Ten nights for travellers who put wildlife first. Two nights in Kathmandu, three at Meghauli Serai on the western side of Chitwan for rhino, gharial and birds, then four at Tiger Tops Karnali Lodge in Bardia, Nepal's largest lowland park, where tiger, wild elephant and Gangetic dolphin are the prizes.
Chitwan and Bardia are Nepal's two great Terai parks, and they suit different hopes. Chitwan, about 952 km² and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is where you see the greater one-horned rhinoceros at close range, gharial on the sandbanks and a long list of birds. Bardia, about 968 km² in the far west, gets a fraction of the visitors, and its grasslands and sal forest along the Karnali give the best tiger odds in Nepal. Visiting both in ten nights gives depth without rushing, with three nights in one and four in the other.
Days follow the animals: out at first light, back for lunch and a rest through the heat, out again until dusk. In Chitwan we use jeeps, dugout canoes and guided walks from Meghauli Serai, A Taj Safari. In Bardia, Tiger Tops Karnali Lodge runs jeep drives, walking safaris with experienced guides and river trips on the Karnali, where Gangetic dolphins surface in the deeper pools. Kathmandu bookends the trip at Dwarika's Hotel, with a day of temples at the start and a spare night at the end to protect your flight home.
Highlights
Why this route works
Greater one-horned rhinoceros from jeep and canoe in Chitwan
Walking safaris in Bardia's grasslands with experienced guides
Looking for Gangetic dolphins on a float down the Karnali
Four nights in Bardia for the best tiger odds in Nepal
Gharial and mugger crocodiles on the Rapti sandbanks
Day by day
The journey
Day01
Arrive in Kathmandu
Overnight: Kathmandu≈ 3 km · 15 minMeals: Dinner
We meet you at Tribhuvan International Airport and drive about 15 minutes to Dwarika's Hotel in Battisputali, built around carved Newari woodwork rescued from old valley houses. The rest of the day is free to recover from the journey. In the evening your guide goes through the plan over tea: what each park is good for, how the safaris run, what to wear and how much camera gear makes sense to carry. If you arrive early, walk ten minutes to Pashupatinath for the evening aarti on the Bagmati, watched from the eastern bank.
Day02
Kathmandu temples and stupas
Overnight: KathmanduMeals: Breakfast, Dinner
A full day with a private guide. The morning is at Swayambhunath, the hilltop stupa reached by a long stone stairway, and Kathmandu Durbar Square with the Kumari Ghar, home of the living goddess. After lunch, Pashupatinath, where non-Hindus watch the cremation ghats from the east bank of the Bagmati, and then Boudhanath for the evening kora around the great white dome. Keen birders can swap the morning for Phulchoki or Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park on the valley rim, both good for hill species you will not see in the Terai.
Day03
Fly to Chitwan
Overnight: Chitwan≈ 45 km · 1.5 hMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A 25-minute flight to Bharatpur, then about 1–1.5 hours by road west to Meghauli Serai, A Taj Safari, on the Rapti River at the western side of Chitwan National Park. The lodge draws on Tharu design, with a pool facing the river and the park on the far bank. After lunch, a first afternoon jeep drive into Nepal's first national park, set up in 1973. Rhino, spotted deer and peafowl are likely, and the naturalists read tracks in the sand for tiger and leopard as you go. Dinner is by the pool.
Day04
A full day in rhino country
Overnight: ChitwanMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A full day in the park, leaving at first light with a packed breakfast and lunch so we can stay out while the animals are moving. Western Chitwan mixes sal forest, riverine grassland and oxbow lakes, and the greater one-horned rhinoceros is the main event; there are also gaur, sambar, barking deer, wild boar and, more rarely, sloth bear and leopard. Tigers are present but hard to find in Chitwan's thick cover. Park fees are about NPR 2,000 per day for foreigners; check current status before you travel.
Day05
Canoe, gharial and birds
Overnight: ChitwanMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Morning on the water: a dugout canoe down the Rapti with a naturalist, for gharial basking on the sandbanks, mugger crocodiles, and kingfishers, storks and ospreys overhead. Chitwan is one of the few places to see the gharial, a critically endangered fish-eating crocodile, in the wild. After lunch, a guided walk on the edge of the park or a visit to a Tharu village to see mud-walled houses and painted granaries. The last evening in Chitwan is for photographs of the river as the light goes.
Day06
Fly west to Bardia
Overnight: Bardia≈ 95 km · 2.5 hMeals: Breakfast, Dinner
A travel day. We drive back to Bharatpur for the flight to Kathmandu, then connect to Nepalgunj, about 1 hour west, on the plains near the Indian border. From Nepalgunj it is about 95 km and 2.5 hours by road to Tiger Tops Karnali Lodge, a Tharu-style lodge on the edge of Bardia National Park. If the day's flights do not connect (schedules change by season, so check current status before you travel), we drive the whole way on the East-West Highway, about 9–10 hours. You arrive for dinner and a briefing on the next four days.
Day07
Bardia by jeep
Overnight: BardiaMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Bardia covers about 968 km² of sal forest, grassland and river channels, the largest lowland park in Nepal and far quieter than Chitwan. A full-day jeep safari with packed meals takes us deep into the park, looking for tiger, wild elephant, rhino and spotted, hog and swamp deer in the open grasslands, called phantas. Guides stop at waterholes and river crossings where tigers come to drink, and wait quietly, sometimes for an hour or more. Expect a long, dusty day, an early dinner and an early night.
Day08
Walking safari in the grasslands
Overnight: BardiaMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
Bardia is one of the few parks in South Asia where you can walk with experienced guides, and tracking on foot is the traditional way to look for tiger here. We set out after breakfast with two guides, crossing river channels and waiting on high banks above the Karnali. It is slow, quiet work: hours of watching, broken by alarm calls from deer and langurs. Walks follow park rules and the guides' judgement, and you can turn back at any point. Lunch is packed; the afternoon is at the lodge.
Day09
Float down the Karnali
Overnight: BardiaMeals: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner
A raft trip on the Karnali, the longest river in Nepal, along the western edge of the park. The boatmen let the current do the work, and the quiet lets you get close to mugger and gharial on the banks, smooth-coated otters and, in the deeper pools, the rare Gangetic dolphin surfacing to breathe. Lunch is on a sandbank. In the late afternoon a short jeep drive returns to the grasslands near the lodge for the hours when tiger and elephant are most active. River trips depend on water levels; check current status before you travel.
Day10
Fly back to Kathmandu
Overnight: Kathmandu≈ 95 km · 2.5 hMeals: Breakfast, Dinner
A last morning drive or walk in the park if you want one, then about 2.5 hours by road to Nepalgunj for the flight of about 1 hour to Kathmandu. Back at Dwarika's Hotel the late afternoon is free for the pool and for sorting photographs. Dinner tonight is at Krishnarpan, the hotel's Nepali tasting menu, a long, slow meal of many small courses after eight days of early starts. Your guide joins you briefly to go through tomorrow's departure and timings.
Day11
Depart Kathmandu
Overnight: Departure≈ 3 km · 15 minMeals: Breakfast
Breakfast, then the short drive to Tribhuvan International Airport, about 15 minutes from the hotel. We spend the last night in Kathmandu rather than flying out of Nepalgunj on the same day on purpose: domestic flights from the far west can be delayed by weather or schedule changes, and a spare night means a delay cannot cost you your international flight. If you fly late, a morning at Patan's Durbar Square and museum, about 30 minutes from the hotel, is an easy addition.
Tigers are wild and never guaranteed; four nights in Bardia gives the best odds we can offer in Nepal.
Bardia is hottest from March to May, but those months bring the best chance of tiger near water.
Chitwan park fees for foreigners are about NPR 2,000 per day and Bardia charges its own entry fee; check current status before you travel.
Wear neutral greens and browns, closed shoes and a hat; avoid white and bright colours on walking safaris.
We do not book elephant rides or elephant bathing.
Domestic routes and schedules to Bharatpur and Nepalgunj change by season; check current status before you travel.
Bring binoculars and, for photography, a telephoto lens of 400 mm or more.
Questions travellers ask
Good to know
Chitwan or Bardia: which is better for tigers?
Bardia. It gets far fewer visitors, its grasslands and riverbanks are more open, and guides can track on foot, so the odds of seeing a tiger are better than in Chitwan's dense cover. Chitwan is better for rhino, birds, gharial and lodge choice. That is why this journey gives Chitwan three nights and Bardia four. Neither park can guarantee a tiger.
When is the best time to visit Chitwan and Bardia?
October to April for both, with March and April best for tiger in Bardia, when the grass is cut and animals come to the rivers, though days pass 35 °C by late April. February to April also gives the best visibility in Chitwan after the annual grass-cutting. November to February is cool and comfortable but foggy in the mornings. Many Terai lodges close in the monsoon.
Are walking safaris in Bardia safe?
They are run under park rules by experienced guides, usually two per group, who know the animals and the ground. The real risks are rhino, wild elephant and, rarely, sloth bear, and guides keep their distance and choose routes with escape options such as trees and high banks. You must follow their instructions at once. Anyone uneasy can stay with jeep and river activities.
How do we get from Chitwan to Bardia?
Usually by air via Kathmandu: Bharatpur to Kathmandu in about 25 minutes, Kathmandu to Nepalgunj in about 1 hour, then about 2.5 hours by road to the park. If flights do not connect, the road along the East-West Highway takes 9–10 hours with breaks. Domestic schedules change by season, so check current status before you travel.
What animals can we see in Bardia National Park?
Bengal tiger, greater one-horned rhinoceros, wild Asian elephant, swamp deer, spotted and hog deer, langur and rhesus monkeys, mugger and gharial crocodiles, and the Gangetic dolphin in the Karnali. Leopard and sloth bear are present but shy. The bird list is long, with hornbills, eagles, vultures and many waterbirds along the river channels.
What camera equipment should we bring?
A 100–400 mm or similar zoom covers most situations; a 500 or 600 mm lens helps for tigers at range and for birds. Bring a beanbag for the jeep rather than a tripod, spare batteries and cards, and a dust cover, since Terai tracks are dry and dusty from February. On walking safaris carry as little as possible and keep noise down.
Is it very hot in Bardia in spring?
Yes. From late March to May daytime temperatures in the Terai often reach 35–40 °C. Activities start at first light and resume in the late afternoon, with lunch and a long rest in between. Drink often, wear light long sleeves and a hat, and use the midday hours to sleep. If heat worries you, travel in February or early March instead.
Do you include elephant rides?
No. Some operators in Nepal still offer elephant rides, but we do not book them on any journey. Safaris on this trip are by jeep, on foot with guides, and by dugout canoe or raft. We also leave out elephant bathing and other close-contact activities with captive elephants, and choose lodges that run their safaris the same way.
What does a Nepal wildlife journey cost?
This ten-night journey starts from about ₹5,40,000 per person, twin sharing, at Dwarika's Hotel, Meghauli Serai and Tiger Tops Karnali Lodge. That includes full board and safaris in both parks, park fees, private transfers, four domestic flights and a guide in Kathmandu. Dates from February to April fill early in Bardia, so plan six months ahead.
Chitwan and Bardia: Rhino and Tiger Country10 nights · from ₹5,40,000 per personCheck dates and price
