Satkhira, Khulna
The quieter western edge of the Sundarbans, reached by boat from Munshiganj in Shyamnagar — mangrove creeks, a forest eco-tourism centre and village life on the forest’s doorstep.
Shyamnagar’s mawalis go into the forest for honey in season, and crab catchers and fishermen work its creeks all year. Before entering, many honour Bonbibi, the forest’s protector, at small shrines on the riverbank. The Munda community also lives in villages nearby.
The western Sundarbans in Satkhira is part of the same vast mangrove forest that Bangladesh shares with India, listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Here the forest meets the land along rivers such as the Kholpetua and Malancha, and from the villages of Munshiganj you can see it rise straight from the far bank.
This side sees fewer visitors than the Mongla side, which makes it calmer and more intimate. Day trips by boat go to the Forest Department’s Kalagachhia eco-tourism centre, with a walkway into the mangroves, and along narrow creeks where kingfishers, monkeys and spotted deer may appear. Longer trips on licensed boats go deeper, as far as the coast.
The villages here live with the forest: honey collectors, crab catchers and fishermen go in with permits, and the memory of Cyclone Aila in 2009 is still strong. A visit is as much about this edge-of-the-forest life as about the trees.
In the morning, arrange the Forest Department permission and a registered boat with a guide at Munshiganj.
Ride along the river and into the mangrove creeks, watching for birds, monkeys and deer.
Walk the eco-tourism centre’s walkway into the forest with your guide.
Return with the tide, have a crab-and-rice lunch and walk along the embankment.
November to February, when the weather is cool and the rivers calm; trips may be suspended in bad weather and during seasonal forest closures
Munshiganj is in Shyamnagar upazila, about 2–2.5 hours south of Satkhira town by bus. Some buses from Dhaka and Khulna run straight there. From the riverside, boats with Forest Department permission go into the forest; the Kalagachhia eco-tourism centre is around an hour away by boat.
