Dudhwa National Park

In the Terai region of northern Uttar Pradesh state, Dudhwa National Park is remote enough to have remained off the radar for all but the most intrepid, although new infrastructure means that nowadays it is a comfortable road journey of just four to five hours from Lucknow. Its 490 square kilometres of grasslands, rivers and forest was a tiger reserve in the 1970s and in 1988 received national park status. Conservation efforts have been hugely successful, and visitors to the park regularly spot Bengal tigers, Indian one-horned rhinoceros, leopard, sloth bear, swamp deer and Asiatic elephant. Additionally, there have been over 400 species of birds recorded. With fewer visitors and just as much wildlife, Dudhwa National Park is a wonderful alternative to the well-known national parks further south.