Kanha is one of the Indian subcontinent’s greatest wildlife reserves and a great place in India to see the Royal Bengal tiger. Besides tigers, there are more than 200 species of birds and some 22 species of mammals in residence here. On guided excursions, explore by jeep through the park’s bamboo thickets, dadar (plateau grasslands) and sal forests, which gave birth to Rudyard Kipling’s classic The Jungle Book. Overnights are at the Baagh Resort, a comfortable jungle-surrounded retreat adjacent to the edge of the park.

Detailed Itinerary

Day 1
Delhi / Raipur / Kanha National Park

Morning transfer from your hotel in Delhi to the airport for the flight to Raipur in central India, capital of Chatisgarh, a predominantly tribal state in central India. A scenic drive of about five hours brings you to Kanha through a region of lush rice terraces below the Maikal Hills, the eastern spur of the Satpura Range. Transfer to the Baagh Resort, bordered by tribal villages and just three miles from the entrance to Kanha National Park...LD

Days 2-4
Kanha National Park

Mornings and afternoons are filled with exciting gameviewing forays into Kanha National Park. Kanha is the place in India to see the royal Bengal tiger, and we have a good chance to see at least one of these majestic animals. Tigers are usually solitary unless they are females with cubs, or mating adults. They feed on various species of deer and wild pig, depending on what is available. Adult male Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) weigh up to 550 pounds and can be ten feet long.

Kanha Tiger Reserve was created in 1974 under Project Tiger. This is also where the world’s preeminent field biologist, George Schaller, conducted the first-ever scientific study of the tiger from 1963 to 1965 (Kanha was the setting of Schaller’s book The Deer and the Tiger). Conservationists at Kanha have been in the lead in international efforts to save the tiger and its delicate habitat for more than 35 years, with Kanha’s original population of 48 tigers in 1974 now at around 100 individuals.

Other species we may encounter include the endangered hard-ground barasingha (Kanha is the only place where this subspecies remains), barking deer, spotted deer, the gaur (the largest of the bovines), golden-backed jackal, jungle cat, common langur, sloth bear, wild boar, wild dog, and the elusive chausingha, the world’s only four-horned antelope.
        
The great sal forests of Kanha gave birth to The Jungle Book, the much-loved English classic by Rudyard Kipling. Kipling set his 19th century tale in Kanha, and the wooded hills and valleys have since been known as Kipling Country, home to the man-cub Mowgli, raised by the wolf pack, and to the legendary Shere Khan the Tiger, loveable Baloo the Bear, wise Bagheera the Panther, and the dreaded rock python, Kaa.

Note: The park is closed on Wednesdays. Scheduled alternate activities for this day include a morning nature walk in the forest near the lodge and a cultural visit to a Gond tribal village and local school to see their village lifestyle. In the afternoon, attend an Indian cooking class and later,  visit the local tribal market.

Overnights at The Baagh...BLD each day

Day 5
Raipur / Delhi

Return drive to Raipur and fly to Delhi. Transfer to hotel, where a day room will be kept for your convenience. Evening transfer to airport for departure on homeward-bound flight...B