Kaziranga is a world famous tiger reserve in Assam state of North-East India. It lies almost in center of state, on the flood plains of Brahmaputra river. Kaziranga national park is part of tiger reserve and a UNESCO World Heritage Site where two-third of Great Indian One-horned Rhinos (Rhinoceros Unicornis) lives in their natural habitat. It covers Golaghat, Karbi Anglong and Nagaon districts of Assam. As per Rhino census, conduced on March 2018, by Forest Department and some recognized NGO, more than 1600 rhinos are present in Kaziranga forest area. This is good figure. It has great history of successful conservation of one-horned rhinos which are close to extinct from this region. Kariranga tiger reserve is home of more than 35 mammal species in which prominent attractions are Water Buffalo, Swamp Deer, Hog Deer, Tiger, Wild Elephants, Hoolock Gibbon. Here we can find approx. 15 threatened mammal species listed under IUCN red list which indicates towards the importance of this forest in wildlife conservation. Although it is not popular for tiger sighting but you will be surprised to know that here tiger density is high. In North-East India tourism, it is a prime tourist attraction. Whole national park is geographically a river valley area of Brahmaputra river which is also called Tsangpo-Brahmaputra and part of Eastern Himalaya bio-diversity. National park is open for visitors from October to April month in which we can plan our tour.
Kaziranga tiger reserve is unique wildlife habitat in which 15 IUCN threatened red-list species have their natural home. Presence of so many rare species at one tiger reserve is special in itself. By doing jungle safari in Kaziranga, we will have the chance to have their sighting at their natural habitat. As Kaziranga is popular for its one-horned Rhino whose sighting is almost secured during safari drives. Unlike other national parks, here both jeep safari and elephant safaris are operated on regular basis with fixed timings. Now a days, most of the national parks opted the policy to discourage elephant safari for tourism. It is beauitful moist deciduous & trophical wet evergreen forest in which sighting of Wild Buffalo, Wild Elephants, Gibbons, Soft-ground Swamp Deer & Hog Deer are the special safari attraction. Availability of such rare mammal species at same location is very unique and this makes this national park very special. Apart from mammals, 478 bird species, including 25 globally threatened bird species, at one national park also makes it special.
Kaziranga tiger reserve has proud history of successful conservation of Great Indian One-horned Rhinoceros. It shows, how a small visionary initiative can be turnout into a great success story of wildlife conservation. Conservation history of Kaziranga shows how a small incidence has changed the fate of Kaziranga and one-horned rhinos in this region, who are on the verge of extinction. It is believed that in 1904 Mary Victoria Leiter Curzon, the wife of lord Curzon ( Then Viceroy of India), played a key role to save rhinoceros being extinct. she visited the area and have not seen a single rhinoceros, she told all this incident to her husband for taking immediate actions against poaching and killing innocent rhinos. As on 1 June 1905, the Kaziranga proposed Reserve Forest was created with an area of 232 km2 (90 sq mi), in next couple of years park area was extended by 152 km2 (59 sq mi) in north and came closer to the bank of bramhaputra river which is one of the major rivers of Asia and the Karbi Anglong hills on the south. The National highway 37 passes through the park area and tea estates. In 1908, Kaziranga was declared as a reserved forest afterward it was upgraded to a game sanctuary in 1916 and a wildlife sanctuary in 1950, and in 1974, it became first National Park of Assam.
Kaziranga national park is open from visitors, from 01st November to 30th April. After April, monsoon season begins and Kaziranga is know for its monsoon flood thus avoid period from 01st May to 31st October. In order to plan for Bandhavgarh tour, it is important to know the safari timings so that accordingly we will draw our tour plan, decide arrival & departure schedule.
| Period | Safari Range | Morning Safari | Afternoon Safari |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 Nov - 30 Apr Jeep Safari | Central, Eastern, Western, Burapahar Ranges | 07:00 - 10:00 Hrs | 13:30 - 15:30 Hrs |
| 01 Nov - 30 Apr - Elephant Safari | Central & Western Range only | 05:30 - 06:30 Hrs | 18:30 - 19:30 Hrs |
Here the park management authority retains the right to change the safari timing at any time as per situation. Usually park opens 30 minutes before sunset and closes 30 minutes after sunset. As per change in sunrise and sunset timing, park authority adjusts the park entry & exit timing.
Here in Kaziranga, we can undertake two main safari options i.e. Jeep Safari and Elephant Safari. Both the safaris are operated at different schedules, on daily basis. Here in early morning, first Elephant safari is offered and after its closure, jeep safari is offered. In evening hours, first jeep safari is offered and later elephant safari is offered. Here jeeps safaris are offered through 4 safari zones i.e. Kohora or Central Zone, Western or Bagori zone, Eastern or Agaratoli zone, Burapahar zone where as Elephant safari is operated through Central & Western zone only. Although elephant safari is closed of made almost impossible in other national parks of India like Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Pench, Panna, Corbett etc but here it is offered to all the tourists. Due to topography & vegetation of Kaziranga forest, undertaking elephant safari is not a luxury but a essential requirement to explore the park. Presence of elephant grass, marshy lands makes it impossible for safari jeeps to access those areas and thus elephant is the only medium to explore such locations. Here online safari booking service is still not available thus we have to go through resort team, for safari booking and it is done 24hrs. before safari date. It can be considered as a inconvenience as uncertainity is associated with it about safari zones etc. Apart from jeep safari and elephant safari, tourists can have one more option i.e. to attend elephant bathing show, held at local spot. This show can be booked through resort team only as it is a locally operated show, with no fixed date and time. Many times, it is cancelled due to unforeseen reasons.
Kaziranga have unique collection of mammal species. Here we can find more than 35 mammal species in which prominent species are One-horned Rhino, Asiatic Wild Water Buffalo, Asiatic Elephant, Hog Deer, Eastern Swamp Deer, Hoolock Gibbon, Tiger, Leopard, Golden Jackal, Leopard Cat etc.
Here in Kaziranga, we have record of approx. 478 bird species. Among them, 25 globally threatened bird species are present here which makes this park special. Some of the threatened species are Ferruginous Pochard, Marsh Babbler, Swamp Francolin, Pale-capped Pigeon, Greater Spotted Eagle, Blyth's Kingfisher, Spot Billed Pelican, Bristled Grassbird, Marsh Babbler, Little Gull, Bengal Francolin, Pallas's Fish Eagle etc. As park is situated on the floodplain of Brahmaputra river thus offers vast wetland area which is ideal condition for birds thus it is a paradise for birdwatching. Many small rivers flows through national park area, from east to west, having origin from Karbi Anglong hills. They form many beels, marshylands & swamps which contributes for healthy birds population.
Kaziranga tiger reserve is located on central of Assam state in North East India. This forest is spread over Brahmaputra flood plains to Mikir hills. Kaziranga Tiger Reserve is located between latitude 26°30 N to 26°45 N and longitude 93°08 E to 93°36 E in the Kaliabor subdivision of the Nagaon district and the Bokakhat subdivision of the Golaghat district, in the state of Assam in India. Kaziranga can be reached by different modes of transports:
Nearby Airports: Here two airports i.e. Guwahati airport (240 kms) and Jorhat airport (97 kms) are mostly used by tourists, for traveling to Kaziranga. Both the airports are well connected by surface transfer options in which tourist cabs are mostly used by tourists. As Guwahati airport is a big & important airport of state thus it is well connected from other cities of India. Actual name of Guwahati airport is Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport. Jorhat airport is comparatively small but still used by tourists.
Nearby Railway Stations: Traveling from Central or North India to Assam state, takes long time thus it is comparatively less preferred by tourists. Still if you find flight transfer costly then consider train journey option. Nearest railway station for Kaziranga park is Furkating at a distance of 80kms/02:30hrs. It lies on East of Kaziranga. If you find its suitable connectivity, consider this option else consider Guwahati railway station (230 kms) which is having very good train connectivity from all major cities of India. It is located on Western direction of Kaziranga. Jorhat railway station is about 90kms from Kaziranga is another option for reaching Kaziranga.
Nearby Road Transfers: Our suggestion is to consider public carrier bus transfer as the last option. Nearby bus stand options are Tezpur, Golaghat, Jorhat, Nagaon, Tinisukia, Dimapur etc. Direct tranfer is possible by hiring tourist cabs also as it will save your valuable time and efforts. Here National Highway 37 is the main connectivity for Kohora township on which all major hotels and offices are located. Here taxi transfer fares are comparatively higher than other parts of India.
Kaziranga national park remains open for safaris, from November to April month which means just 06 months in a season. This region receives good rainfall thus here monsoon duration is more than Central or Northern India. So here best time to visit is from November to April month. Peak seasons dates are on Christmas & New Year time when large number of domestic tourists, visits Kaziranga to spend their holidays.
If you have already visted national parks of Central India, North India or South India, then you will notice that majority of Kaziranga resorts are made on elevated platform. Due to annual flood situation, it is necessary to maintain safe height from ground level thus hoteliers have to develop their hotels on elevated platform. Due to its location in moist region, impact of summer is low here and thus you may not need Air-conditioned rooms in anytime of the year. In buget category options, you will find majority of hotels on non-AC format. Here budget and standard category of hotels are comparatively costly. In compare to hotels at Kanha national park, Bandhavgarh, Ranthambore, Pench national park, Corbett, here hotels are more costly and options are also limited. All major hotels are on or nearby Kohora township and Kohora safari gate is close to them.
After completing the visit of Kaziranga national park, tourists have option to visit other destinations like Manas National Park, Orang Wildlife Sanctuary, Shillong etc.
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