Tiger Dikhega Kya?

Well, everyone wants to see a tiger in the first go, and believe it or not all do the safari for just one sole purpose” Tiger Dekhna hai”. Of course, we all want to see the Royal Bengal Tiger when we do the Ranthambore safari booking. For those who don’t know where is Ranthambore, it is in Rajasthan, 180 km from Jaipur and the closest town is Sawai Madhopur.

Ranthambore National Park is one of the finest and most popular National parks in India. I have been visiting Ranthambore for a while now and believe me every time I go, I find it all new, surprising and fresh. Some of the basic and important things to consider while planning the trip is the feasibility, the duration of the stay, and the safari. Out of all these, the most important is safari. Since it is a popular park advance booking of a safari is a must here. And that’s what I do, we book the safari first, and then the rest parameters follow. This can be different for others if your travel style is leisure then getting the right property is the top priority for you then its availability plays an important role followed by the safari.

What you should know?

It is very important that you have the right information about the trips that happen here. Ranthambore Safari booking is easy if you know the right stuff and take the right decisions. There are a total of 10 Zone in Ranthambore which are divided into Core and Buffer. It’s hyped that only core areas should be booked, however, the sighting is a matter of luck and not planned. Given the number of tigers and other animals, Z1 to Z6 are preferred by the people. Tiger Sightings are not easy, believe me, it takes a tremendous amount of patients, alertness, and dedication to make it a successful trip. Small unnoticed things like not wearing loud colors, too much perfume, making noises, and teasing the animals all these things make your sighting possibility lesser and lesser.

How to spot a tiger?

Tigers are highly territorial and they use different ways of keeping their rivals out of their territory. They mark their territories by spray marking the trees with urine or scratching the tree with their claws. They will also defecate in the middle or side of the pathway and later scrape the ground, so the scat is visible to other rival tigers. These signs help in tracking the tiger.

Naturalists and park guides usually look for scat or spray markings on the tree. If it’s fresh and wet it is easy to know that the animal might have passed a few minutes ago. A fresh tiger spray mark will smell like boiled basmati rice! I personally sometimes check the wet patches on trees by touching them.

Another way to spot a tiger is through their Pugmark, they love to walk on the tracks as they avoid getting themself injured from the thorns on the forest floor. It exciting to track the direction, time and no of tigers in a particular area. We always try to be first in the line to enter the gates as it becomes easy to see the pugmarks and track the big cat. When we last did the safari at Ranthambore we could see 3 different pugmarks moving towards the same direction. After an excited tracking of the pugmark we saw 2 cubs and 1 tigress walking in font of us. It was a breathtaking experience which is still fresh in our memories.

Alarm calls Even if the tiger walks silently through the jungle there are always other prey animals keeping a watch. As the jungle is dense, most of the time you spot the animals by hearing them. So the naturalists and guides are always on an alert, tuned to the sounds of jungle.

Once the tiger is spotted the Langur monkeys and Deers start giving alarm calls. Langurs are like watchmen of the jungle, sitting atop trees and keeping an eye on their surroundings. If you feel nothing is happening in the jungle, it’s better to watch langurs and deers, as their chances of spotting the predators are high.

Even ground dwelling birds, like Peacock and Red Jungle fowl alert other animals by their alarm calls. These alarm calls move with the predator and it’s easy to pin point the direction in which it is going.

With the help of the alarm calls one has to wait patiently at the right place. And then when the King or Queen of the jungle appears, you have a chance to finally able to see their majestic beauty and capture them on candid camera.

Local guides are one of the key information source which plays a major role in tracking the tigers. They may be not much educated but their on field wildlife experience can leave you clueless while interacting with them. Before the safari begins and one enters the park, naturalist and guides discuss sightings of previous safaris and then a plan is made to go and check the particular area first. Even inside the park when we meet each other in our jeeps, we share the sightings, so that all guests can go back with happy faces and lovely memories.

And the other factor which cannot be planned is your luck, if luck is in favor nothing can stop you from seeing the tiger.

Always visit a National Park with open mind and intention to enjoy the forest, birds, animals and feel the freshness every time you enter the park.

Ranthambore safari booking and the following adventure is a rare opportunity when explored with guides who know the stories. It is a rare wildlife safari where the history, mystery, nature, beauty, and wild beasts come together to make a paradise on earth.

Park Entry and Exit Time

From March to June – 06:30 am to 09:30 am 03:30 pm to 06:30 pm
From Oct to Feb – 07:00 am to 10:00 am 02:30 pm to 05:30 pm
Park is closed from July to September for visitors