MV Bay one: An eight-hour thrilling cruise from Ctg to St Martin’s

With crystal blue water, coral reefs and coconut trees, Saint Martin's Island has turned into one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. But tourists have to face a lot of trouble to reach the isolated island amid the waters of the Bay of Bengal.

To make their journey to and back from the island easier, Karnafuli Ship Builders has introduced MV Bay One, a cruise ship with a capacity of over 2,000 people, from Chattogram to the only coral island of the country.

The eight-hour luxurious trip reveals the beauty of the sea night and day for tourists, along with many other facilities for them.

MV Bay One departs from Patenga Water Bus Terminal in Chattogram every Thursday at 11.00 pm and reaches St Martin's Island at 7.00 am the next day. Tourists stay on the island on Friday on their own arrangements and depart from there at 10.00 am on Saturday, returning to Chattogram at 7.00 pm.

However, due to shallow depth, the vessel cannot dock at the jetty in Saint Martin's and tourists are taken there by a barge.

Karnafuli Ship Builders introduced the ship on this route for the first time in January 2021.

Tourists who have already enjoyed the cruise have described it as a thrilling experience, appreciating the luxurious arrangements made by the authorities.

Such a journey on a moonlit night will give the tourists an ethereal feeling. There will also be open deck concerts and other arrangements to entertain the tourists, they said.

The ship has star quality restaurants with a variety of food on offer. Apart from buffets, there are snacks and coffee shops and ice cream bars.

One of the major attractions of the journey is a view of the sunrise over the ocean horizon from  the ship.

Yasmin Ara Momtaz, an official of Biman Bangladesh Airlines at Dhaka Airport, who has experienced the sea voyage on MV Bay One, told The Business Standard, "I have experience of travelling to different places by land, sea and air. But the experience on MV Bay One was really different. I am really impressed. All their arrangements are very modern and luxurious, which was beyond my imagination."

"From the beginning to the end, the journey was a great joy. The arrangement of the concert was especially excellent. I want to enjoy the journey at least once a year," she added.

Officials of Karnafuli Ship Builders said that they ensure the safety of the passengers as per international maritime regulations. There are multiple life jackets for passengers, buoys, emergency boats and other equipment.

The cruise liner has presidential suites, royal suites, VVIP cabins, family cabins, bunker beds, and chairs. An economy class return ticket costs Tk4,000, while a return on royal suites costs Tk60,000.

There are three rates: the price of a business class return ticket for one person is Tk5,400, open deck Tk6,500 and bunker beds Tk8,000. However, for two people, the price of a VIP presidential ticket would cost Tk40,000, royal ticket Tk55,000 and a VVIP cabin would cost Tk60,000.

The ship maker has another ship named Karnafuli Express with 600 seats that plies on the Coxs Bazar-Saint Martin route. The company is preparing to launch a 14-story ship with swimming pool facilities soon.

The previous name of MV Bay One was Salvia Maru, which was built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries in Japan's Kobe city. The cruise ship is 121 metres long with a draft of 5.3 metres. It is capable of going at a speed of 18-20 nautical miles per hour.

MA Rashid, chief engineer of Karnafuli Ship Builders Limited, told The Business Standard, "We are working for the development of the tourism industry with the full cooperation of the government. We have launched MV Bay One to provide maximum convenience to tourists. We have plans to do better for the development of this industry in future."