Border crossing India to Bangladesh
 

Following advice from some fellow bikers - Luis and Ana (sardinhe) - who crossed in January, was well prepared to cross with my bike last week.

There are four designated integrated border checkpoints -
1) from West Bengal/Kolkata via Petrapole/Benapole (western BAN)
2) from Assam via Sutarkandi and Sheola (north east BAN
3) from Shillong to Sylhet via Dawki and Tamabil (North BAN)
4) from Tripura via Agartala Akhaura (East BAN)

I crossed the largest and busiest -Petrapole/Benapole - driving from Kolkata. It’s a very slow 70km (2+ hours) from Kolkata to the border with less traffic and nicer tree lined poldered roads the last 30km

India border was ok. Everyone very helpful. Drive up to the gate, guided to head of line for immigration. 20 minutes for CPD - just had to fill out the normal form and gets stamps and signatures. Seemed great. Unfortunately, then they wanted all bags off the bike, lugged to the X-ray. Scanned and returned.

A few short metres across into Bangladesh and the bike was directed down the pedestrian ramp to immigration, where it sat while I sorted visa on arrival (didnt have USD so they had to change my EUR). Dont do anything online before hand, that just confuses things. No passport photos needed, just passport and it’s $51US for everyone (normally Australians are $150US; Americans $280+ for visa through the embassies) it’s flat rate for everyone. Luís Ferreira told me so, and he was correct 

How is the mood in Bangladesh?
Hard economic times atm.


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Great - thanks for the write up. This will be very valueable for other travellers that contemplate crossing into Bangladesh….

Wouldnt mind a trip report from Bangladesh too if you have the time. After all its a country very few overlanders visits.

Good to hear of people going into Bangladesh again, it seems for quite a few years that it was not possible for tourists to temporarily import a vehicle. I entered at Benapole in 2008 and left from Akhaura. I really enjoyed the country. Dhaka is an experience. I spent much of the rest of my time in the Chittagong Hill Tracts and the paradise island of St Martins. The Teknaf area, host to huge numbers of Rohingya refugees, recently got hit badly by a cyclone, so not sure if now is the time to go. Hard economic times in Bangladesh are not a recent thing.

EO

Just for anyone interested - I recently got in touch with a contact at Bangladesh customs and they said that entering Bangladesh with a CdP is no longer possible (again).

Cheers

So what are the options now then? TIP or others?

None until proven otherwise.