DarjeelingHIMALAYAS

Way to travel

Wildlife and birds

Rhinos below, red pandas above

Within a day's drive you go from tall grassland at 100 m in the Dooars to rhododendron and bamboo forest above 3,000 m. That range explains the bird list, one of the richest in India for a small area.

Dooars parks close every monsoon and safari booking rules change: check current status before you travel.

In brief

One-horned rhinos and elephants in Jaldapara and Gorumara, gaur in Chapramari, red pandas in Singalila and Neora Valley, hornbills at Latpanchar. Parks close in the monsoon, roughly mid-June to mid-September.

Trips

Wildlife and birds on a ticket

Shoestring Darjeeling5 nights · Shared jeeps Darjeeling and the forest villages by jeep Darjeeling · Lepchajagat · Jorepokhri ₹12,000per person
about ₹2,000 a day
Value Darjeeling7 nights · Reserved car Chatakpur, Darjeeling and the Lepcha forest Chatakpur · Darjeeling · Lepchajagat · Jorepokhri ₹26,000per person
about ₹3,250 a day
Comfort Darjeeling8 nights · Reserved car A slow week: Darjeeling, Lepchajagat, Mungpoo Darjeeling · Lepchajagat · Mungpoo ₹45,000per person
about ₹5,000 a day
Value Kurseong & Mirik3 nights · Reserved car Latpanchar hornbills and Ahaldara dawns Latpanchar ₹12,500per person
about ₹3,100 a day
Value Kurseong & Mirik9 nights · Mixed Nine slow nights in the tea valleys Kurseong · Makaibari · Sittong · Latpanchar ₹31,000per person
about ₹3,100 a day
Comfort Kalimpong6 nights · Reserved car Kalimpong, Deolo, Lava and Rishyap for families Kalimpong · Deolo · Lava · Rishyap ₹35,000per person
about ₹5,000 a day
Value Kalimpong4 nights · Mixed Icchey Gaon and Ramdhura village walks Kalimpong · Ramdhura · Icchey Gaon ₹15,500per person
about ₹3,100 a day
Comfort Kalimpong5 nights · Reserved car Kolakham and Lava honeymoon by car Kalimpong · Kolakham · Lava ₹30,000per person
about ₹5,000 a day
Comfort Kalimpong7 nights · Reserved car Kalimpong, Lava and Lolegaon in comfort Kalimpong · Lava · Lolegaon ₹37,000per person
about ₹4,600 a day
Value Kalimpong3 nights · Reserved car Lava and Lolegaon long weekend by car Lava · Lolegaon ₹12,500per person
about ₹3,100 a day
Shoestring Kalimpong4 nights · Shared jeeps Lava and Rishyap by shared jeep Kalimpong · Lava · Rishyap ₹10,000per person
about ₹2,000 a day
Value Kalimpong5 nights · Mixed Neora Valley birding from Lava and Kolakham Lava · Kolakham ₹18,500per person
about ₹3,100 a day
Value Singalila4 nights · Mixed Sandakphu ridge and river trek Tumling · Kalipokhri · Sandakphu · Srikhola ₹17,000per person
about ₹3,400 a day
Value Singalila4 nights · On foot Red panda forest: Dhotrey to Kalipokhri Dhotrey · Tonglu · Gairibas · Kalipokhri ₹16,500per person
about ₹3,300 a day
Value Singalila6 nights · On foot Rhododendron spring on the Singalila Ridge Chitrey · Tonglu · Kalipokhri · Sandakphu ₹20,500per person
about ₹2,950 a day
Comfort Singalila9 nights · Mixed Slow Singalila: Sandakphu, Phalut and Rammam Tumling · Kalipokhri · Sandakphu · Phalut ₹41,500per person
about ₹4,150 a day
Shoestring West & South Sikkim4 nights · Mixed Barsey rhododendrons and Rinchenpong Barsey · Rinchenpong ₹11,000per person
about ₹2,200 a day
Shoestring Dooars5 nights · Mixed Jaldapara, Buxa and Jayanti on a budget Jaldapara National Park · Buxa · Jayanti ₹11,000per person
about ₹1,850 a day
Value Dooars6 nights · Mixed Chilapata, Buxa Fort and Jayanti in a week Chilapata · Buxa · Jayanti · Jaldapara National Park ₹21,000per person
about ₹3,000 a day
Comfort Dooars4 nights · Reserved car Murti and Jaldapara with the family, by car Murti · Jaldapara National Park ₹26,000per person
about ₹5,200 a day
Shoestring Dooars2 nights · Mixed Gorumara forest weekend on a shoestring Lataguri ₹5,000per person
about ₹1,650 a day
Value Dooars5 nights · Mixed Gorumara, Jaldapara and Chilapata in 5 nights Lataguri · Jaldapara National Park · Chilapata ₹19,500per person
about ₹3,250 a day
Comfort Dooars7 nights · Reserved car The Dooars end to end in a week, by car Jhalong · Samsing · Lataguri · Jaldapara National Park ₹42,000per person
about ₹5,250 a day
Value Dooars4 nights · Mixed Jhalong, Bindu and the Samsing hills Jhalong · Suntalekhola · Samsing ₹15,000per person
about ₹3,000 a day
Value Dooars3 nights · Mixed Three nights by the Murti river Murti ₹13,000per person
about ₹3,250 a day
Comfort Dooars5 nights · Reserved car Dooars river valleys for birders, by car Murti · Suntalekhola · Jhalong ₹26,000per person
about ₹4,350 a day
Shoestring Dooars6 nights · Shared jeeps Dooars rhino loop by train and jeep Lataguri · Samsing · Jaldapara National Park ₹13,000per person
about ₹1,850 a day
Comfort Dooars9 nights · Reserved car Nine slow nights from Samsing to Jayanti Samsing · Murti · Jaldapara National Park · Chilapata ₹51,000per person
about ₹5,100 a day

Places

Where to go for it

forest village2,400 m Chatakpur A forest-department eco-village at 2,400 m inside Senchal
lake2,250 m Jorepokhriजोरपोखरी Twin ponds, India's first salamander sanctuary and an honest update
Lepchajagat
forest village2,120 m Lepchajagatलेप्चाजगत A forest village on the Ghoom–Sukhia road, named for the Lepchas
Tiger Hill
viewpoint2,567 m Tiger Hill Dawn over Kanchenjunga from the highest hill near Darjeeling
viewpoint1,500 m Ahaldara A bare hilltop over the Teesta, with Kanchenjunga on clear mornings
Latpanchar
forest village1,400 m Latpanchar Hornbills and cinchona at the top of Mahananda sanctuary
lake1,370 m Namthing Pokhri The seasonal lake where Himalayan salamanders come to breed
Icchey Gaon
village1,770 m Icchey Gaon A 1,770 m homestay ridge between Kalimpong and Pedong
Kolakham
village1,981 m Kolakham A Rai village on the edge of Neora Valley, facing Kanchenjunga
Lava
forest village2,195 m Lavaलाभा Misty forest village at the gate of Neora Valley
Neora Valley
national park3,150 m Neora Valley Red panda forest from the Dooars to Rachela Danda
Dhotrey
forest village2,500 m Dhotrey A forest village and the short way up to Tonglu
Gairibas
forest village2,621 m Gairibas A forest hollow on the ridge where red pandas live
forest village2,390 m Gorkhey A river meadow village after the long drop from Phalut
village2,560 m Rammam The village above the river that waters Darjeeling's border
Tonglu
viewpoint3,070 m Tonglu Hooker's rhododendron hill and an open Indian summit

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