Rajastan and Kerala, January and February - where to go? (1 Viewer)

Hello all,

I'm going to India for the first time in January for six weeks. So far my rough itinerary consists of around four weeks in the north, taking in Delhi, Agra, Amritsar and Rajastan, then two weeks in Kerala.

I'm definitely intending to visit Keoladeo Ghana and Rhanthabore in Rajastan, but I wondered if anyone had any other recommendations for places that could be visited easily and cheaply at this time. I'll probably be travelling alone and will be dependent on public transport. Any suggestions of places not to miss would be very much appreciated!

Thanks!

I highly recommend Thattekad and Munnar in Kerala. Both can be reached by public transport and host good birds.

André

Thanks very much! I'll definitely add them to my itinerary.

From Amritsar, it's easy to jump on a Moga-bound bus to Harike Lake, which is an excellent site worth at least a couple of days. You can day-trip from Amritsar, but it's actually more convenient to stay in Moga (or ask if you can stay in the Sikh temple at Harike).

In Rajasthan, Jaisalmer is a great place to hang, and the access point for the Desert National Park, which is a must-visit. Mt Abu is another excellent location worth a couple of days, and I've had productive birding in the area around Pushkar, too, and the Chambal River near Agra is well worth a day.

I recommend spending a few days based in Naini Tal, which is a great area for Himalayan species in winter, and very easy to reach from Delhi. If you are visiting Ranthambhor primarily for Tiger, I'd give serious consideration to going to Corbett NP instead. Tiger is pretty reliable here these days, and it's a fantastic park with some great birds.

Apart from Corbett, you can do all these places very easily and cheaply by public transport. Corbett NP is expensive unless you can share jeep costs with 2 or 3 others, but there is very productive birding just outside the park, which you can do by public bus from Ramnagar.

Thanks for the suggestions! I have a look at what I can fit in, but I'm sure I'll be heading to some of those places now. Thanks!

You can think about visiting Tal chap par WLS http://www.rajasthanwildlife.rajasthan.gov.in/wild-life/Tal-Chapper-Sanctuary.htm in case you are interested in raptors!

In case you are interested in witnessing a large congregation of demoiselle cranes then you must visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Khichan .. there is a dump yard for vultures near bikaner and in case you are interested i can get you the details!

Absolutely, cranes are my favourite birds! As you might be able to guess...

Thanks so much for the suggestions.

if you are planning on visiting Nainital… you must bird in Sattal area… very good birding area…