Bandhavgarh National Park

Bandhavgarh lies in the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, circa. 200km east of the city of Jabalpur, this also is where you can find the nearest airport. This national park is part of, together with surrounding protected areas, the Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve which covers a total of 1,000km2, and is one of the most important districts included in “Project Tiger”.

Bandhavgarh, in keen completion with Ranthambore National Park further to the west, is perhaps the best place in India - and therefore the whole world - where you have the best chance of seeing tigers in the wild. The park not only has one of the densest population of tigers anywhere, but it was also the home of the last wild white tigers, which today can only be found in captivity.

The park terrain consists largely of hills covered by Sal forest, grassy clearings and waterholes. Here it is also possible to see other animals such as the large sambar deer, wild boar, many macaque monkeys and langurs, as well as the beautiful spotted axis deer. The alarm calls of these deer can often help the guides locate the whereabouts of the tigers. The park is also home to the nilgai antelope and the huge gaur ox, which disappeared from the park many years ago, but has been recently reintroduced. Leopards are common, but rarely seen, as are the striped hyena and wolves that can occasionally be found in the district.

The bird life of the park is impressive, more than 300 species have been recorded here, of which the vultures and eagles are perhaps the most impressive. In the middle of the park is Bandhavgarh Fort, which is thought to date back some 2,000 years, as well as a number of man made caves with inscriptions and rock paintings.

Highlights:

• A dense population of tigers, which makes the park one of the best places to see these striped cats
• Beautiful forest clad terrain with clearings and waterholes, where you can often see deer and monkeys.
• Fantastically varied bird life and ancient cultural remains in the park.

High season: November to May