Six nights across central India — the Bundela palaces at Orchha, two full days at the Khajuraho temples, then three nights and four safaris at Bandhavgarh
Madhya Pradesh is large and the good things in it are far apart, so this trip is built as a straight line rather than a loop. You come in by train at Jhansi for Orchha, drive east to Khajuraho for the temples, then south into the sal forest at Bandhavgarh, and fly out of Jabalpur at the end. Nothing is retraced.
The first half is architecture — Bundela palaces standing empty above the Betwa, and then two days among the thousand-year-old temples the Chandelas left at Khajuraho. The second half is the park. Three nights at Bandhavgarh buys four jeep drives, which is what it takes to give yourself a fair chance of a tiger without hanging the whole holiday on one.
The essentials
Trip information
Package code
EH07MP001
Pickup
Jhansi Railway Station
Drop
Jabalpur Airport (Dumna)
Night count
06 Nights, 07 Days
Travellers
6 pax
Vehicle
Toyota Innova (AC)
At a glance
Itinerary highlights
Day 1Arrive at Jhansi and cross to Orchha
Day 2Orchha in the morning, then the road to Khajuraho
Day 3The Western Group at Khajuraho
Day 4Eastern group in the morning, then south to the park
Day 5Two safaris at Bandhavgarh
Day 6Two more drives, and the fort on the hill
Day 7Check out and fly home from Jabalpur
Your route, day by day
Day-by-day itinerary
Orchha
A small town on the Betwa that was the Bundela capital for two hundred years and has been quietly emptying ever since.
Day 1
Arrive at Jhansi and cross to Orchha
You are met on the platform at Jhansi and driven across the state line to Orchha, which takes barely half an hour. After check-in the afternoon goes to the palace complex on the island in the Betwa — three palaces inside one wall, all of them empty and open to walk through. Ram Raja Temple in the town is worth timing for the evening aarti.
Starts from Jhansi Railway Station, ends at Betwa View Orchha, covering around 18 km in an estimated 35m.
Sightseeing
Jehangir MahalOpen 8 AM – 6 PMAllow 90 min
A square palace of arcaded courtyards and hanging balconies, built in the early seventeenth century by Bir Singh Deo to house the emperor Jahangir on a single visit. He stayed one night. The upper terraces look out over the river, the forest and the line of cenotaphs downstream.
Climb to the roof terrace for the river view
Walk the courtyards of the adjoining Raj Mahal
Look for the surviving ceiling murals
Ram Raja TempleOpen 8 AM – 12:30 PM, 7 PM – 10 PMAllow 45 min
Built as a palace and turned into a temple when an image installed here for safekeeping refused, by tradition, to be moved again. It is the one place where Rama is worshipped as a reigning king, and the state police mount a formal guard of honour at the aarti.
Attend the evening aarti
Watch the guard of honour
Walk the market square outside
Day 2
Orchha in the morning, then the road to Khajuraho
Out early to the cenotaphs on the Kanchana Ghat before the heat, then breakfast and a look at Chaturbhuj Temple, which stands over the town on a high plinth. You leave Orchha by late morning. The drive to Khajuraho takes about four hours through farmland and small market towns, and you check in there in time for the evening light and sound show at the Western Group.
Starts from Betwa View Orchha, ends at Chandela Courtyard Khajuraho, covering around 180 km in an estimated 5h 00m.
Sightseeing
Orchha CenotaphsOpen 8 AM – 6 PMAllow 60 min
Fourteen chhatris raised over the cremation sites of the Bundela rulers, standing together on the bank of the Betwa. Egyptian vultures nest in the towers. Early morning and last light are the two hours worth being there for.
Photograph the row from the riverbank
Walk down to the water
Watch for vultures on the spires
Chaturbhuj TempleOpen 8 AM – 6 PMAllow 45 min
A tall temple on a raised platform, built to hold the Rama image that ended up staying at Ram Raja instead. The interior is bare and cavernous, and a narrow stair leads up towards the spires for a view across the rooftops.
Climb the internal stair
See the town from the upper level
Look at the lotus roof carving
Khajuraho
What survives of a temple city built by the Chandela kings between about 950 and 1050, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Day 3
The Western Group at Khajuraho
The whole morning goes to the Western Group, which is the largest and best preserved of the three enclosures and holds Kandariya Mahadeva, the biggest temple on the site. A guide is worth taking here — the carving is dense and reads as a system rather than a jumble once someone points out the order of it. The afternoon is free, with the archaeological museum across the road for anyone still keen.
Based at Chandela Courtyard Khajuraho, covering around 12 km in an estimated 6h 30m.
Sightseeing
Western Group of TemplesOpen 8 AM – 6 PMAllow 180 min
A walled enclosure holding the finest of the Khajuraho temples, among them Kandariya Mahadeva with its rising cluster of towers, and Lakshmana and Vishvanatha on their high plinths. The famous erotic panels are a small part of a much larger scheme of gods, court scenes, musicians and animals wrapped around every wall.
Walk the platform circuit of Kandariya Mahadeva
Find the sculpted band of court and battle scenes
Sit on the Lakshmana plinth in the late light
Matangeshwar TempleOpen 5 AM – 8 PMAllow 30 min
The only Khajuraho temple still in daily worship, standing just outside the ticketed enclosure. Plainer than its neighbours outside, with a very large polished lingam inside. Shoes are left at the step.
See the lingam in the sanctum
Watch the morning offerings
Compare its plain walls with the carved temples next door
Archaeological Museum, KhajurahoOpen 9 AM – 5 PM, closed FridaysAllow 45 min
A small, well-lit collection of sculpture recovered from the site, including pieces that have fallen from temples now standing incomplete. Useful for seeing at eye level what is otherwise ten metres up a wall.
Look at the recovered sculpture up close
See the Jain bronzes
Read the site plan of the old temple city
Day 4
Eastern group in the morning, then south to the park
An early look at the Eastern Group — the Jain temples in their own walled compound, and the smaller Hindu shrines standing among houses and fields nearby. You leave by mid-morning for Bandhavgarh. It is a long drive on ordinary roads, with a lunch stop on the way, and you reach the lodge in the late afternoon. The naturalist will run through the next day's drive over dinner.
Starts from Chandela Courtyard Khajuraho, ends at Sal Forest Lodge Bandhavgarh, covering around 240 km in an estimated 6h 00m.
Sightseeing
Eastern Group of TemplesOpen 7 AM – 6 PMAllow 120 min
Parshvanath is the pick of these — a Jain temple of the mid-tenth century whose outer walls carry some of the most careful figure carving anywhere on the site. Adinath stands beside it, and the Hindu temples of Brahma, Vamana and Javari are a short drive off, in and around the old village.
See the wall figures at Parshvanath
Walk across to Adinath
Drive out to Javari and Vamana
Bandhavgarh
A national park of sal forest, grassland and cliffs in the Vindhya hills, with one of the highest tiger densities in the country.
Day 5
Two safaris at Bandhavgarh
Up before dawn for the morning drive, which is the better of the two — the gates open at first light and the forest is busiest then. You are back at the lodge by mid-morning for a proper breakfast and a long rest. The second drive goes out in the afternoon and returns at dusk. The guide will work the alarm calls of deer and langur, which is usually how a tiger is found.
Based at Sal Forest Lodge Bandhavgarh, covering around 90 km in an estimated 7h 00m.
Sightseeing
Morning Jeep SafariGates open at sunrise, about 4 hoursAllow 240 min
An open jeep with a driver and a forest department guide, on a route allotted at the gate. Tigers are the draw, but the drive also turns up leopard on occasion, sloth bear, sambar, chital, gaur and a great deal of birdlife.
Listen for langur and chital alarm calls
Watch the grassland edges at first light
Take a jacket — pre-dawn is cold in winter
Afternoon Jeep SafariAfternoon until sunset, about 3 hoursAllow 180 min
A shorter drive in warmer light, when animals move towards water. The zone you are given may differ from the morning, which is no bad thing — it shows you a different part of the park.
Wait out the waterholes
Photograph in the late afternoon light
Ask the guide about recent movement
Day 6
Two more drives, and the fort on the hill
A second morning drive, going into a different zone from yesterday if the permits allow. The route usually passes the foot of the Bandhavgarh hill, where the ruins of the fort sit above old rock-cut caves and a large reclining Vishnu carved by a spring. The afternoon drive closes the day, and there is time in between for the lodge naturalist's talk.
Based at Sal Forest Lodge Bandhavgarh, covering around 90 km in an estimated 7h 00m.
Sightseeing
Morning Jeep SafariGates open at sunrise, about 4 hoursAllow 240 min
The second morning is often the better one, because by now you know how the guide works and what to look at. Zones rotate, so the ground is usually new.
Try a different zone from yesterday
Watch the meadows for grazing herds
Look for pug marks on the track
Bandhavgarh Fort & Shesh ShaiyaSeen from the safari routeAllow 45 min
Ruins of an old fort on the flat-topped hill the park is named after, with caves cut into the rock below it and a long reclining statue of Vishnu beside a spring that feeds the Charanganga stream. Access to the hilltop itself is restricted, and what you see depends on the zone and the day.
See the reclining Vishnu carving
Look up at the cliff from the track
Ask the guide about the cave inscriptions
Afternoon Jeep SafariAfternoon until sunset, about 3 hoursAllow 180 min
The last drive of the trip, out through the closing hours of the day when the light is at its best for photographs.
Stay out to the last permitted minute
Watch the waterholes again
Note down what you have seen for the lodge log
Day 7
Check out and fly home from Jabalpur
Breakfast and check out. The drive to Jabalpur takes about four and a half hours, so we plan the departure around your flight and leave with time in hand. If your flight is late in the day there is room to stop at the Bhedaghat marble gorge outside Jabalpur — tell us in advance and we will build it in.
Starts from Sal Forest Lodge Bandhavgarh, ends at Jabalpur Airport (Dumna), covering around 200 km in an estimated 4h 30m.
Railway station pick-up and airport drop
× 2
Jhansi to Orchha to Khajuraho transfer
Khajuraho to Bandhavgarh transfer
Bandhavgarh to Jabalpur transfer
The fine print, clearly
What’s included
Inclusions
Six nights of accommodation in the selected hotel category.
Daily breakfast, and all meals at the Bandhavgarh lodge.
All transfers and sightseeing by private air-conditioned vehicle.
Four shared jeep safaris at Bandhavgarh — two morning and two afternoon drives.
Park entry permits, the jeep and the forest department guide for each drive.
Driver allowance, fuel, toll and parking charges.
24×7 destination support for the whole trip.
Exclusions
Airfare or train fare to Jhansi and out of Jabalpur.
Entry tickets at Khajuraho, Orchha and the evening light and sound show.
Camera fees and the charges of licensed monument guides.
Lunch and dinner other than at the Bandhavgarh lodge.
Any extra safari beyond the four listed, and a private jeep upgrade.
Personal expenses such as laundry, tips and shopping.
GST, charged extra on the final bill as applicable.
Good to know
Policies
Payment policy
50% of the package cost is needed at the time of booking to confirm it.
The remaining 50% must be cleared at least 20 days before the trip starts.
Safari permits are paid in full at the time of booking because they are bought against named passengers and cannot be transferred.
Peak season (October to March, and the Christmas and New Year weeks) needs full payment at booking.
The booking is confirmed only once the advance payment reaches us; payment by bank transfer or UPI.
Cancellation policy
0–15 days before check-in: 100% of the booking amount is charged.
16–30 days before check-in: 70% of the booking amount is charged.
31–45 days before check-in: 30% of the booking amount is charged.
Safari permits are non-refundable once issued, whatever the notice given.
A minimum cancellation charge of 10% applies in all cases.
No refund for unused nights, missed drives or an early check-out.
Peak season (20 December – 5 January): no refund on cancellation.
Important information
Bandhavgarh closes to visitors through the monsoon, roughly 1 July to 30 September, so this trip does not run in those months.
A tiger sighting is never guaranteed. Bandhavgarh has a good density of them and four drives improves your odds, but the forest decides.
Safari seats are limited by the forest department and sell out weeks ahead in season — book as early as you can, and send us the exact name and ID number for every traveller, because the permit is checked against them at the gate.
Morning drives report at the gate before sunrise. December and January mornings in the open jeep are genuinely cold; carry a jacket, a cap and gloves.
Wear muted colours in the park, keep your voice down and stay seated. Plastic bags are not allowed past the gate.
Khajuraho has three separate temple groups, all ticketed and all needing a fair amount of walking. Shoes come off at Matangeshwar, which is still in daily worship.
The Khajuraho to Bandhavgarh drive takes about six hours on ordinary state roads, so it is a travel day and not much else.
Easy Holiday
