Wild India

December 9 – 22, 2011

WWF refuses to let the tiger slip away. We are dedicated to bringing the wild tiger back from the brink of extinction and doubling its numbers in the wild. As you'll learn first-hand on this tour, when we protect tiger habitat, we're also protecting forests and grasslands that shelter other animals, sequester carbon, filter water and provide food for human communities. 

• Safaris focused on India’s natural realm, renowned for dramatic rivers and fabled forests. 
• Tiger-searching expeditions lead by expert guides who know their turf. 
• Sightings of Asia's most dynamic wildlife, including one-horned rhinos, sambar deer and monitor lizards.
• Accommodations at remote lodges in harmony with their surroundings.
• A group size of just 14 travelers.

Trip Itinerary

The dates below do not include travel time to and from the destination. Please consult our tour operator, Natural Habitat Adventures, to discuss your best flight options.

Friday, December 9, 2011: Delhi, India
Arrive in New Delhi and transfer to the hotel. This afternoon we explore the city on a guided tour that brings alive the many layers of its complex history, visiting Vijay Chowk, Humayun’s Tomb and Qutab Minar. This evening, we enjoy a welcome dinner. Taj Mahal Hotel (B,L,D)

Saturday, December 10: Nagpur / Kanha Tiger Reserve
Fly to Nagpur and drive to Singinawa Jungle Lodge in the heart of the Kanha Tiger Reserve. The park offers India’s best tiger viewing, while the grasslands and deciduous forest also support chital, sambar, common langur, wild boar, Indian bison, sloth bear, Asiatic jackal, wild dog, rhesus monkeys and occasionally leopard. Kanha is also home to the world’s last population of barasingha, an endangered swamp deer with 12-point antlers. Once a hunting ground for imperial rulers and viceroys, Kanha is now one of India’s most important wildlife reserves. Singinawa Jungle Lodge  (B,L,D)

Sunday – Tuesday, December 11 – 13: Kanha National Park
Our explorations include morning and evening game drives in jeeps, and safaris on elephant back. (Elephant rides cannot be guaranteed, as they depend on the successful tracking of the tiger by the mahouts.) At the close of each day we retire to the superb comforts of our lodge. Singinawa Jungle Lodge (B,L,D daily)

Wednesday, December 14: Nagpur / Kolkata
Drive to Nagpur this morning and fly to Kolkata, where we settle in at the luxurious Oberoi Grand Hotel. This classic landmark is over 125 years old, exuding Victorian elegance yet offering every conceivable modern amenity. Oberoi Grand (B,L,D)

Thursday, December 15: Kolkata
We spend the morning touring Kolkata, third-largest city in India and the capital under the British Raj from 1772 until 1911. While the city experienced a melding of traditions during the British Empire, it was also the locus for a fierce movement for Indian independence, prompting the Crown to move the capital to Delhi. Kolkata has a strong literary, artistic and revolutionary heritage, and its creative energy is palpable. Oberoi Grand (B,L,D)

Friday, December 16: Jorhat / Kaziranga
Fly from Kolkata to Jorhat, continuing by road to Kaziranga National Park in Assam. The park, which borders the sacred Brahmaputra River, was created in 1926 as a refuge for the one-horned rhinoceros. Once hunted nearly to extinction, today this two ton beast is a conservation success story, rebounding to more than 1,600. Diphlu River Lodge (B,L,D)

Saturday – Monday, December 17 – 19: Kaziranga National Park
Morning and afternoon jeep drives reveal the park’s diverse habitat, a mix of elephant grass, thorny rattan cane, tracts of semi-evergreen forest and shallow swamps. The reserve boasts an amazing variety of wildlife, including wild buffalo, hog deer, Hoolock gibbon, elephants, pythons and tigers. Waterfowl abound, too: egrets, pond herons, river terns, black-necked stork, fishing eagles and pelicans. In the river one may find otters, gharial and dolphins. Diphlu River Lodge (B,L,D daily)

Tuesday, December 20: Guwahati / Delhi
We drive a half-day to Guwahati to catch our afternoon flight to Delhi, with the rest of the day at leisure. Taj Mahal Hotel (B,L,D)

Wednesday, December 21: Taj Express to Agra
Early this morning we board the Taj Express train for Agra. We tour the magnificent Red Fort, locus of Mughal power until the imperial capital was moved to Delhi in 1637. This afternoon we visit the Taj Mahal, built in 1631 by Emperor Shah Jahan as a memorial to his beloved wife. Perhaps the most elegant building in the world, the Taj Mahal manifests the apex of Mughal art in its exquisite design details and elaborate gardens. Gateway Hotel (B,L,D)

Thursday, December 22: Agra / Delhi / Home
We return to the Taj Mahal for a guided tour at dawn, as the sunrise casts a pink glow on the translucent marble. After breakfast we drive back to Delhi, where dayrooms are available for us. This afternoon we transfer to the airport for flights home. (B)