The tourism industry counted Tk 1.50 billion in losses over the last ten days due to the countrywide blockade which started on January 6.
This was disclosed at a press conference organised by the Bangladesh Tourism Board (BTB) at its office in the city.
Winter is the peak period for tourism but the sector is passing tough times due to scarcity of tourists, officials said.
Tour operators said usually, this (October-February) is the peak season for a hotel or motel and the occupancy rate generally remains 90 per cent or above. But this time, the number has declined by almost 75 per cent.
They said due to the political unrest travellers from different parts of the world are not interested to come here.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of BTB Akhtaruz Zaman Khan Kabir told journalists, "Due to the ongoing political impasse, the tourism industry has been in a serious image crisis."
He said the foreign tour operators have already stopped sending tourists to Bangladesh.
He said in recent times their business has fallen by more than 75 per cent although the tour operators expected a robust peak-time business.
Director of Dhaka Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DCCI) Muktar Hossain Chowdhury said the visitors from home and abroad who have booked hotels and motels cannot reach their desired destinations due to the blockade.
He said most of the bookings have already been postponed and a large number of those are being cancelled.
He said when a strike is called it affects the tourism industry and a good number of sectors related with it.
According to BTB sources, some 80 sectors are directly and indirectly involved in the tourism industry of the country.
About 1.2 million people (1.8 per cent of total employment of the country) are directly and 2.7 million indirectly involved in the tourism sector of Bangladesh.
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Blockade causes Tk 1.5b loss to tourism industry so far
FE Report | Published: January 16, 2015 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2026 06:01:00
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