • Couples
We booked a 1 day city tour with Jewel, the owner of Royal Bengal Tours. It was a fantastic day. He showed us around Old Dhaka and we realized right away, that this city is his home. He knows every street and almost everywhere he knows someone. He also took us to the Sonargaon Folk Art and Craft Museum and Panam City, the old capital of Bangladesh. To top it off, he showed us a small Saree production site in the outskirts of Dhaka. It was a day full of surprises and we would book a tour with him again without hesitating.
Lawrence23 London, UK
Great tour guide for people who hate tours
Sep 2017 • Solo
I’m one of those people who really hate guided tours. However, Royal Bengal Tours offers the type of laid-back, relaxed experience that makes it very much worthwhile. Jewel is, as his name suggests, a jewel. He has a lot of interesting itineraries to fit your preferences and is very flexible as far as accommodating your requests. He is more like a friend who is showing you his city, rather than a “tour guide” who drones on and on. Highly recommended.
scottschenk Shanghai, China
Day Tour of Sonargaon and Old Dhaka
Feb 2019 • Solo
I had a great experience one a one day tour of Sonargaon and Old Dhaka with Sayed. The company worked with me to organize exactly the tour I was looking for at a reasonable price. I stayed near the airport since I had an inconvenient flight time so the tour started earlier than most. Everything was very smooth including pick-up, the drive, and visiting attractions. Sayed was knowledgeable about the city and Bangladesh. He was sure to explain as much about the history as well. He catered the food selection to my tastes and what I was wanting to experience while in Dhaka. When I come back to Bangladesh, I will use this company again.
Lukas W.
Tours to Old Dhaka and Sonargaon
Dec 2019
When I was searching for a guide who could show me around Old Dhaka, a friend recommended me Jewel as a guide. Since our first tour I booked several tours with Jewel for showing around colleagues during a business trip or my family.
In December 2019 me and my family had two amazing tours with Afridi, a colleague of Jewel to Old Dhaka and Sonargaon.
When preparing the tours both Jewel and Afridi have been very flexible in the plans of what to visit. After my first visit, I had an overview of places I like to visit or to show others. It is easy to discuss these wishes with both of them and they provide also own ideas and estimations on starting and ending time, as well as the length of the tours. I always had my personal driver, so we agreed on a meeting point and picked the guide up. Most places are not in a walking distance, so a car is always needed.
During the tours, Jewel and Afridi always had an eye on us, the safety of the routes to go and possible discoveries along our routes. Jewel lived for some time in Old Dhaka and therefore knows the people, the authentic places to stop for tea or mishti (sweets) and the way through the tiny streets.
If it is a day drip, Jewel and Afridi know clean restaurants for lunch in all places I visited together with them.
All in all, the trips have been greatly organized and allow a lot of modifications during the tours and the beforehand planning. I would describe the trips as an introduction into the rich cultural everyday life of the general society in Dhaka. Sightseeing is also a part of the tours, but the focus – and where you can discover most things and get to know different daily routines – is the life of the people. Outside of Dhaka we visited a village on a river island and learned how life is organized there. Both Jewel and Afridi are awesome and knowledgeable guides and I hope to meet them both again when I am the next time at Dhaka.