Sundarbans & Rhinos

Days 1 & 2. Depart London [B (Day 2 only)]

Depart UK on the overnight flight to Kolkata where you will be met and transferred to the Park Hotel. In the afternoon of Day 2, enjoy an escorted sightseeing tour of Kolkata.

Days 3 to 7. Kaziranga National Park [B, L, D]

This morning you fly to Jorhat and then transfer by road (approximately three hours) to Kaziranga National Park and Wild Grass Lodge, arriving in time for a sundowner drink.

Kaziranga National Park, set on the banks of the mighty Brahamaputra River, is the finest place to view Indian Greater One-horned Rhinoceros in the whole of the subcontinent. With nearly 80% of the world's population resident, the park has been recognised as a World Heritage site. In addition to wonderful rhino-viewing, the park is also home to large herds of Elephant and Wild Buffalo. Tigers can also be found, however they are rarely seen in the long grass.

Spend five nights at Wild Grass Lodge, which is situated by a stream in the paddy fields and forest just outside the National Park. The lodge provides eighteen double rooms in two jungle lodges, each with en-suite facilities. Activities on offer here include jeep safaris and Elephant rides into the park, offering you the best chance to view rhinos up close. It may also be possible to arrange a trip to the nearby Panbari Forest Reserve to look for the elusive Hoolock Gibbon, India's only ape.

Day 8. Kolkata [B]

After a leisurely morning you head back to Jorhat for the afternoon flight to Kolkata where you spend the night at the Park Hotel.

Days 9 to 12. Sundarbans [B, L, D]

It is about a six hour drive to the Sundarbans and Sundarbans Jungle Lodge where you spend the next four nights.

The Sundarbans covers some 10,000 square kilometres of land and water (more than half of it in India, the rest in Bangladesh) in the Ganges Delta - it is the world's largest area of mangrove forest. The national park in India which was declared a Biosphere Reserve in 1989 covers an area of around 2,500 square kilometres. The region is intersected by a complex network of tidal waterways and mudflats. There are numerous bird species which reside here, as well as crocodiles, turtles, snakes and deer. Its most famous resident however is the Tiger of which there are thought to be some 400 or so. Wildlife-viewing will be both by 4-wheel drive vehicle and boat.

Days 13 & 14. Homeward [B (Day 13 only)]

Return to Kolkata by road today for the night at the King's Crown Hotel before transferring to the airport for your homeward flight.