Duration: 20Days
/19Nights
Places Covered:Delhi – Jaipur
- Ranthambore – Bharatpur – Agra -
Khajuraho – Bandhavgarh -
Kanha – Nagpur – Mumbai
Day 01: Arrive Delhi
You will be met and assisted on arrival in Delhi and transferred to your hotel.
The rest of the day is at leisure.
Overnight at Hotel.
Day 02: Delhi
After breakfast in the morning proceed for the full day city tour of Old & New Delhi. In Old city visit Red Fort built by Emperor Shah Jahan; Jama Masjid, one of the largest mosques in India; Raj Ghat- the memorial of Mahatma Gandhi and enjoy a walking tour in Chandni Chowk- the silver street of Delhi bustling with activity. In the afternoon visit Qutab Minar, the tallest stone tower in India; Humayun's Tomb built in the Indo Persian style and a predecessor to The Taj Mahal in Agra; India Gate - A War Memorial Arch. Also drive past the President's house, Parliament house, Government secretariat buildings and Connaught place - the heart of New Delhi and a busy shopping center.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 03: Delhi - Jaipur (270kms/05-06hrs)
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be driven to Jaipur. Arrive Jaipur and check in at hotel.
Rest of the day will be spent on leisure.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 04: Jaipur
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be taken for sightseeing tour of Jaipur including excursion to Amber Fort. Just 7 miles north of Jaipur is Amber with its a honey-coloured fortress-palace in the Aravalli Hills which can be mounted by elephant. It has been described as "the sleeping beauty of Rajasthan". The sombre exterior belies the richness of the royal apartments which open on to striking views of the gorge. It also possesses a Chamber of Mirrors. The Hall of Victory presents a galaxy of decorative art - panels of alabaster with fine inlay work of the tenderest hues
Jaipur is the city which has the "tone of the autumn sunset" Visit Hawa Mahal (Palace of Winds) an elaborate building encrusted with delicate honeycomb screens and carved balconies from which the royal ladies, confined to their quarters, could view the world outside. Jai Singh's Observatory built in the 17th century by the founder of Jaipur who, besides being a prince was also soldier, astronomer and builder. City Palace now a museum contains fine Rajput and Moghul paintings, rare manuscripts and an armory
Overnight at hotel.
Day 05: Jaipur - Ranthambore (180kms/04hrs)
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be driven to Ranthambore, arrive Ranthambore and check in at hotel.
The National Park is 10 km E of Sawai Madhopur town with the approach along a narrow valley. The path to the fort zigzags up the steep outcrop in a series of ramps and through two impressive gateways. The fort wall runs round the summit and has a number of semi-circular bastions. This, combined with the natural escarpment produces sheer drops of over 65 m in places and stunning views. There are two tanks, a palace and pavilion and a few temples inside the walls. All are in various states of disrepair but there are good views out over the surrounding countryside to warrant the effort of reaching the fort, and it is a wonderfully peaceful place.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 06-07: Ranthambore
Morning and afternoon game viewing at Ranthambore National park in search of elusive Indian Tiger.
Overnight at Hotel.
Day 08: Ranthambore - Bharatpur - Agra
In time transfer to railway station for train for Bharatpur, arrive Bharatpur meeting assistance on arrival and drive to deserted town of Fatehpur Sikri, FATEHPUR SIKRI - 37 kms. west of Agra lies the ghost city of Fatehpur Sikri - an epic poem in red sandstone, built by Emperor Akbar the Great in 1569 and deserted 14 years later because its water supply failed. Its glorious courtyards and palaces conjure up dreams of the mysterious past. Buland Darwaza, the victory gate looms 134 feet high. There's the imperial Jami Masjid, the tomb of Shaik Salim Chisti who predicted the birth of Akbar's son Jehangir, the Panch Mahal, a strange building which resembles a Buddhist Temple, a cloistered courtyard which was the Hall of Public Audience, and the Pachchisi paved with black and white where the Emperor played chess using slave girls as figurines.
Continue drive to Agra , arrive and check in at hotel.
Rest of the day will be spent on leisure.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 09:Agra
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be taken for sightseeing tour of Agra Fort and Taj Mahal. Visit the Taj Mahal - the greatest love story ever told. On the death of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, in wild extravagance, Shahjehan built her this memorial. 20,000 men laboured for over 17 years to build this wealth of white marble and precious stone. Visit Agra Fort - behind its forbidding red sandstone battlements lie palaces that tell the story of the Moghul Empire. The most impressive part of the Fort are the Dewan-e-Am, where the Emperor sat on his throne to dispense to his subjects, and the Dewan-e-Khas where he received foreign dignitaries. Visit the tomb of Itmad-ud-Daulah, father of Queen Nur Jehan - a two-storied tomb bearing mosaics in inlaid semi-precious stones.
Afternoon will be spent on leisure.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 10: Agra - Jhansi - Khajuraho
In time transfer to railway station for train for Jhansi, arrive Jhansi meeting assistance and drive to Khajuraho visiting Orchha en-route.
Arrive Khajuraho and check in at hotel.
Evening visit Khajuraho, Khajuraho was the capital of the Chandela kings and its temples were built in the short span of hundred years, from 950-1050 AD. Most of them were destroyed by Muslim invaders. Adorned with exquisite sculpture, only 22 temples remain of the original 85. They are the strange works of a long dead people. Khajuraho's temples are covered with hundreds of sculptured figures - a galaxy of gods and goddesses, beasts and serpents, and a multitude of erotic couples which represent a paean to life, to love and to joy. The most famous are the Kandariya Mahadev, the Chaturbhuj, the Paraswanath and the Ghantai - the summit of Hindu sculpture: voluptuous forms; human and divine, throbbing with life and sublime in expression.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 11: Khajuraho - Bandhavgarh (220kms/07hrs)
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be driven to Bandhavgarh, arrive Bandhavgarh and check in at hotel.
Bandhavgarh (pronounced Bandogarh) is not very far south of Rewa, famous as the place in which the (albino) white tiger originated. Now it is only found in zoos. Before becoming a National Park in 1968, it was the game preserve of the maharajas of Rewa. Though it involves quite a journey, you may be rewarded with sighting one of the few tigers. The management has embarked on a programme of conservation. Protection from disease, fire, grazing and poaching have all been factors in its recovery as a wildlife area. The park is set in extremely rugged terrain with many hills. The marshes which used to be perennial now support a vast grassland savanna. There are also interesting cave shrines scattered around the park, with Brahmi inscriptions dating from the 1st century BC. You can visit the archaeological remains of a fort believed to be 2,000 years old where you may spot crag martins and brown rock thrush.
Overnight at hotel/Resort.
Day 12-14: Bandhavgarh
Like in Kanha, here too we will enjoy two safaris everyday and one each on check-in and check-out days. Besides, we will also pay a visit to the Fort. No records remain to show when Bandhavgarh Fort was constructed. It is thought, however, to be some 2,000 years old, and there are references to it in the ancient books, the Narad-Panch Ratra and the Siva Purana. Various dynasties have ruled this fort: for example, the Maghas from the 1st century AD, the Vakatakas from the 3rd century; the Sengars from the 5th century and the Kalchuris from the 10th century. In the 13th century AD, the Baghels took over, ruling from Bandhavgarh until 1617, when Maharajah Vikramaditya Singh moved his capital to Rewa. The last inhabitants deserted the fort in 1935. This is also White Tiger country. These have been found in the old state of Rewa for many years. The last known was captured by Maharajah Martand Singh in 1951. This White Tiger, Mohun, is now stuffed and on display in the palace of the Maharajahs of Rewa. The forest of Bandhavgarh can be classified as moist deciduous, and the National Park holds all those animal species which are typical of this habitat in Central India. Certain areas of the park (particularly the south and the west) are drier in character, and hold such species as the Nilgai and the Chinkara. Sal forest occurs throughout the valleys, giving way to mixed forest, which occurs where the soil is of relatively poor quality on the upper hill slopes, on rocky outcrops and in the South and West. Grassy meadow patches occur in the valley and along the nalas.
Covering 448 sq. km., Bandhavgarh is situated in Shahdol district among the outlying hills of the Vindhya range. At the centre of the park is Bandhavgarh hill, rising 811 mt above MSL. Surrounding it are a large number of smaller hills separated by gently sloping valleys. These valleys end in small, swampy meadows, locally known as 'Bohera'. The lowest point in the park is at Tala (440 mt above MSL). The vegetation is chiefly of Sal forest in the valleys and on the lower slopes, gradually changing to mixed deciduous forest on the hills and in the hotter, drier areas of the park in the south and west. Bamboo is found throughout.
Bandhavgarh is densely populated with tiger and other wildlife species. The great Gaur, or Indian Bison, can be seen with ease, as they come onto the meadows to graze at dusk; Sambar and Barking Deer are a common sight, and Nilgai are to be seen in the more open areas of the park. There are more than 22 species of mammals and 250 species of birds. Common Langurs and Rhesus Macaque represent the primate group. Carnivores include the Asiatic Jackal, Bengal Fox, Sloth Bear, Ratel, Gray Mongoose, Striped Hyena, Jungle Cat, Leopard and Tiger. The artiodactyls frequently sighted are Wild Pigs, Spotted Deer, Sambar, Chausingha, Nilgai, Chinkara and Gaur. Mammals such as Dhole, the small Indian Civet, Palm Squirrel and Lesser Bandicoot Rat are seen occasionally. Among the herbivores, Gaur is the only coarse feeder. The vegetation along streams and marshes is rich in bird life. The common ones are Little Grebe, Egret, lesser Adjutant, Sarus Crane, Black Ibis, Lesser Whistling Teal, White-eyed Buzzard, Black Kite, Crested Serpent Eagle, Black Vulture, Egyptian Vulture, Common Peafowl, Red Jungle Fowl, Dove, Parakeets, Kingfishers and Indian Rollers. Reptilian Fauna include Cobra, Krait, Viper, Rat-snake, Python, Turtle and a number of lizard varieties, including Varanus
Overnight at hotel.
Day 15: Bandhavgarh -Kanha
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be driven to Kanha, arrive Kanha and check in at hotel/resort.
This is the country about which Kipling wrote so vividly in his Jungle Books. The same abundance of wildlife and variety of species still exists today and the park which forms the core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve (1,945 sq. km) within the game reserve, created in 1974, also protects the rare hard-ground-adapted barasingha (swamp deer). George Schaller, the zoologist, conducted the first ever scientific study of the tiger here and research is also being done on deer and langur habitat. The park has deciduous hardwoods including sal and stands of bamboo, rolling grasslands and meandering stream of the Banjar River. It lies in the Mandla District in the Makai Hills in the eastern part of the Satpura Range.
Overnight at hotel/resort.
Day 16-17: Kanha
There will be two safaris everyday in the park and one each on the day we check-in and check-out. Kanha's sal and bamboo forests, rolling grasslands and meandering streams stretch over 940 sq km in dramatic natural splendour which form the core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve created in 1974 under Project Tiger. This is original Kipling country of which he wrote so vividly in his Jungle Book. The same abundance of wild life species exists today in Kanha National Park, as it must have when Kipling roamed these parts. We will also visit the Kanha Museum, located inside the park, contains fascinating, well-conceived exhibits relating to the entire ecosystem and its fauna and flora. Outside the reserve we will be able to enjoy the area's birdlife on foot (walking is not allowed inside any of India's Tiger Reserves, for obvious reasons!). Thus, we shall aim to leave our lodge each morning at about 5.45 a.m., and will stay in the reserve until midday, when it closes during the hottest part of the day.
In the 1930s, the Kanha area was divided into two sanctuaries, Hallon and Banjar, of 250 and 300 sq km each. Though one of these was subsequently disbanded, the area remained protected until 1947. Depletion of the tiger population in the years that followed led to the area being made an absolute sanctuary in 1952. By a special statute in 1955, Kanha National Park came into being. Since then, a series of stringent conservation programmes for the protection of the park's flora and fauna has given Kanha its deserved reputation for being one of the finest and best administered National Parks in Asia, an irresistible attraction for all wildlife lovers and a true haven for its animal and avian population.
Kanha has some 22 species of mammals. Those most easily spotted are the Striped Palm Squirrel, Common Langur, Jackal, Wild Pig, Chital or Spotted Deer, Barasingha or Swamp Deer, Sambar and Black Buck. Tiger, Indian Hare, Dhole or Indian Wild Dog, Barking Deer, Indian Bison or Gaur. Patient watching should reward the visitor with a sight of: Indian Fox, Sloth Bear, Striped Hyena, Jungle Cat, Leopard, Mouse Deer, Chausingha or four horned antelope, Nilgai, Ratel and Porcupine. Kanha also has some 200 species of birds. Watchers should station themselves in the hills, where the mixed and bamboo forests harbour many species, and in the grassy forest clearings. Water birds can be seen near the park's many rivulets and at Sarvantal, a pool that is frequented by water birds and the area in front of the museum. The Sal forests do not normally yield a sight of Kanha's avifauna. Early mornings and late afternoons are best for birdwatching; binoculars are an invaluable aid to the watcher.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 18: Kanha - Nagpur - Mumbai
Today you will be driven in time to Nagpur airport for your flight for Mumbai, arrive Mumbai, meeting assistance and transfer to hotel.
Mumbai, until a few years ago known as Bombay, was a cluster of seven islands covered with coconut palms and inhabited by fishermen when the Portuguese acquired it from the Sultan Bahadur Shah in the 16th century in return for military assistance. Mumbai, the Marathi name for Bombay is derived from Mumbadevi, the local Hindu deity. The Portuguese preferred to think of it as `Bom Baim" or `Good Bay' and set up a trading post. When Catherine de Braganza married Charles II of England in 1661 the islands were presented as part of her dowry to the prince who later leased them to the British East India Company for a sum of L10 in gold, per annum. The British modified the spelling to Bombay and transformed the swampland into a busy town. In 1862, a major land reclamation project joined the seven islands. A city that grew with its naval power, Bombay mushroomed around the Arabian Sea and is today a dynamic metropolis and capital of the state of Maharashtra. Although it is a major industrial and financial centre, Mumbai has an active interest in the arts and theatre and is also the main centre of the Indian film industry. It is a melting pot for Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Parsees and Sikhs. The city is a cosmopolitan starting point for excursions to places in the western part of India. Centuries of association with the British has left its imprint on the city and majestic buildings built in what is termed Indo-Saracenic style.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 19: Mumbai
After buffet breakfast at hotel, you will be taken for sightseeing tour of Mumbai including excursion to Elephnata Caves.
The island of Elephanta is just an hour away from Mumbai by motor launch. The cave temples here, excavated between the 5th and 8th centuries AD, are famous for their magnificently sculpted panels. The best known is one that depicts the Maheshmurti - a three-headed image of Lord Shiva. This island was so named by the Portuguese after the large stone elephant near the landing place and which now stands at the Victoria and Albert Museum in the mainland. The caves are reached by a stairway up the hillside from the ferry landing.
Later continue your tour of Mumbai , Visit the Gateway of India, Mumbai's principal landmark. This arch of yellow basalt 0was erected on the waterfront in 1924 to commemorate King George V's visit to this colony in 1911. Afghan Church built in memory of those who fell in the First Afghan War. Drive past the Bombay High Court built in Gothic style and the Old secretariat. The ornamental university building with its 280 ft. high Rajabhai Clock Tower, the ornate Victoria Terminus, the colourful Crawford Market, the Flora Fountain in the large bustling square at the heart of the city, the Prince of Wales Museum which houses a varied collection of China-ware, miniature paintings and sculpture. Drive along the Marine Drive which is known as the Queen's Necklace. View the memorial to Haji Ali, a Muslim Saint. This unusual shrine stands on an island 500m out at sea and is linked by a causeway to the mainland. Malabar Hill with the Kamla Nehru Park Visit the Hanging Gardens which offer a splendid view of the city, and drive past the Malaxmi Temple. Stop at the Jain Temple and also visit Mani Bhavan where Mahatma Gandhi stayed during his visits to Bombay. Drive past the Taraporewalla Aquarium.
Overnight at hotel.
Day 20: Mumbai - Onward Destination.
In time transfer to airport for flight for onward destination (Room reserved till departure)
Heritage
Culture 
