

“For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack.” Rudyard Kipling, The Jungle Book

This famous line of The Jungle Book is something which no child would like to forget. Rudyard Kipling when writing the Jungle book drew the experience from others who visited Pench National Park to get an understanding of the jungle which eventually led to what we see, read and love today. Pench National Park thus became the inspiration behind our beloved Jungle Book. So, visit Pench National Park to revisit the memories of the jungle book. Pench National Park named after river Pench and situated in Seoni, Madhya Pradesh is a quick getaway for all wildlife lovers. You come, you enjoy and leave. A day or two maximum.

How To Reach Pench National Park?

Pench National Park is well connected with roads, so even if you are planning to visit by train or flight you can easily reach there.

From Nagpur, you will find plenty of buses plying to Seoni and Jabalpur. If you are coming by train then you need to only walk out of the station and just adjacent to it will be the MP bus stand. Rickshaw owners might try to fool you by telling you that there is another bus stop from where the buses leave immediately, so be aware of them.

The closest airport is Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport in Nagpur from where you can catch a bus. It takes around 3 hours from Nagpur to reach Seoni, however, your destination might be closer depending on your hotel booking or the safari gate.

Places To Stay Near Pench National Park

There are plenty of Resorts and hotel starting from 2k onwards. December is very cold during night time and pleasant during the day, so even a non-AC room will be very comfortable during December. However, summers are very hot as the temperature goes upward of 44 Degree Celsius, so booking a AC accommodation would be a wise choice.

Places To Eat At Pench National Park

Every hotel and resort will have its own restaurant as you will not be able to find many restaurants as such in the vicinity. This is because there isn’t any point to point travel arrangements such as autorickshaw. So apart from the Safaris or some sightseeing, you will not be going out of your resort.

Things To Do At Pench National Park

Pench National Park is known for its Tiger reserve. You can take the Jungle Safaris which will take you inside the jungle with a hope to spot the royalty yourself. During my visit, I took two Safaris – one in the evening and the second in the morning. The evening safari started at 3 pm and ended at 5:30 pm whereas the morning safari is a little longer which starts at 6:30 am and ends at 10:30 am. Please check the timings as depending on the season the timing changes taking into consideration the daylight. There are many gates out if which Turia and Khursapar are very good. You can pre-book your place for the safari online or after reaching the spot. The forest officials mentioned that they accommodate around 5 vehicles over and above the vehicle capacity mentioned on the website. Safari is being done in either a Cantar or a Gypsy. Cantar is a big open truck like vehicle which has 18 seats. Cantar can only be booked after reaching the gate and only if there are enough visitors. Gypsy’s, on the other hand, can be pre-booked, the catch, however, is that you have to book the whole Gypsy even if you are going alone. There is no need to worry if you are going alone or with someone and not wanting to book the Gypsy as it will be expensive for just two or three people. You can just reach the Safari-gate well in advance and explain yourself, they will try to make some adjustments for you by making groups of people like you who want to enjoy the safari but have not booked a gypsy or they will adjust you with someone who has seats in their gypsy and you can enjoy the jungle safari.

Turia Gate Entry

When I took my safari, I was able to spot a tiger in the evening safari but it was far away whereas in the morning safari I didn’t spot any tiger. Though two other vehicles spotted Tigers in the morning. Apart from Tigers, you will find sloth bears, leopard, Indian bison, blue bull, Sambar deer, spotted deer, anteaters, wild dogs, peacocks, wild boars, eagles, langurs, etc. Except for sloth bears, leopard, and anteaters I was able to spot other animals. Jungle Safari is fun if you like nature and wildlife, as for others Pench might not be a place for you would like.

When Should You Visit Pench National Park?

Though I visited Pench National Park in the month of December, the best time to visit Pench according to the guides is after March when the summers start. During this time the trees shed leaves and there is not enough water so it becomes easier for visitors to spot the Tiger because the jungle is open and animal movement is higher in search of water. However, keep in mind the temperature is around 45 degree Celsius in the afternoon there, so it can get really hot.

Final Verdict

Pench National Park is a good getaway if you are a wildlife enthusiast and want to spot Tigers. Visit during summer to significantly increase your chance of spotting your own version of Sherkhan, Baloo, Akela, Raksha and re-live the jungle book days.