Spreading across Natore, Sirajganj and Pabna, this vast interconnected freshwater depression swells during the rainy season between July and October to cover several hundred square kilometres. From the road causeways in Singra, the view across the water extends to the horizon, dotted with isolated raised villages that appear to float. Travelers can hire engine boats from Singra or Bil-Dahar ghat to cruise between flooded villages, watching fishermen casting large bamboo nets. In winter the waters recede into green mustard and paddy fields, drawing thousands of migratory ducks.
- Best time
- July to October for monsoon boating
- Give it
- Half a day
- Cost
- Boat hire roughly ৳1,000–2,000 for a 2-hour trip for a group; bus to Singra about ৳40
How to get to Chalan Beel
Singra ghat on the Natore–Bogura highway is 18 km north of Natore town, about 30 minutes by bus or CNG auto-rickshaw; boats can be hired at the ghat.
Natore town is about 200 km from Dhaka, around 5 hours by road. Every way to get there is in the Natore guide.
Wear life jackets during boat trips in peak monsoon when open-water waves can rise unexpectedly during gusty storms.
More to see in Natore
Photo: Kazi Rashed Abdallah, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Natore Rajbari (Rani Bhabani Palace) নাটোর রাজবাড়ী
The sprawling 18th-century moated palace of Rani Bhabani, with surviving residential wings, Shiva temples, and wide green grounds.
- Best time
- November to February
- Give it
- 2 hours
- Cost
- Small entry fee around ৳20 for Bangladeshis; rickshaw from the town center about ৳30
Photo: Ratul Chandra Das, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons Uttara Ganabhaban (Dighapatia Rajbari) উত্তরা গণভবন
A grand 18th-century palace complex with an Italianate clock tower gate and deer park, now the northern official residence of the head of state.
- Best time
- November to February
- Give it
- 2–3 hours
- Cost
- Entry roughly ৳30–50 for Bangladeshis, more for foreigners; auto-rickshaw from town about ৳50–80
Dayarampur Rajbari দয়ারামপুর রাজবাড়ি
A quiet 1890s neoclassical estate house built for the Dighapatia royal family, tucked inside the grounds of Qadirabad Cantonment.
- Best time
- November to February
- Give it
- 1 hour
- Cost
- Free to view from outside; CNG from Natore town about ৳150–200 each way