Hardly any other reserve in India embodies the Jungle Book feeling more than Kanha. Central India’s largest national park captivates with its diverse landscape. Lush sal tree and bamboo forests alternate with wide green meadows that support more than 22 species of mammals. There are horse and axis deer, four-horned and nilgai antelopes as well as Indian gazelles, sloth bears, jackals, hyenas and langurs, as well as more than 240 species of birds such as ibises, ducks, cormorants, darters, herons, stilts, storks, vultures, sea eagles and shrikes. And not forgetting all the more slippery animals: the reptiles, including the Ganges gharial. Here, within an astonishing landscape and some unique archaeological sights, you will encounter a true natural spectacle of the animal world. There are still around 70 tigers living in the protected area of almost 20,000 square kilometers. Considering the enormous size of these parks and the fact that only 300 square kilometers are accessible to tourism, it takes a lot of luck to even see a tiger. The park is divided into four zones, of which Kanha and Mukki are the most recommended in terms of the possibility of tiger sightings. The grandiosity of the landscape, the above-average quality of the lodges and its abundance of animals are what put Kanha at the top of our list.
RANTHAMBORE NATIONAL PARK
In Northern India, on the eastern border of Rajasthan, between the Thar desert and the Aravalli, it is one of the parks that attracts the most tourists. Once a hunting reserve for the sovereigns, in 1972 it was declared a national park under the protection of Project Tiger, because in the reserve live in the wild about thirty Indian tigers as well as other animal species (blue antelopes, leopards, hyenas, deer, bears, leopards, jungle cats, a variety of birds and so on). The fortune of the Park is also due to its position close to the Golden Triangle as the itinerary that includes Delhi, Agra and Jaipur is called (from which it is 150 km away). The national park, dotted with Banyan, the large Indian trees that provide great shade, is surrounded by two rivers, the Banas and the Chambal and is bathed by Lake Talao Padam. Another guest of Rathambore is the 10th century Fort, on a rock at the entrance to the Park, built in 944 which houses various temples including the one dedicated to Ganesh, among the most beautiful in Rajasthan. Closed from July to mid-September. Between November and May the climate is pleasant but even in the dry season (October – March) sightings are likely as the animals come out of the forest to drink from the lake.
KANHA NATIONAL PARK
Kanha National Park, in Madhya Pradesh, one of the largest in India (1940 km2 – three entrances, the two main ones, at opposite ends of the park, are 4 hours drive apart – altitude 600-900 m above sea level) is known for the community of Indian tigers, about 250, that permanently inhabit it. Established in 1955 by a special law, it extends over vast grassy meadows, rocky peaks, forests of teak, bamboo and other types of trees, in numerous lakes rich in aquatic plants, and in large grasslands inhabited by various species of deer, including the rare species of Barasingha deer, with “twelve horns”. The park is home to a vast wildlife, including wild buffalo, wild dogs, pythons, bears (about 150), leopards (about 80), sambar, and many others. It is in this park that the writer Rudyard Kipling imagined the stories told in the famous novel “The Jungle Book”. The park is closed from July 1st to October 15th. The best season to visit is from February to June. The months of December, January and March are the months of maximum crowding. From March to June the heat is intense but the chances of spotting animals that approach the waterways to drink increase.
KEOLADEO NATIONAL PARK
If your itinerary includes a visit to Agra, the city that hosts the famous Taj Mahal, then you are on the right road to reach the Keoladeo National Park, in Rajasthan, just 50 km from this city. Rajasthan, already a great attraction for tourists who visit this state for its magnificent historical testimonies, continues to give its best also with this natural reserve, a UNESCO world heritage site since 1985. Also an ancient reserve for hunting ducks of the Jat maharajas, declared a National Park in 1981, today it is the main ornithological reserve in India, a sanctuary for many stable and migratory birds, including rare species, even from China, Siberia, Europe and Tibet that come here to inhabit the lakes and marshes where they reproduce. After the heavy rains, even water birds such as cranes, geese, pink flamingos, storks, pelicans and many others find their favorite refuge in Keoladeo. Cohabitants of these wonderful birds are some mammals including the blackbuck, the bluebuck, wild boars, chital, sambar and even pythons. The Park, which extends for 29 square kilometers, is located in Bharatpur (150 km from Jaipur and 18 km from Fatehpur Sikri), already interesting in itself for its temples, markets, palaces and other monuments. The Park is open every day with different hours depending on the period. You can visit the Park, particularly fascinating in the evening and in the morning, on foot, by bicycle, by rickshaw.
SARISKA TIGER RESERVE
Included in the Project Tiger this park in Rajasthan right in the Aravalli hills, a protected natural reserve since 1955 and ancient hunting reserve of the sovereigns of the State, is rich in wildlife over an area of about 500 square kilometers. The closest cities are two of the cities of the Golden Triangle, Jaipur, from which it is about 2 hours by car, 140 km.), and Delhi (from which it is about 4 hours by car, 170 km.). Those who visit the Park have something in common, seeing the royal tiger that inhabits this reserve and lives in the wild. This beautiful animal is however in the company of other splendid specimens of Indian bison, foxes, hyenas, and so on, as well as a myriad of birds including eagles and vultures, to name a few. All against an environmental backdrop of remarkable beauty. But since history, even when it is not the protagonist, still comes forward, here emerge from the thick vegetation the ruins of ancient Hindu temples from the medieval era dedicated to Shiva, and the splendid palace of the Maharaja of Alwar, today a luxury hotel. Sariska Tiger Reserve is open from October 1st to June 30th for all seven days of the week and is therefore closed during the monsoon period from July to mid-September
BHANDHAVGARH NATIONAL PARK
Bhandhavgarh National Park, 450 km2 (800 m above sea level), in Madhya Pradesh, (Km. 270 – about 6 hours from Khajuraho which is also the nearest airport) acquired its status as a protected area in 1968, after its long history as a hunting ground for the Rewa royals and is known because tigers, including the white tiger, and other animals such as birds, foxes, deer, jackals, Indian bison, gazelles, deer, chital, leopards, spotted deer, blue antelopes, wild cats, hyenas and reptiles, among many others, inhabit its dense forests. The Bandhavgarh area has great biodiversity, and is the place where there is the highest density of tigers in India. Bandhavgarh National Park also hosts a varied vegetation from grasslands to Sal forests, thus becoming the perfect habitat for many species of animals. A fun way to visit the Park is to do it on the back of an elephant, as well as by jeep. Inside the Park, there are also temples and the remains of an ancient Fort. The Park is open from October 16 to June 30, but the best time to visit is during the hot months, between February and June, when the animals leave the forest to drink from the waterways of the Park.
JIM CORBETT NATIONAL PARK
Located in Uttaranchal (Northern India), near Ramanagar (250 km from Delhi) it is a park of great importance because it was the first ever to become a protected reserve in 1936 when it was founded by Jim Corbett. It is an environment of rare Himalayan beauty of mountains, plains and forests, extending for 1288 km2, at an altitude varying between 385 and 1100 meters above sea level. Where the climate varies on average between 4°C in winter and 42°C in summer. In this splendid place a great variety of wildlife coexists, including tigers, elephants, crocodiles, as well as wild boars, deer, monkeys, reptiles, the fish eagle and many others. The Park is open from November 15 to June 15.
PANNA NEAR KHAJURAHO
In Madhya Pradesh, about 60 km from the splendid Khajurao, which could be one of the stops on your itinerary, there is the “Panna National Park”, 550 square kilometers, created in 1981, and placed under the Tiger Project in 1994. In an environment, with a predominantly tropical climate, former hunting reserve of the princes of Panna, Chhatarpur and Bijawar, animals such as tigers, leopards, wild cats, deer, gazelles, antelopes, wild dogs, bears, wolves, caracals, sambars, hyenas among the many species present, but also reptiles and many species of birds. The reserve has no means of transport for visitors. It is open from October 16 to June 30. The best time to visit is from December to March.
