The Golden Temple is located in the Balata area, 9 km from Bandarban district headquarters. This Golden Temple is equally known as Mahasukh Mandir or Buddhist Dhatu Jadi. Despite the name Golden Temple, there is no structure made of gold here. Yet it is known as the Golden Temple for the abundance of golden color in the temple. This beautiful pagoda built on top of the hill is a holy place of pilgrimage for Buddhists. Asongs or Buddhists from all over the country come to visit and pray at this golden temple. A Buddhist statue built during the contemporary period of Gautama Buddha is placed here. This temple has been built at a cost of around 10 crores. This pagoda is one of the most famous Buddhist temples in Southeast Asia. On the hill, there is a small pond containing water called Devata Pond.
The Golden Temple currently ranks as one of the tourist spots of Bandarban district. The architecture of this pagoda is modeled after the Buddhist temples of Myanmar, China, and Byland. This pagoda is a shining example of modern religious architecture. A fair is held here every year. The pagoda is open to worshipers throughout the day. A few days ago there was a ban on visitors, but now the Golden Temple has been opened for visitors.
How to go
From Abdullahpur, Arambagh, Kalyanpur, Gabtali and Syedabad in Dhaka, buses of S Alam, Saudia, St Martin Paribahan, Unique, Hanif, Shyamli, Dolphin, etc. leave for Bandarban. The fare of these buses is Tk 800-900 for Non AC and Tk 1200-1800 for AC respectively. It takes 8-10 hours to go to Bandarban from Dhaka by bus.
If you want to go by train, you can go to Chittagong by Sonar Bangla, Subarna Express, Trina Nishita, and Mahanagar Godhuli trains from Dhaka. Class-wise rent is 405 to 1398 taka. Besides, you can directly come to Chittagong from Dhaka by air.
From Baddarhat in Chittagong Durchi named Pubali and Purbani set out for Bandarban. These two buses cost Tk 220 per person. You can come to Bandarban by bus from Chittagong’s Dhampara bus stand for Tk 200-300.
How to get to Golden Temple from Bandarban
From Bandarban one can go to Swarna Mandir by hiring a CNG Autorickshaw or Chandergari/Jeep. It will take 300-700 taka to go to the Golden Temple only. But usually, tourists reserve a car to visit more sightseeing places around Bandarban like Nilgiris, Nilachal, Chimbuk, Shailprapat, Meghla, etc.
You can plan your trip according to your time and what to see and reserve the car of your choice. To visit Neelachal, Meghla, and Swarna Mandir, a Jeep (6-8 seats) will be rented for Tk 1000-1200, Chander car will be rented for Tk. 1200-1500, CNG will be taken for Tk. 500-800. Before deciding the price, do you know where to go and make a bargain?
You will have to pay a toll of 20-30 taka on the road to go to the Golden Temple by car, and a fee of 20 taka per person will be charged to enter the Golden Temple.