NORTHERN INDIA

India is an exotic land, full of wonderful scenery, majestic buildings, and so many sights and sounds that invade your senses - and that’s before we even look at the birds! We will begin with a visit to Sultanpur Bird Sanctuary where as well as multitudes of waterfowl, storks, ibis, egrets, herons and shorebirds we will look for Brooks's Leaf Warbler and SInd Sparrow. Next up is the relatively new destination of Jhalana Safari Park in the centre of magical Jaipur. As well as more new birds this is THE place to see and observe Leopard and we hope to get some outstanding views of this amazing mammal. Our next destination will be Ranthambhore Nationl Park where species such as Painted Sandgrouse, Painted Spurfowl,Sirkeer Malkoha, White-naped Woodpecker, Variable Wheatear and others. It is also famous as one of India's primary Tiger reserves and it offers us an excellent chance of seeing one of these awesome predators. Other mammals here could include Sloth Bear or Jungle Cat, as well as a wide variety of other animals. Then we head to the justly famous Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur. With water levels being low over the last few years, a new pipeline guarantees this marvellous sanctuary will always have water and so should be returned to its former glory with huge colonies of nesting storks, ibis, egrets and herons creating a cacophony of sound. Amongst the 200 or so other species we can find here, highlights could include huge Sarus Cranes striding majestically across the marshes, a Dusky Eagle-owl staring down from its tree top roost, or a Siberian Rubythroat or Tickell's Thrush skulking in the shadows. No visit to northern India is complete without a visit to the Taj Mahal and we shall have a guided visit on our way to the wonderful Chambal Safari Lodge. A boat trip along the Chambal River could provide us with one of the most wanted birds in India, the rare Indian Skimmer. As well as these special birds a whole list of other mouth-watering birds awaits us as well as giving us an outside chance of Gangetic River Dolphin.

This tour can also be combined with our Classic Himalayas tour to provide undoubtedly the most comprehensive coverage of northern India.