Bandipur National Park is regarded as one of the most beautiful and better-managed national parks of India. The moment we entered the grounds of Bandipur the tranquility of nature engulfed us. We were greeted with hundreds of deer’s freely roaming around, as if welcoming to their sanctuary.
The experience of wildlife safari is something everyone must go through once in your lifetime. They have open jeeps and busses with set timings, but no private vehicles are allowed for safaris. We obviously chose the Jeep, as we were four and it gave us our own private vehicle. You are not allowed to step out of the vehicle though. Going to the wild is always exciting and soothing – the excitement of watching the wild animals and the tranquility of being in the lap of mother-nature.
Post the initial trail into forest we, knew we finally pierced into the ‘real’ forest when we started noticing countless deer’s, langoor’s hopping, peacocks wandering and wild boars boaring around. This place is located amidst the picturesque surroundings of the towering Western Ghats Mountains. You will be lucky to spot a leopard but keep your hopes up, sadly we dint.
Stay: The Windflower Jungle Resort & Spa
Windflower resort in Bandipur is one of the best and right amidst jungle landscape. You will see herd of deer’s coming in and out of the, the resort as the name suggest encourages wild life and is safe, you will see monkeys and some wild pigs once in a while too. The guests are recommended to stay indoors post 7:30 and mornings are begun with nature walk, where an expert takes you on a natures trail, introducing you to most amazing facts of nature.
The resort is more like a retreat where Television is available only in a common room, the internet and mobile phone connectivity is nil, except for wi-fi in the lobby. It truly helps you reconnect with yourself and your loved ones. We assure there will not be a dull moment, with an infinity pool overlooking endless forest, games room with numerous games like snooker, carom and even play area for kids outside, wildlife documentary aired in T.V room, bonfire in evenings and Spa to pamper yourself.
Service at the Windflower is impeccable, and so is the food. Rooms are done quite elegantly while retaining rustic look from outside. The staff is well trained mostly local people, who were more than willing to can guide us with anything needed.
Food
There are no options available beyond your resort in Bandipur. Windflower resort usually offer buffet meals, but if there are limited guests, the chef will personally attend to you and extended his hospitality by serving you what suits your taste buds the best, luckily for us, the chef indulged us with a mix of local cuisine and some really good food and desserts, all of which is made in house.
The food is outstanding, tastes very home-cooked. The Courteous & friendly staff ensured our stay is pleasant and kept surprising us with their deep knowledge of the nature around them with impressive knowledge about the animals and birds.
I was looking for some quality time with my family and this resort was the perfect solution for us. The facilities are basic but the location, well equipped rooms, in term of design and privacy is just appealing. It was an amazing hassle free stay, and the Safari too was organised by the staff (on request) and we just dint have to worry about waiting in lines or anything, with a pick and drop from our resort to the tourist office where the safari starts from, was all taken care by the staff at Windflower Resort.
Loved: What i loved the most about the resort was the private seating area, the infinity pool and the fact that we dint have any network and it helped us enjoy the holiday to the core and courteous staff.
Know: Little known is the fact that these Bandipur forests once belonged to the Mysore Maharaja’s personal Game Preserve. Steps were taken to preserve this priceless reserve since the beginning of this era when all other reserve’s and natural habitats abundant with wildlife were on the verge of extinction.
Getting There
By Road: You can reach Bandipur from Bangalore town via Mysore and the distance is just 220 kms. You can take the Coimbatore route via Ooty which is hardly 168 kms.
By Air: Nearest airport is Mysore. Located at a distance of 80kms and Bangalore is the next nearest airport located at a distance of 190kms.
By Rail: Nanjangud is the nearest railway station. Mysore railway station
Book: www.thewindflower.com
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