Three options for Tigers. Wild Frontiers, India Footprints or Audley
What are the differences between Tadoba, Pench and Satpura?
Each park offers something a little different.
Bandhavgarh National Park Situated in Madhya Pradesh, and accessed by train to Umaria only 45 kilometres away, Bandhavgarh is the smallest of three parks in the region. Covering an area of 105 square kilometres, it is bordered by a small village where the lodges and camps are located.
Kanha National Park covers over 900 square kilometres and has two entry points - at Kisli and the more remote Mukki gate - with accommodation options at each. Over 200 bird species and 22 species of mammal, including tiger, leopard, the Indian wild dog and swamp deer, have been recorded.
Pench has a wonderfully rich flora and fauna and is home to the Asiatic leopard with the dam in the park being a favourite spot for bird watching. Other wildlife spotted here are chinkara, wild dog, sloth bear and jackal. Pench has a good reputation for tiger sightings and is less crowded so the overall safari experience is more personal.
Satpura, one of Indias best-kept secrets, is cradled in the Satpura Range of the Mahadeo Hills, uncharted and unspoiled, Satpura represents wilderness at its very best. This reserve is part of one of the largest contiguous blocks of forest left in India and is connected to other reserves by forest 'corridors'. This region, therefore, represents the largest block of tiger habitat left in the world and the bird watching is considered among the best. The magnificent deep valleys, high mountains, rivulets, waterfalls and vast reservoir combine to give this park a unique beauty. The terrain is extremely rugged and consists of sandstone peaks, narrow gorges, ravines and dense forests. The Denwa River runs through Satpura's gorges enabling exploration by canoe as well as the jeep. This is the only park that allows walking safaris in India.
Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve is one of India’s most exciting and best-protected tiger reserves, undiscovered, and with excellent tiger sightings regularly reported. Dominated by teak forest and bamboo, it’s a rugged landscape comprising cliffs, caves, marshes, perennial lakes and boulder strewn streambeds catering to a host of biodiversity, not least the tiger. Tadoba has a series of camera traps around camps continually monitoring local wildlife. This area is also frequented by six tigers including the dominant male tiger Crooked Tail and the newest entrant, the Halleghat male tiger. Tadoba park management is proactive in offering new experiences and includes walking trails in the buffer area and kayaking on the Irai Lake.
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Day 1 ARRIVE DELHI - KATNI Arrive Delhi in the morning, where you can relax in an airport hotel for a few hours, before boarding a train to Katni.
Day 2 KATNI - BANDHAVGARH NATIONAL PARK Upon arrival in Katni you will be met by a representative and driven to Bandhavgarh National Park. After settling into your lodge, embark on a shared afternoon game drive in Bandhavgarh, the finest park for tiger sightings. The broken hilly terrain, grassy swamps and forested valleys provide ideal concealment for this most predatory of beasts. Kings Lodge
Day 3 BANDHAVGARH NATIONAL PARK Spend the morning and afternoon on a game drive in the park, each time of the day provides a different perspective as the numerous prey species - Sambar deer, langur, wild boar and barking deer - come out of hiding, luring the mighty Bengal tiger and the elusive Indian leopard. Kings Lodge
Day 4 BANDHAVGARH NATIONAL PARK - KANHA NATIONAL PARK After an early breakfast, drive to Kanha National Park. Kanha and the nearby forests provided inspiration for Rudyard Kipling's delightful Jungle Book. Imagine the mighty Sher Khan prowling close by as you watch and wait, secreted in your 'hide'! Kanha is an outstanding National Park with about 30 species of mammals and 225 species of birds and you will explore it this afternoon on a game drive. Kanha Earth Lodge
Day 5 KANHA NATIONAL PARK Today you will enjoy a morning and afternoon game drive in Kanha National Park. The variety of habitat gives rise to a wonderful mix of animals to spot - the grassland plateau is home to the Gaur (Indian bison) and four-horned Antelope, whilst in dense clumps of forest shy jungle cat and civet roam. Here Project Tiger is actively pursuing conservation projects in the park, increasing the chance of seeing a tiger. Kanha Earth Lodge
Day 6 KANHA NATIONAL PARK Another day of morning and afternoon shared game safaris looking for sloth bear, swamp deer, bison and the elusive leopard. Feel the echoes of Kipling's books as you wander through the lightly wooded grassland where wolf and dhole lie in wait. Kanha Earth Lodge
Day 7 KANHA NATIONAL PARK - PENCH NATIONAL PARK Begin the day driving to Pench National Park for another chance to spot wildlife in another one of India's superb tiger parks. Species who call the park home include leopard, porcupine, hyena, and barking deer. There are over 210 species of birds - including peafowl, magpie robin and crimson breasted barbet. Pench Tree Lodge
Day 8. PENCH NATIONAL PARK Pench lies at the foot of the Satpura range with undulating terrain - small hills, open grass meadows and dense forests. Spend the morning and afternoon exploring the park in search of sloth bear, gaur, nilgai, wild dog, chausingha, jackals, rhesus macaque and flying squirrels. Pench Tree Lodge
Day 9 PENCH NATIONAL PARK - SATPURA NATIONAL PARK After an early breakfast, drive to Satpura National Park (6-7 hrs) where you will be able to rest and enjoy one of India's more unique parks. Satpura is one of the least visited of India's Parks, yet offers some of the best safari experiences - including kayaking and walking, allowing you to get closer to nature than ever. This evening relax on a boat safari on the River Denwa, listening out for the sounds of the creatures of the night. Denwa Backwater Escape
Day 10 SATPURA NATIONAL PARK Spend the morning and afternoon on a game drive of Satpura, or you can go for a jungle walk. The landscape is rugged with narrow gorges, deep ravines, dense forests and supports a vast number of mammals including the tiger, leopard, bison and wild dog. Denwa Backwater Escape
Day 11 SATPURA NATIONAL PARK Another full day with morning and afternoon game drives. Alternatively, there are other activities you can choose from in the area, like a night safari in the buffer zone, owl watching, a village walk, open country bird watching or just driving out to enjoy sundowners in a scenic spot. Denwa Backwater Escape
Day 12 SATPURA NATIONAL PARK - BHOPAL - DELHI In the morning drive to Bhopal, the journey will take approximately 3.5 hrs. Board the afternoon Shatabdi Express train to Delhi before checking into your airport hotel. Pullman New Delhi Aerocity
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http://www.indiafootprints.com/
Recommended by Christine & Ian
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Audley Travel
They also do Tigers & Sloath Bears
And they do Indias Wildlife Treasures which covers all the above parks - this seems the best bet to see a tiger, but there is a lot of animal viewing
Day 1. Arrive in Delhi, where you will be met and transferred to your hotel. Depending on the time of your flight, the remainder of the day is at your leisure. Pullman Aerocity
Day 2. Bandhavgarh National Park, After a short flight from Delhi to Jabalpur, you will travel by road to Bandhavgarh National Park, stopping en route at the Fossils National Park. Enjoy jeep safaris in Bandhavgarh National Park, including visiting the imposing Central Fort, which has views across the jungle plains. Kings Lodge
This is a much smaller park than Kanha. The zones are separated and each has its own gate which makes coming and going a lot easier. There’s not a lot of wasted time driving around until we arrive at our designated zone. We were very lucky to have had a very experienced naturalist. He was able to find paw prints and based on his knowledge, know where the Tiger would be going. We saw a tiger at 4 out of 5 safaris we had. The only missed one was Magdhi which is supposedly not too common to spot tigers. We saw a lot of other animals there.
One of the biggest attractions of this national park is the Bengal tiger (Panthera tigris tigris). Bandhavgarh has a very high density of tigers within its jungles. The 105 km2 of park area open to tourists was reported to have 22 tigers (Population estimation exercise 2001). The population of tigers in the park in 2012 was about 44–49. There is a saying about the Park that goes: "In any other Park, you are lucky if you see a tiger. In Bandhavgarh, you are unlucky if you don't see (at least) one." Bandhavgarh has one of the highest density of tigers known in the world and is home to some well-known tigers which are large.
Charger, a tiger so named because of his habit of charging at elephants and tourists (whom he nonetheless did not harm), was the first healthy male known to be living in Bandhavgarh since the 1990s, as well as a female known as Sita. Charger once appeared on the cover of National Geographic and is considered the second most photographed tiger in the world. Almost all the tigers of Bandhavgarh today are descendants of Sita and Charger. Their daughter Joita, sons Langru and B2 also maintained their tradition for frequent sighting and moving close to tourist vehicles. Mohini, another female, became prominent following Sita's death. She mated with the male tiger, Mahaman. She later died of her wounds from a vehicle accident. Charger died in 2000 and his body was buried at Charger Point where he was kept in a closed region at his old age. Between 2003 and 2006, many of his descendants met with a series of unfortunate ends. B1 was electrocuted and B3 was killed by poachers. Sita was killed by poachers too. After the death of Charger, the fully grown B2 survived as the dominant male in the forest between 2004 and 2007. Mating with a female in the Siddhababa region of Bandhavgarh, he became father of three cubs. One of them was a male. He was named Bamera. He was first sighted in 2008 and is now Bandhavgarh's dominant male. In November 2011, B2 died. Postmortem studies suggest that he died a natural death. But some claim that he was injured by the locals from the village in the buffer area. Now, the most prominent tiger in Tala zone of Bandhavgarh National Park is Bamera (died recently). However, of late he has been challenged on several occasions by a new male. Blue Eyes (died recently due to drug over dose) and Mukunda are the dominant males of Magdhi and Khitauli zone respectively. The females who are seen more frequently are Rajbehra, Mirchaini, Banbehi, Mahaman, Sukhi Pattiya and Damdama. There are quite a few cubs also who are either in sub-adult stage or have entered adulthood and are separate now.[
Day 3. Bandhavgarh National Park Morning and afternoon jeep safaris in Bandhavgarh today. The flora is particularly fascinating here with towering sal trees and the striking flame of the forest plant. Kings Lodge
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Day 4 Bandhavgarh National Park Enjoy two more game drives today in Bandhavgarh National Park, home to a healthy tiger population. Kings Lodge
Day 5 Bandhavgarh National Park to Kanha National Park One final morning game drive before your journey continues by road to the largest of the national parks, Kanha, where you will stay for four nights. Enjoy jeep safaris into the park, village visits and birdwatching walks here. Flame of the Forest Lodge
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Kanha Tiger Reserve, also known as Kanha–Kisli National Park, is one of the tiger reserves of India and the largest national park of the state of Madhya Pradesh. The present-day Kanha area is divided into two protected areas, Hallon and Banjar, of 97 and 116 sq mi, respectively. Kanha National Park was created on 1 June 1955 and was designated tiger reserve in 1973. Today, it encompasses an area of 360 sq mi . Together with a surrounding buffer zone and the neighbouring Phen Sanctuary, it forms the Kanha Tiger Reserve, which is one of the biggest in the country. This makes it the largest national park in central India. The park hosts Bengal tiger, Indian leopard, sloth bear, barasingha and dhole. It is also the first tiger reserve in India to officially introduce a mascot, Bhoorsingh the Barasingha.
We highly recommend Kanha National Park. Our outstanding guide and driver: Naren and Kamel, used their amazing listening and visual skills to find numerous breathtaking tiger sightings, including a striking male tiger interacting with two cubs, and a beautiful tigress drinking slowly at a small lake. We also saw a leopard in the forest and then on the road for a considerable distance (and we were the only jeep there), as well as three golden jackals, dozens of barasingha deer, playful langur monkeys, Indian guar, and so much more. On our walking safari, we appreciated viewing, up-close, the Ornamental tree trunk spider, python skin, the Indian Paradise flycatcher and the beauty of the surroundings. For amazing wildlife viewing, Kanha is hard to beat.
Day 6 Kanha National Park Morning and afternoon jeep safaris. Kanha inspired Rudyard Kipling's "Jungle Book" and it's easy to see why with a flourishing wildlife population. There is the opportunity to spot tigers here when accompanied by your experienced guide. Flame of the Forest Lodge
Day 7 Kanha National Park There are two more jeep safaris today. Keep a look out for the rare swap deer as well as bison, mongoose and jungle cat. Flame of the Forest Lodge
Day 8 Kanha National Park A final day of morning and afternoon game drives — a last chance to enjoy the wildlife of Kanha. Flame of the Forest Lodge
Day 9 Kanha to Mumbai Transfer to Nagpur for your onward flight to Mumbai today, where you will spend the night. Depending on the time of your flight, the remainder of the day is at your leisure. Leela Hotel they are spamming their own reviews. In fact the Madrid flights leave1am to 3 am so no need for hotel