Kaziranga National Park

Kaziranga National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Brahmaputra floodplain in Assam, and home to the world's largest population of the greater one-horned rhinoceros. Kaziranga was first protected as a reserve forest in 1905, became a national park in 1974 and was inscribed by UNESCO in 1985. The 2022 census counted about 2,613 rhinos, roughly two thirds of all the greater one-horned rhinos alive.

Kaziranga National Park owes its survival to a century of protection that brought the rhino back from a few dozen animals. It was declared a tiger reserve in 2006 and holds one of the highest tiger densities in the world, along with Asian elephants, wild water buffalo and eastern swamp deer. The landscape is tall elephant grass, marsh and shallow lakes called beels, reshaped every monsoon when the Brahmaputra floods. The floods drive animals to higher ground and across the highway to the Karbi Anglong hills, which is why the park closes to visitors from June to September.

What to see

• Rhinos grazing in open grassland, often close to the jeep tracks
• Wild water buffalo, swamp deer, hog deer and elephant herds
• Birdlife around the beels, including pelicans, storks and fishing eagles
• Watchtowers in the Central (Kohora), Western (Bagori) and Eastern (Agaratoli) ranges
• Tea gardens that border the park on the southern side

What to wear

Wear neutral colours such as khaki, olive or brown on safari, and avoid bright colours and strong perfume. Mornings from November to February are cold and foggy in an open jeep, so bring a warm jacket, scarf and cap; by midday it is warm, so dress in layers. A hat, sunscreen and insect repellent are useful. Closed shoes are best. The traditional dress of Assam is the mekhela chador for women, a two-piece silk or cotton wrap, often in golden muga silk, and the gamosa, a white cotton cloth with a red border, is offered to guests as a sign of respect.

Local food to try

The lodges and dhabas along the highway near Kohora serve Assamese thalis. Look for masor tenga, a light sour fish curry, khar, a dish made with an alkaline extract from banana peel, duck cooked with ash gourd, and pitha rice cakes. Fresh Assam tea from the surrounding estates is served everywhere, and many estates sell loose leaf. Vegetarian thalis are common and good.

Good to know

• Best time: November to April; the park opens in October and closes around mid-May for the monsoon
• Jeep safaris run in morning and afternoon slots; elephant rides run at dawn in some ranges
• Tickets are per person plus vehicle and camera fees; foreign visitors pay a higher rate
• Allow two nights for at least two safaris in different ranges
• Kohora is about 220 km east of Guwahati, around five hours by road; Jorhat airport is about 100 km
• Stay in your vehicle at all times; drones are not allowed

Nearby places

Kaziranga National Park sits between Guwahati and upper Assam, so many trips link it with Kamakhya Temple in Guwahati and the satras of Majuli Island, reached via Jorhat. Shillong in Meghalaya is a longer drive south of Guwahati.