India's best tiger parks compared

India's tiger reserves share the same basic format — timed safaris, permits allocated by zone, and no guaranteed sighting — but differ in how easy they are to reach, how the zones are run, and what else is around the park. This page compares the parks most travellers ask us about: Ranthambore, Bandhavgarh, Kanha and Jim Corbett, with Kaziranga and Gir noted separately since they are built around different signature species rather than the tiger.

Every park operator and blog you'll find online quotes different sighting-probability figures, and none of them are independently verified in a way we're comfortable repeating as fact. Sightings depend on the season, the specific zone you're allocated (which is not always your choice), water levels, and simple luck. What we can say honestly: Ranthambore and Bandhavgarh are both regularly cited by wildlife guides as having a good density of tigers relative to park size, which improves the odds without guaranteeing anything on a given drive.

Kaziranga (Assam) is built around the greater one-horned rhinoceros rather than the tiger, though tigers are present; Gir (Gujarat) is the only wild home of the Asiatic lion anywhere in the world. If you're choosing a wildlife park primarily for the tiger, these two are not the right comparison — but if you're flexible on species, both offer a strong, less crowded alternative to the central-India tiger circuit.

• Travelling from Delhi or Jaipur and want the least driving: Ranthambore.
• Building a Madhya Pradesh wildlife loop, possibly combining two parks: Bandhavgarh and Kanha pair naturally.
• Want a park within a manageable drive of Delhi with a distinct river-valley landscape: Jim Corbett.
• Open to a different signature species and a quieter circuit: Kaziranga or Gir.