11 independent reviews for Tiger & wildlife tour in Central India
Reviews for Tiger & wildlife tour in Central India
Gaby Musits review 4 Mar 2023
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Fantastic trip with Saurabh A. from the tour operator. I cannot speak more highly of him. He looked after all our needs extremely well. I particularly liked his close working relationship with local communities say it with guides, specialists, drivers or accommodation staff etc. Everyone was very professional and looked after us very well. We were very lucky and saw plenty of wildlife in all 4 National parks/reserves we visited. I learnt a lot about the variety of local and migrating birds. Beside the standard open jeep safari we also participated in night safaris, walking safaris and boat rides.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
We had bird watchers and animal enthusiasts in our small group. Saurabh’s in-depth knowledge of wildlife but particularly birds would impress and enlighten any bird watcher. I particularly liked that my trip benefited local people and communities and supported their conservation efforts. I can highly recommend the tour operator as a fantastic travel company to go on a wildlife and bird watching tour.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes absolutely benefited local people (the tour operator bring a local operator) by staying in locally owned accommodation places, employing local staff, guides and transport. Buy-in on all levels (ownership, control, employment, support) by all local communities surrounding these national parks is an excellent scheme. Driving around in jeeps is environmentally not ideal in this pristine environments but is limited to very strict park opening hours.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Absolutely brilliant. Was a fantastic trip very well organized by the tour operator. Safaris were great (in animal rich zones), excellent quality food (and plenty of it), brilliant staff at the various accommodation places. I particularly liked the peaceful setting of Shergarh tented camp.Manel Kumarakulasinghe review 28 Feb 2023
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Observing a pair of tiger cubs2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Be prepared for some squatting toilets, and some western style sitting ones you would not want to sit on when out on game drives in the parks and wet floors. Not permitted to do your business in the bush. Take your loo paper in yr pocket and put the used paper in the basket provided. They all seem to have hand bidets (Finland has these as well). The Lodges are lovely and no issues there.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Hats off to the tour operator and Mr Agrawal; we had the pleasure and benefit of his presence with us all the time, sharing his immense, impressive knowledge and also his attention to detail, ensuring a smooth trip.Stefania Francolini review 17 Mar 2020
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
To see so many tigers and so close! Along with many other beautiful animals2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
None apart all the tips received by the operator.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, the only suggestion would be to reduce the number of vehicles for private transfers; in case there is availability of minivans to carry more than 2 people at the time. The Lodges chosen are doing a great job with the environment preservation and I liked to see many local guides employed4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Virginia Hale review 2 Mar 2020
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Most memorable was definitely the 3 amazing tiger sightings- 2 at Bandhavgarh and 1 at Kanha - a real privilege. We were pleased to be able to combine the history and cultural riches of Jaipur an Agra with the wildlife experiences, and all lived up to expectations .2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Don’t try to pack in too much in the time you have- we took the good advice from Chinkara Journeys not to aim for Udaipur as well . Also consider the challenge of your journey home - on reflection we should have included a stop over at Delhi! The wildlife drives are quite tiring and make sure you have adequate layers of clothes for the variable temperatures. If you catch a sleeper train as we did you should be prepared for very basic conditions !3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
It was clear that local people are employed in a range of employment at the accommodation we stayed in at the Wildlife reserves, and locals have specifically been trained as guides/ trackers on the drives which is a positive development and allows for improved respect and understanding of conservation .We did have discussions about the plans for villagers to be compensated for moving away from the buffer zones and this arrangement seems less clear cut.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Overall I would rate this holiday very highly- the itinerary all went exactly to plan with guides and drivers -I was impressed that Saurabh was in touch at intervals to check that all arrangements were going smoothly and that we were happy. Our city guides were both excellent-reliable, informative, entertaining and patient and our driver for Jaipur and Agra was very considerate, attentive and I felt safe and confident with him . Jas Vilas in Jaipur was a delightful hotel to start our holiday. The accommodation and facilities at Bandhav Vilas were very comfortable , staff pleasant and food generally good- I particularly enjoyed the informative films shown each evening. We saw wonderful wildlife and loved the different landscapes in each zone; sightings of 2 tigers indicated the skills of our driver and guide but due to very limited English our guides were unable to share their knowledge with us eg re: birds etc. and this slightly impeded the overall experience-improving communication skills need to be considered at this reserve. Bagh Villas at Kanha provides extremely attractive and high quality accommodation and catering; the tents are very luxurious and thoughtfully equipped. Hosts Akhilesh and Lia are both very attentive- perhaps due to the limited number of guests I found the evening arrangements a little too “ managed “ at times. The loud music from a next door wedding ,whilst authentic , was slightly intrusive. Our driver in Kanha Reserve was extremely enthusiastic and well informed and worked hard to optimise our drive experiences- the wildlife sightings were great. Unfortunately our driver to Raipur seemed inexperienced and lacked the consideration or adequate English to make us feel confident and comfortable on our final journey- but we did arrive safely!Richard Banks review 9 Feb 2020
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Seeing and photographing tigers in the wild2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Budget for and get lots of small denomination rupee notes for tips. Bring warm clothes in January or February. It is very cold on the morning safaris. Be prepared for unseasonable heavy rain. The jeeps are open!3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes the lodges were eco friendly and employed from local villages. The parks are also making an effort to protect the environment but the message has not been widely accepted.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Very good. A lot of travelling but that was inevitable as the parks are spread out. This could perhaps be reduced by staying longer at two rather than three.Ian McCabe review 12 Feb 2020
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Travelling with Stefania.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Take a good poncho!!!3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Not so much. I would have liked to meet more of the local people. I wanted to see more temples and fortresses too.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Disappointing. Getting soaked through in a jeep while my poncho was at the lodge did not appeal to me. Also, I would have appreciated a more acceptable accommodation with drying facilities considering the extra that I paid for single accommodation.Read the operator's response here:
Hello Ian
Thanks for your feedback.
I would like to address some the issues you have expressed your concerns on the feedback.
This holiday is locally run and all the lodges we use, employ local staff from the neighbouring villages. Even the drivers were local from the area surrounding tiger reserves.
The tour you chose is a complete a wildlife oriented tour as you would have seen in the itinerary at the time of booking the tour. There are no temples or forts and palaces involved. Also, because of the fact, there are none in the areas the tour goes to. If you had informed us about your interests at the time of enquiring, we would have suggested you otherwise or have provided an alternate itinerary.
I am sorry that you got soaked in rain. I checked with the lodge and came to know that weather was clear and therefore they did not keep any ponchos in the jeep. But now we have asked them to keep it in the jeep all the time. You were travelling in the jungle where resources like electricity are scarce and it is not available 24x7. Most lodges use either solar electricity or generator as a back up. Due to irregular power supply, appliances such as cloth drier is not used for the fact that it is not only ineffective in the jungle but also takes up huge
amount of resources. Therefore cloths are hanged on a line to dry naturally. Since we follow the Responsible Travel policy of using minimum resources, it is very important we adhere to it strictly ,particularly in places such as tiger reserves which are far away from any city or proper establishment and have very limited resources.
Johan VAN DER SCHYFF review 29 May 2019
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The tiger sightings2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Stay at least four days3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes I think it benefited the local community and the conservation efforts of India.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Absolutely first classJohn Dixon review 18 Jan 2019
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Seeing Tigers in the wild.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Be prepared for early starts, plenty of layered clothing. Hope you like Indian food, don't expect a phone signal and Internet.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, everywhere we went was run by local people, and very well too.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Overall a brilliant trip, should have been 5 stars, but let down by the quality of the first lodge we stayed at.Nigel and Theresa Rogers review 10 May 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
1. When a ranger on an elephant led a tiger out of the forest to give us an amazing close up view 2. Seeing a flock of vultures scrabbling over the carcass of a cow from a distance of less than 20m2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
GO FOR IT! And get hold of as much low denomination currency as you can at every opportunity. You"ll never have enough.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
In that our trip supported many local jobs of course it benefited local people. The park authorities seemed to be doing a reasonable job of conservation and reducing environmental impact. Not sure that our presence had any direct influence on that.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Enjoyed every aspect of it and the local agent handling it all was faultless.Kelvin Lofthouse review 1 Apr 2018
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Seeing a tiger for the first time. I was looking at a bird through my binoculars, when I hear a sudden call that resonates right through me. Out of the jungle walks a female tiger. I was lucky to be in the only jeep in that area, which made it feel all the more special. Even the guides who see many a tiger were excited. We watched as she scent marked before disappearing back into the forest. On another occasion I was also lucky enough to see two tigers fighting, which demonstrated the power of these awesome animals. A very unique sighting.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Bring a set of warm clothing. It can be cold in the back of a jeep in the mornings.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
It definitely benefited local people. The parks are very well managed, mostly with conservation in mind.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Once in a lifetime experience. Very well organised. Great accommodation. Brilliant safaris.Barbara Thompson review 19 Dec 2016
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The Taj Mahal, seeing 8 tigers in the wild, the lovely people we met and the great Indian vegetarian dishes we ate. Everything was memorable.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Make sure you have really warm clothing for early morning safari drives. Wear a hat unless you want to end up with tangled and dusty hair. Be prepared for giving lots of smallish tips to drivers, guides and hotel staff. You don't need any 'smart' clothes everyone dresses informally3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
yes, definitley4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Fantastic, awesome, the travel company were amazing with their organisation. Who would think of sending their brother in law to find you on a train in the middle of nowhere in central India to give you some breakfast. Our overnight train was 4 hours late and so owner of the holiday company (who was tracking our journey) contacts his brother in law and asks him to deliver a bag of food and drink to us as he thought we might be hungry!Read the operator's response here:
Dear Barbara
Thank you very much for taking time to write a review with your lovely comments. It was a real pleasure to show you our part of the world and we are really happy for you that you got to see so much wildlife including 8 tigers! We are also delighted that we were able to make your trip to India a memorable holiday for you. We hope you will visit us again someday so we can show you other secrets of central India.
Thank you and best regards,
Saurabh Agrawal
Holiday Reviews
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