Bandhavgarh is one of India's most picturesque parks situated in Central India. Steeped in legend, these forests gave the world the progenitors of all the white tigers alive today.

The vegetation in Bandhavgarh is varied and includes a blend of grasslands and forests that support large herbivores, an impressive diversity of birds and a host of insect life that has not yet been fully catalogued. This wildlife heaven is one of the world's most important tiger-breeding habitats, where lives the 20 per cent of the world's tigers population.

If Kanha is Kipling’s country, then Bandhavgarh is the jewel in Madhya Pradesh’s crown. Situated at a distance of 195 kilometers from Jabalpur and 225 kilometers from Khajuraho, the Bandhavgarh National Park is a premier wildlife preserve in the Vindhya mountain range of Central India.

Before becoming a national park, it was the game reserve of the Maharajas of Rewa. But due to loss of royal patronage, it remained neglected for a long time until the government declared it a national park to control rampant poaching in the area.

It is a tiny park compared to Kanha but with nearly the same number of tigers and leopards, or at least that is what the official figures state. Besides tigers and leopards, Bandhavgarh is also extremely productive for medium-sized bison herds. Bandhavgarh came into existence as a national park in 1968 with a core area of 105 square kilometers, which was later extended to include two adjoining Sal forests in 1986.

Sightseeing
Bandhavgarh has the highest density of tigers among all reserves in India and packs a large wealth of wildlife in a small area. It is famous as the original home of the famous white tiger, though this rare species has long become extinct here.

Apart from tigers, Bandhavgarh is also famous for sloth bear, sambar, chital, muntjac, nilgai, chinkara, and wild pigs. There are also interesting cave shrines scattered around the park, with Brahmi inscriptions dating from the first century B.C. You can visit the remains of the Bandhavgarh Fort believed to be 2,000 years old.