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I visited Kaziranga National Park on an impulse. It was my second visit and I loved it more this time around. Kaziranga is a stunning, expansive forest area, with plentiful flora, fauna, and wildlife. It’s also incredibly easy to do! You can do it yourself effortlessly without going through the many websites/ travel agents that have mushroomed and that charge a premium. Here’s how to do the Kaziranga one-day itinerary by yourself.

About Kaziranga

Kaziranga National Park is a World Heritage wildlife sanctuary situated in the Golaghat and Nagaon districts of Assam. The park is home to two-thirds of the world’s great one-horned rhinoceroses (their count is over 3000 at Kaziranga). It is also home to several elephants, Bengal tigers, Asiatic wild water buffaloes, exotic birds, and swamp and hawk deer. We saw turtles, rare migratory birds and fascinating fauna too. The park is in itself lush and green, replete with tall elephant grass, acres of marshlands, and rich water bodies.

When to Go

The park is open from November to April. The Winter months (November to Feb) are the most pleasant to visit, but the summer months are also the time when the tall elephant grass is trimmed, the animals come to visit the water bodies more often, and you’re likely to glimpse rhino packs and even Bengal tigers. I visited in early January and saw quite a few rhinos and elephants, but it is hard to glimpse them with the grass so tall. (I was told it gets trimmed right before summer)

How to Go

This is the best part: Kaziranga is really easy to reach. I was in Tezpur already, so I took a local private bus from Mission Chariali towards Jorhat (or alternately, you can take the bus heading to Dibrugarh). It cost me INR 120, took 1:30 hours, and dropped me right in front of the Kaziranga Kohora gate. Tezpur is about 50 km from Kaziranga.

There are regular buses that ply from Guwahati to Kaziranga (which take 4 hours, or so, and cost about INR 250-500 depending on the type of bus. Book on Redbus or Yatra). A hired cab costs about INR 5000. You can opt for self-drive cars like Zoomcar too. Guwahati is about 200 km from Kaziranga.

Guwahati is connected to major Indian cities by flight and train. Tezpur and Jorhat are connected to Kolkata and Guwahati by flight and to several major Indian cities by train.

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Assam has many exciting things to do apart from Kaziranga. Check them out!

What to Do

About the Zones

There are several zones and gates in Kaziranga. The Central Safari Zone (Kohora) and the Western Safari Zone (Bagori) are the most popular and easily accessible. The other two are the Eastern Safari Zone (Agaratoli) and Burapahar Safari Zone, of which I do not know much. I’ve heard that the Eastern Safari Zone is larger and has more wildlife. It is also less visited by tourists, so for a true nature lover, it may be a better option. But it is far from Kohora Gate where most good hotels are.

The Central Zone (Kohora)’s entry gate is located about two km from the National Highway passing through the village of Kohora. The zone is spread in the southern riverbed of the Brahmaputra River and is highly rich in wildlife and landscape variations. This is the largest of the zones and the most popular. Almost all the hotels, shops, and eateries are around the Kohora gate. I too stayed here.

About the Safaris

A jeep safari (in an open-top Maruti Gypsy) costs upwards of INR 2500 (safari+ driver+ permits) depending on the zone selected. Each jeep can place 4-5 people, so even if you’re one or two you can ask for more people to join at the booking counter or request the hotel to do so.

The safari starts during the following time ranges and goes on for 2 hours.

Morning: 07 AM – 10:00 AM; last entry is at 10:00 AM and jeeps need to leave the park by 11:30 AM

Afternoon: 01 PM – 3:00 PM; last entry is at 3:00 PM and jeeps need to leave the park by 4:30 PM

I went for the afternoon safari. A jeep safari in the Central Safari Zone cost me INR 2800 (booked through the hotel). There are additional charges for carrying a camera. Charges are also higher if you’re a foreigner.

We started at about 2 PM and carried on until sunset at 4:45 PM. The jeep safari covers a larger area in the park, along with the various water bodies and you can see a lot more animals than you would in an elephant safari. But they will be from afar unless you get lucky.

The elephant safari takes place at 5:30 and 6:30 AM every morning (2 batches). It needs to be booked at least a day in advance and sometimes gets sold out. Safaris to the Western Zone (Bagori) are easy to get and your hotel can organize that for you. Elephant safaris in the Central Zone (Kohora) are harder to book, and I was told they were largely reserved for dignitaries/ government officials/ foreigners, and we (or the hotel representative) will need to queue up to get tickets at the counter at 7 PM. Since we had done the jeep safari in the Central Zone we did not bother and took an elephant safari in the Western Zone.

While an elephant safari starts at about 5:30 AM, if you are staying close to the Kohora gate, you will need to take a cab to the Bagori gate and back (costs INR 700 to hire a cab for 2 hours. The hotel can provide it). So you need to start earlier in the morning, at about 4:45 AM to do the first-slot safari.

The elephant safari cost me INR 950 (booked through the hotel). It takes about an hour.

The elephant safari is a pleasant experience. Only, I was worried about the elephant, although they appeared well treated. You can treat them to bananas after the safari. They swallow the bananas whole, peels and all. It is a delight to watch.

Where to Stay

There are plenty of Assam government lodges and resorts that are excellent. The Assam Forest Department website provides a list. Aranya Lodges and Jonaki Kareng are next to each other, and right beside the safari booking counter. I stayed at Jonaki Kareng, which was fab. For a luxury stay, consider Borgos, which is inside the Central Zone, and looked like a great experience.

Jonaki Kareng was an excellent and cosy resort with good spacious and clean rooms, tasty food and attentive service. It was a five-minute walk from the bus stand on the main road. The Deluxe room cost INR 3300 with breakfast. The hotel area is quiet, green, and peaceful. The front desk takes care of all safaris, and being a government lodge, they charge little to no premium to book them.

Where to Eat

Dig into some excellent thalis at local Assamese joints – Maihang and Pelican Dhaba. The Assamese pork thalis are delectable.

Hope this article was helpful. And hope you get to see many, many rhinos and the occasional elusive tiger.

Try my other Indian itineraries: Konkan Trail, Kashmir, or Uttarakhand.