Chitwan National Park

Nepal below the mountains

Almost everyone comes to Nepal for the Himalaya and leaves without seeing the other half of the country. The Terai is flat, hot, subtropical and agriculturally rich — closer to northern India than to the hills — and Chitwan is its best-protected fragment.

Gazetted in 1973 as Nepal's first national park and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984, it protects 950 km² of sal forest, elephant grass and river floodplain.

What you will realistically see

Being straight about this matters, because safari marketing rarely is.

Greater one-horned rhino — very likely. The population has recovered from around 100 animals in the mid-1960s to several hundred today, one of the more successful conservation stories in Asia. Sightings on a two-night stay are common.

Bengal tiger — present, and the density is good, but genuinely rare to see. Anyone promising you a tiger is selling something. Treat a sighting as extraordinary luck rather than the plan.

Gharial and mugger crocodile — reliable on a river trip. The gharial breeding centre is worth an hour.

Birds — over 500 species recorded. Chitwan is a serious birding destination in its own right, particularly from December to February.

Also sloth bear, wild elephant, gaur, four deer species and, on the rivers, the endangered Gangetic dolphin in the far west.

How we visit, and what we will not do

Elephant-back safaris were the standard Chitwan activity for decades. We do not offer them. The training methods behind them are indefensible and the practice is being phased out across the region.

What we use instead: jeep safari into the park interior, guided walking safari with two licensed naturalists — the best way to see the park and by some distance the most exciting — and dugout canoe on the Rapti at first light for birds and gharial. The elephant breeding centre can be visited; the animals there are not ridden.

Tharu culture

The Tharu have lived in this malarial belt for centuries and carry a genetic resistance to malaria that let them farm land nobody else could. Their villages around the park have their own architecture, their own language and the stick dance usually performed for visitors in the evening. Ask to visit a village during the day as well — it is a more honest picture than the evening show.

Best time

October to March. Cool, dry and comfortable. February to April is the best for sightings: the grass is cut and burned early in the year, visibility improves dramatically, and animals concentrate at water. Avoid the monsoon — the park partly closes and the rivers are unsafe.

Where to go next

• Kathmandu Valley — Seven UNESCO Monument Zones within an hour of each other
• Bardia National Park — Nepal's largest lowland park and its best chance of a wild tiger
• Lumbini — The birthplace of the Buddha, confirmed by a stone pillar raised in the third century BCE

Related activities: Jungle Safari in Nepal, Bird Watching in Nepal, Cultural & Heritage Tours.

Or see every trip we run: all trekking and tour packages.