Realm of the Black Panther

Tour Code: IND59

An exciting 10-day holiday to Nagarhole National Park in the southern state of Karnataka in search of the mysterious Black Panther, plus Tiger, Dhole, Asian Elephant and a wealth of other wildlife.

10 days from
£4,495 (Inc flights)
Land only price from
£3,995
book now

Highlights

Summary

Summary

Famous in myth and legend, seemingly found only in the shadows, the Black Panther is a real animal of flesh and blood. Scientifically it is the black morph of the Leopard, but in the wild that doesn’t reduce its mystique – it is still rare and elusive. Currently the best place to see it is in Kabini Wildlife Sanctuary, part of Nagarhole National Park, in southern India. Here we will search for a celebrated dominant male called “Blackie”. Much else will be about - Asian Elephants, Tigers, more familiar spotted Leopards, many deer and hundreds of birds. If we are lucky, though, a sight of the jet-black predator will top off a rich and exciting adventure.

  • Seven nights at spectacular Kabini River Lodge
  • Small group. A maximum of six clients plus an expert Naturetrek naturalist tour leader
  • Fly in and out of Bengaluru, on direct British Airways flights
  • Multiple game drives around the forests and waterways to look for Blackie and other Leopards
  • Fantastic supporting cast includes Asian Elephants, Tigers and Gaur
  • Chance of coming across Dhole (Asian Wild Dog)
  • Afternoon boat trips for birds, elephants and the Sanctuary’s many deer and antelope
  • Birdlife is conspicuous, and includes endemics such as Blue-winged Parakeet, Malabar Grey Hornbill and White-bellied Treepie
  • Expertly escorted by an Indian Naturetrek naturalist
  • Top tip: extend tour with a stay in Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary

Grading

Grade A. We will mostly view wildlife on jeep and boat safaris, and easy walks. A wider range of walks (of varying difficulty) is available on the extension. This tour stays in one excellent national park, thus minimising the necessity of lengthy road transfers.

There is something inherently mysterious about Black Panthers. They inspire stories and legends across the world, and seem to tread a fine line between myth and reality. In truth, they are melanistic Leopards, but this simple fact does not make them any less beguiling. These intriguing jet-black cats are common only in the impenetrable rainforests of south-east Asia, where they are almost impossible to glimpse through the thick and tangled vegetation. However, a few individuals do occur in the more open forests of southern India — real-life incarnations of Rudyard Kipling's Bagheera. In particular, the Kabini Wildlife Sanctuary (part of Nagarhole National Park) has become famous as the home of one very special male, known as 'Blackie'. He controls a large swathe of the reserve, and has become supremely confident in his rule, often allowing the kinds of relaxed encounters that would be special with a Leopard of any pelage.

Our exciting 'Realm of the Black Panther’ tour will take us deep into the heart of this big cat’s domain. It begins with a flight into Bengaluru (Bangalore) from where we travel direct to Nagarhole National Park for a 7-night stay. Nagarhole is located in the southern state of Karnataka and was designated a national park back in 1955. Although once a private hunting preserve for the Maharaja of Mysore and the British viceroy, the abundant wildlife of the park is now fully protected. Here live many of India's most iconic mammals including Tigers, Sloth Bears, Gaur and one of the largest populations of Asian Elephants (over 1,000) on the whole of the subcontinent. The birdwatching is also superb, especially within the lush teak and rosewood forests and around the shores of the huge Kabini Reservoir.

We will be based for seven nights at the award-winning Kabini River Lodge, which is located within the southern fringes of the Nagarhole National Park on the edge of the reservoir. From here we will thoroughly explore the reserve’s vibrant forests, grasslands, wetlands and waterways in search of its abundant mammals and birds. Throughout our stay the Black Panther will never be far from our minds. If we are fortunate enough to find ‘Blackie’, then we may be in for a truly memorable experience for he is renowned for providing close-up sightings, frequently using the jeep tracks to patrol his territory and remaining unperturbed in the presence of vehicles. However, he remains an elusive creature, and we certainly cannot guarantee ourselves an audience!

Whether we find the mystical panther or not, Nagarhole’s abundant wildlife will be sure to keep us enthralled throughout our stay. We will explore the park by 4x4 vehicle, by boat and on foot, allowing us to fully appreciate this diverse wilderness from several distinct angles and modes of transport. As well as India’s largest herds of Asian Elephant — including some of the subcontinent’s last big tuskers — we hope to see Gaur (Indian Bison), Sambar, Chital (Spotted Deer), Wild Boar. Indian Muntjac, Sloth Bear and Malabar Giant Squirrel. Packs of Dhole (Asian Wild Dog) are also frequently seen, and we hope to find one of the more typical black-spotted form of Leopard too, although they face increasing competition from a thriving population of Tigers! Birdlife is conspicuous, and includes endemics such as Blue-winged Parakeet, Malabar Grey Hornbill, White-cheeked Barbet and White-bellied Treepie, plus more widespread species such as Red-headed Vulture, Grey Junglefowl, Blue-faced Malkoha, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater and Golden-fronted Leafbird. Afternoon boat trips can be particularly productive, as groups of Asian Elephant, Chital and Sambar come down to the water's edge to drink. Smooth-coated Otter is also a regular sight, as are Marsh Mugger Crocodiles and various waterbirds including Asian Openbill, Cotton Pygmy Goose and Pheasant-tailed Jacana. Nevertheless, it will be the jeep drives that will offer our best chance of that sought-after encounter with ‘Blackie’!

After a final night in Bengaluru, we catch our return flight back to London the following day. For those wishing to remain in India, however, we offer an extension to Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary, where we will stay for three nights at Fringe Ford, a 1,000-acre private reserve in the verdant hills of the Western Ghats. Fringe Ford is home to a wonderful variety of birds and other wildlife, including Malabar Pied Hornbill, Vernal Hanging Parrot, Malabar Trogon and many more. Gaur, Asian Elephant and Lion-tailed Macaque are also possible here with perhaps something a little more unusual such as Brown Palm Civet.

DETAILED INFORMATION
Itinerary

Outline Itinerary

Day 1
Depart London
Day 2
Arrive Bengaluru and transfer to Kabini River Lodge
Day 3/8
Kabini River Lodge, Nagarhole National Park
Day 9
Bengaluru
Day 10
Fly London
cloud_downloadDownload Full Itinerary
What's Included

What's Included?

  • Flights
  • Accommodation:

    All included in the price.

  • Food:

    All included in the price.

Reviews
Extensions

Extensions

Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary extension

3 days from £1,295
View Details
Dates & Prices

Dates & Prices

2025

Departures Availability Cost
Sun 9th Feb – Tue 18th Feb 1 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 16th Mar – Tue 25th Mar FULL £4,495
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 6th Apr – Tue 15th Apr FULL £4,495
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 13th Apr – Tue 22nd Apr 6 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 16th Nov – Tue 25th Nov 2 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895

2026

Departures Availability Cost
Sun 18th Jan – Tue 27th Jan 6 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 8th Feb – Tue 17th Feb 6 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 15th Mar – Tue 24th Mar 6 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 5th Apr – Tue 14th Apr 6 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895
Sun 15th Nov – Tue 24th Nov 5 £4,495
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£3,995
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£895 
  Array
(
    [186] => stdClass Object
        (
            [id] => 186
            [parent_id] => 165
            [level] => 2
            [path] => tour-focus/mammals
            [title] => Mammal Watching
            [alias] => mammals
            [description] => 
Mammal Watching Holidays


Many of the world’s mammals are instantly recognisable to us. Animals such as Lions, Tigers, elephants and bears capture our imaginations from an early age. At Naturetrek, we take great pleasure and pride in helping people to fulfil their lifelong dreams of seeing these iconic species in the wild. We also enjoy introducing our clients to some of the world’s more unusual mammals, many of which are just as fascinating.


Naturetrek Mammal Watching Tours


Many of our tours have a primary focus on mammals and we offer the widest choices of mammal-watching holidays across the globe, from the poles to the tropics. Our holidays are guided by at least one professional naturalist tour leader and usually benefit from additional guiding by expert local naturalist guides. We have holidays to see an incredible range of the world’s most sought-after mammals, such as orangutans, lemurs, bats, polar mammals, big cats, and mammals of the African savannah. A significant number of tours also targets some of the planet’s more unusual and elusive species, from pottos and pangolins to slender lorises and obscure cetaceans.


Here’s a selection of our mammal tours:



Bargain mammal selection


We offer a range of action-packed bargain holidays for the dedicated mammal enthusiast, which are exceptional value for money, from Belize to Zambia.




Our specialist recommends...







"Africa is perhaps the greatest continent for mammal-watching. I would recommend 'Botswana’s Desert & Delta (Mammals)' for combining stunning scenery and wildlife. We also offer a tour to Uganda which includes a chance to see Mountain Gorillas. And India, along with Tigers, has a superb variety of mammals. Closer to home, short breaks to Spain in search of Wolves and Iberian Lynx are hard to beat.”

Paul Stanbury - Operations Manager




  


All Mammal Watching Tours

            [params] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [category_layout] => 
                    [image_az] => https://i.assetzen.net/i/qwY3H6NRSAfS/w:500/h:500/q:70.jpg
                    [image_alt] => 
                )

            [metakey] => Mammals
            [note] => 08
            [parent] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [id] => 165
                    [parent_id] => 1
                    [level] => 1
                    [path] => tour-focus
                    [title] => Tour Focus
                    [alias] => tour-focus
                    [description] => 
                    [params] => stdClass Object
                        (
                            [category_layout] => 
                            [image_az] => 
                            [image_alt] => 
                        )

                    [metakey] => 
                    [note] => 
                )

        )

    [200] => stdClass Object
        (
            [id] => 200
            [parent_id] => 165
            [level] => 2
            [path] => tour-focus/big-cats
            [title] => Big Cat
            [alias] => big-cats
            [description] => 
Big Cat Safari Holidays


Big cats are among the most admired and sought-after mammals on the planet, and we are proud to offer a broad and comprehensive range of big cat safari holidays. We offer inspiring and truly memorable wildlife tours to enjoy sightings of all of the world’s iconic species in their natural habitats, including Tigers in India and Nepal, Jaguars in the Pantanal, Pumas in Chile and Snow Leopards in India and Mongolia and we certainly do not neglect the smaller cats either.


We offer a range of itineraries around Africa and encounter the continent’s high-profile species like Lions, Cheetahs and Leopards and also the lesser known species such as Caracal, Sand Cat, Black-footed Cat, Serval and African Wild Cat. We also have wildlife holidays that catch sightings of the Asiatic Lion in India and the elusive Leopard in Sri Lanka.


We also offer a pioneering tour to try to see the most difficult of all big cats the Sunda Clouded Leopard in Borneo with Leopard Cat, Marbled Cat and Flat-headed Cat all having being seen on our Borneo holidays. Closer to home, we offer holidays in Europe to go in search of Wildcat and both Eurasian and Iberian Lynx.


We have run these holidays for many years with great success, working with the best local contacts and guides and staying at the very best locations with carefully crafted itineraries which allow the optimum amount of time to achieve sightings.  




Our specialist recommends...






"Naturetrek has been instrumental in designing, researching and pioneering many of the big cat safari tours on the market. Our dedicated Tiger-watching trips have an unparalleled 100% success record with sightings, while if you want an experience dedicated to looking for Jaguars (also with a 100% success rate), you can’t do any better than our 'Brazil – Just Jaguars!' holiday. Additionally, our 'South Africa – Just Cats!' holiday offers a chance to see a wide variety of species in stunning scenery and for a real adventure, well off the beaten track, our 'Borneo's Mammals - Deramakot Forest Reserve' holiday is hard to beat for sheer excitement as we go in search of Sunda Clouded Leopard with extensive night time spotlighting outings encountering a wonderful number of mammals as we search for this elusive cat. Finally, if you wish to combine two holidays in one, our 'South America's Big Cats' holiday, first goes in search of Pumas in Chile followed by Jaguars in Brazil with a wonderful chance now for Ocelot in the Pantanal. "

Tom Mabbett - Operations Manager


 




ALL BIG CAT TOURS

            [params] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [category_layout] => 
                    [image_az] => https://i.assetzen.net/i/qwY3H6NRSAfS/w:500/h:500/q:70.jpg
                    [image_alt] => 
                )

            [metakey] => Big cat safari
            [note] => 34
            [parent] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [id] => 165
                    [parent_id] => 1
                    [level] => 1
                    [path] => tour-focus
                    [title] => Tour Focus
                    [alias] => tour-focus
                    [description] => 
                    [params] => stdClass Object
                        (
                            [category_layout] => 
                            [image_az] => 
                            [image_alt] => 
                        )

                    [metakey] => 
                    [note] => 
                )

        )

)

Tour Dates or Itinerary Don't Suit?

Allow our experts to create a private, customised itinerary with dates and prices to suit you.

Enquire

Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?

For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.

Enquire
Why Naturetrek?

Why Naturetrek?

At Naturetrek we craft expertly-guided group and tailor-made wildlife holidays and cruises to all seven continents. On one of our holidays, you can be assured that our passionate team will enable you to experience and enjoy the best of the world's wildlife and natural spectacles in as comfortable and rewarding a manner as possible, caring as best we can for the environment in the process. We are proud to provide:

  • The widest choice of wildlife holidays worldwide
  • Tours managed and led by naturalists, for naturalists
  • Outstanding value and exceptional customer service

Furthermore, as a Naturetrek client, our office team are always to on hand to help you – so if you have any queries about your holiday, whether before or after you have booked, we will be delighted to answer them on the phone. Please just give our team a call!