Kuakata, often referred to as the "Daughter of the Sea," is a picturesque coastal town nestled along the stunning shores of the Bay of Bengal in southern Bangladesh. Renowned for its breathtaking natural beauty and serene ambiance, Kuakata has earned its place as one of the country's most sought-after tourist destinations. Naturally, several staycations have been developed here to accommodate the influx of tourists in every season. Let’s take a look at the most renowned hotels and resorts in Kuakata to spend vacations. Top Resorts and Hotels in Kuakata Sikder Resort and Villas Sikder Resort and Villas is one of the largest and most luxurious seafront resorts in Kuakata. The resort is situated opposite to the Eco Park. It is strategically positioned to provide easy access to the beach at any time of the day.  Sikder Resorts has three different accommodation options. Visitors can choose to stay either in the Lake View tower, the Villas, or the Sunrise and Sunset tower. If you don’t want to miss the sunrise and sunset Kuakata is so famous for, we suggest booking the Sunrise and Sunset Tower.  Currently, the resort is offering a monsoon special offer. Visitors can book from several options ranging from deluxe, superior, premier, and royal suites which cost 7590 BDT, 10,626 BDT, 12,144 BDT, and 34,155 BDT for two people per day. Services like buffet breakfast, swimming pool, jacuzzi, car parking, internet, and gym are complementary.  Read more: Khulna and Bagerhat Travel Guide: Best Places to See, Exciting Things to Do Somudra Bari Resort, Kuakata  Somudra Bari Resort is situated in Kalapara, opposite the Sikder market. The resort is within walking distance from the Kuakata Sea beachfront. Somudra Bari can be a perfect accommodation choice for those looking for economic options.  The resort is situated right beside the lake which provides an exceptional view of the horizon from their lake view suites. Visitors can even go on a boat ride in the lake at an additional charge. There are two types of rooms for couples -/ Deluxe AC Lake View and Deluxe AC Garden View. Additionally, single rooms are also available. Services like buffet breakfast, in-room tea, and parking facilities come as complementary with the stay. Last month, Somudra Bari was offering a 2-day 2-night stay package at 5,550 BDT for two. This month they are offering a 50% discount on all their rooms and services. Booking details are available on this resort's Facebook Page. Read more: 11 Cool Places in and around Dhaka to Visit on Eid Day with Family, Children Rose Valley Motel and Resort Rose Valley Motel and Resort is situated on the Kuakata main road, a bit away from the sea beach. While it's not very far from the beaches, it brings a sense of calm and quietness all around as there aren’t bustling people everywhere.  The resort can be a perfect vacation accommodation for budget travellers. There are five different room options ranging from Luxury suite, Superior deluxe to VIP suite. The cost ranges between 2500 BDT to 6500 BDT per night for two.  Room services, parking facilities, and wife come as complementary with the stay. Visitors can dine in-resort or choose from the several local restaurants nearby.  Read more: Top 25 hotels in Asia, according to Tripadvisor

Think soaring costs were caused by the Ukraine war or supply chain snarls? You must be unaware of the "Beyoncé effect". The official start of the singer's worldwide tour in Sweden last month caused such a rush for hotel rooms and restaurant meals that it has reflected in the country's economic data, reports BBC. In May, Sweden reported higher-than-expected inflation of 9.7%. The surprise was due to rising hotel and restaurant costs, the report said. According to Michael Grahn, economist at Danske Bank, Beyoncé may have contributed to the increase in hotel costs. He believed she was also a driving force behind the unusually massive increase in recreation and cultural expenses. Also read: BTS on 1st Grammy nod: 'It’s hard to express in words' "I wouldn't ... blame Beyoncé for [the] high inflation, but her performance and global demand to see her perform in Sweden apparently added a little to it," he wrote in an email to the BBC. There is little doubt that the singer's first solo tour in seven years is a significant business event. According to one estimate, the tour may earn over £2 billion by the time it concludes in September. Airbnb reported that searches for accommodation in locations on the tour increased after the announcement. Many shows sold out in days, and resale prices skyrocketed, the BBC report also said. Also read: Grammy-winning duo Daft Punk break up after 28 years In the United Kingdom, 60,000 people arrived in Cardiff, including fans from Lebanon, the United States, and Australia. Demand for hotel rooms related to her London show was so high that several homeless families being accommodated in a hotel by the local authorities were reportedly kicked out to make space for the fans, it said. The Stockholm concerts, where Beyoncé performed before an audience of 46,000 over two nights, apparently drew fans from all over the world, particularly the United States, where a strong dollar against the krona made tickets in the Nordic country appear to be a relative bargain. Visit Stockholm termed the surge in travel to the city the "Beyoncé effect" in an email to the Washington Post last month. Sweden's inflation rate peaked in December at 12.3%. Official numbers showed that the rate was 9.7% last month, down from 10.5% in April. The financial markets had predicted around 9.4%. Also read: Beyoncé ties Alison Krauss’ record of 27 wins at Grammys Grahn told the BBC that it is "very rare" for one celebrity to have such an effect, adding that large football tournaments may have a similar effect. He stated on social media that the anticipated trends will return to normal in June.

Asia is often considered the most diverse continent in the world. From winter escapades to tropical retreats, Asia offers a vacation experience unlike any other. To complement these retreat options, there are thousands of hotels and vacation stays available across countries. In this article, let's take a look at 25 of the best hotels in Asia and the amenities that await travellers.  Best Hotels in Asia According to Tripadvisor This list will focus on ratings taken from Tripadvisor, one of the leading websites for hotel reviews. The platform takes reviews and ratings from thousands of users based on their experience and aggregates them to create their list. Let’s start from the bottom.  #25 Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong  The last on the list is Four Seasons Hong Kong. The hotel is situated right across the famous Victoria Harbor adjoining the Hong Kong financial district. Visitors can conveniently access the Hong Kong metro and the famed Star Ferry Terminal. The specialty of his hotel is the incorporation of several world-leading features into their service. The most notable of them are the two Michelin-starred restaurants: Caprice and Lung King Heen. The latter is also the first authentic Chinese restaurant to receive this honor.  Read more: These are the countries you can visit visa-free with a Bangladeshi passport in 2023 There is also their award-winning spa experience on the rooftop adjoining the infinity pool overlooking the Hong Kong skyline. 

A 19-year-old woman was found dead in a Dakshin Surma residential hotel room Wednesday, police said. However, hotel manager Jahir Miah, the former husband of the 19-year-old, went into hiding after the incident. The deceased was identified as Nilima Begum Lily from Sylhet's Osmaninagar upazila. Md Kamrul Hasan Talukdar, officer-in-charge (OC) of Dakshin Surma Police Station, said the two kept in touch despite their separation. "We recovered the body from the first floor of 'Shapla Residential Hotel,' ramming the door of room No. 105 open after getting information from the hotel staff around 10.45am," he said. The body was sent to Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical Hospital for post-mortem, Kamrul said, adding that the body bore no injury marks. "Police are looking for Jahir. The cause of Lily's death can be confirmed after investigation," the OC said. Read more: 2 Ansar members found dead inside Agrani Bank in Narsingdi                  

A massive fire at a Cambodian hotel casino Thursday injured over 60 people and killed at least 19 — a number that officials warned would rise after the search for bodies resumes Friday. The blaze, which started around midnight Wednesday, was put out over 12 hours later at 2 p.m. Thursday, said Sek Sokhom, head of Banteay Meanchey province’s information department. He said more than 60 people were injured and the death toll was expected to rise once rescuers are able to access victims who were believed to still be under debris or in locked rooms. Videos posted on social media showed people falling from a roof after they were trapped by the fire at the Grand Diamond City casino and hotel in the town of Poipet. In a video posted by Cambodia’s firefighting agency, a crowd could be heard shouting pleas to rescue people trapped on the roof of the hotel complex, which is more than a dozen stories tall at its highest point. The video showed at least one person falling as the flames reached the roof. “Oh, please help rescue them. Pump water, pump water!” shouted onlookers. The Department of Fire Prevention, Extinguishing and Rescue said it heard calls for help at 4 a.m. emanating from rooms on the 13th, 14th and 15th floors. Hands and even a mobile phone's flashlight were seen waving from windows inside the complex. “The fire was massive, and was inside the casino, so it was difficult for our water cannons to reach it,” said a firefighter in the video posted online by the fire department. Read more: Rain, floods in Philippines leave 32 dead, others missing Many of those inside, both customers and staff, were from neighboring Thailand, which sent firetrucks and emergency workers Thursday to help cope with the crisis in the bustling border town. An initial investigation found that the fire may have been caused New Year’s holiday decorations drawing too much electricity, causing wires to overheat and burn, Sek Sokhom said. The dead and injured comprised people of several nationalities, including Thai, Chinese, Malaysian, Vietnamese and Cambodian, he said. A local Buddhist temple was being used to receive their bodies. The Grand Diamond City casino complex has 500 employees, and had 1,000 customers Wednesday, according to a report from Soth Kimkolmony, a spokesperson for Cambodia’s National Committee for Disaster Management. It was unclear how many were present when the fire broke out. “Right now, we are trying to bring the dead bodies from the building down. I don’t think there will be any survivors because of very thick smoke. Even we all (the rescue staff) have to wear proper gear when we go inside the building, otherwise we cannot breathe at all,” said Montri Khaosa-ard, a staff member of Thailand Ruamkatanyu Foundation, a social welfare organization that sends volunteers to disaster scenes. Thai and Cambodian rescue teams worked side by side in Thursday's search of the premises, but paused efforts their searched efforts at the dangerously damaged site as night fell. Thailand’s public television network, Thai PBS, reported that 50 Thais, both staff and customers, had been trapped inside the casino complex. It cited reports that the emergency ward in Aranyaprathet Hospital on the Thai side of the border was full and some victims had to be sent to other hospitals. Poipet in western Cambodia is a site of busy cross-border trade and tourism opposite the city of Aranyaprathet in more affluent Thailand. Read more: Heavy snow in Japan leaves 17 dead, dozens injured Casinos are illegal in Thailand. Many Thais visit neighboring countries such as Cambodia — a popular tourist destination with convenient international connections — to gamble. Poipet has a cluster of more than a dozen casinos. The Grand Diamond City casino is just a short walk from the border checkpoint with Thailand and popular with customers who make the four-hour drive from the Thai capital, Bangkok.

Police said they conducted "block raids" on several hotels in Banani and one in Motijheel in the capital Saturday night, suspecting the presence of militants, wanted criminals, and drug peddlers. Police suspect that members of banned militant outfits, drug dealers, and wanted criminals are staying in several hotels and messes in Banani's Kakoli, according to Abdul Ahad, deputy commissioner (DC) of the Gulshan Division of Dhaka Metropolitan Police. They barricaded different roads and set up check posts on different roads in Gulshan and Banani, including the one near BNP Chairperson Begum Khaleda Zia's Gulshan residence. "The raids started at 9pm and will continue. No one has been arrested so far," Ahad said. Police also started conducting a raid in a hotel near Motijheel's Doinik Bangla intersection suspecting the presence of criminals, Yasir Arafat, officer-in-charge of Motijheel Police Station said, adding: "The drive will continue." Police are conducting 15-day operations in hotels across Bangladesh to ensure security ahead of Victory Day. Read more: Kuakata hotel & eatery owners go on indefinite strike over raids

A 60-year-old British national was found dead at a hotel in the capital’s Uttara area on Thursday, said police. The deceased was identified as Finlayson Dugald, who came to Bangladesh with a tourist visa and had been staying in ‘Marino Hotel’ in Sector No 4 on Road No 11 since September 20. Hotel staff said Dugald’s Chinese friend Dong Hao Peng knocked the door of his room but received no response around 10am. Later, the door of the room No 108 was unlocked with a duplicate key and his body was found lying in the bathroom, they said . Read: Young couple found dead at Mohammadpur flat Md Mamunur Rahman, sub-inspector of Uttara East Police Station, said on information they rushed to the spot and sent the body to Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for an autopsy. The foreigner might have died of sickness but the exact reason will be known after the postmortem, he said. 

The body of an engineer of Hotel Intercontinental was found inside the hotel in the city on Wednesday, police said. The dead had been identified as Subrata Saha, 52. He had been serving in the hotel for last 20 years. He was residing at Hatirpol along with his wife and daughter. The cause of his death could not be ascertained. Inspector (investigation) of Ramna Police Station Nur Mohammad  told reporters that Subrata entered the hotel around 9:30 am on Wednesday. He went up to 11th floor by elevator and after then his presence was not found anywhere. Later at around 11:30 am, the cleaners of the hotel saw his body lying on the roof of the extended part of the entrance of the hotel, he said. READ: Unidentified man’s body found inside plastic drum in city He was wearing a white striped shirt and blue pants. Being informed, Ramna thana police went to the spot and recovered the body. Later, CID's crime scene unit went and collected various samples from the spot. His body was found lying on the roof two-storey annex of the hotel building.  Another officer of Ramna police station said primarily it seems that engineer Subrata fell from the roof of the 11th floor and died. However, the police are investigating whether he jumped on his own or was pushed by someone, the police officer said requesting anonymity. He said that Police have seized CCTV footage of the hotel. Several employees of the hotel have already been questioned by police. The body was sent to Dhaka Medical College Morgue for autopsy.

Relatives of the missing in Cuba’s capital desperately searched Saturday for victims of an explosion at one of Havana's most luxurious hotels that killed at least 27 people. They checked the morgue, hospitals and if unsuccessful, they returned to the partially collapsed Hotel Saratoga, where rescuers used dogs to hunt for survivors. A natural gas leak was the apparent cause of Friday’s blast at the 96-room hotel. The 19th-century structure in the Old Havana neighborhood did not have any guests at the time because it was undergoing renovations ahead of a planned Tuesday reopening after being closed for two years during the pandemic. On Saturday evening, Dr. Julio Guerra Izquierdo, chief of hospital services at the Ministry of Health, raised the death toll to 27 with 81 people injured. The dead included four children and a pregnant woman. Spain's President Pedro Sánchez said via Twitter that a Spanish tourist was among the dead and that another Spaniard was seriously injured. Cuban authorities confirmed the tourist’s death and said her partner was injured. They were not staying at the hotel. Tourism Minister Dalila González said a Cuban-American tourist was also injured. Representatives of Grupo de Turismo Gaviota SA, which owns the hotel, said during a news conference Saturday that 51 workers had been inside the hotel at the time, as well as two people working on renovations. Of those, 11 were killed, 13 remained missing and six were hospitalized. González said the cause of the blast was still under investigation, but a large crane hoisted a charred gas tanker from the hotel's rubble early Saturday. Search and rescue teams worked through the night and into Saturday, using ladders to descend through the rubble and twisted metal into the hotel’s basement as heavy machinery gingerly moved away piles of the building’s façade to allow access. Above, chunks of drywall dangled from wires, desks sat seemingly undisturbed inches from the void where the front of the building cleaved away. READ: Rescuers look for victims at Cuba hotel after blast kills 25 At least one survivor was found early Saturday in the shattered ruins, and rescuers using search dogs clambered over huge chunks of concrete looking for more. Relatives of missing people remained at the site while others gathered at hospitals where the injured were being treated. A desperate Yatmara Cobas stood outside the perimeter waiting for word of her daughter, 27-year-old housekeeper Shaidis Cobas. “My daughter is in the Saratoga; she’s been there since 8 a.m. (Friday), and at this time I don’t know anything about her,” Cobas said. “She’s not at the morgue, she’s not in the hospital.” The mother said she had gone everywhere seeking answers from authorities, but coming up empty. “I’m tired of the lies,” she said. Gov. Reinaldo García Zapata said Saturday evening that 19 families have reported loved ones missing and that rescue efforts would continue. Lt. Col. Enrique Peña briefed Comandante Ramiro Valdés, who fought alongside Fidel Castro, on the search efforts at the site. Peña said the presence of people had been detected on the first floor and in the basement and four teams of search dogs and handlers were working. He did not know if the victims were alive or dead. “I don’t want to move from here,” Cristina Avellar told The Associated Press near the hotel. Avellar was waiting for news of Odalys Barrera, a 57-year-old cashier who has worked at the hotel for five years. She is the godmother of Barrera’s daughters and considers her like a sister. Neighbors were still in shock a day after the explosion. “I thought it was a bomb,” said Guillermo Madan, a 73-year-old retiree, who lives just meters from the building, but was not injured. The three-decade resident of the neighborhood was cooking and watching television when he heard the blast. “My room moved from here to there. My neighbor’s window broke, the plates, everything.” Katerine Marrero, 31, was shopping at the time. “I left the store, I felt the explosion,” she said. “Everyone started to run.” Although no tourists were reported injured, the explosion is another blow to the country’s crucial tourism industry. Even before the coronavirus pandemic kept tourists away from Cuba, the country was struggling with tightened sanctions imposed by former U.S. President Donald Trump and kept in place the Biden administration. Those limited visits by U.S. tourists to the islands and restricted remittances from Cubans in the U.S. to their families in Cuba. Tourism had started to revive somewhat early this year, but the war in Ukraine deflated a boom of Russian visitors, who accounted for almost a third of the tourists arriving in Cuba last year. A 300-student school next to the hotel was evacuated. The emblematic hotel had a stunning view of Cuba's center, including the domed Capitol building about 110 yards (100 meters) away. The Capitol suffered broken glass and damaged masonry from the explosion. The hotel was renovated in 2005 as part of the Cuban government’s revival of Old Havana and is owned by the Cuban military’s tourism business arm, Grupo de Turismo Gaviota SA. The company said it was investigating the cause of the blast and did not respond to an email from the AP seeking more details about the hotel and the renovation it was undergoing. In the past, the Hotel Saratoga has been used by visiting VIPs and political figures, including high-ranking U.S. government delegations. Beyoncé and Jay-Z stayed there in 2013. García Zapata said structures adjacent to the hotel were being evaluated, including two badly damaged apartment buildings. Díaz-Canel said families in affected buildings had been transferred to safer locations. Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador arrived in Havana for a visit late Saturday. He was scheduled to meet with Diaz Canel Sunday morning and return to Mexico Sunday night.

A 25-year-old Dhaka University (DU) student was found dead at a hotel in the capital's Segunbagicha area in the early hours of Thursday. Adnan Sakib, a student of DU's international relations department (2014-15), lived at the varsity's Shaheed Sgt Zahurul Haque Hall. Read:Medical student’s hanging body found in Dhaka Police said the victim's wife lodged a missing person's complaint at the Shahbag police station on Wednesday night after his husband went missing. Cops soon put Adnan's phone number on surveillance and tracked him down. Palash Saha, sub-inspector at the Shahbagh police station, said that they scanned the register of Karnaphuli Hotel and went to the room in which Adnan had put up. Cops broke open the door around 1.30am after getting no response from inside. Inside, they found his body hanging from the ceiling fan. A suicide note has been found in the hotel room, Palash said. Read: Hanging body of young woman recovered from Cox’s Bazar hotel The body was sent to the Dhaka Medical College Hospital morgue for an autopsy. Adnan had identified himself as a DU admission seeker at the time of check-in, police said. "We suspect he ended his life over some personal problems. However, exact details will emerge only after further investigation," the SI added.