What Do You Want in a Resort?

Categories: Feedback, News, Resort Information | Tags: Bangladesh Resort, Eco Resort, Feedback | Comments: 11

11 Responses to “What Do You Want in a Resort?”

1. Kristin Boekhoff says:

   May 2, 2010 at 7:39 pm

   Mishael,

   I love the idea of boat races! Maybe we could even have the foreigners compete against the locals in a side tournament!
   A photography competition is also a great idea, and I love the name “PhotoGram”! We will be featuring artwork from local artists at our resorts. I would also love to start an “expert in residence” program where experts in various fields would trade a week-long stay at the resort for providing lectures or classes on their topic of expertise. A photographer in residence who would give a photography workshop for our guests could be a great addition.

   And don’t worry about the food! It will be FABULOUS! Freshly prepared by an international-caliber chef from ingredients organically grown on our project site. And definitely fish will be on the menu! It is such an important part of Bangladeshi cuisine, particularly in this area. We will even cook up the fish that our guests catch on their fishing expeditions for their dinners!

   -Kristin
2. mishael says:

   April 29, 2010 at 4:40 pm

   i would be excited to visit Panigram during yearly boat races. think about a ‘Panigram Cup’. boat is Bangladesh’s heritage!this initiative would help to keep the boat makers, the fishermen community and boatmen alive, active and kicking!!

   i would also be hapy to participate in Photography competition/exbititions in the resort as an amateur/enthusiast. let me coin a name for it again, could be ‘PhotoGram ‘

   and i would also want to find the food to be the best, the very best - and fish based!

   though nothing would beat a windy day by the lake on a hammock with a book in my hand and a chilled beer to sip onto.

   Mishael
3. Pratik Sengupta says:

   December 13, 2009 at 4:28 pm

   Excellent and wonderful initiative.Congratulation to the whole team of Panigram Project.
   I have a little suggestion,that is, if you can arrange some regular cultural evenings with the performances of local songs, local JATRA,musical fusions or acoustic evening,than-I guess it would add some cultural value to the project and local community could be inspired. Travelers from abroad can also get to know the local Bangladeshi culture as Jessore is rich for its cultural heritage.
   You can also think of some festivals based on the seasonal changes in Bangladesh ( Borsha Festival in Rainy season, Boishakhi Festival in summer etc)

   All the best
4. m.sharif says:

   December 7, 2009 at 10:39 pm

   I want to see this resort as a Bangladeshi Brand (not any indian resort!). Plz consider the price. It can be two. One for Locan and another for Foreigners.

   I am waiting for the opening.

   THANK YOU VERY MUCH for taking such an initiative.
5. obayed says:

   November 10, 2009 at 5:00 am

   hi kristin cant wait for it.price maybe little toomuch. also musium tour add willbe more interesting.
6. Shahin says:

   August 13, 2009 at 11:14 am

   Dear Kristin,
   Me, my wife and my son are impatiently waiting for the inauguration ceremony of your resort. We would like to be the pioneers in your guest list. However, I have few points for you:

   a. The initial price / rent should me little less than that of you planned.

   b. There can be two types of rate – for local tourists and the tourists from abroad (naturally, the first one should be less than the later).

   c. You may arrange big & luxury boats for tourists to stay over night inside sundarbans.

   d. In your package tour, you may please include the visit at the memorial of great and very famous poet Maikel Modhusudhan Datta (I am sure, the memorial will not be far away from your resort).

   e. You may include ‘Kopotakkoh” river in your river tour program. All Bangladeshi people have got emotional touch with this river. Guest from abroad will be impressed to know the historic and patriotic relation of M. Datta with the river.

   f. A souvenir shop may be established at the resort where Bangladeshi handcrafts (specially stitch work of “jagoroni’, ‘aisha abed foundation’, bachte sheka’ etc) will be available.

   Thanks & Regards
   Shahin
7. Kristin Boekhoff says:

   May 26, 2009 at 7:15 am

   Hi Alison!

   Thank you for the feedback! I am very interested to hear from parents what they would like in the resort, since I am not a parent myself…

   We will have quite an extensive playground at the resort with a tree house, playground equipment, and splash pad. We will also have a swimming pool, cricket/badminton field, and several gardens/ wooded areas for them to play in.

   As for activities specifically geared toward children, I don’t really have anything planned yet aside from possibly some pottery classes and special activities (craft days, kite flying, etc.) that we will have on certain holidays/ resort promotional days. Do you have any specific suggestions of things that your child might enjoy?

   I also like your comment about food. Perhaps we can have a children’s menu that has milder food in smaller portions…

   We are planning on picking all of our guests up from the airport and driving them to the resort. Not only that, but we are also going to let people book their plane tickets through our website if they live in Dhaka and we will deliver them to your door for you so you don’t have to wait in line at the airline office. The flight from Dhaka is only a half an hour and costs about 5,000 Tk round trip. After arriving in Jessore it is about a 30 minute drive to the resort the “quick” way and about 40 minutes the “pretty” way. (I highly recommend the “pretty way” because the scenery is absolutely gorgeous!)

   And yes! The roads around the resort are MUCH safer than the roads around Dhaka! There are several small, paved roads that hardly have any automobile traffic (mostly rickshaws, bicycles, and cow carts…) I have an intern coming down this summer who will map out some good routes for guests. (We will also plan on having children’s bicycles and children’s bicycle seats so the kids can go on the bike ride too!)

   As for the room rates, a couple of people have asked about this now, so perhaps I will add it to the “Rooms and Bungalows” page. Rates will vary by room size (obviously) and time of year, but the costs for a room in the guest house will range from $69/ night to $154/ night and the bungalows will range from $162/ night to $615/ night for the President’s suite. I hope you consider those rates “reasonable”! I know they are higher than some of the other places in Bangladesh, but they are fairly low by international standards, especially considering that we will have five star level service.

   Thanks again for your comments!
   -Kristin
8. AlisonKenny says:

   May 26, 2009 at 5:04 am

   Hi Kristin, thanks for letting us know. We look forward to a possible visit.

   We’re a couple with a 5 year old. We have explored a bit of Dhaka, and the north-eastern tea estates. On our last trip with our child we found that our child was restless, perhaps with all the noise and crowds.

   As well as safety, we’d like our child to feel at home, relaxed, with well planned children’s activities. Our child isn’t overly fussy when it comes to food, but we’d like it to be free of chillies.

   If Jessore’s airport is near to your resort, perhaps you could have someone to meet us and pick us up from the airport. We like the idea of bicycle routes. Are the roads in Jessore safer than the ones around Dhaka?
   We see someone else has mentioned ‘reasonable price’.
   We don’t know much about spa services, so, anything to help us unwind and relax would be good - feet massage?
   We’re both socially minded and curious as to what the host community might like any visitors to do. Perhaps lend a hand at a local school?

   All the best.
9. Kristin Boekhoff says:

   May 5, 2009 at 1:23 am

   Alicia, thanks for your feedback! I really like your Bangla lessons suggestion; I will try to incorporate that into the activities. And yes! The goal of the resort is to give you a taste of Bangladeshi village life while still saying in beautiful, well-maintained accommodation. - Kristin
10. Alicia says:

    May 4, 2009 at 11:46 pm

    I would like a reasonable price. I would like to feel like a part of Bangladesh - not merely a visitor. I think what you are making is wonderful. I like the idea of voluntourism … I’d want to give back to the community, not only with employment in the services at the resort, but also by going out to the community to serve. Perhaps helping to build a new house or well, perhaps engaging in local customs, eating local food and being able to talk with the Bangladeshis.

    Basic Bangla lessons would be a great idea. Just enough to get around town, to buy things from the market, to talk price with the rickshaw wallah etc.

    I would want to feel like I’m living in Bangladesh with the knowledge that I’m using safe and clean water and facilities.

    I’d actually really like to learn more about your project. It sounds super awesome and I’m itching to get back to B-desh.
11. admin says:

    May 4, 2009 at 9:44 am

    I want a good massage after a hard day of web programming. And a hammock, followed by a chilled golden beverage….