Kanha and Bandhavgarh — 4 Nights in Tiger Country

You are met at Jabalpur’s Dumna airport, which the district administration puts 20 km from the city, or at Jabalpur railway station, and driven by way of Mandla to the Khatia side of Kanha. The forest department gives that road as 160 km and we allow about four hours with a break, so land by early afternoon to reach the lodge in daylight. No safari is planned today. Bhedaghat’s Marble Rocks lie west of Jabalpur, off this route; they fit only after a morning arrival and add two hours or more. Dinner is at the lodge.

The day leaves room for two safari drives, each arranged subject to forest department permits and confirmed only once the permit is issued. The morning round enters at about sunrise and is out by late morning; the afternoon one starts at three or half past and ends at dusk. You ride in an open vehicle registered with the park, with a park guide, in whichever core zone the permit names: Kanha, Kisli, Mukki or Sarhi. Barasingha, gaur, wild dog and tiger are all on the forest department’s list, and none is promised. The core zones are closed on Wednesday afternoons. Midday is for lunch and rest.

If a permit has been secured, there is time for one more morning round at Kanha before a late breakfast. Then comes the long transfer of the trip. MP Tourism counts roughly 200 km between the two parks, and we allow five to six hours with stops, more if your lodge is on the Mukki side. Take the morning drive and you reach Bandhavgarh around dusk; skip it and you arrive by mid-afternoon with time to settle in. We plan no sightseeing on the way. Dinner is at the lodge near Bandhavgarh’s gates.

Bandhavgarh is the smaller reserve, with three core zones: Tala, Magadhi and Khitauli. As at Kanha, the plan leaves room for a morning and an afternoon round, each subject to permits and the park’s seasonal operation, in the zone the permit names. The fort that gives the park its name stands on the plateau above Tala; the forest department restricts entry, so it is seen from below. Shesh Shaiya, a tenth-century reclining Vishnu, is reached on a Tala zone drive. The 2022 national estimate counted 135 tigers in the reserve. That is a reason to come, not a guarantee.

An early round is possible today only if a permit has been secured and your departure is late enough; otherwise have breakfast and leave. The forest department gives 167 km from the Tala gate to Jabalpur and MP Tourism 190 km, and we allow four to four and a half hours. After a morning round you would reach Jabalpur in the late afternoon, so book an evening flight or a night train. Umaria station, about 32 km from Tala, and Katni, about 100 km, can be quoted as other places to end. The trip finishes at the drop.