A one-day Bogura tour by car

Bogura is the easiest heritage day in Bangladesh: the main sites sit within 20 km of the town, the roads are good, and the whole loop fits between breakfast and the evening Dhaka bus. Here is the itinerary our drivers run most often, with the timings that actually work.

9:00 – Leave Bogura town

Pick up at your hotel or home. Head north on the Rangpur highway; the drive to Mahasthan is about 30 minutes from Satmatha.

9:30 – Mahasthangarh

The fortified city of ancient Pundranagara, beside the Karatoya river, with ramparts you can walk, the Mazar of Shah Sultan Balkhi at the gate, and the archaeological museum a short drive away with its terracotta, coins and sculpture. Give it two hours: the ramparts first while it is cool, then the museum. Entry tickets are paid at the gate; the museum is closed on the government weekly holiday, so check the day.

11:45 – Behular Bashor Ghar (Gokul Medh)

Two kilometres from Mahasthan in Gokul village, a tall brick mound of some 170 cells dated to around the 7th century, tied in folk memory to the Behula and Lakhindar legend. Climb to the top for the view across the fields. Forty-five minutes is enough.

12:45 – Vasu Vihara and Govinda Bhita

Buddhist monastery ruins a few kilometres north-west of Mahasthan, quieter than the main site, with the foundations of monks' cells around a courtyard. Govinda Bhita, a temple mound by the river near the museum, can be seen on the way back. Allow an hour for both.

14:00 – Lunch in Bogura

Back in town for lunch. Ask the driver for the current favourite; the choices range from Bogura's kacchi houses to simple rice-and-fish restaurants near Satmatha.

15:15 – Nawab Bari

The Nawab Palace (Mohammad Ali Palace) and its museum in the heart of Bogura, with period rooms, wax figures and the gardens. An hour covers it.

16:30 – Satmatha and Bogura doi

Finish at the seven-road junction that is Bogura's centre, and buy the one thing every visitor is told to buy: Bogura doi, the sweet set yogurt the town is famous for. The old shops are a few minutes' walk from Satmatha. Back at your hotel or at the bus terminal by 17:30.

Tips

• Winter (November to February) is the season: cool mornings, clear skies.
• Wear shoes you can climb a brick mound in.
• A Noah suits a family; a HiAce a group of ten.
• Want Paharpur too? Start at 8, skip Nawab Bari, and add the UNESCO monastery in Naogaon in the afternoon; see our tour car page.