Some important things you should know before going on safari in Ranthambore

Ranthambore National Park is a famous wildlife spot surrounded by Aravalli and Vindhya hills in Sawai Madhopur district of Rajasthan which is famous all over the world for Royal Bengal Tigers. Ranthambore is one of those national parks in India where there are more opportunities to see tigers.

The main attraction of Ranthambore National Park is the jungle safari tour. Yes, a golden opportunity to see tigers and other wild animals up close!

Here we will know about some important things about Ranthambore National Park Safari. In which there are some things that we should know before booking Ranthambore Safari and there are some things which we should know even after booking a safari.

We must visit the park to explore the wildlife and their behavior. Safari booking is a must to visit the park. But first we will talk about the problems that come before going on safari.

So let's take a look at those aspects of Ranthambore that are often missed and which tourists are unaware of.

Late arrival of vehicle

Often tourists complain that jeeps or canters reach the hotel late for safaris. For this, first of all we would like to bring to your information that Jungle Safari in Ranthambore National Park is under the control of Forest Department, Government of Rajasthan.

The allotment of jeep and canter for safari in Ranthambore is done by the forest department while issuing the boarding pass. Safari vehicles in Ranthambore are allotted by the Forest Department through a roster system. These boarding passes are issued on the day of the safari in which the safari vehicle number and the name of the guide are mentioned. Once the boarding pass is allotted, the driver or guide has to collect the boarding passes of all the tourists.

The Forest Department issues boarding passes for 20 seats in a canter and 6 seats in a jeep. There are different boarding passes in a vehicle that belong to different hotels. Most boarding passes are held at the canter. The driver has to bring tourists from different hotels for safari. Due to which sometimes the safari vehicle reach late. The problem of arriving late for safari pickup often occurs in canters. There are 20 tourists in a canter and most of these tourists are from different hotels.

The driver takes time to pick up the tourist from different hotels, due to which he gets late in reaching the last hotel. Hotels located on the road take less time, but it takes longer to reach hotels located inside or in the village.

Sometimes the Safari booking server of the Forest Department gets down, due to which the boarding passes are issued late. Because of this, sometimes the vehicles arrive late. But for tourists who have booked a private jeep safari or a private canter safari, the vehicles reach almost on time.

Seating arrangement in safari vehicles

Forest Department only book Ranthambore Safari. Forest Department does not allot seat number in any vehicle with Safari Confirmation. Even seat numbers are not allotted at the time of issue of boarding passes, so visitors sit randomly in safari vehicles.

After collecting the safari boarding pass, the guide and driver leave the booking centre. The guide/driver picks up the tourists from their hotels for safari as per the boarding pass. In such a situation, those who first board the safari vehicle, they take a seat according to their wish. So the visitors sit randomly and finally the vehicle enters the park after completing all the 20 tourists.

The first pickup takes place at hotels located before the park entrance, and later at hotels located near the park entrance. And the reverse sequence of the same starts after exiting the park when tourists have to drop off their hotel.

Many times the tourists get into a dispute with the guide and the driver over the seat and sometimes the tourists also clash with each other. But when Tiger is seen in the forest, everyone leaves their seats and stands. Lol !

In most of these cases, guides and drivers help and advise the tourists. Whenever there is a group of four to five or more people in a canter, they are advised to sit in the same block so that other tourists are not disturbed. Some of these people accept advice and some do not.

Seven passengers in a jeep

As we mentioned above that Safari in Ranthambore is completely under the control of Forest Department. Forest department books 6 safari tickets in a jeep. Ranthambore safari booking is done online. Apart from the guide and the driver, there are 6 tourists in a jeep.

Tickets for only 6 people are booked in the jeep by the Forest Department, apart from the guide and the driver. But sometimes the forest department adjusts an extra person in a jeep, thus making a total of 7 people in a jeep. But the forest department sometimes adjusts 7 seats in a jeep depending on the circumstances. In such a situation, the forest guide does not go on safari with the tourists but the forest department pays the guide. Apart from the driver, only 7 people can sit in a jeep. In such a situation, the driver only tells the tourists about the flora and fauna as much as he knows.

The forest department does this when 3 people of the same family are together or a single person is left. In such a situation, the forest department adjusts seven tourists in a jeep. Sometimes a situation arises in canters also when the forest department accommodates one or two people in a canter apart from 20 seats.

Change of Zone

The zone is selected while booking safari in Ranthambore National Park, so tourists can book safari in their preferred zone based on availability. But keeping in mind the safety of the forest, wildlife and tourism, the forest department can close any safari zone for tourism at any time without any notice. In such a situation, the forest department diverts the safari vehicle to another safari zone.

English language problem for guide / driver

Sometimes this problem is faced by international tourists who often come from European countries. Most of the guides and drivers in Ranthambore are from the areas around the Tiger Reserve. When Ranthambore National Park came into existence on 1 November 1980, there were many villages in Ranthambore National Park which were later displaced and settled in the vicinity of Ranthambore Tiger Reserve.

At that time people often used to work in the fields, grazed the cattle in the forest and used to cut wood in the forest, so the forest department has tried to save the forest by giving wildlife tourism employment to these people. Some of these people are educated and some very less. Some of these people became guides and some became drivers. Apart from this, many people work in nearby hotels.

To save the forests and wildlife, the forest department has connected them with employment (wildlife tourism). Forest Department employs local people under Nature Guide and EDC Guide. The Forest Department registered them after imparting training. This was a good step of the Forest Department to make people aware of the environment and to save the forests and wildlife.

Some of these people are educated and some are less educated. Some people speak good English, some know very little. In such a situation, when a tourist comes to Ranthambore after excursion or sightseeing with guides from Delhi, Agra, Jaipur and other tourist places, he expects the same from the guides of Ranthambore.

Apart from this, there are always some questions in front of visitors like how to book safari? Which is the best zone in Ranthambore? e.t.c. So let's get some information about Ranthambore.

How to reach

Ranthambore National Park is located in the Sawai Madhopur district of Rajasthan. Sawai Madhopur district is well connected to all the major cities of India by rail and road. The nearest railway station to Ranthambore National Park is Sawai Madhopur, which is located 14 km away from the park. Sanganer Airport of Jaipur is the nearest airport to Ranthambore National Park which is about 170 kms away.

Where to stay

There are plenty of hotels for accommodation in Ranthambore National Park including budget, standard, deluxe and luxury as well as tent accommodation in Ranthambore. All hotels are located outside the park. There are no hotels inside the park. RTDC has two hotels in Ranthambore.

How to Book Safari

Booking of safaris in Ranthambore National Park is done online. You can book safaris online from any corner of the country. For the process of online safari booking in Ranthambore, all visitors have to provide official photo identity card.

Apart from this, visitors have to mention about Safari Date, Safari Shift and Safari Vehicle (Jeep / Canter) for Ranthambore Safari Booking.

For booking a certain safari, all visitors have to pay the full amount of the safari. Safari deposit amount is completely non-refundable and non-transferable.

Best time to visit

The best time to visit Ranthambore National Park starts from October and lasts till June although the park is open for tourists even in monsoons. Zones 6 to 10 of Ranthambore remain open during monsoon.

Every year thousands of tourists come to Ranthambore to spend their holidays and enjoy wildlife viewing through safaris. The pleasure of seeing tigers and other wildlife in their natural habitat is different, which mesmerizes the tourists. Tigers can be easily spotted during Ranthambore National Park Safari.

However, the sighting of tigers in any wildlife sanctuary during safari depends on luck and it is a matter of coincidence.

Safari Zone

Ranthambore National Park has ten different zones for safari excursions, all created by the Forest Department. Ranthambore is open for tourists from 1 October to 30 June. Every year lakhs of tourists come here for safari.

All 10 zones of Ranthambore are open for tourists from October to June, while zones 1 to 5 are closed for tourists in the monsoon season (July, August and September) and safaris continue in zones 6 to 10.

Best zone for safari

It is a bit difficult to say which is the best zone for safari or tiger spotting in Ranthambore as all the zones in Ranthambore are good and all have tiger territory. All the zones have been beautifully mapped by the Forest Department. The roads of all the zones pass through stream, valleys and such places where the movement of tigers lives.

Overall, there is a tiger area in every zone of Ranthambore. Tiger is a territorial wild animal and seeing a tiger in the wild is a matter of coincidence and depends on luck. No matter in which region you go on safari.