Tucked in a corner of the greenest part of India, Kaziranga National Park is the most enchanting forest of all. Spread over 430 sq. kms. and consisting five forest ranges, this national park in Assam in north-east India is among the least disturbed natural habitats. With gorgeous deep green forests, swamps, water bodies, and grasslands, it offers amazing variety of landscapes. If you love majestic wild animals, especially the one-horned Indian rhino, Kaziranga is for you. Let me guide you how to plan your visit to Kaziranga National Park while sharing bits of my experience.
{For more destinations from north-east India, check out: Dzukou Valley (Nagaland) ||| Tawang Valley (Arunachal) ||| Loktak Lake (Manipur)}
Kaziranga doesn’t disappoint many!
You reach a National Park after a hard, long drive, wake up early in the morning and go on a jungle trail or safari to catch glimpse of a star animal (like tiger or lion) in their natural environment. But most visitors get disappointed not to see one there! One common complaint of visitors to most national parks/ sanctuaries is that they hardly see any major wildlife there except for the deer and some birds.
{For other Indian National Parks, check out: Periyar N.P. (Kerala) ||| Kangchenjunga N.P. (Sikkim)}
However, Kaziranga National Park is refreshingly different. It’s almost certain that you will come across a great one-horned Indian Rhino there, for which it’s known world over. Apart from the rhinos, one can also easily see swamp deer, wild water buffalos, and the elephants; and if you are lucky, you will also spot some tigers and hornbills.
{If you love forests, check out: Great Himalayan N.P. (Himachal) ||| Sundarbans N.P. (W.B)}
Interesting history of Kaziranga National Park
A wife convinces her man to set up the Kaziranga Reserve Forest
Though Rhinos are visible easily these days, back in 1904, Mary Curzon, wife of the the Viceroy of India, Lord Curzon, was not so lucky. On her visit to see the great Rhinos of Kaziranga, she saw none! Being annoyed with this, she convinced the Viceroy about the need for conservation of Rhinos. And thus came up the Kaziranga Reserve Forest in 1905. Much later in 1974, the government of India declared it as a National Park.
The UNESCO declared Kaziranga as a World Heritage Site in 1985 for its unique natural habitat. It describes the park as the single largest undisturbed and representative of Brahmaputra valley flood plain. With increasing tiger population, Kaziranga has also been declared as a Tiger Reserve in 2006.
{If you want to know more about the National Park, do check out: “Why Kaziranga and Rhinos are important“}
My visit to Kaziranga National Park in 2019
A winter morning in Kaziranga
I visited Kaziranga National Park in the winter of December 2019 with a friend- Putul from Guwahati. Winters are quite pleasant in Assam with day-time temperatures hovering around 22 degrees (Celsius). We reached there late in the evening, and checked into a family-run guesthouse in Kohora.
There are four major gates to enter the Kaziranga National Park (Kohora- Mihimukh: central, Bagori and Ghorakati: western, Agaratoli: eastern). We entered from the Kohora- Mihimukh gate, one of the two popular gates (Bagori is the other one).
Elephant safari in the elephant grassland
When we reached Kaziranga, we had to book an elephant safari at the gate only; there was no online method. So, we had to reach there well before 5 AM to book a ride; otherwise, we would have to miss it that day!
Once we had the booking, they took us by a jeep to the elephant pick up point. It was indeed an interesting sight to see a high platform built there for getting on to the elephant back. There were at least 15-20 elephants waiting for their rides. Each elephant carried 2-3 visitors. The experienced mahouts expertly guided the elephants towards probable rhino sighting locations. The landscape covered with elephant grass and trees was fascinating.
My first Rhino sighting
Not too long afterwards, we came to our first Rhino sighting. It was just 8-feet away from us, and was eating away the grass nonchalantly. I was of course quite excited to see a Rhino for the first time in my life. I wished I had carried my DSLR with me! (thus, the pictures of animals are not great!). Though we wanted to stay there for a little more, there were so many other visitors wanting to have their turn! So, we had to move.
The mahout kept guiding through the forests and small rivers. And we sighted another Rhino in 15 minutes. And then a lot of other wildlife like the swamp deer and wild water buffalos. Riding that elephant through the forests for over an hour was a great experience in itself.
Other wildlife sighting:
As said earlier, Kaziranga National Park is not all about Rhinos only. During our elephant safari, we witnessed boars, wild water buffalos, wild elephants, hundreds of deer, colouful birds and many other smaller species of fauna.
After the elephant safari, we spent substantial time within the periphery of the park enjoying its natural beauty.
How to plan your visit to Kaziranga National Park
Best time to visit:
Kaziranga National Park remains closed due to heavy rains during the monsoon times- June to October. So, November to May are the months when Kaziranga National Park is open for visitors. In late winter/ early summer, a lot of wild animals flock around the water bodies. So, it’s easy to sight animals in this season. Winter months (Nov-Feb) are very pleasant; March-May are hot and humid.
How to reach:
Being the state capital of Assam, Guwahati is well connected with rest of India by air and railways. From Guwahati, one can take a private taxi to Kaziranga National Park, approximately 200 kms away (3 hours) towards east of Guwahati. Local buses are frequently available for a budget option. Furkating is the closest major railway station to Kaziranga (75 kms), from where one has to take a taxi. So, I would suggest taking a bus or taxi from Guwahati is a better option.
How to choose your entry gate:
As mentioned earlier, there are four gates to enter the Kaziranga National Park. Kohora- Mihimukh in the central region, Bagori and Ghorakati in the western region, and Agaratoli in the eastern region. So, it’s important to choose your entry gate properly. One should know what to expect from which gate.
- Kohora- Mihimukh: Best for sighting wildlife, especially rhinos | Elephant safari | Jeep safari
- Bagori: Good for wildlife sighting | Elephant safari | Jeep safari
- Ghorakati: Undulating terrain, deep forests | Jeep safari
- Agaratoli: Less wildlife, but most beautiful landscapes | Jeep safari
Safari information:
Elephant safari:
- Gates: Mihimukh and Bagori
- Timings: 5.30 AM- 6.30AM and 6.30 AM to 7.30 AM; it’s better to take the earlier one.
Jeep safari:
- Gates: All four gates (Mihimukh, Bagori, Ghorakati, Agaratoli)
- Timings: 8.00 to 10.00 AM and 2.00 to 4.00 PM.
Safari tips:
- Elephant safari is far better than jeep safari. It takes you really close to the animals
- You can book safari through hotel/ travel agents, or directly at the gate. So reach there before the gate opens, and book your safari
- Keep at least two days in hand. Take one elephant safari from Mihimukh, and one from Bagori. And maybe one jeep safari to cover wider areas within the national park
Where to stay:
Nearest convenient places are: Kohora and Bagori
- Suggested budget options: Manorama lodge (Kohora) || Homestaytion (Kohora) || Kaziranga Florican lodge
- Government accommodation: There are 8 properties of the government to choose from. Check out by clicking on the link.
- Luxury stay options: Diphlu River Lodge || Resort Borgos || Landmark Woods || Bon Habi Resort || Dhanshree Resort || Jupuri Ghar || Iora – the Retreat || Infinity Resort || Nature Hunt eco camp.
Where to eat:
Numaligarh dhaba (Numaligarh) || Choupal (Burapahar) || Rhino cafe (Kohara) || Pelican dhaba (Kohara) || Hornbill restaurant (Kohara) || Kaziranga food hut (Kohara) || Maihang restaurant (Kohara).
Helpful planning tips:
- Keep a binocular with you for better wildlife sighting
- And like me, don’t forget your DSLR camera
- After the safari, visit the Orchid Park nearby
- One can club the Kaziranga trip with a day or two in Guwahati. The major attractions in Guwahati are the famous Kamakhya temple, and the mighty Brahmaputra river.
Concluding Notes
It was fascinating to watch the great Indian one-horned Rhinos at the Kaziranga National Park. In fact, I felt so lucky to see them in their natural environment. Since they are an endangered species, who knows how long they would survive! Environmentalists already see the threat to their lives not only from the poachers, but from normal human population around their habitat. So, it’s high time, you made your plans to see them in flesh and blood before it’s too late.
Along with Kaziranga National Park, one may plan to visit other wonderful places in Assam like Majuli, Manas National Park and Guwahati. If you want more tips on visiting Assam, do write to us.
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