Kaziranga
UNESCO World Heritage Site (1985); National Park And Tiger Reserve (2006); Holds Most Of The World'S Greater One Horned Rhinoceros · Kohora, Assam
A floodplain of tall elephant grass, marsh and forest on the south bank of the Brahmaputra in Assam, and the stronghold of the greater one-horned rhinoceros: roughly two thirds of the world's population live here. It is a World Heritage Site, a national park and a tiger reserve, with one of the highest densities of tigers anywhere, although tigers are hard to see in the high grass. What you do see is extraordinary: rhinos grazing in the open, herds of wild elephants, wild water buffalo, swamp deer, and huge numbers of birds on the wetlands. The park is visited by jeep safari through separate ranges, the Central, Western, Eastern and Burapahar, each with its own gate, and by early-morning elephant rides that remain controversial. Every monsoon the Brahmaputra floods most of the park, and the animals move to higher ground and across the highway that runs along its edge, which is why the park CLOSES from roughly May to October. The season runs from November, and the grass is burned in late winter, so February to April gives the clearest views. Guwahati is a five-hour drive away.
Kohora, National Highway 715, Kohora, Assam, 785609, India
NO OPENING TIME HERE WAS CHECKED AND ALL TIMES MUST BE CONFIRMED. The typical pattern: the park is open roughly from November to April and CLOSED from roughly May to October for the monsoon floods, with some ranges reopening partly in October. Jeep safaris run in two sessions a day, a morning session starting around seven and an afternoon session ending before dusk, about two hours each; elephant rides, where offered, go out at first light. Range offices sell permits before each session. The traps: booking travel before the reopening date is announced, arriving without a safari slot in February, and driving the highway corridor fast after dark.