North East Wildlife & Conservation Circuit

Route: Arrive Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport, Guwahati; transfer to hotel

Your driver meets you at the airport. Guwahati is the gateway to Assam and sits on the south bank of the Brahmaputra, the river that shapes every park on this trip.

If you land by early afternoon, take the sunset cruise on the Brahmaputra. It lasts about two hours. In the dry season the river is broad and slow, with sandbanks, fishing boats and the first river birds of the trip.

Experience of the Day

• Airport pickup and check-in

• Brahmaputra sunset cruise

• Briefing on the route ahead

Food

Recommended: Paradise, a long-running Guwahati restaurant, for an Assamese thali.

Must-Try: Masor tenga, a light, sour fish curry.

Activities to Do

• Rest after the flight

• Sunset cruise, if you arrive in time

Route: Guwahati to Bansbari, Manas National Park, about 140 km, 3.5 to 4 hours

The road runs west and north across the Brahmaputra plain towards the Bhutan hills. Manas sits right on the border. Bhutan's Royal Manas National Park continues on the other side, so the two parks form one forest.

After lunch, the first jeep safari goes out from Bansbari, the park's central range. The mix here is grassland and forest. Wild elephants, water buffalo and gaur are common, and Manas holds the world's largest population of the Bengal florican, a rare grassland bustard. Jeep safaris in Manas run in the late morning and afternoon.

Note on the Manas season

Manas opens for visitors in October and closes for the monsoon from about June to September. November to April is the main season.

Experience of the Day

• First sight of the Bhutan hills

• Afternoon jeep safari in the Bansbari range

• Evening at the lodge

Food

Recommended: Dinner at your lodge, where Bodo dishes are often on the menu.

Must-Try: Onla khari, a Bodo curry thickened with ground rice.

Activities to Do

• Drive to Manas

• Bansbari jeep safari

Route: Bansbari to Mathanguri and back, with a community visit

Today's safari runs deep into the park to Mathanguri, where the Manas river comes out of the Bhutan hills. The forest on the far bank is in Bhutan.

Manas was made a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. During the armed conflict of the late 1980s and 1990s, poaching emptied it. By 2001 not a single rhino was left, and UNESCO had put the park on its World Heritage in Danger list in 1992. Peace came in 2003. Rhinos were moved in from Kaziranga from 2006, and hand-raised orphan calves were released too. UNESCO took Manas off the danger list in 2011. The park is also the only place in the world where the pygmy hog, the smallest wild pig, lives in the wild. Captive-bred hogs have been released here since the 2000s.

In the afternoon, meet members of the Manas Maozigendri Ecotourism Society. Local young people founded it in 2003, and it brought former poachers into forest protection and tourism.

The Human Story

Some of the people now guarding Manas once hunted in it. The community group they joined runs patrols with the forest department and earns from tourism, which gives villages around the park a stake in keeping it intact.

Experience of the Day

• Safari to Mathanguri on the Manas river

• Grassland birds, including the Bengal florican

• Meeting with the community conservation group

Food

Recommended: Picnic lunch in the park, packed by the lodge.

Must-Try: Local rice beer is part of Bodo hospitality; ask your guide before you try it.

Activities to Do

• Jeep safari to Mathanguri

• Community conservation meeting

• Evening talk with your naturalist

Optional Nearby Excursions

• Birdwatching boat trip on the Manas river, when water levels allow

Route: Bansbari to Potasali (Nameri), about 240 km, 6 to 6.5 hours

Today is the long drive of the trip. The road runs east along the north bank of the Brahmaputra through Bodoland, past rice fields, tea gardens and small market towns, with the foothills in view to the north.

You reach Nameri in the afternoon. The park sits at the foot of the Arunachal hills where the Jia Bhoroli river comes down onto the plain. Nameri joins Pakke Tiger Reserve across the state border, so the forest runs on into the hills.

Note on the long drive

About six hours of driving with stops. Road works on the highway can slow the day, so the start is early.

Experience of the Day

• North-bank drive through Bodoland

• First view of the Jia Bhoroli

• Evening at the camp or bungalow

Food

Recommended: Dinner at your camp or bungalow.

Must-Try: Fish from the river, cooked simply with mustard, the Assamese way.

Activities to Do

• Drive to Nameri

• Evening walk by the river

Route: Potasali, Nameri National Park

The morning starts with a short boat crossing over the Jia Bhoroli. On the far bank you walk into the forest with an armed forest guard and your naturalist. Walking is the main way to see Nameri, and the pace is slow and quiet.

Nameri is a stronghold of the white-winged wood duck. It is critically endangered, with only a few hundred thought to be left in North East India, and it was made Assam's state bird in 2003. It feeds on quiet forest pools, often at dawn and dusk. Hornbills, the ibisbill and many forest birds are here too.

In the afternoon, float down the Jia Bhoroli on an inflatable raft. It is a gentle trip for birdwatching, not white-water.

Note on walking in Nameri

Walks are led by the forest department's armed guards, who set the route and pace. Wear dull colours and closed shoes, keep quiet, and follow the guard's instructions. Elephants live in this forest.

Experience of the Day

• Boat crossing of the Jia Bhoroli

• Guided forest walk with an armed guard

• River float for birdwatching

Food

Recommended: Lunch at your camp or bungalow.

Must-Try: Assam tea from the gardens around Nameri.

Activities to Do

• Forest walk in Nameri

• Rafting float on the Jia Bhoroli

• Birdwatching at dawn and dusk

Route: Potasali to Tezpur to Kohora, about 100 km, 2.5 to 3 hours

The road runs south to Tezpur and crosses the Brahmaputra. On the south bank it turns east to Kaziranga.

The afternoon jeep safari goes into the Western range at Bagori. It has the highest density of rhinos in the park, and the open grassland makes them easy to see. Kaziranga became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1985. The 2022 census counted 2,613 greater one-horned rhinos, about two-thirds of all that live in the wild.

Experience of the Day

• Crossing the Brahmaputra at Tezpur

• First Kaziranga safari, Western range

• Rhinos, buffalo and swamp deer

Food

Recommended: Lunch and dinner at your lodge.

Must-Try: Duck with ash gourd, a traditional Assamese dish, where the lodge kitchen offers it.

Activities to Do

• Drive to Kaziranga

• Western range jeep safari

Optional Nearby Excursions

• Agnigarh hill in Tezpur, a short stop with views over the river

Route: Kohora (Central range) and Agaratoli (Eastern range)

The dawn safari runs through the Central range from Kohora, the main gate, to open lakes where rhinos and wild buffalo come to drink.

Kaziranga looks the way it does because of the Brahmaputra. Every monsoon the river floods most of the park. The flood leaves fresh silt, and the silt feeds the tall grass that rhinos, buffalo and deer eat. The same flood closes the park from June to September, and it is why the grassland renews itself every year.

The afternoon safari goes to the Eastern range at Agaratoli, with large wetlands, nesting spot-billed pelicans and many water birds.

Note on safaris

The forest department sets safari slots and routes, and sightings are never guaranteed. Elephant-back rides are offered in Kaziranga, but this plan uses jeep safaris only.

Experience of the Day

• Dawn safari in the Central range

• Afternoon safari in the Eastern range

• Pelicans and wetland birds

Food

Recommended: Meals at the lodge.

Must-Try: Assam tea, plain or with milk, from the gardens around the park.

Activities to Do

• Central range jeep safari

• Eastern range jeep safari

• Midday rest

Route: Ghorakati (Burapahar range), then back to the lodge

The last Kaziranga safari goes to the Burapahar range in the west. It is hillier and more forested than the grassland ranges, with a different mix of birds and a better chance of primates such as the capped langur.

Kaziranga grew from a small reserve. It was set aside as a reserve forest in 1908, when only a few rhinos were thought to survive there, and protection since then has turned it into the stronghold of the species.

The afternoon is free. Rest at the lodge, walk in a nearby tea garden, or visit the orchid park at Kohora.

Experience of the Day

• Burapahar range safari

• Forest birds and primates

• Free afternoon

Food

Recommended: Meals at the lodge.

Must-Try: Pitha, Assamese rice cakes, often served at tea time.

Activities to Do

• Burapahar jeep safari

• Tea-garden walk, if you wish

Optional Nearby Excursions

• Kaziranga Orchid and Biodiversity Park near Kohora (allow 1 to 2 hours)

Route: Kohora to Jorhat, about 100 km, 2.5 hours

The road runs east along the south bank into Upper Assam, the heart of the tea country. Jorhat grew as a tea town, and old planters' bungalows still stand on the estates around it.

In the afternoon, visit a working tea estate with your guide to see how the leaf is plucked, withered, rolled and dried. The evening is at your heritage bungalow.

The Human Story

Tea gardens in Assam are worked mostly by families whose ancestors were brought from central and eastern India in the 19th century. Many live on the estates still. Your guide can explain how the gardens run today.

Experience of the Day

• Drive into Upper Assam

• Tea-estate visit

• Evening at a planter's bungalow

Food

Recommended: Dinner at your bungalow, often an Assamese home-style meal.

Must-Try: Freshly made orthodox Assam tea, tasted at the estate.

Shopping

Loose-leaf Assam tea bought at the estate or in Jorhat town.

Activities to Do

• Drive to Jorhat

• Tea-estate and factory visit

Route: Jorhat to Hoollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary and back, about 20 km each way

Hoollongapar is a small forest, about 21 square kilometres, surrounded by tea gardens. It is home to the western hoolock gibbon, the only ape found in India. About 125 gibbons were counted here in 2023.

Gibbons live in the tree tops and almost never come down. They move by swinging from branch to branch, so they need an unbroken canopy. That is the problem at Hoollongapar. Tea gardens surround the forest, and a railway line runs through it, cutting off one group of gibbons in the smaller part. Early morning is the best time, when the family groups sing to mark their territory.

Six other primates live here, including the capped langur, stump-tailed macaque and the Bengal slow loris. The afternoon is free.

Note on the gibbon walk

Walks follow forest trails with a forest guide. Keep voices low and do not play recorded calls. Gibbons are usually seen, but sightings are never guaranteed.

Experience of the Day

• Dawn walk in Hoollongapar

• Gibbon song at first light

• Free afternoon at the bungalow

Food

Recommended: Breakfast back at the bungalow after the walk.

Must-Try: Khar, a dish made with an alkaline extract from dried banana peel.

Activities to Do

• Guided gibbon walk

• Rest and pack

Route: Jorhat to Jorhat airport (Rowriah), about 15 to 20 km

Your driver takes you to Jorhat airport for your onward flight. Jorhat has direct flights to Delhi and Kolkata.

Experience of the Day

• Last morning in tea country

• Airport drop

Food

Recommended: Breakfast at the bungalow.

Must-Try: A final cup of Assam tea on the verandah.

Activities to Do

• Transfer to the airport

• Onward flight