The Bandipur National Park is one of the most fascinating wild-life centers, established in 1930's by the Mysore Maharajahs. It was once the Mysore Maharaja’s private hunting park.

Bandipur lies in the southern state of Karnataka. It stretches along the Kerala-Tamil Nadu border and lies on the Mysore - Ooty highway and covers a forest area of 874.2 square kilometers and  780-1455 m above sea level. The temperature in Bandipur ranges between 10 degrees and 35 degrees centigrade. The park has an average annual rainfall of 1200mm.

Some of the main animal species found in the park are Tigers, Leopards, Elephants, Gaurs, Sambar, Chital, Barking Deer, Mouse Deer, Black Napped Hare, Sloth Beer, Wild dog (Dhole), Langur, Bonnet Macaque, Indian Giant Red Squirrel, 4 Horned Antelope (Chausingha), Porcupines, Slender Loris, Jungle Cat, Leopard Cat, Rusty Spotted Cat, Small Indian Civet, Palm Civet, Common Otter, Wild Boar, Jackal, 4 varieties of Mongoose, Flying Squirrels, Pangolin, Giant Fruit Bats and Striped Hyenas.A lot of these species are seen close to the accommodation facilities available in the park. To get a closer view of the animals, one can book a 'Machan' near the watering hole.

General Information:

Place : Chamarajanagar District, Karnataka 

Best time to visit :  March-August

Accommodation : Forest Lodges, Cottages, Forest Rest Houses.

Nearest towns : Gundulpet (20 km)

How to get there :  Rail-Mysore (65 km),Air Bangalore (190 km)

Main attraction : One among the sanctuaries across India selected for Project Tiger