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Bandhavgarh national park

FAST FACTS

Topic Short Description
Safari Season Core zones = 01st October to 30th June;  Buffer zones = Throughout the year
Best time to visit November to April
Nearest Airport Jabalpur (180kms), Khajuraho (260kms). Prayagraj Airport (310 km)
Nearby Railway Stations Umaria (37kms), Katni (100kms), Jabalpur (180kms)
Best time for Tiger Safari Mid Feb to June month duration
When to plan 4 Months in advance
Safari options Open Jeep & Canters
Core Zones Tala Zone, Magadhi Zone, Khitauli Zone

Introduction

Bandhavgarh national park

Bandhavgarh is a famous tiger reserve in Madhya Pradesh state of central India. It lies in north-east regions of state on Vindhya hills range which is well known for its more than 2000 years old history, where human beings left their establishments for wildlife to flourish and grow at their natural habitat. This forest was used by Maharaja's as their private hunting reserve, used by meditation practioners to do their practice in isolation. It was mostly ruled by Kalchuri dynasty, Baghel rulers. Maratha's and British India government had controlled it for short period of time. After 1968, it came into the direct control of Indian government and slowly slowly it moved towards the path of wildlife conservation. This forest lies in between two major rivers i.e. Mahanadi in west and Son river in east. Here Johila river also plays important role. From tourism point of view, it gained popularity after it was included in Project Tiger by declared as "Bandhavgarh Tiger Reserve" in year 1992-93. This was major milestone in journey of Bandhavgarh, resulted into major turnaround in its exposure to rest of the world. Actual tourism begins from this time, in this area and today no tiger safari tours are considered complete without inclusion of this national park. More than 32 species of mammals and 250 species of birds & 70 species of butterflies are found in Bandhavgarh National Park. Common Langurs and Rhesus Macaque represent the primate group. Here top 5 safari attractions are tigers, leopards, sloth bear, sambar deer, spotted deer. Mammals such as wild dogs, Nilgai, small Indian Civet, Palm Squirrel and Lesser Bandicoot Rat are seen occasionally as some known areas only. For a normal tourist, Bandhavgarh is special because of high tiger density which means during a safari drive, we have chance to see more number of different tigers in a safari zone. Here jeep safari is the most prominent way to explore the forest and Tala village remains the epicenter of safari activities.

Short History

Bandhavgarh is a historical place where human society left space for wildlife to survive, grow & flourish. In first eye view, we will find it a hilly area where 32 hills are located and in one of the hill, we will find the ruins of Bandhavgarh Fort, temples, man-made rock-cut rooms, man-made waterholes. The name of Bandhavgarh is derived from the name of its old fort. In recent research work and some excavation work, scientists found many rock-paintings which indicates that history of Bandhavgarh is much older than our believe. Don't compare it with forts of Rajasthan as it was a small fort with man-made ponds, temples, treasury house, statues. All the marks of history are scattered over hills of Bandhavgarh. As per archeological experts, who visited Bandhavgarh in different years, this region has history of more than 2000 years old. Here we can find ancient caves, Buddhist era statues, Hindu god & goddess statues etc. Several dynasties controlled this region is different centuries thus different marks of history are found over here. This region was controlled by Magh rulers, Sengar dynasty, Kalchuri rulers and Baghel rulers. Famous history of Bandhavgarh revolves around Baghel dynasty as they were the last rulers and documented the historical incidents in record thus easy to study and explain to others.

Activities & Experiences

Bandhavgarh is a tiger reserve thus here main activity to do is jeep safari for wildlife watching. Whole area is surrounded by forests and some villages thus safari drives are the major tourism activity to do here. Apart from this we can do some nature walk, cycle safari and birding walks, yoga sessions, sundowner at resort level. This means some resorts will offer these activities while some of them will not offer these activities to there guests. Fort safari activity is closed for normal visitors. In a date, three safari drives are offered to visitors. First Park is divided into different zones. In a single safari drive, vehicle remains in one particular safari zone. Inside Bandhavgarh, their are different popular spots which are mostly visited by tourists like meadows, water-holes, hills, tree-clusters etc. 

Activity Management Description
Jeep Safari Forest Department In Jeep safaris, we can do morning, afternoon & night safaris. Here morning & afternoon safaris are available in sharing & non-sharing modes. Where as Night safari is alwasy in non-sharing mode.
Canter Safari Forest Department Here we can do morning & afternoon safaris only, in shared mode.
Nature Walk Resort Team Usually deluxe and luxury resorts offer this activity. It is a separately paid activity.
Village Visit Resort Team It is offered at deluxe and luxury resorts. It is a separately paid activity.
Waterfall Visit Forest Department This waterfall site lies in Johila zone thus by booking safari permit, we can visit this scenic site.

About Jungle Safari process

Bandhavgarh national park

Jungle safari drive is the main activity to do at Bandhavgarh. Here jeep and canter safari options are offered to tourists. At Bandhavgarh 3 types of jungle safari modes are offered i.e. Full-jeep (non-sharing) safari, Single seat (sharing) safari, canter safari modes. Full-jeep safari mode means to book complete safari jeep booking. In this mode you will be accompanied by safari guide and driver. In Single seat safari mode, you may book seat in a jeep i.e. sharing mode. In such drives, you will be accompanied by other tourists also. It is cheaper then full-jeep safari mode. Taking guide service, during each safari drive is mandatory. Canter safari is another low cost safari medium. Canter is actually an open bus of 18-seater in which per seat tickets are offered to tourists. Here visitors are expected to clearly understand the fact that every safari mode is not applicable for both core zones and buffer zones. They have some limitations.

Safari permit or safari ticket contains travel date, morning/evening round detail, visitor name/s, father/husband name, gender, city name, identity document number. Tourists are required to do safari in jeep with company of registered guide. Tourists are required to pay separately for jeep and guide also. We offer jungle safari booking in Bandhavgarh. Their are 3 core-zones & 03 Buffer zones in Bandhavgarh for jungle safari drives. At one time we can do safari in one safari zone only. Here core zones are Tala zone, Magadhi Zone and Khitauli zone. Where as buffer zones are Dhamokhar, Panpatha and Johila. At present, safaris are done on these three safari zones.
 

Safari Seasons Accessible Zones Possible Safari Rounds What to Expect When to confirm
October to June Core zones + Buffer zones Morning safari, Afternoon safari, Night safari Good number of mammals, birds, tiger photography, birding, butterfly sighting 100-140 Days in advance
July to September Buffer zones Morning safari, Afternoon safari, Night safari Not good time to visit due to monsoon period. Less tiger sighting, good birding, nature photography, butterfly sighting Do on same-day basis
October to January Core zones + Buffer zones Morning safari, Afternoon safari, Night safari Jungle photography, good birding, mammals photography, average tiger sighting, butterfly sighting 90-120 Days in advance
Feb to June Core zones + Buffer zones Morning safari, Afternoon safari, Night safari Good tiger photography, sloth bear sighting, birding near water holes 140 Days in advance

Safari Timing

wildlife photography

At Bandhavgarh national park we can enjoy morning safari, afternoon or evening safari and night safari or late evening safari. These 3 rounds of jungle safari drives can be enjoyed in a day. On every Wednesday, park remain closed for afternoon safari in core zone. It means, we can do buffer zone safari. Here readers should must note that night safaris are only offered in buffer zone for very limited number of vehicles. Safari timing of Bandhavgarh varies from month to month because it depends upon the timing of sunrise and sunset. As per change in sunrise and sunset timing, minor adjustments in timing were made by park management. If you want to know your safari timing, just go through your safari permit, issued by park management, it is clearly mentioned over it. If you have any travel company safari permit (not the park authority original one) they you may not find the information. We have made separate page for safari timing information. Just click and check the timing information.

Mammals in Bandhavgarh

Here we have tried to make a checklist of Bandhavgarh mammals. Given checklist  shows the list of mammal species that can be seen during jungle safaris in safari zones. Many mammals can be seen in day safaris where as some nocturnal species, which can be seen during late evening buffer safaris. It is not possible to see all of them in few rounds of jungle safaris.

Commonly seen Birds

Their are about 250 bird species in Bandhavgarh national park forest area. These birds can be categorized in 53 bird families like Eagrets, Storks, Herons, Grebes, Ibises, Cormorants, Ducks, Vultures, Hawks, Eagles, Hawks, Falcons, Sandpipers etc. This list includes both residents and migrant birds. Their are about 138 residents birds, 26 local migrant birds and 86 migrant birds in Bandhavgarh birds checklist. During jungle safari drives, one can enjoy the tiger tracking with bird watching. Birds can be seen in all the forest areas but some points are favorite places for birds and their probability of good birding in high. Bird-watching areas in Bandhavgarh are Bamera dam, Garhpuri, Majhuli, Khitauli reservoirs, Panpatha road, Bandhavgarh fort etc. Some of the frequently seen Bandhavgarh birds are: Cattle Egret, Grey Heron, Jungle Babblers, Indian Oriole, Blue-jay, Kingfishers, Baya Weaver, Crested Hawk Eagle, Shikra, Spotted Dove, Red-wattled Lapwing etc.

How to reach

Bandhavgarh tiger lies in western part of Madhya Pradesh state. Its connectivity is good by train options but flight connectivity is slightly limited. If somebody want to visit by road, from nearby tourist destination or town, then surface connectivity is good and remains open at anytime of the day. For exact information, please refer below given table

By Flight to Tala village By Train to Tala village By Road to Tala village
Jabalpur Airport  = 170 km / 04:00 hr Umaria Station = 37 km / 35 min Kanha National Park  (Khatia gate) = 250 km / 05:00 hr
Khajuraho Airport = 250 km / 05:30 hr Beohari Station = 90 km / 02:10 hr Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve (Dubri gate)= 110 km / 02:30 hr
Prayagraj Airport = 300 km / 06:45 hr Katni Stations = 100 km / 01:45 hr Satpura National Park (Madhai gate) = 460 km / 07:30 hr
Varanasi Airport = 370 km / 08:00 hr Jabalpur Station = 200 km / 04:00 hr Panna National Park (Madla gate) = 230 km / 05:00 hr

Best time to visit

Bandhavgarh national park is open for visitors from 01-October to 30-June and in remaining time, core zone of national park remains closed for visitors due to monsoon season. In addition to this, park remains closed for evening safari drive on every Wednesday. In Holi festival day, usually park remains closed for full-day. These dates may vary as it is decided every year by Madhya Pradesh forest Department. This tiger reserves is popular for best tiger sighting in India due to which from beginning to end of a season, tourists arrival remains constant. Usually most of the tourist arrival has been registered from November to May month. This is the good time to visit Bandhavgarh for normal tourists but if you are wildlife photographer and ready to sweat for good tiger photography then we recommend you to visit Bandhavgarh from April to 15 June. This is peak summer time so safaris will be definitely challenging but you will be rewarded equally with good tiger sighting and better chances for tiger photography. Here it is important to note that for visiting park area, one should must do safari ticket booking in advance. Tickets is the main challenge for visitors as tickets limit is much less than the visitors demand.

What kind of dresses to carry ?

Bandhavgarh popular safari season is that time when core safari zones are open for tourists i.e. from October to June. Thus while doing your luggage packing, just check the current climatic condition and act accordingly. Here we need to understand the basic fact that in daytime, temperature rises quickly thus we will find more temperature difference in day and night hours. Almost all the resorts provide blankets on per person basis, during winter season safaris. By default, we must carry some cotton full-sleeve clothing items whose colour should be according to surrounding (avoid striking or shining dress) which should not distract wild animals and birds. This will be helpful in your safari experience.

Unique Kabir Darshan Yatra

Bandhavgarh national park

It is a holy trip, organized in December month in which you will get the chance to visit Bandhavgarh fort and other surrounding historical buildings, including ancient Kabir temple. As mentioned, it is a holy trip thus, their is no fee or advance booking requirement for this journey. Just go with your original ID documents. In this day, normal public is allowed to walk through Bandhavgarh forest area to reach Kabir temple, near fort, spend sometime their and return back on same day. As Bandhavgarh fort is closed for tourists thus who want to see the fort area, they should must be the part of this yatra and experience for tiger reserve journey by walk.

Climate and Weather

Bandhavgarh have moderate climate. Here Winter season starts from November to March during which morning temperature dips to 5°C and day temperature remains as 18°C. From April to June, we can experience the summer season when straight sunlight and heat waves poses challenge in safari drives. In peak summers i.e. May-June, temperature reaches 45°C level. With the end of June or beginning of July, monsoon clouds arrives and pours good rainfall. Monsoon season prevails from July to October. During this time, park remains closed for visitors and get prepared for new beginning. Here at Bandhavgarh you will experience significant difference in day and night temperatures. Due to straight sun-light effect, here day temperature raises swiftly and after sun-set and in early morning hours, we will experience cold. This difference is well experienced in morning safari drives when vehicle enters just before sunrise and exits after sunrise.

Months
Jan
Feb
Mar
Apr
May
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Nov
Dec
Minimum (°C)
05
14
22
28
30
36
25
23
22
22
18
10
Maximum(°C)
18
31
35
40
44
45
36
34
32
34
30
20


Above temperature chart of Bandhavgarh is based of past experience. Here we have gathered the average temperatures during each season so that user can get an rough idea.

Where to stay

Their are number of hotels and resorts in Bandhavgarh. According to budget and requirement, tourists can have all category of resorts and safari lodges. Here resorts are available from range of 2500 INR. per night to 60000 INR. per night. Here you can find 15% resorts in Luxury category, 25% resorts in Deluxe category, 40% resorts in Standard category and 20% resorts in Budget category. Some of the popular luxury safari lodges are Mahua Kothi, Samode safari lodge, Treehouse Hideaway etc. Popular deluxe resorts in Bandhavgarh are Kings Lodge, Bandhav Vilas, Bandhavgarh Jungle Lodge etc. In standard category popular resorts are Tiger Den, Aranyak resort, Nature Heritage, Tiger Trails etc. Similarly we can find some good budget hotels like Wild Haven, Sun Resort etc. Now home-stays are also coming up but good one is still awaited. Resorts and lodges are developed in different themes thus variety can be seen here.

Accommodations we use
Bandhavgarh national park resorts
Aranyak Bandhavgarh Resort (Standard Category)		 Bandhavgarh national park resorts
Nature Heritage Resort (Standard Category)		 Bandhavgarh national park resorts
Kings Lodge  (Luxury Category)

Next to Bandhavgarh

Bandhavgarh national park is surrounded by many popular tourist attractions which can be added in tour plans.

Destination Type Direction Travel Distance
Kanha National Park Tiger safari and wildlife photography destination South-West 250 km/ 05:00 hr (Khatia gate)
Sanjay Dubri Tiger Reserve Tiger safari and wildlife photography destination North-East 110 km / 02:30 hr.
Panna National Park Tiger safari and wildlife photography destination North-West 230 km / 05:00 hr (Madla gate)
Khajuraho Destination for Heritage temples and sculpture art. UNESCO world heritage site. North-West 255 km / 05:40 hr
Amarkantak Pilgrimage and nature tourism hill station destination. Ideal for peace seeker South-East 250 km / 05:00 hr

 

 

MADHYA PRADESH DISTANCE CHARTS
Amarkantak Distance Chart Bandhavgarh Distance Chart Bhopal Distance Chart Gwalior Distance Chart Indore Distance Chart
Jabalpur Distance Chart Kanha National Park Distance Chart Khajuraho Distance Chart Madhya Pradesh Distance Chart Maheshwar Distance Chart
Mandu Distance Chart Orchha Distance Chart Pachmarhi Distance Chart Pench National Park Distance Chart Satpura National Park Distance Chart
Ujjain Distance Chart

RELATED LINKS
Agra Taxi Service Agra to Gwalior Taxi Agra to Orchha Agra to Panna National Park Bandhavgarh Taxi Service
Bandhavgarh to Jabalpur Taxi Bandhavgarh to Kanha national park Bandhavgarh to Khajuraho Taxi Bandhavgarh to Panna national park Bandhavgarh to Pench Taxi
Bandhavgarh to Prayagraj Bandhavgarh to Satpura National Park Bandhavgarh to Varanasi Bhopal Taxi Service Bhopal to Chanderi Taxi
Bhopal to Orchha Bhopal to Satpura National Park Bilaspur Car Rental Chanderi Taxi Service Chanderi to Gwalior Taxi
Gondia Taxi Service Gondia to Kanha Taxi Gwalior Taxi Service Gwalior to Agra Taxi Gwalior to Chanderi
Gwalior to Khajuraho Taxi Gwalior to Orchha Taxi Gwalior to Panna National Park Taxi Indore Taxi Service Indore to Hanuwantiya Taxi
Indore to Mandu Taxi Indore to Pachmarhi Taxi Indore to Sambhaji Nagar taxi Indore to Satpura National Park Indore to Udaipur Taxi
Jabalpur Taxi Service Jabalpur to Amarkantak Taxi Jabalpur to Bandhavgarh Taxi Jabalpur to Kanha National Park Taxi Jabalpur to Khajuraho Taxi
Jabalpur to Panna National Park Taxi Jabalpur to Pench National Park Taxi Jhansi Taxi Service Jhansi to Panna National Park Taxi Kanha National Park to Bandhavgarh
Kanha National Park to Khajuraho Kanha National Park to Satpura National Park Kanha National Park to Tadoba National Park Kanha Taxi Service Kanha to Jabalpur Taxi
Kanha to Nagpur Taxi Kanha to Pench National Park Kanha to Raipur Taxi Khajuraho Car Rental Khajuraho to Agra Taxi
Khajuraho to Bandhavgarh taxi Khajuraho to Gwalior Taxi Khajuraho to Orchha Khajuraho to Varanasi Taxi Mandu Taxi Service
Mandu to Ujjain Taxi Nagpur taxi service Nagpur to Kanha National Park Nagpur to Pench National Park Nagpur to Satpura National Park
Nagpur to Tadoba national park Orchha Taxi Service Orchha to Chanderi Taxi Orchha to Gwalior Taxi Orchha to Khajuraho Taxi
Pachmarhi Car Rental Panna National Park to Agra Panna national park to Jabalpur Taxi Panna National Park to Prayagraj Taxi Panna Taxi Service
Panna to Bandhavgarh Taxi Panna to Gwalior taxi Panna to Kanha National Park Taxi Panna to Pench national park Pench National Park to Bandhavgarh
Pench Taxi Service Pench to Kanha Taxi Service Pench to Nagpur Taxi Service Pench to Satpura national park Pench to Tadoba Taxi Service
Raipur Taxi Service Raipur to Bandhavgarh Raipur to Kanha National Park Satna Car Rental Satpura National Park Taxi Service
Satpura National Park to Bandhavgarh Satpura National Park to Khajuraho Taxi Satpura National Park to Pench Satpura National Park to Tadoba National Park Varanasi Car Rental

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