Indian Tiger ranger safari

country:	India
location:	Madhya Pradesh, Kanha, Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve
departures:	2008: 15 Mar, 29 Mar, 15 Nov
price:	From £2350 (13 days) including flights from the UK. Single supplement £465. This trip can also be booked without flights. Group size 6-8 people. Tailor made trips available

India holidays

Tiger watching safaris

the amazing things you'll be doing

There are a host of ways of seeing India’s wildlife but none can match walking and learning about the wondrous laws of nature and the daily struggle for survival in the wild.

This unique Indian wildlife ranger safari enables you to do just that. It provides you with a more diverse and interactive experience of Indian wildlife than a conventional 'tiger' tour or safari.

From your comfortable lodge base in the famous Tiger Reserves of Bandhavgarh and Kanha in Central India you can join this exciting programme which involves learning through experience with practical activities.

You will learn about the animals and birds, plants, ecology, by tracking predators and spotting their signs in different habitats. The focus is on understanding the delicate balance between people, habitat and the prey that supports the larger mammals including the Tiger. Become involved with conservation and community, engage in discussions on the impact of humans on tigers and wildlife in India’s parks with the Game Rangers themselves and support this 'jungle book' oasis in the process.

Accompanied and taught by one of India’s leading ecologists you will spend time with the mahouts and their elephants; meet the local villagers and the forest guards and hopefully be lucky enough to witness the power of a tiger in the wild.

This course is aimed at giving you a broader appreciation of the wonders of India’s wildlife and includes a contribution to TOFT, part of Global Tiger Patrol.

Highlights include:

Get you off the back of a safari vehicle and into the forest on foot

It is aimed at those travellers who prefer to learn more through experience and expertise

It is not just about tigers but Indian wildlife and a more interesting, and rewarding way of seeing it

You won’t want to do a conventional safari again!

Incorporates two of India’s best Project Tiger reserves full of Tigers!

Field Expertise: Koustubh Sharma has been working with India’s most well known conservation organisation, the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) as a Research Analyst for over three and a half years in Panna. He has extensive knowledge and is involved in various projects including the vulture advocacy programme in Madhya Pradesh. He is also the consultant for the International Snow Leopard Trust, and for the Centre for Environment Education. He is at present finalising his Ph.D in Zoology researching the Chou singha (four horned Antelope). He worked closely with Dr Raghu Chandawhat on his Tiger Research programme in Panna and now he heads up intensive fieldwork. He has also successfully mapped the various landscape of areas in the National Parks under the Biodiversity Conservation and Rural Livelihood Improvement Project for the PEACE Foundation in Delhi.

Trip price includes return economy international flights, domestic flight, train ticket, transportation, all accommodation and meals as per the itinerary, local guides and expertise. Includes contribution to TOFT campaign, part of Global Tiger Patrol charity.

day-by-day itinerary

Day 1:	London / Delhi.
Day 2:	Delhi / Kanha. Flight to Nagpur then drive 5 hours north to Kanha Tiger Reserve, and the Sher Garh tented camp set amongst woodlands and providing six comfortable safari style tents, near the Mukki Southern gate of the park. Kanha is home to over 115 tigers in its famous landscapes of sal forests, meadows and surrounding hills not to mention leopard, Gaur, the huge wild ancestor of today’s cow, Barasingha, Sambar, Nilgai or Bluebull, India’s largest antelope and the rarely seen Sloth bear. Birdlife is prolific with over 300 recorded species. There are elephants in the park especially for visitors and what they call a ‘Tiger show’.
Day 3:	Kanha Tiger Reserve. Game drives; with three teams of tracking elephants spread across the park and several habituated tigers, the chances of seeing tigers are very high.
Day 4:	Kanha. Game drives and visit Kanha's museum and visitors center to learn more about the ecology and history and future challenges of this wonderful and important national park.
Day 5:	Kanha / Bandavgarh. Drive to Bandavgarh Tiger Reserve (6 hours). Welcome drink and a short introduction to by the support naturalist.
Day 6-10:	Bandavgarh Tiger Reserve. The next six days will be part of the wildlife course, with instruction and practical experiences under the close eye of Dr Koustubh Sharma and other local naturalists. The day to day itinerary will be flexible to cater for the course requirements and particular activities but will include: Game drives. Morning and evening drives into the park looking for and tracking from vehicles all the wildlife and birdlife in the park. Walk into the jungle extensively used by animals at night and man by day, looking at the birds, the main trees and shrubs and identifying signs of wildlife. The ecology of this region will be explained and learning to track and understand particular wildlife will be instigated. Village visits. Visit the villages on the borders of the park and meet with the village elders, hear their stories and visit their homes. Night safaris. A night safari focusing on the creatures of the night including Wolves, Hyenas, Jackals, Jungle Cat and Leopards in and around the buffer forest zones. Tree house observations. One evening you will have the opportunity to spend time in the local village ‘Machaan’ or platform built simply in their fields from where they guard their crops at night. Washing the Park’s Elephants. An option, with the park elephant team, which are used both for patrolling and for tourism. Meeting with Park Rangers. Interact with Rangers who are the first line of defense in the battle to protect wildlife and learn about their work and the problems associated with guarding these forests. Discussion and talks covering a range of subjects from hydrology to harvesting, conservation to animal poaching and will be covered in the evenings around the campfire.
Day 11:	Bandavgarh / Delhi. Journey back to the Umaria train station, for your overnight train journey to Delhi. (Extension to Taj Tahal & Rajasthan from here.)
Day 12:	Delhi. Day at leisure in Delhi.
Day 13:	Delhi / London. Early morning transfer to the airport for your flight home.

tailor made holiday

This trip can be tailormade to create a unique holiday for your individual requirements by travel experts with intimate knowledge of the destination. It is a more luxurious trip that will suit those who enjoy immersing themselves in new cultures and environments before relaxing in comfort in some of the best and most characterful local accommodation! Quality and value are the hallmark of these trips.

this tourism business won an award

in our 2005 First Choice Responsible Tourism Awards - organised by responsibletravel.com in association with The Times, World Travel Market and Geographical Magazine.

how this holiday makes a difference

This trip supports Global Tiger Patrol and Travel Operators for Tigers. These tours are a direct funding for wildlife research efforts in Panna and funding to support recent community conservation efforts on the buffers of the park. The Travel Operators for Tigers campaign (TOFT) is a travel industry platform, in cooperation with Global Tiger Patrol, that aims to advocate and support a more responsible and sustainable approach to tourism in South Asia’s wildlife reserves, together with aiding specific conservation programmes which benefit the local communities and wildlife.

This tour also supports Global Tiger Patrol, actively funding projects across a range of project Tiger reserves including Panna. Founded in 1989, Global Tiger Patrol (GTP) is a conservation agency prioritising protection of the tiger in the field. GTP concentrates its work in India, as the subcontinent is home to about 55% of the world’s remaining wild tigers.

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