There are three parks to know in the Dooars: Gorumara, Chapramari and Jaldapara. Each has its character. Each is smaller and quieter than the headline parks of India. And each, on a good morning, gives you an elephant crossing the road, a rhino grazing fifty metres from the jeep, or a leopard vanishing into the tea garden at dusk.
Gorumara
The most visited of the three, but still small by Indian standards. Known for rhinos and bison. The Chukchuki watch-tower gives you a perch over a salt-lick visited by elephants at dawn.
Chapramari
Narrower, denser, closer to the Bhutan border. Famous for elephants. The Murti river runs through it — a good morning there has you watching a family crossing the river at 6:30am, five cubs and four adults.
Jaldapara
Largest of the three, famous for its 200+ rhinos — the second largest population in India after Kaziranga. Jeep safari in the morning; ride an elephant through the Hollong grasslands in the afternoon.
My recommendation
Book through an operator who works with the forest department directly (not an aggregator). Stay at a forest eco-lodge, not a town hotel. Wake at 5am. Go quiet into the forest.
A good Dooars trip is a slow house that moves into the forest. A bad one is a hotel van that visits it for two hours.
What to do in the middle of the day
Nothing. Read. Nap. Eat. Visit a tea garden. Talk to the cook about his Rava family. Sleep early. Be ready for the next morning safari.
