When the country roads lead you to Kabini and you find yourself without a reservation, you’d be shocked to find out that these are the ONLY options for accommodation in this part of the wilderness and they come at a PRICE!
1. Coffee Day’s, Cicada Kabini Resort- Extremely RUDE and won’t let you past the main gate to even take a look at the property!
Std Rooms (Rs.12138/-) Cottages (Rs. 13258/-) Villas (Rs. 15498/-)
2. Jungle Lodge’s Kabini River Lodge- Courteous but never available for last minute bookings and it’s always sold out!
Cottage(Rs.5000/-) Maharaja Cottage(Rs. 5500/-) Room(Rs. 4250/-) and Tented Cottage(Rs. 3500/-)
3. Water Woods Kabini Resort- Decent property and completely unoccupied on a Saturday. When asked why it was empty they told us it was reserved and refused us a room. Really strange considering they let us in to look at the rooms to decide!
Standard AC: Rs 5500(Single) & Rs 6750(Double)
Suite AC: Rs 8000( Single and Double)
Standard/Suite: Rs 2650(Extra adult) and Rs 1650(Child between 3-10 yrs)
Tree House: Rs 4000 (Single) and Rs 5500(Double)
3. Orange County’s Kabini Resort- This was above our budget so we gave it a skip!
Jacuzzi Hut (Between Rs. 15300- Rs. 18000)
Pool Hut (Between Rs. 18700- Rs. 22000)
Special Jacuzzi Hut (Between Rs 15300- Rs 18000)
Locals suggested rooms at Rs.400, being desperate we took a look at it, verdict-ghastly!
The last option on our list was “The Bison”. The super friendly staff (Anil & Suman) made available to us one their huts to accommodate the four of us as they had only one tent vacant that weekend. It was a gorgeous two storey hut with a glorious view of the river and the only duplex in the property. In case you’re a four member group we’d suggest you request for this accommodation as it’s really worth the experience.
Bison is run by two wildlifers Nawabzada Saad Bin Jung(also Cricketer, Columnist, Angler & Royalty) and Riad Fyzee. With African tents and plush Victorian interiors, it takes one back 100 years to offer the romance of the Raj within the heart of the Man-Animal conflict. "The Camp offers the perfect wildlife adventure for the tired souls of the dwellers of concrete jungles and soothes their senses. It is a perfect sojourn to relax and rejuvenate with the soothing sights and sounds of the jungle wildlife", says owner, Saad.
Located bang on the shores of the exotic Kabini river, making it the best located resort in Kabini these luxury tents (Double) cost Rs.9800 & includes all meals and selected activities. This comprises birding, trekking, conservation walk, night conservation outing, angling, coracle ride and a bonfire dinner at site, though completely dependent on the climatic conditions. They are in the process of getting a pool as well, future visitors might be lucky enough to let their hair down and bask by the river.
Food is quite appetizing in comparison to Jungle Lodges where we’ve stayed a few times.
When the sun goes down you can enjoy the evening breeze, snacks, bon fire and settle with a book from the cosy little library or pick a board game.
Kabini wildlife sanctuary is part of the Nagarhole National Park and is spread over 55 acres of forestland, steep valleys, and water bodies. Once a private hunting lodge of the Maharaja of Mysore, Kabini was hunting hotspot for the British and Indian royalty. Given this background we enrolled ourselves for the safari at 6am at an additional cost of Rs.700/-.The safari was a complete let down and is not recommended unless you’re happy with seeing a few deers and peacocks.
However, we enjoyed the trek which was more like a walk! The woods were alluring and we crossed a few villages (stole glances into their homes and local school), paddy fields and wound up with a walk along the banks of the river. Absolutely bucolic and beautiful!
After two days of rustic revival, we bid farewell to the helpful hosts and the pristine environs with a promise of spreading the good word around and of course returning sometime soon!
1. Coffee Day’s, Cicada Kabini Resort- Extremely RUDE and won’t let you past the main gate to even take a look at the property!
Std Rooms (Rs.12138/-) Cottages (Rs. 13258/-) Villas (Rs. 15498/-)
2. Jungle Lodge’s Kabini River Lodge- Courteous but never available for last minute bookings and it’s always sold out!
Cottage(Rs.5000/-) Maharaja Cottage(Rs. 5500/-) Room(Rs. 4250/-) and Tented Cottage(Rs. 3500/-)
3. Water Woods Kabini Resort- Decent property and completely unoccupied on a Saturday. When asked why it was empty they told us it was reserved and refused us a room. Really strange considering they let us in to look at the rooms to decide!
Standard AC: Rs 5500(Single) & Rs 6750(Double)
Suite AC: Rs 8000( Single and Double)
Standard/Suite: Rs 2650(Extra adult) and Rs 1650(Child between 3-10 yrs)
Tree House: Rs 4000 (Single) and Rs 5500(Double)
3. Orange County’s Kabini Resort- This was above our budget so we gave it a skip!
Jacuzzi Hut (Between Rs. 15300- Rs. 18000)
Pool Hut (Between Rs. 18700- Rs. 22000)
Special Jacuzzi Hut (Between Rs 15300- Rs 18000)
Locals suggested rooms at Rs.400, being desperate we took a look at it, verdict-ghastly!
The last option on our list was “The Bison”. The super friendly staff (Anil & Suman) made available to us one their huts to accommodate the four of us as they had only one tent vacant that weekend. It was a gorgeous two storey hut with a glorious view of the river and the only duplex in the property. In case you’re a four member group we’d suggest you request for this accommodation as it’s really worth the experience.
Bison is run by two wildlifers Nawabzada Saad Bin Jung(also Cricketer, Columnist, Angler & Royalty) and Riad Fyzee. With African tents and plush Victorian interiors, it takes one back 100 years to offer the romance of the Raj within the heart of the Man-Animal conflict. "The Camp offers the perfect wildlife adventure for the tired souls of the dwellers of concrete jungles and soothes their senses. It is a perfect sojourn to relax and rejuvenate with the soothing sights and sounds of the jungle wildlife", says owner, Saad.
Located bang on the shores of the exotic Kabini river, making it the best located resort in Kabini these luxury tents (Double) cost Rs.9800 & includes all meals and selected activities. This comprises birding, trekking, conservation walk, night conservation outing, angling, coracle ride and a bonfire dinner at site, though completely dependent on the climatic conditions. They are in the process of getting a pool as well, future visitors might be lucky enough to let their hair down and bask by the river.
Food is quite appetizing in comparison to Jungle Lodges where we’ve stayed a few times.
When the sun goes down you can enjoy the evening breeze, snacks, bon fire and settle with a book from the cosy little library or pick a board game.
Kabini wildlife sanctuary is part of the Nagarhole National Park and is spread over 55 acres of forestland, steep valleys, and water bodies. Once a private hunting lodge of the Maharaja of Mysore, Kabini was hunting hotspot for the British and Indian royalty. Given this background we enrolled ourselves for the safari at 6am at an additional cost of Rs.700/-.The safari was a complete let down and is not recommended unless you’re happy with seeing a few deers and peacocks.
However, we enjoyed the trek which was more like a walk! The woods were alluring and we crossed a few villages (stole glances into their homes and local school), paddy fields and wound up with a walk along the banks of the river. Absolutely bucolic and beautiful!
After two days of rustic revival, we bid farewell to the helpful hosts and the pristine environs with a promise of spreading the good word around and of course returning sometime soon!
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