Central India Tigers

You will be met and transferred to the hotel. Depending on your arrival time, we can arrange some birding in the Delhi area, such as at Okhla Bird Sanctuary. Despite the pressures of an urban population approaching 20 million people, this small sanctuary on the banks of the polluted Yamuna River offers some excellent birding, with a good chance of the resident Striated Grassbird, Striated Babbler and possibly White-tailed Stonechat.

With a local flight from Delhi airport to Jabalpur, this exciting tour begins. On arrival we will transfer to Kanha Tiger Reserve, check in at the hotel and settle in for the first night’s stay.

Red-headed Vulture The most famous and largest of the national parks in Central India, Kanha Tiger Reserve hosts a similar array of wildlife to Bandhavgarh, but also herds of Swamp Deer or Barasingha. The “hard-ground” southern subspecies, which is found exclusively here, was once close to extinction but now thrives in the picturesque Kanha meadows. Our two full days will include morning and afternoon safaris. (Note that the park is closed for safaris on Wednesday afternoons, so if our stay here includes a Wednesday, we will have the afternoon for some local sightseeing or birding, or at leisure.)

After breakfast, check out and drive to Bandhavgarh National Park (5.5 hours), arriving in time for a late lunch. Then out on the afternoon jeep safari to the national park for tiger tracking and wildlife viewing.

Barking Deer Bandhavgarh National Park and Tiger Reserve is situated in the Vindhyan Hills of Umaria district in Madhya Pradesh. The name Bandhavgarh (literally “Brother’s Fort” in Sanskrit) comes from the largest hill in the area, and the prominent fortress at the top. The landscape is a mix of hills and plains, with mixed forests and grasslands. There is a wide range of flora and fauna here, with one of the highest densities of tigers in the world. It also has a good population of Leopards, and a large prey base of Spotted Deer or Chital, Sambar Deer, Barking Deer, and Nilgai. Sloth Bear, Wild Dog, Striped Hyena and Four-horned Antelope or Chousingha may also be seen with a bit of luck, whilst rarer mammals include Caracal. Gaur are present in the park having been introduced from Kanha – the native population unfortunately all died from a disease passed on from domestic cattle. Black Stork We have two full days with morning and afternoon safaris in different ranges of the park, which will maximise our chances of seeing tigers. (Note that, as with Kanha, the park is closed for safaris on Wednesday afternoons.)

After our early morning arrival, we will drive to our lodge at Bandhavgarh in time for lunch and our first afternoon safari in the National Park.

After breakfast it is time to check out and drive to Jabalpur, where we will catch a flight back to Delhi. Sunset at Kanha