Discover Dhaka: Architecture, Museums and History

Explore Dhaka through a range of themes: monumental architecture, historic sites, museums and a New Year festival celebrated across the country. If you’re looking for a hotel in Dhaka, you can plan your stay around which of these sides of the city you want to focus on.

Architecture and Historic Buildings

The Bangladesh National Parliament Building is a monumental architectural work by Louis I. Kahn. The complex covers about 215 acres. Its scale gives an idea of the size of the site, while Kahn’s name points to its architectural significance. Together, the building and the area figure make a striking introduction to Dhaka’s architecture.

Lalbagh Fort, also known as Fort Aurangabad, offers a different historical context. The site is an unfinished 17th-century Mughal fort complex on the Buriganga River in southwestern Dhaka. The city is therefore home to two very different architectural themes: a monumental parliamentary complex and a fortification from the Mughal era.

Ahsan Manzil was the official residential palace and office of the Nawab of Dhaka. A new museum of the Bangladesh National Museum was established in the building, with objects collected and displayed in galleries. It is a branch of the National Museum with its full administrative authority. The palace’s historical role and its function as a museum come together at this site.

Museums, Collections and the University

The Liberation War Museum in Agargaon holds a rare collection of objects, artefacts and documents from 1971. Its new premises opened on 16 April 2017 and had 3,500 square metres of gallery space. The collection relates to 1971, while the opening date describes the history of the new museum premises.

Curzon Hall dates from the British Raj and houses the Faculty of Science of the University of Dhaka. Unlike the collections at the Liberation War Museum, this is a historic university building with a scientific function at its centre. For your trip planning, you can distinguish between collections relating to the history of Bangladesh and a building used by a university.

Festival and Practical Information

Pahela Baishakh is celebrated throughout Bangladesh; in Dhaka, celebrations take place in the TSC area of the University of Dhaka. No specific date is given here. If the festival is a deciding factor for your trip, check the date for the year in question.

For a trip to Lalbagh Fort, the guide lists three possible starting points: from Gulistan, Shahbagh or Curzon Hall, you can reach the site by cycle rickshaw, CNG vehicle or taxi. Local transport conditions can change, so check travel options shortly before setting off.

More Places in the Wider Dhaka Destination

The wider Dhaka destination includes other cultural and natural sites. Panam City is an archaeological site in Sonargaon Upazila, Narayanganj District. Also in Sonargaon, the Folk Art and Craft Museum has two exhibition galleries depicting everyday life in Bangladesh. The two places focus on different things: the archaeological site and the galleries’ depictions of everyday life.

Baliati Zamindar Bari is in Baliati village, in Saturia Upazila, Manikganj District. It is considered one of the finest examples of a 19th-century monument in the Renaissance Colonial style in Bangladesh. Atia Mosque is in Delduar Upazila, Tangail District, and dates from the 17th century; terracotta features on its eastern and northern exterior walls. The details about location, period and design offer concrete ways to distinguish between these places when choosing a theme.

Natural attractions are also part of the wider Dhaka destination. The forest area of Sreepur in Gazipur is an important tourist attraction, with various trees, shrubs, creepers and other vegetation, as well as different animal and bird species. Arial Beel in Srinagar Upazila, Munshiganj District, covers 136 square kilometres and is described as Bangladesh’s third-largest wetland; the area can be explored by boat. Boat trips on the Turag in Gazipur are available year-round. Check local river conditions and providers before making plans.

Discover more destinations: Kotwali, Kishoreganj.

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