Bardia National Park

The Largest Undisturbed Wilderness Of Nepal'S Terai, And The Country'S Best Chance Of Seeing A Wild Tiger · Thakurdwara, Lumbini

Bardia is the largest undisturbed wilderness in Nepal's Terai, a far-western national park of sal forest, grassland and the braided channels of the Karnali River, and it is widely considered the best place in Nepal to see a wild Bengal tiger. It is quieter and wilder than Chitwan, with a fraction of the visitors, because it is a long way from Kathmandu. The tiger population has grown strongly as part of Nepal's conservation success, and visitors search for them on foot, by jeep and by rafting down the Karnali, often spending long hours at a riverbank waiting. The park also holds greater one-horned rhinos reintroduced from Chitwan, wild elephants, gharial and mugger crocodiles, and Gangetic river dolphins in the Karnali, as well as rich birdlife. Lodges are clustered at Thakurdwara, and the Tharu villages around them are part of the experience. Tiger sightings are never guaranteed, and walking safaris carry real risk from large animals. Human-wildlife conflict with the villages around the park is a real and growing problem.

Bardia National Park, entered from Thakurdwara, Bardiya District, Thakurdwara, Lumbini, Nepal

The park is open year round with daily entry permits for foreigners, bought at the park office in Thakurdwara; entry is normally limited to daylight hours, so safaris start at dawn and leave by dusk. Thakurdwara is reached from Nepalgunj, which has flights from Kathmandu, by about two hours of road. The monsoon, roughly June to September, brings heat, floods and closed areas, and some lodges close or cut back activities then - confirm with your lodge and the park office before booking.

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