Tiger Safari trip to India

Hi Linda,

I just got back from the OAT Heart of India tour.. We visited Ranthambore and did an afternoon safari and a morning safari. We were lucky to see two tigers on the afternoon safari. Both were sleeping or resting. On the morning safari, we didn't see any tigers, although we heard a lot of warning calls from deer, and our guide kept bringing us to where he thought the tiger would be prowling.

As was explained to us, each safari is assigned a route, and they aren't allowed to deviate from the route. Some routes are better than others. While doing several safaris over several days will increase your odds, there is no guarantee you will see any tigers. We met a family at the airport a few days later who had fabulous videos of an encounter with a tiger that came right up to their canter. They did five safari drives and only saw the one.

You can hire a guide each day. You don't need to book a tour with a single company. Your hotel can probably arrange it for you. You can also book ahead. GetYourGuide has a lot of options, and I'm sure you can find others. Having a good guide who speaks English is key. You might be able to arrange a private safari if you want, but it's must more cost effective to do it in a shared canter with others, and your chance of having a good encounter is the same either way.

It's true you don't need a guide for the Taj Mahal, but how do you plan to travel between Ranthambore and Agra?

The OAT tour had two nights in Jaipur, and to me it felt rushed. On the first day, after we arrived, we had some free time, and I went to Jantar Mantar and the City Palace. But we had an evening activity, and I felt very rushed. The next day we visited Amer Fort and did a leopard safari (but didn't see any leopards). Two full days for Jaipur (three nights) would probably be about right.

By the way, at Ranthambore we stayed at Nahargarh (https://www.nahargarh.com/), probably one of the top hotels I've ever stayed at. You might not be looking for that level of luxury, but I'd certainly recommend it highly if your budget allows.

Let me know if you have any follow-up questions.

Gate 1 Travel has a tour that includes a safari in India.

The best advice I have had is to hire a private guide and jeep in Ranthambore...and go several times. Those big canters (larger vehicles used by group tours) are loud and can't go down all the tracks. Also, if tigers are the main draw, you may want to research alternate parks. Ranthambore is well visited where as Bandhavgarh has the highest density, and Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve has most sightings and good accessibility. However, time of year may impact viewing anywhere.

Thank you to all of you that have replied to my post!

Will add a little bit of my very recent experience on Tiger safaris in India. This was all in the late Oct-early Nov timeframe (about 6-7 weeks ago).

I ended up doing safaris in 3 different areas: Tadoba NP, & Pench NP in central India - the 2 parks are about 4 hours drive from each other. Nagpur is the nearest city and each NP is about 2 hours drive away (one N and one S). The 3rd location i went to was the BR Hills tiger reserve in Southern India.

It seems like all the Tiger Reserves (note - what may be confusing is that some Tiger reserves are also NPs but not v/v) have pretty much the same setup. You plan your arrival at your lodgings to be around midday, check in, have lunch and then rest or wander about till mid afternoon. There are 2 safaris planned each day and each is limited to the park sector you have reserved - they try and limit the # of vehicles in each area of the park to avoid overcrowding. The downside of this is that your safari is limited to that area - you won't have the ability to go in one entrance gate and exit from another (at least from what I encountered).

The afternoon safari starts around 2:30 or 3 PM and finishes around 6 PM or close to it. Remember that India being just above the equator, darkness falls by 6:30 PM. You then return to your lodgings and dinner is normally served around 8 or 8:30 PM. In between, you will have snacks and drinks normally provided.

Next morning normally involves an early wake up, some coffee or tea, and then setting off by 6 AM with a return to the Gate by 9 or 9:30 AM. Breakfast will be provided in a picnic basket by your hotel and will be had during a break while on safari. If you are only staying for 1 night then you will pack and leave after the morning safari. If you stay another night, you will then have another 2 safaris and follow the same routine.

Some notes to keep in mind: Tigers live in forests and jungles which is a lot different than the open grasslands you may encounter on African safaris. It is almost certain you will see a lot fewer animals and bird life than you would on an african safari just due to the vegetation and depending on how how dense the undergrowth is. Temper your expectations and make sure you have a good pair of binoculars.

• Also note: Due to the monsoons, a lot of the tiger reserves/safaris seem to be suspended from Jun-Sept (please check individuals NPs/Tiger Reserves you may be wanting to visits) so that you don't end up in India at the wrong time.

Arranging your own trip: Lane had some good suggestions above to follow. If you really want to spend more time that what is afforded on a standard tourist circuit, then plan to do a separate trip to a NP or tiger reserve after or before your tour and work with a hotel or tour operator to plan for the number of days you want. The hotels or lodgings should be able to work with you to organize this.