One of the relatively undiscovered corners of India is its Northeast, bordering China, Tibet, Burma and Bangladesh. It is comprised of a group of states called The Seven Sisters--Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland and Tripura. The area is a mixture of Buddhist, Christian and Hindu cultures and it is possible to travel by road in a single day from sweltering riverine tropical rain forests to frozen, rocky Himalayan heights while passing through Alpine vistas, all of an unparalleled, dramatic beauty. This is a must-do area for the jaded traveler who has "seen it all" and outlined below is a one-week tour that will take in the most important highlights. The best time to visit is between April and October.
The starting point for any Northeast India tour should be Guwahati in Assam because it is the road, rail and air hub for the entire region that connects to the rest of India. It is also the most convenient jump-off point for your Northeast visit. Although air service is available to all of the states, it is best to travel by road whenever you can in order to take in the local sights.
A one-week tour will allow you to take in the famous Kaziranga National Park, a Tea Estate, a Brahmaputra cruise and Tawang Monastery in Arunachal Pradesh.
Day 1: Guwahati and Brahmaputra cruise
There are a number of river cruises available from Guwahati and in the interests of time, the best option is to take a 4 or 6 hour cruise down the Brahmaputra river, the widest in the world. The scenery is spectacular. In Guwahati, the best hotels to stay in are the Brahmaputra Ashok in the center of town which has outstanding views of the mighty river and the Tata-run Ginger Hotel which is located on the outskirts. The latter is best if you have a tight schedule and need to get in and out of Guwahati quickly as traffic jams can be a major problem during office rush hours. You should make all your hotel, safari and transport reservations before hand although it is possible to do these locally too. If you are non-Indian, your most important task is to arrange for your Restricted Area Permit at least 3 weeks ahead of time in order to visit Arunachal Pradesh. If you are going to be in Delhi, you can arrange the permit at Arunachal House. A good tip is to book everything, specially your hotels in Arunachal, at least a couple of months in advance if not more. Make certain that your drivers have been doing these routes for a while and are familiar with the roads which can be quite an adventure by themselves. Again, the tourist officers at Arunachal House in Delhi will be able to give you names and phone numbers.
Day 2: Guwahati to Kaziranga.
You should take a private SUV which can be arranged by your hotel if you haven't made arrangemets already. It is a 4-hour drive which will take you through scenic paddy fields and tea plantations among the hills, passing through a couple of small towns. You can stop along the way to enjoy a cup of tea in the middle of the lush scenery because this is where a large portion of the world's tea supply comes from, more on which later.
You will spend the night in Kaziranga and here you should opt for the Forest Lodge which is an old, colonial-era bungalow on stilts. It is spartan but clean and imparts the right ambiance. If you can't get the lodge, there are several acceptable modern hotels that are available nearby. If you have made reservations, you will be going on an elephant safari early next morning before the sun comes up, so retire early. The elephants are well trained and quite comfortable to ride on but if you are hesitant, you can opt for a jeep safari as a poor second choice! Kaziranga is an outstanding success both for having brought the Asian one-horned rhino from the brink of extinction and for having turned around the local population of the Royal Bengal tiger. You will almost certainly see several rhinos, hog deer, wild pigs, a wide range of birds including the hornbill during your safari and, if you are lucky, even a tiger!
Day 3: Tea Estate visit in Jorhat
You will be done with your safari by lunchtime, so after lunch, you should head out to Jorhat which will take you about 2 hours. The best place to stay is in one of the tea estate bungalows run by the Welcome Group. These bungalows were built by the British planters a century ago and will give you a pretty accurate idea of how life was for the Burra Sahibs of the Raj. You can tour the garden to watch the leaf being plucked and then the factory to see how the leaf is turned into tea. Here is your chance to buy the best and freshest tea you will every get! If you like full-bodied tea, ask for CTC and if you prefer aroma, ask for Orthodox. A safe compromise if you don't know what you are doing is to simply ask for a Blend and the Factory Manager will make one up for you. Photography is usually not allowed inside a tea factory.
A little detail for the history buff--on the way to Jorhat, you will pass Dergaon (literally translation: "one and a half villages"!) which was a major staging base and airstrip for the Allies during World War Two. From here, many men and materials flew over and drove through The Hump into Burma and China. This is ground zero of the old China-Burma-India (CBI) theater.
Day 4: Jorhat-Bhalukpong
Leave Jorhat after breakfast and keep your Restricted Area Permit handy because in about 4 hours, you will need it to enter Arunachal Pradesh just after leaving the town of Tezpur in Assam. It is about a 6 hour drive from Jorhat to Bhalukpong where you will spend the night and you will pass another beautiful National Park called Nameri. Unfortunately, hotels are hit and miss in Arunachal and your best bets are the Government Guest Houses that need to be reserved well in advance. In a pinch, there are several basic hotels available too.
Day 5: Bhalukpong-Tawang
This is an arduous trip of 10 hours through winding mountain roads, many parts of which are being upgraded. The saving grace is that it is one of the most spectacular as well! You will be climbing beyond 10,000 feet ASL, so keep your warm clothes handy. On the way, you will meet some of the most isolated people in the world--the Monpa--who also happen to be among the friendliest and simplest. They follow a mix of Buddhist and Animist religions while the inhabitants of Tawang proper are Buddhist and follow a strain of Tibetan Buddhism. The local delicacy is Thukpa, a noodle and meat stew along with Momo, a pork dumpling. The locals love to accompany these with very hot chillies so be warned. In fact, Tezpur is home to the worlds hottest chilli called the Nagajolokia which is about five times "hotter" than the fiery Habanero! Once you reach Tawang, you will need to sleep off the trip and it is best to do so early.
Day 6: Tour Tawang
Called Little Tibet, Tawang is home to the 400 year-old Tawang Monastery. It was also the birthplace of the 6th Dalai Lama. It is also the place where the current Dalai Lama (the 14th) entered India when he fled Tibet in 1952 following the Chinese invasion of his country. This is also where a badly-equipped Indian Army garrison fought to the last man against the Chinese when they invaded India in 1962. The area is heavily guarded now, hence the need for the permit, and reminders of the war are everywhere.
Places to visit in Tawang besides the monastery is Jaswantgarh, an old fortress up beyond the treeline perched on windswept, rocky and snowy peaks. A truly spectacular and sobering place. Another great trip is to Pankang Teng Tso lake which is about a half hour from Tawang. This is one of the most beautiful of the many crystal-clear high-altitude lakes in the area. Don't overdo it in Tawang because of the altitude and prepare to leave early the next morning.
Day 7: Tawang-Tezpur
This 13-hour journey will take you past more high-altitude lakes ringed with rhododendrons. There are a few orchid farms here too. If you time your departure correctly, you should be able to drive directly to Tezpur airport and catch a flight to Kolkata or Delhi. If not, you can do that the first thing the next morning.
This is obviously a hectic pace and if you would like it to be more leisurely, you should allow 10 days for it. Alternatively, you can omit the tea garden visit in Jorhat and head directly to Bhalukpong from Kaziranga National Park. Another alternative is to avail of helicopter service to Tawang from Guwahati and air service between Guwahati, Jorhat and Tezpur. Jorhat and Tezpur are the closest airports to Kaziranga.
The starting point for any Northeast India tour should be Guwahati in Assam because it is the road, rail and air hub for the entire region that connects to the rest of India. It is also the most convenient jump-off point for your Northeast visit. Although air service is available to all of the states, it is best to travel by road whenever you can in order to take in the local sights.
A one-week tour will allow you to take in the famous Kaziranga National Park, a Tea Estate, a Brahmaputra cruise and Tawang Monastery in Arunachal Pradesh.
Day 1: Guwahati and Brahmaputra cruise
There are a number of river cruises available from Guwahati and in the interests of time, the best option is to take a 4 or 6 hour cruise down the Brahmaputra river, the widest in the world. The scenery is spectacular. In Guwahati, the best hotels to stay in are the Brahmaputra Ashok in the center of town which has outstanding views of the mighty river and the Tata-run Ginger Hotel which is located on the outskirts. The latter is best if you have a tight schedule and need to get in and out of Guwahati quickly as traffic jams can be a major problem during office rush hours. You should make all your hotel, safari and transport reservations before hand although it is possible to do these locally too. If you are non-Indian, your most important task is to arrange for your Restricted Area Permit at least 3 weeks ahead of time in order to visit Arunachal Pradesh. If you are going to be in Delhi, you can arrange the permit at Arunachal House. A good tip is to book everything, specially your hotels in Arunachal, at least a couple of months in advance if not more. Make certain that your drivers have been doing these routes for a while and are familiar with the roads which can be quite an adventure by themselves. Again, the tourist officers at Arunachal House in Delhi will be able to give you names and phone numbers.
Day 2: Guwahati to Kaziranga.
You should take a private SUV which can be arranged by your hotel if you haven't made arrangemets already. It is a 4-hour drive which will take you through scenic paddy fields and tea plantations among the hills, passing through a couple of small towns. You can stop along the way to enjoy a cup of tea in the middle of the lush scenery because this is where a large portion of the world's tea supply comes from, more on which later.
You will spend the night in Kaziranga and here you should opt for the Forest Lodge which is an old, colonial-era bungalow on stilts. It is spartan but clean and imparts the right ambiance. If you can't get the lodge, there are several acceptable modern hotels that are available nearby. If you have made reservations, you will be going on an elephant safari early next morning before the sun comes up, so retire early. The elephants are well trained and quite comfortable to ride on but if you are hesitant, you can opt for a jeep safari as a poor second choice! Kaziranga is an outstanding success both for having brought the Asian one-horned rhino from the brink of extinction and for having turned around the local population of the Royal Bengal tiger. You will almost certainly see several rhinos, hog deer, wild pigs, a wide range of birds including the hornbill during your safari and, if you are lucky, even a tiger!
Day 3: Tea Estate visit in Jorhat
You will be done with your safari by lunchtime, so after lunch, you should head out to Jorhat which will take you about 2 hours. The best place to stay is in one of the tea estate bungalows run by the Welcome Group. These bungalows were built by the British planters a century ago and will give you a pretty accurate idea of how life was for the Burra Sahibs of the Raj. You can tour the garden to watch the leaf being plucked and then the factory to see how the leaf is turned into tea. Here is your chance to buy the best and freshest tea you will every get! If you like full-bodied tea, ask for CTC and if you prefer aroma, ask for Orthodox. A safe compromise if you don't know what you are doing is to simply ask for a Blend and the Factory Manager will make one up for you. Photography is usually not allowed inside a tea factory.
A little detail for the history buff--on the way to Jorhat, you will pass Dergaon (literally translation: "one and a half villages"!) which was a major staging base and airstrip for the Allies during World War Two. From here, many men and materials flew over and drove through The Hump into Burma and China. This is ground zero of the old China-Burma-India (CBI) theater.
Day 4: Jorhat-Bhalukpong
Leave Jorhat after breakfast and keep your Restricted Area Permit handy because in about 4 hours, you will need it to enter Arunachal Pradesh just after leaving the town of Tezpur in Assam. It is about a 6 hour drive from Jorhat to Bhalukpong where you will spend the night and you will pass another beautiful National Park called Nameri. Unfortunately, hotels are hit and miss in Arunachal and your best bets are the Government Guest Houses that need to be reserved well in advance. In a pinch, there are several basic hotels available too.
Day 5: Bhalukpong-Tawang
This is an arduous trip of 10 hours through winding mountain roads, many parts of which are being upgraded. The saving grace is that it is one of the most spectacular as well! You will be climbing beyond 10,000 feet ASL, so keep your warm clothes handy. On the way, you will meet some of the most isolated people in the world--the Monpa--who also happen to be among the friendliest and simplest. They follow a mix of Buddhist and Animist religions while the inhabitants of Tawang proper are Buddhist and follow a strain of Tibetan Buddhism. The local delicacy is Thukpa, a noodle and meat stew along with Momo, a pork dumpling. The locals love to accompany these with very hot chillies so be warned. In fact, Tezpur is home to the worlds hottest chilli called the Nagajolokia which is about five times "hotter" than the fiery Habanero! Once you reach Tawang, you will need to sleep off the trip and it is best to do so early.
Day 6: Tour TawangCalled Little Tibet, Tawang is home to the 400 year-old Tawang Monastery. It was also the birthplace of the 6th Dalai Lama. It is also the place where the current Dalai Lama (the 14th) entered India when he fled Tibet in 1952 following the Chinese invasion of his country. This is also where a badly-equipped Indian Army garrison fought to the last man against the Chinese when they invaded India in 1962. The area is heavily guarded now, hence the need for the permit, and reminders of the war are everywhere.
Places to visit in Tawang besides the monastery is Jaswantgarh, an old fortress up beyond the treeline perched on windswept, rocky and snowy peaks. A truly spectacular and sobering place. Another great trip is to Pankang Teng Tso lake which is about a half hour from Tawang. This is one of the most beautiful of the many crystal-clear high-altitude lakes in the area. Don't overdo it in Tawang because of the altitude and prepare to leave early the next morning.
Day 7: Tawang-Tezpur
This 13-hour journey will take you past more high-altitude lakes ringed with rhododendrons. There are a few orchid farms here too. If you time your departure correctly, you should be able to drive directly to Tezpur airport and catch a flight to Kolkata or Delhi. If not, you can do that the first thing the next morning.
This is obviously a hectic pace and if you would like it to be more leisurely, you should allow 10 days for it. Alternatively, you can omit the tea garden visit in Jorhat and head directly to Bhalukpong from Kaziranga National Park. Another alternative is to avail of helicopter service to Tawang from Guwahati and air service between Guwahati, Jorhat and Tezpur. Jorhat and Tezpur are the closest airports to Kaziranga.
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