India Safaris

Temples & Tigers

Includes Delhi, Khajuraho, Bandhavgarh and Kanha

First class tours use 5 star hotels and air-conditioned transport, Tourist class tours use 2 star hotels and non air-conditioned transport otherwise services are the same.

It’s a very special & unique tour designed to see Central Indian wildlife and the Temples of Khajuraho.

Day 01 New Delhi

Arrive Delhi Check into Hotel. Remainder of the day free to enable you to sample some of Delhi's sights or to just relax and recover after your flight.

Day 02 New Delhi

A full day of sight seeing in Delhi the capital city of India, Delhi is a magnificent city incorporating the historic old city. It sprawls over a vast tract of the Jamuna plain, its population – 13.8 million Delhi was the center of power of the various Muslim dynasties that ruled swathes of the subcontinent from the 12th century onwards. Modern Delhi is really two cities – Old Delhi, Kutub Minar, President House, National Museum & India Gate. (Overnight at the hotel)

Weather

• Cool - from middle of October to end of February.

• Hot - from middle of March to middle of June.

• Wet - from middle of June to middle of October.

• The temperature ranges from a maximum of 42 ° C in May and June, to around 4° C in winter

Clothing
Neutral khakis, greys and green clothes are recommended. Ensure you have plenty of warm clothing for the early morning and late evening game drives.

Accessories: Camera, binoculars, sunglasses, and hats.

Excluded in price: Camera and Video camera fees. Present charges (Nov 2003) per day are  RS. 200 For a Video Camera and RS.25 for a still Camera.

Hint: Very nice Indian meals are available on the train or you can bring some food with you. Tea and coffee are also available on the train but only the Indian variety, with milk and very sweet. Bottled drinking water is available on the platforms.

Please note this tour may also run in reverse.

Kanha Tiger Reserve

Welcome to Kipling Country, the setting for the famous Jungle Book. The Kanha National Park in the Mandla District of Madhya Pradesh, spreads over 1,945 sq. km of dense sal forests, interspersed with extensive meadows and trees and clumps of wild bamboo. This is where you can spot the tiger in all his magnificence or feast your eyes on the rare Barasingha Deer amidst extensive grasslands. The park forms the core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve created in 1974, under Project Tiger. It is one of the most well-maintained National Parks in Asia, and a major attraction for avid wildlife buffs all over the world. Two major rivers, Halon anfd Banjar, flow through the park. Kanha National Park in the Mandla District spreads over 1,945 sq. km of dense sal forests, interspersed with extensive meadows and trees and clumps of wild bamboo. This area known as Kipling Country is where the jungle book of Rudyard Kipling was conceived.

• Area : 1,945 sq. kms.

• Altitude : 450-872 metres.

• Temperature (deg C): Summer- Max 40.6, Min 23.9. Winter- Max 23.9, Min 1.1.

• Rainfall : 152 cms.

• Best Season : April to June and November to January

Using your senses to find a Tiger

The key to successful tiger spotting lies in the jungle's reactions to the animal's movement. When the king of the forest is on the move, his kingdom is as responsive  as the court of any of the great Mughal Emperors . Peacocks blare, Sambar bell, Spotted Deer call, Langurs explode in cough-like alarm, Jungle Fowl screech, Bison whistle shrilly and barking deer emit the impossibly raucous bark for which they are named. The continuous repetition of such calls as well as their combination from two or more species in the same small area of the forest is a very good sign that a Tiger is moving nearby.

Using your ears to listen to what other animals are saying is a good method of locating a Tiger.

Responsible Tourism

There seems to be lot of hype and commotion in regards with features of wildlife tourism & conservation. Words such as tribal welfare, local upliftment usage of recycle products eco friendly dresses colours etc. all flashed by glamour struck organisations especially in recent times.

We started with a small team of Nature lovers who are dedicated, who were not necessary qualified but were definitely born conservationist at heart and a born nature lover. These were the people instrumental in educating for the first time in the history of Kanha National park the locals in the field of catering, house keeping steward ship, the guides etc all of whom were fifth standard drop outs or not been to school at all. We taught the people cane weaving, earthen products such as ash trays & potteries all of which we used annually in our lodge. Thus increasing the uplifting the local economy.

The health scenario was deplorable at that time when there were no proper medical facilities, we gave talks, and we supplied medicines & told them about diseases such as malaria & so on. At this point of time the ousted tribal villages from within the core area nurtured great animosity against the Kanha Tiger reserve officials, they would not see eye to eye because the locals felt that more importance was being given to the wild animals then to them, so we intervened and created a healthy buffer based on which things improved to such an extent that the Park authorities held an unprecedented meeting with the lodge owners/managers and local villages regarding solving all problems amicably which to this day continues.

This feature or this event is a unique example & achievement for Kanha National Park as this has never happened in any other game reserve in India resulting in perhaps being the least poached national Park in India. We are highly concerned in educating every guest regarding the code of conduct at the lodge and as well as within the park.

One of the greatest & unique features of our buildings in our lodge is that we have not used any modern chemicals based colours for the exterior or interior white washing. The material used for exterior painting is made from the local yellow mud mixed with lime stone, which gives an ethnic look of the old India.

Again the only lodge where the entire open floor area is being smeared with cow dung paste mixed with husk which works as a binding material

Important: Before you travel please check your Tour Voucher and Arrival Information for the latest joining instructions. This will be sent to you upon receipt of final payment.

All itineraries are subject to change without prior notice.