
Little Known India Safari (Satpura & Panna)
May 4 - May 19
£1200 – £4295
Little Known India Safari (Satpura & Panna)
If you have always felt like exploring new and interesting places and not just following the crowd. Then this tour is for you. On this Indian safari you will travel to 2 little known and seldom visited tiger reserves. Whilst we will be of course looking for tiger throughout we will also be occupying our time in Satpura and Panna National Parks with with searches for sloth bears, dhole, leopards, gaur, striped hyenas and jungle cats to name but a few. This tour will not only combine day time safaris but also (very unusual for India) spotlighting night safaris. Searching for animals by day and night is a new experience in India and all of a sudden animals which were deemed impossible to see are being spotted; such as striped hyena and leopard cats. Satpura, Panna and Jhinna are on the rise but if you book soon you may still be the only foreign people inside the park.
Holiday Features
Best place in India for Sloth Bears
Up to 17 Jeep Safaris
2 Nights spotlighting near Panna NP
Elephant safaris of Satpura NP
Visit 2 Tiger Project Reserves
Guided walks of Satpura NP
Top Animals on Tour
Sloth Bear
Tiger
Dhole
Striped Hyena
Leopard
Leopard Cat
Itineraries Details
Destination: India
Tour Dates: 5/4/2021 – 20/4/2021
Duration: 15 nights
Type / Focus: Sloth Bears & Mammal
Tour Difficulty:
Pricing & Costs
Price: £4295 per person
Deposit: £1200 per person
Single Supplement: £295
Min. Passengers: 4 persons before tour runs
Book OnlineHoliday Breakdown
Day 1
Delhi
On arrival at Delhi international airport you will be met by your zoologist guide and transferred to your accommodation (4* hotel – The Residence).
Day 2
Satpura National Park
Today you will be transferred to the domestic airport for your short (1 hour) flight to Bhopal. We will have breakfast or lunch (depending on the flight arrival time) in Bhopal before continuing onwards to our accommodation (Luxury safari lodge – Reni Pani Jungle Lodge) and on arrival here, you will check in and have your evening meal.
Days 3-8
Satpura National Park
Over the next 6 days you will be exploring this very beautiful national park. With the help of local naturalists and your zoologist escort we will try and find the sloth bears which are usually seen here in the early morning. They are usually one of the least seen and most elusive of all mammals in India but here they are seen well and usually at close range. Other animals which are regularly seen here include the dhole, gaur and leopards. One of the best parts of this park is that you will often be the only foreign people in the park, it is a sure fire way to visit a top tiger reserve (yes there are tigers here too, although they are seen less often than some other parks) with the huge crowds. Amongst the larger mammals, such as tigers, sloth bears, leopards, dhole, gaur, Indian wolves, striped hyena, 3 species of deer, 2 species of antelope and 2 species of monkey; we will also have the chance to see Malabar giant squirrels, jungle cats, Indian palm civet, common palm civet, Bengal foxes, Black-naped hares and Indian mouse deer which are all rare to see in other parks around India. Another excellent reason why Satpura is a great destination is that you are able to enter the park in a variety of ways. As well as the usual jeep safaris which are excellent and highly recommended to see dhole and sloth bears you can also have guided walks through the jungles. These walks will allow you to track down wildlife and really immerse yourself into the environment with the subtle sounds and smells of the jungle. If this was not thrilling enough the knowledge that you are walking in tiger country is just the ticket to make this an experience to remember for the rest of your life. You are also able to observe wildlife from boat trips, canoe or kayak trips down the Satpura River and also take an elephant back safari. On elephant back you will be able to get very close to wildlife the wildlife is very used to the presence of elephants and they are a naturally occurring part of the environment and then allows you to get very close to wildlife without disturbing it. You can pick and choose the activities once you arrive and see how sightings go whilst staying in the accommodation (Luxury safari lodge – Reni Pani Jungle Lodge). You will have 2 trips into Satpura National Park each day, once in the early morning and once in the afternoon. In between you will return to the accommodation and this is where you will have all your meals.
Day 9
Delhi
This morning you will be free to rest and have a lie in before breakfast. Then you will be taken to the airport in Bhopal and catch a short (1 hour) internal flight back to Delhi. Once we arrive in Delhi you will be transferred to your accommodation (4* hotel – The Residence) and enjoy your final evening meal.
Day 10
Panna National Park
Today you will be transferred to the domestic airport for your short (1.5 hour) flight to Khajuraho. We will have lunch in Khajurahi before continuing onwards to our accommodation (Safari lodge – Ken River Lodge) and on arrival here, you will check in and have your evening meal.
Day 11
Panna National Park
Today you will enter Panna National Park twice. You can choose between jeep safaris or boat trips down the Ken River, we recommend jeep safaris as they cover more ground and will enable you to see a larger area of the park and have better chances of seeing wildlife. Along with the abundant wildlife in the park which includes a small population of tigers, there are ample other attractions to see including many waterfalls and numerous ancient cultural relics dotted around the park. Many people regard Panna National Park to be one of the most aesthetically beautiful parks in all of India. In between exploring the park in search of tigers, deer, wild boar and numerous bird species (over 200 species have been recorded here) you will come back to the accommodation (Jungle lodge – Ken River Lodge) for lunch and then your evening meal.
Days 12 & 13
Jhinna Jungle Camp
During the next two days you will enter Panna National Park in the morning via a boat ride. This is a much different way of exploring the park and you are very likely to see mugger crocodiles, the critically endangered gharial (which is in fact the most endangered species in all of the Indian Subcontinent, with only 200 adults in the world remaining) as well as grey-headed fish eagles in their search for giant mahaseer fish.. This is one of the most relaxing ways to see the park and you never know if you are going to come across a tiger having a drink or swimming across the river. Then after lunch you will have the afternoon at your leisure before departing for the Jhinna Jungle Camp. This new addition to the Ken River Lodge experience is set up deep inside the Jhinna Forest which buffers the Panna National Park in the north. Here you will complete a night spotlighting safari around the forest buffer zone. The Jhinna Forest is 200km2 of protected forest and it is home to all the same wildlife as Panna National Park. This jeep safari will try to find some of the rarely seen mammals of the Indian jungle. Animals which are seen include jungle cats, leopard cats, leopard, striped hyena, Bengal fox, Asiatic crested porcupine, Indian wolves, golden jackals as well as civets and genets. After the safari you will spend the night here accommodation (Jungle Eco Tented Camp – Jhinna Jungle Camp)
Day 14
Panna National Park
Today you will once again be able to explore Panna National Park twice, you are once again free to decide on whether you would like a river cruise or jeep safari in the morning and the afternoon. Today is your last full day here and if we have not seen a tiger then we recommend trying hard for tigers today. As with the previous days you will return to the accommodation (Jungle Lodge – Ken River Lodge) for your meals.
Day 15
Panna National Park
This morning before breakfast you will enter the park for the last time (either via a boat or jeep) and on your return to the lodge you will have breakfast and check out. Today you will be transferred back to the ancient city of Khajuraho in time to catch your return flight to Delhi. On return to Delhi you will be transferred to your accommodation (4* hotel – The Residence) and have your farewell evening meal and go over your experience of Panna and Jhinna.
Day 16
Home
This morning you will be transferred to the airport in time to catch your return flight home.
The National Parks Authority for Madhya Pradesh have announced that with effect from 1st April 2011, all National Parks within the State will remain closed to public access on Wednesday afternoons until further notice. This order will affect Pench, Kanha, Bandhavgarh, Satpura and Panna Reserves. The inconvenience caused to Royle Safaris tour participants is regretted but unfortunately there is nothing we can do to facilitate entry during these closures. On occasions when our tour itinerary would normally include entry to one of these reserves on a Wednesday afternoon we will try arrange alternative natural history activities either around the periphery of the park. In the event that this is not possible we will offer the opportunity to watch a Tiger related documentary during this time.
Please note that the itinerary stated above is correct as our planned intentions for the tour. However adverse weather conditions and other local considerations can necessitate some modifications of the itinerary during the course of the tour; any changes will be made to make the best of the time and weather conditions available to us.
This tour is available on different date (subject to availability) please contact us for more details about running this tour on a date which suits you more.
Extra Information

Weather Conditions
The weather in April and May in central India will be hot with daily temperature above 30degrees C and up to 38. The night time temperatures will also be warm and average 20degrees C. Rain is possible but very unusual at this time of year.

What’s Included
Everything mentioned in the itinerary is included. Including three meals per day (breakfast, lunch and dinner). There will be an amount of bottled water (approx 1ltr) available for each guest each day. We have our own private air conditioned vehicle with an excellent local driver. We have a professional zoologist who will escort you on all your excursions and we also use a very knowledgeable English speaking local guides.
All our excursions including jeep safaris, boat trips, elephant safaris, guided walks, canoe, kayak trips, night spotlighting safaris and park entrance fees are also included.

Personal Equipment
We recommend you bring along your own binoculars or scope as well as appropriate clothing; which should be light and airy clothes as well as comfortable walking shoes. As the nights can be chilly we recommend you bring a fleece, long trousers, scarf and a woolly hat. Insect repellent is handy as there can be mosquitoes about during the evenings and nights. Andy medication, books or other items of a personal nature is of course up to you to bring along. Oh and please bring plenty of memory cards or film for your camera. Also do not forget sun cream, sun hat and sun glasses as the sun can be strong here during the day.

Included Equipment
We provide a comprehensive species list of all the vertebrates present in the areas we are visiting as well as some of the best field guides and reference books for the areas we are visiting. There is usually a spare pair of binoculars but in a group of 4-6 people these do not stretch too far. We also provide a spot light for nocturnal viewing (this is subject to local condition when we arrive). Camera Traps will also be used to try and capture hard to see wildlife in the dead of night.

Extra Expenses
Nearly everything is included in this tour. The only things not included are international flights, travel insurance (contact us for more information one what is required from your insurance policy), any food bought outside of the three main meals, drinks outside of any offered with the meals and the bottled water provided each day and any items of a personal nature such as souvenirs and tips. Any applicable departure taxes and not included (but maybe included in the cost of your flights). Please check before departure.

Flight Information
As we are based in Manchester we recommend flights from Manchester International Airport
We recommend Finnair as a good airline for flights to Delhi. One of the best websites to search for the best fares is www.ticketstoindia.co.uk. They are an ATOL bonded company and this provide all the securities related to ATOL protection. Please check our terms and conditions regarding booking flights.
Please contact us for more information about flights and we can provide you with a link direct to the flights from another supplier; in which case you only have to enter the passenger information and payment details. By using the above link you will leave our site and we at Royle Safaris hold no responsibility for the content on the site.

Visas and Health Information
All UK passport holders and most other nationalities are required to have a visa for India. These are only obtainable in advance from your local embassy. The easiest way to find information is by visiting http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/ (be aware that this link leaves our site and we at Royle Safaris hold no responsibility for information on the site).
There are no mandatory vaccinations needed to visit India, but it is recommended to be protected against TB, polio, typhoid, tetanus and hepatitis A as well as taking a form of malaria prophylactics. Please consult your GP about your individual requirements for visiting India as soon as you have decided on this trip.








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