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Peregrine Travel Centre

Brahmaputra Cruise: Rhinos & More

Brahmaputra Cruise: Rhinos & More

From USD $2,275

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Description

This cruise is perhaps the ideal introduction to the Brahmaputra plains, finishing with a visit to the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Kaziranga National Park, the highlight of any visit to Assam. It also includes the rarely-visited Nameri National Park, a visit to a tea garden, and a trip through the bazaars of Tezpur in cycle rickshaws.

Kaziranga’s growing reputation, and rightly so, as the most wildlife rich National Park in Asia. A World Heritage site and right on the river, Kaziranga National park holds most of India’s One-Horned Rhinoceros as well as elephant, tiger, wild buffalo, sambar, swamp deer, hog deer and many other species. Viewing is both by jeep and on elephant back.

We also visit Guwahati – The state capital. Offshore lies Peacock Island with its temple, while on a hill above the town, Tantric rites are practised at the Kamakhya Temple. There’s a good museum and a poignant War cemetery. Guwahati is the starting point for extensions to Shillong, the “Scotland of the East”, which can be arrange before or after cruises, or to bridge the changeover day gap when two successive cruises are booked.

This cruise is a magnificent introduction to some of the lesser visited parts of India.

Trip Name
Brahmaputra Cruise: Rhinos & More
Days
8
Overview
Vessel Type: River Boat Lenght: 38 meters Passenger Capacity: 24 Rebuilt: 2003 ABN Charaidew is a 38m-long, twin-engined, steel hulled passenger boat. She was completely stripped down and rebuilt in 2003 to provide 10 twin-bedded and 2 double-bedded cabins with en-suite shower and W.C. The grand old lady of our fleet, she makes up in character what she lacks in twenty-first century glitz. The polished brass engine room telegraph and enormous ship’s wheel bear witness to her heritage. All cabin accommodation is on the upper deck, as is a bar and saloon opening onto a front deck. A dining room with full-length opening glass doors on each side is on the lower deck, while a large top sundeck offers additional comfortable open-air seating in shade or sun. Local handloom fabrics specially woven for us and comfortable cane sofas and chairs contribute to the attractive decor. ​Onboard features * Spacious cabins with individual climate control * En suite shower/WC with Biotique toiletries * Generous cupboard space and under-bed storage * Hair drier in each cabin * ​High quality linens * Large sliding glass windows offering panoramic views of the river * Vast sundeck both open and shaded, with sunloungers or steamer chairs. Services * Shore excursion programme including all admissions * Naturalist onboard the vessel * Cold towel service after excursions * Welcome drink after excursions * Shoe-cleaning after excursions * Turndown service in all cabins * Expertly trained culinary staff * Single seating for buffet breakfast, lunch and dinner * Acclaimed combination of Indian & Western cuisines * Wide choice of wines, spirits & beer * Complimentary tea, coffee & mineral water throughout * Welcome reception * Farewell reception * Local on-board dance & song performances.

Itinerary



Day 1 - DAY 1 Guwahati - Kurua
​Meet at Guwahati airport and embark on a short sightseeing tour of the city. Drive up Nilachal Hill to see the holy Kamakhya temple. With its tantric rites and animal sacrifice, the more squeamish among us may prefer to content themselves with the exteriors. Visit the poignant Commonwealth War Graves cemetery before embarking on your cruise vessel. We set sail and cruise for about an hour and a half upstream to Kurua on the north bank.
Day 2 - DAY 2 Khirakata
​The day is spent mostly cruising upstream with jungle-covered hills rising on either side, often battling against strong currents. There is time to pause and visit the north bank village of Khirakata, with its lush green fields of vegetables and corn.
Day 3 - DAY 3 Tullugaon
​Leaving the hills behind, we enjoy our first taste of the wilderness experience, with sand banks resembling icebergs on either side. We visit Tullugaon, another bankside village with large sugarcane plantations. We shall see weavers at work in their homes, as well as the production of jaggery out of sugar cane juice. We moor for the night in a lunar landscape of sand islands with hopefully the Himalayas in view, providing a contrasting backdrop in the distance.
Day 4 - DAY 4 Tezpur
​Cruise on to reach Tezpur where, after lunch, we will visit the 6th century Da Parbatia temple ruins with its beautifully carved portal. Later, explore the town by cycle rickshaw, stopping at Cole Park with its medieval stone carvings saved from sites all over the region, and passing the bungalow once lived in by Alexander Bruce, a pioneer of the tea industry. Our ship will be waiting at the town’s waterfront for us to reboard.
Day 5 - DAY 5 Nameri National Park
​After an early breakfast, drive for some two hours to the Nameri National Park at the foot of the blue hills of Arunachal Pradesh, the old North East Frontier Agency. Here, we take a float trip of around two hours down the Jia-Bhoreli River through the park. There are excellent bird-watching opportunities here (look out for the great Hornbills) and, perhaps, the chance of sighting wild elephants. After lunch, take a village walk before returning to the ship.​
Day 6 - DAY 6 Kaziranga National Park
​Continue upstream, passing below a seemingly endless new bridge across the vast width of the riverbed, to moor at Steemer Ghat, a lovely beach backed by jungle-covered hills. In the afternoon, drive to Kaziranga’s Western Range for a jeep safari and to scan the wilderness from an observation tower.​Covering an area of approximately 430 sq kms, the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Kaziranga National Park is home to the world’s largest population of the Indian One-Horned Rhinoceros as well as the Indian Wild Water Buffalo. It has also earned the distinction of having the highest density of Royal Bengal Tigers (one every five sq. km.) making this park an incredibly rich biodiversity hotspot. With its marshy swamps and thickets of elephant grass, this park supports large populations of Indian elephants, Indian bison, swamp deer, and Capped Langurs.​Besides wildlife, Kaziranga National Park is also a birding paradise. A few of the bird species found here are the Oriental Honey Buzzard, Black-shouldered Kite, White-tailed Eagle, Himalayan Griffon and so on.​Kaziranga National Park also frequently draws comparisons to the Serengeti in Africa due to the park's abundance of wildlife and birds.
Day 7 - DAY 7 Kaziranga National Park
Disembark pre-dawn and drive to Kaziranga’s Central Range for an early morning elephant ride, the best way to get really close to the rhino and other animals. After breakfast at a lodge, we drive to a Mishing tribal village, their distinctive houses raised on piles, then visit a nearby tea garden to witness how tea is grown and processed. (Note: the factory will be inoperative between December and mid-March.) After lunch, take either a jeep safari to the little-visited Eastern Range before returning to the boat or, if preferred, return directly to Steemer Ghat and visit a delightful Assamese village nearby, walking along a path alive with butterflies to a solitary temple on the river bank.
Day 8 - DAY 8 Guwahati
Rise early for a 4-hour drive back to Guwahati airport. Alternatively, we can arrange a 40-minute transfer to Tezpur airport or a 2 ½ hr transfer to Jorhat airport.​
Day 9 - Please Note:
While every effort will be made to maintain the itinerary, in view of fluctuating river conditions and navigational or mechanical difficulties, all schedules and itineraries are subject to change without notice.

Trip Dates

StartEndPrice FromRoom Type
27-10-201803-11-2018USD $0Cabin
27-10-201803-11-2018USD $0Cabin Solo
24-11-201801-12-2018USD $0Cabin
24-11-201801-12-2018USD $0Cabin Solo
22-12-201829-12-2018USD $0Cabin
22-12-201829-12-2018USD $0Cabin Solo
19-01-201926-01-2019USD $0Cabin
19-01-201926-01-2019USD $0Cabin Solo
16-02-201923-02-2019USD $0Cabin
16-02-201923-02-2019USD $0Cabin Solo
16-03-201923-03-2019USD $0Cabin
16-03-201923-03-2019USD $0Cabin Solo
13-04-201920-04-2019USD $0Cabin
13-04-201920-04-2019USD $0Cabin Solo

Inclusions

    • GUWAHATI
    • The state capital. Offshore lies Peacock Island with its temple, while on a hill above the town, Tantric rites are practised at the Kamakhya Temple. There's a good museum and a poignant War cementery. Guwahati is the starting point for etensions to Shillong, the "Scotland of the East", which can be arrange before or after cruises, or to bridge the changeover day gap when two successive cruises are booked.
    • TEZPUR
    • Another tea centre, and the access point to Nameri National Park in the foothills. Orang National Park is on the river banks downstream from here.
    • KAZIRANGA
    • A World Heritage site and right on the river, Kaziranga National park holds most of India's One-Horned Rhinoceros as well as elephant, tiger, wild buffalo, sambar, swamp deer, hog deer and many other species. Viewing is both by jeep and on elephant back.

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