Nestled well amidst the towering Western Ghat Mountains on the Mysore-Ooty highway, the Deccan Plateau houses one of the first Tiger Reserves of the country - The Bandipur National Park. Situated in Karnataka, the Bandipur National Park includes the neighbouring wildlife sanctuaries of Mudumalai National Park in Tamil Nadu and Wayanad in Kerala. A moderate climate and diverse geographical features support a remarkable variety of flora and fauna. Bandipur Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the 15 sanctuaries belonging to the Project Tiger Scheme launched in 1973, by the World Wide Fund for Nature. In 1974, the Bandipur was declared a National Park under the Wildlife Protection Act. The Bandipur National Park is one of its own kind in Asia as it has huge elephant herds.

The drier SE corner of Bandipur National Park has scrub forests. During the dry months of March-May, Indian Elephants stay close to rivers and lakes. At this time of year, Indian Elephant sightings are unsurpassed in Nagarhole National Park, especially if you are staying at the Kabini River Lodge in Karapur. Nearby, at Mastigudi large gatherings of 100 or so Indian Elephants on the banks of the Kabini Lake are known, a sight unrivalled anywhere. Bandipur National Park is probably the best place in the subcontinent for seeing Dhole, and the Indian Giant Squirrel can be seen at Mudumalai, lying curled in trees holes or crooks of brances during the day.

Area : Nagarhole national park 64,330 hectares.
Bandipur National Park 87,420 hectares.
Mudumalai National Park 32,155 hectares.

Established : Nagarhole National Park, 1955 as a sanctuary, 1975 as a national park.
Bandipur National Park, 1931 as a sanctuary, 1941 as a national park,
1973 as a tiger reserve. Mudumalai, 1940 as a sanctuary.

Season :
Open year round, the best period being October-May, especially April-May.

Access :
Fly to Bangalore and drive to Nagarhole (6 hours) or Bandipur (6-7 hours). The nearest station railway station is Mysore. For Mudumalai National Park the nearest airport is Coimbatore (160 km) and the nearest railway station Ooty or Udhagamandalam (64 km).