[Ardy]

IMHO, this is the wrong time to visit Kaziranga if its for the national park. I made the same mistake last August and could not entire Kaziranga as it was flooded and closed. Most of the national parks are closed during the monsoon season.

It takes about 6-7 hours of drive from Guwahati to Kaziranga and 8-9 hours from Kaziranga to Shillong.

My recommendation is to spend more time in Shillong rather than in Kaziranga.

[hvkumar]

Several sections on NH52 (North Bank highway from Baihata Chariali to Pasighat via Tezpur) and NH37 (South Bank highway from Goalpara to Jorhat, via Guwahati) are affected by floods and ensure that your road is open when you travel.

As Ardy mentioned, Kaziranga is closed now during the rainy season although I am sure you may see wildlife on Nh37 itself near Kohora.

[s0uljah]

Originally Posted by hvkumar

Lovely circuit - you have wonderful places like Umiam Lake, Cherapunjee, and so on. I believe that all roads leading to Aizwal are in bad shape now.so you may want to check out with your friends on actual road condition just before your trip. I suppose you still have to obtain permits to visit Mizoram.

Would not be a roadtrip(ie : driving).

Need to see budget constraints and then figure route and mode of travel.

Who are the BHPians in shillong?

[hvkumar]

I think all cities in North East are well-connected to Guwahati by overnight luxury buses, which will be the best mode to get around. However, you will miss the wonderful landscapes and cultural ambience that the North East has to offer.

[addyhemmige]

Hi,

Me and a few friends are planning to do a Kaziranga trip in January. We plan to leave Bangalore on 22 Jan and reach Guwahati by flight. The return would be on 26 Jan. I do not have an itinerary planned yet. A visit to Kaziranga is a must. What would be the best way to get to Kaziranga from Guwahati? If time permits, I'd like to visit Shillong & Cherrapunji as well. It will be very helpful if you guys give suggestions on my itinerary. We are 6 of us.

Addy

[wanderernomad]

Hire a Taxi from Guwahati itself. Keep it all through.

[tathagata]

Just thought of reviving this thread on account of my planning to visit this part of the country in October. Itenary should something like the ne below:

23/10/12 - Depart on Saraighat Express from Howrah (15:50)
24/10/12 - Arrive at Guwahati (9:30) Onward to Kajiranga (5 - 6 hrs) reach by evening. Night stay at Kajiranga.
25/10/12 - Elephant/Jeep safari througout the day. Night stay at Kajiranga.
26/10/12 - Early morning departure Kajiranga to Shillong (5- 6 hrs.). Local sight seeing at Shillong. Night stay at Shillong.
27/10/12 - Early morning departure to Guwahati. Visit Kamakhya Mandir, Vasisth Mandir. Evening departure by Kanchenjunga Express (22:30) to Sealdah
28/10/12 - Arrive Sealdah (Kolkata) by 19:25

I know this would be touch & go kind of trip but start & end days are fixed starting being Navami (Durga Puja) and end date being date before Laxmi Puja. Flight with my twin kids, 4yrs. of age is a wastage as well as out of scope.

Would be much obliged if you all can suggest any better way of making this trip in the given time frame or suggest a more suitable itenary.

[satrab]

Hi tathagata,given the time constraints, this does seem possible, but going to Shillong and not being able to go to Cherrapunjee to see the Nohkalikai falls and the caves there does seem a pity. In Shillong ideally you should make sure you visit Elephant falls and Rhino falls. You could perhaps fix with the car that you see Beadon-bishop falls on the way back to Guwahati. Try to spend a short while at Barapani (Umiam). Shillong Peak and the Golf links are also must sees. You can get a great view of the Polo ground and the golf links from New Colony in the Laitumkrah area. This is all from my memories of the place from when I lived there, which is quite a while ago. Wish you a great trip

[Fauji]

Originally Posted by tathagata

Just thought of reviving this thread on account of my planning to visit this part of the country in October. Itenary should something like the ne below:

23/10/12 - Depart on Saraighat Express from Howrah (15:50)
24/10/12 - Arrive at Guwahati (9:30) Onward to Kajiranga (5 - 6 hrs) reach by evening. Night stay at Kajiranga.
25/10/12 - Elephant/Jeep safari througout the day. Night stay at Kajiranga.
26/10/12 - Early morning departure Kajiranga to Shillong (5- 6 hrs.). Local sight seeing at Shillong. Night stay at Shillong.
27/10/12 - Early morning departure to Guwahati. Visit Kamakhya Mandir, Vasisth Mandir. Evening departure by Kanchenjunga Express (22:30) to Sealdah
28/10/12 - Arrive Sealdah (Kolkata) by 19:25

I know this would be touch & go kind of trip but start & end days are fixed starting being Navami (Durga Puja) and end date being date before Laxmi Puja. Flight with my twin kids, 4yrs. of age is a wastage as well as out of scope.

Would be much obliged if you all can suggest any better way of making this trip in the given time frame or suggest a more suitable itenary.

Thathgata,

Assuming that you would like to visit only Guwahati - Kajiranga - Shillong i would propose the following - assuming again you will be travelling by Saraighat express.

Day 1 - Arrive in Guwahati. Drive straight to Kaziranga. Relax in the evening. Stay in Wild Grass. Excellent value for money.

Day 2 - Morning and Evening Safari. Stay back in Kaziranga.

Day 3 - Depart for Shillong. Leave early in the morning. Reach Shillong by late afternoon. Relax in the evening. Visit Shillong market. You can not do much sight seeing on this day. Please keep in mind sun sets early in north east.

Day 4 - Shillong sightseeing, visit Cherrapunjee and drive back to Guwahati. Not visiting Cherrapunjee after having gone to Shillong is criminal. Reach Guwahati for Dinner. Stay in Guwahati.

Day 5 - Get up early and visit Kamakhya mandir. Be there when it opens at 8 AM. Have breakfast in GB's on AT road - excellent Poori chole and mouthwatering hot jalebis. Visit Bashista, Go for boat ride on Brahmaputra. Catch Kanchenjunga express and return to Calcutta.

Hope this helps

[SwiftSD]

Originally Posted by tathagata

23/10/12 - Depart on Saraighat Express from Howrah (15:50)
24/10/12 - Arrive at Guwahati (9:30) Onward to Kajiranga (5 - 6 hrs) reach by evening. Night stay at Kajiranga.
25/10/12 - Elephant/Jeep safari througout the day. Night stay at Kajiranga.
26/10/12 - Early morning departure Kajiranga to Shillong (5- 6 hrs.). Local sight seeing at Shillong. Night stay at Shillong.
27/10/12 - Early morning departure to Guwahati. Visit Kamakhya Mandir, Vasisth Mandir. Evening departure by Kanchenjunga Express (22:30) to Sealdah
28/10/12 - Arrive Sealdah (Kolkata) by 19:25

You seem to have a very tight schedule.
If I recall correctly there exists central range , western range, eastern range etc in Kaziranga and you can opt for the Elephant/Jeep safari in any of these sections. Spending 2 days there would be an ideal choice but given the fact that you would be spending only one day there , make sure to choose different sections for the Jeep and elephant safari.

kaziranga to Shillong would take you around 9 hours. There are a lot of places to visit in and around Shillong and it would take minimum of 2 days if not more to see the major spots.

I would have probably chosen only one place and in this case Shillong (including 1 full day in Guwahati) if I had 4/5 days for the trip.

SD

[tathagata]

Thanks Fauji & SwiftSD for your valuable inputs.

Yes I am on tight schedule as I cannot leave Kol beofre Ashtami Puja and need be bck before Laxmi puja (family rules).

The itenary as suggested by Fauji is the best but I am short by a day at least to execute that. Will keep in mind SwiftSD's suggestions about the different range safaris at Kaziranga.

Will it be better if I enter Kaziranga through Tezpur as suggested by some members in this thread. If yes what would be the connection option from Kolkata by rail (if any).

[Sutripta]

Originally Posted by tathagata

Will it be better if I enter Kaziranga through Tezpur as suggested by some members in this thread. If yes what would be the connection option from Kolkata by rail (if any).

Assam North Bank by train:- not a good idea, until and unless train travel itself is the goal. Metre gauge and all that. You will have to change at Rangiya.

Will have to find out latest status on gauge conversion. Esp. wrt Bogibeel.

Regards
Sutripta

[satrab]

Originally Posted by Sutripta

Assam North Bank by train:- not a good idea, until and unless train travel itself is the goal. Metre gauge and all that. You will have to change at Rangiya.

Will have to find out latest status on gauge conversion. Esp. wrt Bogibeel.

Regards
Sutripta

I would agree with Sutripta-da. Changing trains is not a great idea. It will also take you about 9 hours to reach Shillong from Kaziranga. May take more as you have children with you. It will also be a fairly tiring trip. All of which mean you get a couple of hours sightseeing in Shillong at the most. Not much to see after sunset, and that is quite early, especially in end-October.

You may like to look at an option where you get a morning safari in Kaziranga on the 26th and leave for Guwahati in the afternoon. Then spend the next day in Guwahati, visiting Kamakhya and Vasishtha Mandir. You should also try to visit Umananda temple which is in the middle of the Brahmaputra on a small island. That way you also get a boat ride on the Brahmaputra.

I think there is a dinner boat ride on the Brahmaputra as well, otherwise there's Paradise on Gopi Nath Bordoloi road for Assamese food. There are also a number of small eating places (thali joints) in the Paltan Bazar area that serve very nice fish and rice.

[abk]

I am from the NE. Most of the important info has already been provided. Would like to add a point to the list - do not miss late afternoon tea and snacks seeing the sun go down the Umiam lake (more popularly called Barapani) at Ri Kynjai resort (::::: Ri Kynjai - Serenity by the lake :::::). It is an out of this world experience! It is about 20 kms before Shillong (a narrow road over a bridge on the right before you reach the first bridge of Barapani). The detour from the NH to the resort is about 2-3 kms. If you need more info on Guwahati, Shillong & Sohra (Cherrapunji) message me. Fortunately, I have been visiting all these places since last summer.

[tathagata]

As it appears from all the inputs by the members that my schedule is being too tight to enjoy the beauties of North-East comfortably. Hence shelving the plan for North-East till next year summer vacation and opting for Dooars with the current schedule.

Thanks for all the suggestion and thoughtful inputs from all of you. Will again knock your doors again during next summer for a full fledged trip to Guwahati-Shillong-Cherapunji.