Day 1: Arrive Mumbai

The thriving metropolis of Mumbai is a go-to destination for travellers curious to experience a modern Indian city. Lapped by the Arabian Sea, this urban seaside peninsula is a melting pot of old and new India. Towering office blocks and shiny apartment buildings shoulder crumbling grand dames of architecture. Men play cricket in the leafy central parks, taxis navigate the jam packed streets and families stroll along the seaside promenades of Mumbai, while children beg on the peripheries of Asia’s biggest slum – Dharavi. In the wide avenue of Colaba’s high street, western culture overshadows the brightly lit storefronts, where Levi’s, Adidas and McDonalds vie for retail space.

Fly into Mumbai where you will be met by your Travel Counsellors Representative who will take you to your hotel for check in. Standard check in time is 1400 hrs.

Day 2:  Mumbai

Morning after breakfast,  proceed for  half day excursion to Elephanta Caves [closed on Mondays],  the UNESCO World Heritage Site. Situated 9km north east of Mumbai Harbour, a short ferry ride of approx. 45 minutes takes you across to the labyrinth of cave temples carved into the island’s basalt rock. The caves contain some of India’s most impressive temple carvings. After the visit return to the city and proceed to a sightseeing tour of Mumbai, starting with the Gateway of India – the grand ceremonial arch built to commemorate the visit of King George V in 1911, followed by the Mani Bhavan Museum located in the building where Mahatma Gandhi used to stay during his visits to Mumbai from 1917 to 1934. The museum now movingly documents his life through press cuttings, photographs and various artefacts including two of his famous spinning wheels.

Continue on to Marine Drive, one of Mumbai’s most popular promenades and then on to Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (the Prince of Wales Museum – closed on Monday). Adorned with a beautiful white Mughal dome and surrounded by neat gardens, this splendid building is home to what many consider the best museum in the country. Afterwards proceed to the Hanging Gardens, renowned for their views over the Arabian Sea and numerous animal shaped hedges before finishing with a visit to Chhatrapati Shivaji station (Victoria Terminus), one of the city’s largest and most magnificent colonial era buildings.

Day 3:  Mumbai – Bhopal

After breakfast check-out the hotel. Your Travel Counsellor representative will assist and take you to the airport for the scheduled flight to Bhopal.

Arrive Bhopal where you will be met and taken to your hotel of stay.

Bhopal is known for its exquisite landscapes characterized by lush forests, green hills and a number of natural and man-made lakes. While the old part of the city features a maze of narrow winding alleyways lined with grand old mosques, ancient palaces and bustling bazaars, the newer part is better planned and contains some excellent museums and galleries, manicured parks and gardens. Bhopal serves as a gateway to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Sanchi, one of the most impressive Buddhist monuments in Asia.

Day 4:  Bhopal

After breakfast proceed to a tour of the city covering the mosques and museums.

Taj-ul-Masjid, named as the ‘The Crown of Mosques’. Though the constructin was started by Sultan Shah Jehan Begum of Bhopal (1868-1901,  it was completely built only after 1971 by the great efforts of Allama Mohammad Imran Khan Nadwi Azhari of Bhopal.

Tribal Museum – Built over seven acres of land next to the Archaeological Museum, it is housed in a striking building designed by Revathi Kamath. The museum stands out from all others in the country because of the way its exhibits are put up. It does not conform to the old, sedate style of showing individual artworks as distinct masterpieces, with little contextual information. Instead, it celebrates the ways of life practiced by the seven major tribes in the state – the Gond, Bheel, Korku, Baiga, Sahariya, Kol and Bhariya – through their crafts. In a series of riotously colourful galleries whose roofs soar as high as three-storey buildings, the dramatically-lit artefacts project tribal living, aesthetics, and spiritual beliefs.

The Shaukat Mahal is one of the architectural curiosities of Bhopal. Situated right at the entrance of the Chowk area, the Mahal is a blend of both oriental and occidental styles of architecture. The Shaukat Mahal was another important building constructed during Sikander Begum’s tenure. It is a strange mixture of Indo-Islamic and European styles of architecture. It was designed by a Frenchman, a descendant of the Bourbon Kings of France. Post Renaissance and Gothic styles have been combined in an enchanting manner in the building.

Day 5: Bhopal – Satpura

After breakfast, check-out and leave for Satpura National Park (approx. 200 kms / 5 hrs). The area is known for its towering sandstone peaks and rugged hills, which are cloaked in dense forests and intersected by glistening streams. The park also features a number of narrow gorges and ravines which provide an ideal secluded environment for a diverse array of wildlife including tiger, leopard, four-horned antelope, sambar, nilgai, chital, wild dog, chinkara, wild boar and bison. In addition to the usual game drives by jeep, visitors can explore the park on guided safari walks, elephant back safaris, or by canoe or kayak.

Along with its surrounding buffer-zone area, the park has a much better population of wildlife which are rarely seen in other national parks of state. Attractive birds species includes , Malabar whistling Thrush, Paradise Fly-catcher, Honey Buzzard, Malabar pied Hornbill etc. Presence of various flower species, moist conditions offers ideal conditions for various butterfly species to flourish like Oakleaf, Black Rajah, Great Eggfly, Blue Pancy etc. Here we can find about 14 species of endangered mammals and reptiles.

Day 6:  At Satpura National Park

Enjoy morning & evening shared jeep safaris in the National Park.

Day 7: Satpura – Pench

Leave after breakfast to Pench National Park (approx. 260 Kms /6 Hrs). Resting in the lower southern reaches of the Satpura Hills, Pench National Park is renowned for having the highest concentration of prey of any park in India, increasing the chances of seeing predatory cats such as leopard and tiger. This impressive expanse of wilderness features typical central Indian teak jungle and is bisected by the spectacularly scenic Pench River. Aside from the river, the park also contains a number of bamboo-lined jungle streams providing a valuable water source for the local wildlife which includes, among others: wild dog, sloth bear, wolf, jungle cat, hyena, jackal, gaur, sambar, and chital. Pench is also a bird lover’s paradise with over 250 species of bird inhabiting the area, including: parakeets, hornbills, kingfishers, orioles and wagtails, as well as a large selection of birds of prey.

Day 8:  At Pench National Park

Enjoy morning & evening shared jeep safaris in the National Park. [On Wednesdays the park remains closed in the evening]

Day 9: Pench – Kanha

After breakfast, leave for Kanha National Park (approx. 200 Kms /4-5 Hrs). Also known as the Kanha Tiger Reserve, the  Park is widely considered to be the greatest of India’s wildlife reserves and the inspiration for Rudyard Kipling’s classic, ‘The Jungle Book’. This impressive expanse of wilderness covers  about 950 square kilometres of lush rolling hills, peaceful rivers, saal and bamboo forest, and endless stretches of savanna grassland. This spectacularly scenic environment provides a diverse range of habitats for an extraordinary array of wildlife including tigers, leopards, jackals, swamp deer, foxes, porcupines, sloth bears, pythons, hare, chitals, gaur monkeys,  mongooses, and hundreds of species of bird.

Day 10 – 11: At Kanha National Park

Enjoy morning & evening shared jeep safaris in the National Park. [On Wednesdays the park remains closed in the evening]

Day 12: Kanha – Jabalpur Depart

At an appropriate time, your Travel Counsellor Representative will assist and transfer you to Jabalpur airport for the scheduled flight to Delhi to connect your onward flight back home.