Getting to Sylhet and getting around the division

Flights, trains and buses to Sylhet, then cars, CNGs, boats and motorbikes around the division, with distances, rough fares and travel times.

Sylhet City lies north-east of Dhaka, about 250 km away by road, at the centre of a compact division. Sylhet district itself runs north-east to the Jaflong hills, Sunamganj and the haors lie to the west, and the tea country of Moulvibazar and Habiganj spreads to the south. Getting here is simple by air, rail or road; getting around takes more thought, because the best sights lie at the end of small roads, rivers and haor channels.

This chapter goes deeper than the short guide How to get to Sylhet from Dhaka. Fares and timetables change often, so treat every figure here as a dated rough guide and confirm it before you travel. For weather, money and safety, see practical information.

Distances at a glance

Most sights are within 60 km of Sylhet City, Sreemangal or Sunamganj, but road quality, river crossings and the last stretch by boat or on foot often matter more than the distance.

That puts Sreemangal about 80 km from Sylhet by road, via Moulvibazar. The spine of the network is the N2, the Dhaka–Sylhet highway, which runs about 287 km from Kanchpur on the edge of Dhaka through Bhairab, Shaistaganj and Sherpur to Sylhet, crosses the Surma and ends at Tamabil on the border. Tamabil is also an immigration post for travellers crossing to Dawki in India's Meghalaya state. You need a passport and an Indian visa valid for entry at Dawki; in October 2026 India's e-visa website listed Dawki among its land entry points, but rules and opening hours change, and the crossing has been closed at short notice before, as during unrest in Meghalaya in December 2019, so check before you go.

By air

Osmani International Airport (code ZYL) lies on the northern edge of Sylhet City, about 15 minutes from the centre, and the airport road runs past the Malnichhara tea estate. In October 2026 four airlines were scheduled on the Dhaka route: Biman Bangladesh Airlines, US-Bangla Airlines, Novoair and Air Astra. The flight takes under an hour, which makes it the best choice for a short break. Biman has also flown from Sylhet to Chattogram and Cox's Bazar, though the Cox's Bazar service was suspended as of July 2026. Fares swing with demand, so book early for Eid, December and long weekends.

International flights

As of 2026, Biman is the only airline flying internationally from Osmani. Its flights between Sylhet and London Heathrow or Manchester, which carry many of the Sylheti diaspora, continue to or from Dhaka, so you can fly between Sylhet and Britain without changing planes. Biman suspended the Manchester service in early 2026, reportedly because of an aircraft shortage around the Hajj season, and resumed it on 5 July 2026. Biman has also flown between Sylhet and the Middle East, including Jeddah, Madinah, Sharjah, Dubai and Doha; which of these routes run changes by season, so check Biman's current schedule. Most other international travellers fly into Dhaka and connect.

From the airport

CNG autorickshaws and hire cars wait outside arrivals, and since 8 July 2026 Uber has run its regular ride-hailing service in Sylhet, where it had earlier offered only motorbike rides and rentals. Agree a CNG fare before loading your bags. A new terminal, cargo building and control tower are under construction, with completion targeted for December 2027, so expect building work around the approach.

By train

The train is the most relaxed way to arrive and the easiest way into tea country, because the Dhaka–Sylhet line runs straight through Sreemangal. The line is 319 km long, and intercity trains are timetabled at about 6 hours 45 minutes to 7 hours from Kamalapur in Dhaka. Depending on the train, they call at Dhaka Airport station, Bhairab Bazar, Brahmanbaria, Azampur, Shaistaganj, Sreemangal, Bhanugach, Shamshernagar, Kulaura and Maizgaon.

Most intercity trains have one day off a week, and times change with each new timetable, so check the current schedule on the Bangladesh Railway website or the Rail Sheba app before planning around a train. Recent timetables have shown the Parabat leaving Dhaka early in the morning and Sylhet in mid-afternoon, the Kalni leaving Dhaka in the afternoon and Sylhet early in the morning, and the Upaban running overnight.

Which station to use

• Sreemangal: for the tea estates, Lawachara, Madhabpur Lake and Baikka Beel, which is officially closed to visitors, so check first; Lawachara is about 8 km, or 20 minutes, away by CNG.
• Bhanugach: the station for Kamalganj, on the way to Madhabpur Lake and the trek to Hum Hum.
• Kulaura: the junction for Madhabkunda and Hakaluki Haor, with CNGs onward.
• Shaistaganj: for Habiganj town and, by road via Chunarughat, Satchari.
• Sylhet: for the city and everything to the north and west.

Fares and tickets

From 20 December 2025 the railway raised fares on its eastern routes to cover bridge charges. On Dhaka–Sylhet a shovan chair now costs Tk 410, a snigdha (AC chair) Tk 788, an AC seat Tk 943 and an AC berth Tk 1,465. On Chattogram–Sylhet the same classes cost Tk 475, Tk 909, Tk 1,087 and Tk 1,678. On Dhaka–Sylhet, mail and commuter trains cost Tk 140 and Tk 170 but are much slower.

Tickets are sold mainly through the Bangladesh Railway e-ticket website and the Rail Sheba app. Register first: Bangladeshis verify a national ID card, birth certificate or passport, and foreign nationals register with a passport number and a passport-size photo. One purchase covers up to four passengers, each named with their ID, and you must carry ID that matches the ticket. Since 2023 sales have opened 10 days before the date of travel, and at Eid the railway has sold every intercity seat online, releasing each travel day's tickets on a separate day.

For a first trip, take the train to Sreemangal, spend a night or two in the tea country, then continue to Sylhet by road. You avoid backtracking, and the line runs through tea gardens for much of the last stretch.

By bus

Coaches run between Dhaka and Sylhet through the day and night. Most leave from the Sayedabad terminal in Dhaka or from company counters near it, and some pick up elsewhere in the city. In normal traffic the trip takes 5 to 7 hours, longer on the eve of a holiday.

There are three broad types. Luxury AC coaches, run by the big national companies, have reclining seats and make fewer stops. Ordinary non-AC coaches are cheaper and slower. Local buses stop anywhere and link Sylhet with the district towns and upazilas; they are best kept for short hops.

The government sets non-AC fares by distance. Its April 2026 chart puts Sayedabad to Sylhet at 257 km, with a fare of Tk 580 on a 51-seat bus or Tk 740 on a 40-seat bus. AC fares are set by the companies, not the government, and are higher. Before each Eid prices jump: in March 2026 passengers on routes from Dhaka to the northern districts reported non-AC fares rising by Tk 50 to Tk 200, and AC fares roughly doubling overnight.

In Sylhet, coaches arrive at or near the Kadamtali Central Bus Terminal, where the older company counters line the road between Kadamtali and Humayun Rashid Chattar. The terminal building, opened on a trial basis in 2023, was already run-down by October 2025, but local buses for Habiganj, Moulvibazar and the Sylhet upazilas leave from inside it.

The highway

The Dhaka–Sylhet highway is still mostly two lanes and carries heavy truck traffic. Its upgrade to six lanes, under the SASEC Dhaka–Sylhet Corridor project, has a target of June 2029; in September 2026 eight of its 13 construction packages were on track and five were behind, with work under way on sections between Kanchpur and Habiganj. A separate project to widen the 56 km from Sylhet to Tamabil was approved in 2020 but has been slowed by delays in land acquisition and in choosing contractors.

Getting around the division

Inside the division you combine road transport with boats and, in places, motorbikes. One rule saves most visitors time and money: for a full day of sightseeing, hire one vehicle with a driver rather than changing transport at every stop.

Car with driver

Cars and microbuses with drivers can be hired by the day through hotels, travel agents and rental services in Sylhet City and Sreemangal, and Uber Rentals also operates in Sylhet. A local driver knows the ghats and parking places and will wait while you take a boat. Before you leave, agree the route, the hours, whether fuel, tolls and parking are included, and the driver's meals. Holiday rates are higher.

CNG autorickshaws

The green, three-wheeled CNG is the workhorse of the division. In towns it is the easiest way across the city; in the countryside you can hire one for a half or full day, and in Sreemangal it is the standard way to reach Lawachara, Madhabpur Lake and Baikka Beel. CNGs run without meters, so agree the fare first, and remember that their open sides offer little protection on the highway.

Local buses, legunas and rickshaws

Local buses run from Sylhet to Jaflong, Sunamganj and the district towns; for Jaflong they leave from Kadamtali and Shibganj. They are cheap but crowded, with little room for bags. On some rural roads legunas, small converted pick-ups with benches, fill the gaps. In Sylhet City, cycle rickshaws are everywhere and are the pleasant way to cover short distances in the old centre.

Ride-hailing

Uber, which until then offered only motorbike rides and rentals in Sylhet, launched its regular ride-hailing service in the city on 8 July 2026. Ride-hailing is handy in the city and for the airport; for day trips, a hired car with a driver who knows the ghats is still the better choice.

Boats and motorbikes

Many of Sylhet's best sights can only be reached, or only make sense, by boat. Boats are hired by the boat rather than the seat, from the ghat nearest the sight, and at busy places they often run at a fixed fare from a counter.

• Ratargul: small boats for four or five people, about an hour through the flooded forest, from Motorghat or Chowdhury Bazar.
• Sada Pathor: a 15-minute ride from the ghat at Bholaganj, at a fixed return fare.
• Bisnakandi and Panthumai: about 40 minutes by boat from Hadarpar bazar; ask the boatman to include both.
• Lalakhal: engine boats on the Sari river for a two to three hour return trip, reached via the Sarighat bridge.
• Jaflong: short crossings of the river to the Khasi village side.
• Tanguar Haor: houseboats and tourist boats have been banned from the haor's Ecologically Critical Area since August 2026; ask in Tahirpur or Sunamganj town which registered boats may run and where.

Houseboats on Tanguar Haor have to be booked ahead, usually by phoning the number on the boat's social media page. Since August 2026 houseboats need the district administration's permission to operate and may not enter the haor's Ecologically Critical Area, though reports say boats may still run outside it and on to Tekerghat; ask your operator which route it is allowed to take. Before the ban, in June 2024, a two-day, one-night package with meals cost roughly Tk 5,000 to Tk 10,000 per person, more at weekends and around the full moon. Boats from Tahirpur cost less because the run into the haor is shorter, but in the rains high water can cut the Sunamganj–Tahirpur road, which normally takes about 1.5 hours. Our houseboat guide lists the questions to ask.

Motorbikes in Tahirpur

Around Tahirpur, hired motorbikes are the usual way to reach Tekerghat, Niladri Lake, Barikka Tila and Shimul Bagan, crossing the Jadukata on the way. Agree the full route and waiting time with the rider, ask for a helmet, and avoid riding the rough border roads after dark.

Fares at a glance

Prices move with fuel costs, seasons and holidays. These are the latest figures we found, with their dates; use them to judge an offer, not as a fixed tariff.

Travel times from Sylhet City

These are typical times by car in dry weather without holiday traffic. Add time for boats and walks, and more in the monsoon.

• Shahjalal's dargah and Keane Bridge: 10 minutes from the centre; Malnichhara: 15 minutes; Shah Paran's dargah: 25 minutes.
• Ratargul, 26 km: about 1 hour, plus the boat.
• Sada Pathor, 33 km: about 1 hour, plus the boat.
• Lalakhal, 35 km: 1 to 1.5 hours; Utma Chhara, 40 km: about 1.5 hours.
• Jaintiapur, 42 km: about 1.5 hours; Jaflong, 60 km: about 2 hours.
• Bisnakandi, 45 km: 1.5 to 2 hours, plus the boat; Panthumai, 50 km: about 2 hours.
• Hakaluki Haor, 55 km: 1.5 to 2 hours; Madhabkunda, 70 km: about 2.5 hours.
• Sreemangal, about 80 km: allow about 2.5 hours, then 20 minutes to Lawachara.
• Sunamganj, 66 km: allow about 2 hours, then about 1.5 hours more to Tahirpur for Tanguar Haor.
• Satchari: about 1.5 hours from Sreemangal, so best visited on the way to or from Dhaka.

Leave by 8 am for any of the northern sights. You beat the holiday traffic at Tamabil, get the clearest light on the rivers and are back in the city before dark.

Driving yourself

Bangladesh drives on the left, and most visitors, including many from Dhaka, prefer a local driver. If you bring your own car, the N2 is easy to follow but demanding: two lanes for most of its length, fast coaches, slow trucks, CNGs and bicycles sharing the road, and construction zones while the six-lane upgrade continues.

Fill up in the district towns before heading for the border roads, avoid driving at night and in heavy monsoon rain, and expect police checkpoints on the Sylhet–Tamabil highway (see practical information on goods bought at Jaflong). Parking is scarce at busy sights on holidays, so arrive early. On tea estate roads, drive slowly and give way to workers and tractors.

Holiday weekends

Fridays, Saturdays and above all the Eid holidays strain every part of the system at once. A few habits help.

• Buy train tickets the day sales open, 10 days ahead, and log in early; at Eid each travel day's seats go on sale on a separate day.
• Buy coach tickets several days ahead; night coaches sell out first.
• Fly if your budget allows, and book as early as you can.
• Avoid the day before Eid and the last day of the break if you can, when roads and trains are fullest.
• Make day trips on weekdays, or start at dawn at weekends.
• Fix car hire in advance; on the busiest days, prices on the spot rise and cars and boats run short.