Photo: Abdul Momin, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons

The Sylhet travel guide

The Sylhet division in depth: its history and people, every region, the food and the tea, and the practical advice you need on the road.

Start here

13 min read

Sylhet travel guide: the division at a glance

Where the Sylhet division is, what each of its four districts offers, when to go, how long to stay, how to get around and how to travel with care.

Know Sylhet

History, faith, culture, food, tea and the wild places.

16 min read

History of Sylhet: from Srihatta to the Londoni era

Copper plates, Shahjalal's arrival in 1303, lime and tea under the British, Sylheti seafarers and the 1947 vote: how Sylhet's past shaped it.

14 min read

People, languages and culture of the Sylhet division

Sylheti speech and script, mystic songs, Manipuri dance, Khasi punjis, tea garden festivals and the Londoni link, with advice on visiting with respect.

14 min read

Shrines, temples and sacred sites of Sylhet

Shahjalal's dargah, Shah Paran's hilltop tomb, Hindu bathing days, Manipuri mandaps and Khasi churches: what they are and how to visit with respect.

11 min read

Food and tea in Sylhet: what to eat and drink

Satkora beef, akhni, haor fish, hidol, chunga pitha and layered tea: what to eat and drink in Sylhet, by season, with safety tips and the UK curry link.

12 min read

Sylhet's tea gardens: history, people and visits

How tea reached Sylhet in the 1850s, how the leaf is grown and made, who plucks it, and where and when to see the estates without trespassing.

14 min read

Haors, forests and wildlife of the Sylhet division

How the haors fill and drain, where the gibbons and waterbirds live, what threatens them, and how to watch wildlife here without doing harm.

Regions

The city, the northern hills, tea country, the haors and Habiganj, area by area.

14 min read

Sylhet City: shrines, tea gardens and the Surma

A guide to Sylhet city: the shrines of Shahjalal and Shah Paran, Keane Bridge on the Surma, tea estates inside the city, museums and Sylheti food.

14 min read

Jaflong, Bisnakandi and the northern hills

Jaflong, Lalakhal, Ratargul, Bisnakandi and Sada Pathor: stone rivers, a swamp forest and Khasi villages on Sylhet's border with Meghalaya.

15 min read

Sreemangal and Moulvibazar: tea, forest and waterfalls

Tea estates and layered tea, gibbons in Lawachara, Manipuri villages, jungle waterfalls and the Hakaluki wetland, with a three-day route.

15 min read

Sunamganj and the haors: Tanguar, Niladri and folk poets

Tanguar Haor under the 2026 boat rules, Niladri Lake, the Jadukata below Barikka Tila and the homes of Hason Raja and Shah Abdul Karim, with a 3-day route.