A quick guide to Bandhavgarh National Park

Nature holiday is a luxury these days and not many of us get the opportunity to go for these holidays when we need them the most. But we can still take solace in the knowledge that India has so many natural places to visit. It’s always better than not having any. One such natural place is Bandhavgarh National Park in Madhya Pradesh.

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Undulating forest, meadows, rivers and ridges are all part of the national park, home to the royal Bengal tiger and many other amazing birds and animals. Here is a quick and easy guide to the Bandhavgarh National Park.

The national park is located in the Vindhya Hills. The core area of the Bandhavgarh National Park covers an area of 105 sq km, and the buffer zone covers an area of 400 sq km. The dense sal forest is punctuated by glasslands and several wetlands.

Winter is the best time to visit the national park, especially from October to March. It’s still not too hot to be out and about and the animals too are pretty active around this time of the year.

Since it is a small area compared to other national park’s core zones, tiger sighting is comparatively easy in Bandhavgarh. Tala Zone is the largest and the best when it comes to zones.

It is always smarter to pre-book safaris as there is always a rush. Bookings can be done at their official website (as per availability). If you plan to go for safari in March, skip the Holi weekend. The park will remain closed on Holi. Also, evening safaris in the core zone are closed every Wednesday.

For Indians, a single seat in a jeep safari will start from INR 1600 and INR 1800 on weekdays and weekends respectively; a full jeep will cost INR 7000 and INR 8000 on weekdays and weekends respectively.

For foreigners, a single seat will cost INR 2000 and INR 2200 on weekdays and weekends respectively; a full jeep will cost INR 12,000 and INR 13,000 on weekdays and weekends respectively.

Bandhavgarh National Park has more than 350 species of resident as well as migratory birds. Best sighting happened during the winter months.

Bandhavgarh National Park is also home to several species of reptiles. The most common ones are the Indian python, Russel’s viper, spectacled cobra, common vine snake, striped keelback,monitor lizard and fan-throated lizard among many others.

Gaur or the Indian bison were extinct from the wilds of Bandhavgarh so in 2012, 50 gaurs were brought in from Kanha National Park. Now gaurs are also one of the many major attractions of Bandhavgarh National Park.