Sikkim, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, the Dooars and Bhutan · a planner replies within one working day
Try "Gangtok", "toy train", "rhino", "Bhutan permit"
Two nights each at Gorumara and Jaldapara, the two best rhino parks in West Bengal, with three or four safaris, Totopara and a tea estate. The classic first Dooars trip from Siliguri.
This loop gives you the best odds of seeing the one-horned rhinoceros in West Bengal, with two nights in each of the two main parks. Gorumara is small and good for watchtower waits; Jaldapara is bigger, with open grassland where jeeps cover more ground. Between them you should see rhino, gaur, elephants, deer, peafowl and hornbills.
Drives are short: 80 km to Lataguri, 75 km on to Madarihat and 125 km back to Siliguri. That leaves time for a dawn and an afternoon safari in each park, a visit to the Toto village of Totopara, and walks in the tea gardens.
Highlights
Three ways to do it
Budget
₹12,000 pp
Same safaris for less, with more waiting for buses.
Ask for BudgetValue
₹22,000 pp
Government lodges close to the gates, with help booking safaris.
Ask for ValueComfort
₹38,000 pp
Private jeeps and comfortable rooms between safaris.
Ask for ComfortIndicative, per person, twin sharing, for the whole package. Mix tiers night by night if you like. Your written quote lists every cost.
Day by day
Leave Siliguri or Bagdogra by 9 am and drive via Sevoke and Malbazar to Lataguri. Check in, have lunch and take the afternoon watchtower safari, ideally to Jatraprasad, where rhino, gaur and elephants come to a salt lick. Return before dusk; elephants cross the roads around Lataguri and Murti after dark.
Take the first safari of the day to a second tower, such as Chandrachur or Medla with its bullock-cart ride. After breakfast rest, or drive 25 km to the Jalpesh temple near Mainaguri. In the late afternoon walk on the stony bed of the Murti river and watch birds as the light goes.
Drive east through the tea gardens of Chalsa, Nagrakata, Banarhat and Birpara, stopping for a short walk on a garden road. Reach Madarihat by lunch and check in. In the afternoon take a jeep safari across the Torsa grasslands of Jaldapara National Park, the best place in West Bengal to see one-horned rhinos.
Take the dawn jeep safari, or the elephant safari from the Hollong area if it is running that season. After breakfast drive about 22 km north to Totopara, home of the Toto community, near the Bhutan border. Walk quietly with your guide, buy tea or fruit in the village, and ask before photographing anyone. Return to Madarihat for a quiet evening.
After breakfast drive back along the Dooars road to Siliguri, reaching NJP or Bagdogra by early afternoon. If your train or flight is late, stop for lunch at Malbazar or the Coronation Bridge viewpoint at Sevoke on the way.
Included
Not included
Where you sleep
The West Bengal Forest Development Corporation lodge beside the Murti river near Gorumara, with a main building, cottages and tents in a large garden. Guests can …
A large hilltop resort at Chalsa, about 15 km from Lataguri, with cottage-style rooms, a pool and views over the Dooars plains. The most comfortable base …
The West Bengal Tourism Development Corporation lodge at Madarihat, right by the entry to Jaldapara National Park. Plain, spacious and well placed for early safaris.
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Questions travellers ask
Your chances are good, though nothing is guaranteed. With two safaris at Jaldapara, which has the largest rhino population in West Bengal, and two at Gorumara, most travellers between December and April see at least one rhino. In October and November tall grass can hide them.
Gorumara first, as it is closer to Siliguri and you can reach it in time for an afternoon safari on day one. Jaldapara then sits on the way to the Bhutan border if you want to continue to Phuentsholing, and is a straight 3–3.5 hour drive back to Siliguri.
Elephant safaris at Jaldapara run only in some seasons, with very few seats sold online by the forest department. They were announced again for 2025–26. We do not sell them, but if they are running you can book one yourself and swap it for the dawn jeep safari. Check current status before you travel.
Yes. Drives are short, safaris last about two hours and children usually love the animals. Very young children may struggle with dawn starts. Resorts in Lataguri and Chalsa have gardens, and Sinclairs has a pool. Keep children seated and quiet in the jeep.
Yes. From Madarihat, Jaigaon and the Bhutan border town of Phuentsholing are about 35 km away. Indians need a passport or voter ID for a Bhutan entry permit and pay Bhutan's Sustainable Development Fee; foreigners need a Bhutan visa arranged in advance. Check current status before you travel.
Asian elephants, gaur, sambar, barking deer, hog deer, wild boar, peafowl, and many birds including great and oriental pied hornbills. Leopards live in both parks but are seldom seen. There are no resident tigers in Gorumara or Jaldapara.
We book safaris through the forest department's official online booking when it opens and use the counters at Lataguri and Madarihat as a back-up. Slots are named to each traveller, so we need ID details for everyone when you book. Check current status before you travel.
Yes, from 16 September onwards, but October has the Durga Puja holidays, when lodges and safaris are fully booked weeks ahead. The grass is also tall after the monsoon, so animals are harder to see. November to April is better.
Yes, per person for two sharing a room, and indicative for the 2025–26 season. Peak dates cost more. Single travellers pay a supplement for a single room and a private car. Safari fees can change at the forest department's discretion.
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