Bardiya Lumbini and Chitwan Photography Tour- 12 Days Itinerary and Cost

When you arrive at Tribhuvan International Airport in Nepal, your wildlife safari experience begins. Our representative will meet you there and take you privately to your accommodation in the lively Thamel, Kathmandu. You can rest or explore the area when you get settled in. In the evening, you'll get a complete briefing on your 12-day Photography tour, including your schedule, important safety rules for Nepal's national parks, and expert advice on how to pack for the jungle and wetlands. This will make sure you're ready for the trip ahead.

Today is a long yet beautiful trip overland. You will leave Kathmandu early in the morning in a private vehicle and drive straight to Bardiya National Park in western Nepal for a whole day (around 12–14 hours). The road goes south along the Prithvi Highway, going down from the Kathmandu Valley to the Terai plains. We will stop for lunch in a beautiful town like Butwal or Nepalgunj along the way. As you get closer to the extreme western part of the country, the environment changes from rolling hills to flat, agricultural fields. Expect the roads to be mostly smooth, although there will be occasional bumps. In the evening, following your trip, you will check into your forest lodge near Bardiya, have dinner, and rest.

The noises of the jungle will wake you up early on your first full day in Bardiya. After a brief breakfast, you'll get into a tough 4x4 vehicle with your professional naturalist guide and driver and go on a full-day jeep safari deep into the heart of Bardiya National Park. As you move from the thick, cathedral-like Sal forests to the wide, golden Phanta grasslands and then down to the sandy banks of the Karnali River, Nepal's longest river, which is the park's lifeblood, you can see the park's many and diverse ecosystems.

This is a day of dedicated, rigorous animal tracking. Your guide, who is good at deciphering animal indicators like new pugmarks, alarm calls from birds and deer, and territorial markings, will lead the search for Bardiya's most famous and hard-to-find animals. The main goal is to see the beautiful Royal Bengal Tiger in its most natural environment in Nepal. Tracking herds of wild Asian elephants and the lone Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros is just as exciting. There are also spotted chital, barking deer, swift langur monkeys, and the scary marsh mugger crocodiles that lie along the riverbanks. The safari pauses at strategic watchtowers and watering holes, where you can frequently see amazing things and take amazing pictures of wildlife at a place that is remote from the throng of more popular parks.

Today's second full-day jeep safari is meant to explore various, often more distant, parts of the park, building on what you learned on Day 3. This strategic change gives you the best opportunity of seeing a larger range of animals and lets you fully enjoy bird watching in Nepal's best birding spot. Bardiya is home to more than 400 types of birds, making it a great place for birdwatchers and photographers.

Now your guide will talk more about the park's amazing variety of birds. As you go through marshes, grasslands, and riverine forests, you'll be shown how to find and name amazing species. The Bengal Florican, which is internationally endangered, does its dramatic mating show in the grasslands. The Sarus Crane, which is the highest flying bird in the world, lives in wetlands. There are also colorful groups of waterfowl, such as ruddy shelducks and comb ducks. You may see beautiful birds of prey like the crested serpent eagle, Pallas's fish eagle, and the endangered lesser adjutant stork in the sky. The day is a fantastic mix of monitoring mammals and birdwatching, which lets you see how Bardiya's unique and healthy ecology is made up of so many different types of life. You'll go back to the lodge at nightfall with a better knowledge of the park's complicated web of life.

Change from exploring by car to having a more grounded experience. In the morning, you'll go on a guided nature walk over marked jungle paths near your lodge. At this slower speed, you may really get to know the park's little ecosystems and have close interactions that you would miss in a jeep. Your naturalist will show you medicinal plants, complicated insect life, animal trails, and the sounds of shy forest birds. This will transform the stroll into a fascinating study in jungle ecology. In the afternoon, a shorter jeep ride to scenic spots like the Babai Valley or Churia foothills is a magnificent contrast. Here, huge elephant grasslands (phanta) stretch all the way to the horizon. This is a great place to see wildlife like spotted deer and wild boar in the open and take wide-angle landscape photos under the wide sky, which is a very different view from the forest.

Say goodbye to Bardiya after your last breakfast in the wild. Then, take a picturesque drive (around 6–7 hours) east via the Terai plains. You are going to Lumbini, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the birthplace of Lord Buddha. This day of travel indicates a profound change from wild rainforest to a peaceful, spiritual setting. You will see the daily life of the plains as you drive through farming areas and busy market cities. When you get to Lumbini, check into your quiet hotel near the holy garden. The rest of the day is for slowly getting used to the peaceful environment. You may start by taking a walk around the calm pond in the Maya Devi Temple complex and feeling the calmness of this pilgrimage site.

Spend the whole day birdwatching in Lumbini's carefully cared-for wetlands and grasslands. The Lumbini Development Zone and the region around it have a lot of ponds, canals, and fields that make it a great place for birds to live. You may explore these ecosystems on guided excursions. They are known as one of the greatest sites in Asia to witness the beautiful Sarus Crane, which is commonly seen in couples. The wetlands are full of waterfowl that spend the winter there, such as ducks, geese, and waders like sandpipers and stints. Birds of prey, such as harriers and falcons, watch over the grasslands. This day is the best place to take tranquil pictures of and watch birds since it is easy to go there and has a wide variety of birds in a very calm location.

Leave Lumbini after breakfast and travel to Chitwan National Park, which takes around four to five hours. One of the best stops along the way is a "Vulture Restaurant," which is an important place for conservation. Here, you'll find out about Nepal's groundbreaking and successful attempts to preserve its vulture species from almost becoming extinct because of livestock drugs. It is a strong lesson in conservation to see these beautiful scavengers eat safely. You will get to your riverside resort in Chitwan by late afternoon if you keep going. The vibe here is different—it's bustling and well-known as Nepal's top safari spot. Once you've checked in, you may rest at the lodge and listen for the call of the jungle that is waiting for you.

Take the traditional Chitwan safari: a private full-day vehicle safari into the park's most important areas. Your open-top 4x4 will drive through a patchwork of ecosystems, including thick sal and riverine forests, huge elephant grasslands, and ox-bow lakes (tal). The best chance to witness Chitwan's famed high density of the Greater One-Horned Rhinoceros, which is commonly observed grazing or wallowing, is during this long trip. Spotted deer, wild boar, and langur monkeys are prevalent in herds. You could see the Royal Bengal Tiger if you're patient and your guide knows what they're doing. Your naturalist will teach you a lot about how animals act, how to find their footprints, and how this UNESCO-listed environment stays in balance.

See Chitwan's variety from two different, non-vehicle points of view. First, a peaceful early morning canoe excursion on the Rapti River in a traditional dugout boat. This quiet glide gives you the best chances to take pictures of birds (kingfishers, egrets, herons) at the water's edge and get close-up views of Gharial and Mugger crocodiles lazing in the sun. After that, go on a guided jungle walking safari with a naturalist and an armed park ranger. When you walk through the forest, all of your senses are engaged. The scents, sounds, and sights are all very real. It lets you track animals on foot, get a close look at plants and bugs, and really feel the beat of the jungle, all while being secure and learning from an expert.

After a last breakfast with noises from the jungle, start the beautiful trip back to Kathmandu (around 5–6 hours). The route goes up out of the Terai and back via the Mahabharat foothills, river valleys, and terraced villages. This trip ends with a time to think about all the amazing animals you saw last week. When you get to Kathmandu, go to your accommodation in Thamel. You have the whole evening to yourself. You might have a goodbye supper at a traditional restaurant, do some last-minute souvenir shopping in the lively streets, or just relax and think about all the fun things you've done.

Today is the last day of your full tour of Nepal's animals and birds. A corporate representative will help you get to Tribhuvan International Airport (KTM) on schedule for your foreign departure flight, making sure you get there three hours early. You'll leave with a camera full of amazing pictures, a better knowledge of the ecosystems in the Himalayas and Terai, and memories that will last a lifetime of following tigers in Bardiya, identifying cranes in Lumbini, and seeing rhinos in Chitwan. This is a real trip across Nepal's amazing biodiversity.