Ranthambore National Park:
Ranthambore National Park is one of the biggest and most renowned national parks in Northern India. The park is located in the Sawai Madhopur district of southeastern Rajasthan, which is about 130 km from Jaipur. Once considered as one of the famous and former hunting grounds of the Maharajas of Jaipur, today the Ranthambore National Park terrain is a major wildlife tourist attraction that has drawn the attention of many wildlife photographers and lovers.
The enthralling exploration of Ranthambore National Park is an experience to remember forever. Sighting the tigers in this popular national park of India is without any doubt is the top activity. Amongst other things to do in Ranthambore National Park are jeep safari and canter safari that promise the best wildlife sighting experience. Ranthambore boasts being home to a large number of mammals, reptile, and bird species. The national park in Rajasthan is primarily known as the home to Royal Bengal Tigers. Other than this, the national park also has a rich population of leopards, sloth bears, several deer species like chital, crocodile, palm civet, jackal, desert fox, serpent eagle, waterfowl that along with others make 40 species of mammals, 35 species of reptiles and 320 species of birds.
Park layout:
There are 10 safari zones in Ranthambore National Park: Zones 1-10. Although the park initially had just 5 Zones, the other 5 were added as it grew in popularity. Even though it is believed that Zones 1-5 are the best for spotting tigers, Zones 6-10 also offer sufficient opportunities for tiger sighting. You will visit one of these zones during a visit. Reservations are therefore important, as the best zones are the fastest to be fully booked. Zone 2 is according to many the best zone because of the many water points.
We only organized our Safari a day in advance, so the best zones were fully booked. We visited zone 8 in the morning. Unfortunately no tiger was spotted, but during our safari we heard that a tiger with fresh kill had been spotted in Zone 6. Fortunately we were able to book a second safari for the afternoon, and yes, we finally came face to face with a huge male tiger . Truly an unforgettable experience.
Entrance to the Park:
There are 2 types of safaris that you can book, we have done both:
Gypsy Safari:A Jeep Safari in Ranthambore is conducted on a 6 seater vehicle, both for morning & evening safaris.
Canter Safari: Canter Safari in Ranthambore National Park is conducted in a 20 seater open bus which operates in some of the safari zones.
we paid 4000 IDR per person for the Gypsy Safari, and about 2000IDR per person for the Canter Safari. This are prices for Foreigners, Indian Nationals pay about 1500IDR and 1000IDR per person.
Were to stay:
The park is best visited from Sawai Madhopur. A nice town located right next to the National Park, and easy to reach by train. Also easy to reach by taxi due to the good surrounding highway. We stayed at Hotel Tiger Haveli, a very nice hotel with all modern conveniences. They can also help organize Tiger Safaris.
