Tiger Spotting:

The best places to see tigers are in the parks of India and Nepal, which are home to the Bengal sub-species. The largest parks, though, while preserving extensive and beautiful habitats, often offer a somewhat degraded observation experience. This is because these parks attract loads of visitors. In some parks, such as Kanha National Park in the Madhya Pradesh state of India, tigers are tracked down and directions radioed to Park headquarters. You then take a jeep to the site and board an elephant for the last few hundred meters. What you often find is a cowed and dejected animal surrounded by elephants overloaded with camera-toting tourists.

There is an alternative. Many of the smaller sanctuaries attract only a few visitors. If you visit one of them, the chances are you will be the only foreigner present. There will also be a subtle change in atmosphere. The tigers in these sanctuaries react differently. You are not a distraction or a bother. Instead, you are a curiosity, possibly even prey. (Good luck!) This Discovery describes one of the best of these smaller sanctuaries, Royal Sukla Phanta Wildlife Reserve, in the far southwest corner of Nepal.

Visas:

If you fly to Nepal, you can get a visa for one month (extendible) on arrival at the airport. It's a long and hard trip to the far west, though. A better option, a real Walkabout for which you should plan at least three or four weeks, is to start in India. You will need to have an Indian visa beforehand to fly to New Delhi. You then overland to the border, where similarly, you will have to have a Nepalese visa stamped in your passport to cross.

Money:

It's about forty Indian rupees to the USD, and sixty Nepalese rupees. You can change any excess Indian rupees across the border in Nepal, no problem. If, or when, you get to Kathmandu, the carpet sellers there run a black market where you can get 5% to 10% more for your dollars. For current official exchange rates, click here.

Health:

There's lots of risks, but they're manageable. Get the usual jabs: Hepatitis A, Meningitis, Polio booster, Rabies, Tetanus and Typhoid. Consider taking malaria pills, especially if you will be there during or just after the monsoon. Use mosquito repellant. Filter your water. Be selective of the food offered at small restaurants and stalls. Be wary of dodgy transport. Try not to get eaten.

Language:

Very few people take this route, and English is not widely spoken. A Hindi or Nepali phrasebook can be useful.

Getting there:

Part 1 - You can catch a night bus to the Kumaon Hills, which border Nepal, from the bus terminal in old Delhi. Whatever agent you buy your ticket from, make sure (1) that you get a seat assignment, and (2) that they send someone with you to the terminal to help you find the right bus. (You pay for the rickshaw.)

The first stage is from Delhi north to Naini Tal, a small town surrounding a beautiful lake. From there, you take more buses, or public carrier trucks, into the hill towns of the Kumaon.

Recommended Walkabout Gear:

Get my book, Been Where? Done What? which is a guide for world travelers. It also has a section on tiger observation. Also useful: a water filter, mosquito net and spray, mometasone furoate cream for itching from insect bites, and binoculars.

More information:

Maps of the Kumaon are available from the government map store in Delhi near Connaught Place. Get directions to it, and additional information on the Kumaon, from the Indian tourism authority office also at CP. Get a good map for Nepal, perhaps Nelles, and Lonely Planet's guidebooks to India, Nepal, and Indian Himalayan trekking.

Next stop in The Year of the Tiger

Walkabout Travel Gear Homepage