Chitwan Hotels
& Restaurants
Where to Stay
The main place to stay is in Sauraha, right outside the entrance of
the park and there are also places to stay in Jagatpur, Gaighat and
Meghauli. There are luxury places inside the park. What wildlife you
see usually does not depend on where you stay.
Where to Stay – Sauraha
Sauraha is by the edge of the park on the north bank of the Rapti
River, which form the border of the park. It is 6km south of Tadi
Bazaar, which is on the Mahendra Highway. It can only be reach by
foot, bicycle or jeep.
Sauraha is a small, quiet village, which has a large assortment of
hotels and restaurants. There is much competition so prices can be
really low for what you get. It has some bookshops, travel agencies
and bike rental places.
Many of the budget places have basic mud-and-thatch cottages, with
an open dinning area, and a garden, built with traditional materials.
Some of the newer places are concrete place with no shade. At most
place hot water will be erratic, and is available only at certain
times of day. The hotels are spread out, and if it is hot it can make
it hard to do much comparative pricing.
It is an added advantage to stay at a place near the river, which
are especially nice at sunset. It is usually better to get a place
near the entrance to the park. After a long walk in the park an extra
15-minute walk in the hot sun can seem like a long time. The places
to the east of the park entrance often are secluded and have pleasant
gardens.
You can expect to be met by a group of touts at the footbridge across
the river at Chitrasali, between Tadi Bazaar and Sauraha. You definitely
should not get any tours from them until you check some other places.
Know for certain that they aren’t working so hard not to make
a good commission from you.
A jeep from Chitrasali to Sauraha costs around Rs 30. The touts will
offer you a free ride into Sauraha. Technically you are not obligated
to stay at the hotel that they bring you to, but in true it will be
hard not to. It is a good idea to pay the Rs 30 and not be under obligation.
Since of competition price can be very low and a minimum of profit
is made. Therefore there are often add-ons to make a profit. Lodges
will charge commission for a tour, game watching or transportation.
Often commission can be over the top (too high), especially because
you can arrange most things yourself. It all right to pay a commission
for service, but in Sauraha it is a good idea to make totally sure
what you are paying extra.
If you book with a hotel’s office in Kathmandu, you can expect
them to quote to you a package tour price.
Where to Stay – Lower
Budget place are mainly basic mud with thatch roof cottages with small
verandah beginning at around Rs 100. The design usually keeps the
room cool. Most places have screens in window and/or mosquito nets
over the beds. Some places have pleasant gardens. Most places don’t
hot water, but the weather is usually hot here.
Annapurna View Lodge (29363) has a good location near the entrance
of the park. It is a friendly place with cottages with common bath
for Rs 125 and with bath for Rs 200/300. Nice grounds.
Travellers’ Jungle Camp (29363) is friendly family-run place
with mud and thatch cottage for Rs 125 and brick cottages with bath
for Rs 300 to Rs 500.
Tharu Lodge, near to the river is a laid-back place with a pleasant
garden. It has mud and thatch cottages for Rs 125 and a brick cottage
for Rs 350.
Rainforest Guest House, at the north side of town, has mud and thatch
cottages with bath for Rs 125/175 and a brick cottage is Rs 350. It
is quiet and has a garden.
Chitwan Resort Camp (Kathmandu: 227-711; email: mandala@ccsl.com.np)
is a decent place with clean rooms with bath for Rs 450. It has a
good restaurant. It has a machaan that good for seating on.
Crocodile Safari Camp, next door, is a well-managed place with normal
rooms for Rs 125 and Rs 350 with bath. It has a good restaurant.
Hotel Wildlife Camp (29363) has good cottages with bath for Rs 175
and bigger rooms for Rs 300 to Rs 500.
Skyline Jungle Camp (60172) has brick cottage for Rs 125 and with
bath for Rs 350. There are shady verandahs in front of the rooms.
Nature Safari Camp is a modern style concrete place has rooms with
common bath for Rs 100 and rooms with bath for Rs 250. It is a good
value.
Chitwan Safari Camp (23453) is an older quiet place with a pleasant
garden. It has rooms for Rs 100 to Rs 350. It is a good place.
Eden Guest House (29371), a 10-minute walk from the park, is a helpful
place
Jungle Resort (Kathmandu office: 410-303) has traditional architecture
and room. It is well-managed.
River View Jungle Camp has good ground and rooms.
Where to Stay – Middle to High
Many of the mid-range places are geared for package tours and also
take individual guests if there are vacancies. Some have offices in
Kathmandu such as Chitwan Tiger Camp, Nepal Resort Camp and Rhino
Lodge.
Usually the mid-range places will have better gardens than the budget
places, reliable hot water, better food, and some rooms will have
air-coolers, experienced guides. Some places may have a small library
or a slide show.
Terai Resort has modern cottage with a bath, fan and mosquito nets
for Rs 450. It has a pleasant garden and views of the river.
Riverview Jungle Camp (60164) is a centrally located place that has
cottages for Rs 300 and better brick cottages for Rs 650. It has pleasant
grounds. It is all right.
Hotel Hermitage has brick cottage for Rs 700. It is on the river.
Rhino Lodge (29365, 60161) has really good views and is an established
place. A double room with bath is Rs 600. It is geared for package
tours.
Chitwan Paradise (60059) is a secluded place that has good size cottages
with common bath for Rs 500 and Rs 900 with bath. It has a big lawn.
A bike for be useful to get around.
Royal Park Hotel (29361; Kathmandu office: 412-987) has a great location
next to the river and has good views and spacious grounds. The large
comfortable rooms with bath, hot water and fans are $20 and $25 with
breakfast. You can camp here for $3 per person. It has a good restaurant
with a great view of the river. It has nice slate floors.
Osho Camp (29367; fax 60235) has rooms for Rs 700. It has vegetarian
meals.
Jungle Nepal Resort Camp is a good place that costs Rs 550 per person.
It is a little overpriced.
Jungle Adventure World (29364; Kathmandu 434-380) has comfortable
well decorated cottages for $22. It has an excellent location with
real nice garden with views of the river.
Chitwan Tiger Camp (29369, 60189; Kathmandu: 224-318; email sundar@boodles.mos.com.np)
has a good location near the entrance of the park overlooking the
river. It has a bamboo machaan (platform), from where there are great
views. It has electricity and the hot water is solar heated or heated
by back boilers. It has rooms with common bath for Rs $12/17, 17/28
with bath and $30/45 for a luxury room with an air-cooler. It has
a good restaurant. From the garden you can often watch elephant-bathing.
You can often get a 35% discount.
Hotel Jungle Camp (29366; Kathmandu office: 222-132, 240-669; email:
jungle@camp.mos.com.np) has pleasant grounds with a nice garden. It
has small, comfortable cottages for $20. It is not a great deal.
Safari Adventure Lodge (01 223-763; fax 226-912), west of Sauraha,
halfway to the park headquarters, is a higher end place.
Where to Eat
Most lodges also have a restaurant. Most people eat breakfast at their
lodge and go out for lunch or dinner. There are several restaurants
near the main Sauraha intersection. Some places have pleasant upstairs
terraces with a view of the river.
There are several places along the riverside that are popular at sunset
Jungle View is a popular place that has a good view of the river.
It has good Italian, Chinese and Indian.
Tiger Camp has a good restaurant.
Royal Park Hotel has a good restaurant.
Al Fresco is a fancy place with Indian, Continental and Chinese food.
Ku’s is next to the river and has good views.
Where to Stay – Inside the Park
These places should be book in advance. They usually will arrange
travel to and from the park. The places inside the park are worth
staying in, if you can afford it. Many are luxurious, have well-organized
programs for wildlife viewing, and have a good atmosphere. If you
are on a package tour from Kathmandu the quoted total price of the
tour includes everything except drinks and tips.
Most people who stay in the park are part of a package tour from Kathmandu
and are often part of a larger tour of Nepal or of the sub-continent.
These places are usually booked in advance through their agents or
by calling them directly.
Most hotels quote their prices including meals and an elephant ride
in the park. Prices do not usually include park entry. Most places
have pleasant comfortable cottages built around a central dining area.
They also may have comfortable luxury tents
Gaida Wildlife Camp (Kathmandu office: 01 220-940; fax 227-292; email:
gaida@mos.com.np; PO Box 2056, Durbar Marg, Kathmandu), near Sauraha,
north of the Narayani River, has comfortable thatched huts for $180/230.
Managed by the same people is the Gaida Wildlife Jungle Camp, 8km
south near Someshwar Hill, has safari tents. It costs $130/170. The
wildlife around the main camp is not so abundant, but is good near
the jungle camp.
Island Jungle Resort (Kathmandu office: 01 220-162; fax 225-615; email:
island@mos.com.np; PO Box 2154, Durbar Marg, Kathmandu) has an excellent
location at the west end of the park on a big island in the middle
of the Narayani River. It has comfortable cottage and safari tents.
The cottages are $170/240 and the tents are $150/220. The package
tours to here are cheaper and can be a good value. Children from three
to 10 pay 50% less.
Machan Wildlife Resort (Kathmandu office: 01 225-001; fax 240-681;
email: wildlife@machan.mos.com.np; PO Box 78, Durbar Marg, Kathmandu),
at the east end of the park near Parsa Wildlife Reserve, is a pleasant
place with a natural swimming pool and wildlife videos. It has well-designed
wooden bungalows with bath. They have excellent Mithila paintings.
It cost $220/275 the first night and Rs $200/225 for additional nights.
They arrange transportation to Kathmandu Rs $110 by air and $65 by
car. The wildlife is not supposed to be as good at this part of the
park.
Temple Tiger Wildlife Camp (Kathmandu office: 01 221-585; fax 220-178;
PO Box 3958, Kantipath, Kathmandu), at the west end of the park near
Tiger Tops, has comfortable of elevated cottages with a view of the
grasslands. It is right in the middle of the jungle and has a great
atmosphere. They charge $300/400. Children three to 12 pay a 50% discount.
Chitwan Jungle Lodge (Kathmandu office: 01 228-918, 228-458; fax 228-439;
email: wildlife@resort.wlink.com.np; PO Box 1281, Durbar Marg, Kathmandu)
has traditional Tharu style comfortable rooms with thatched roofs
and mud walls. It cost for two night $275 for a single and $425 for
a double. To get to the lodge by raft is $100. It is in a secluded
area. It does not have electricity. There is good swimming in the
nearby river and a good place to see elephant bathing.
Tiger Tops (Kathmandu office: 01 423-171, 411-225; fax 414-075; email:
info@tigermountain.com tiger@mtn.mos.com.np; PO Box 242, Durbar Marg,
Kathmandu) is $600 per person for two nights. Children under 12 receive
a 50% discount. The lodge is managed by established professional Tiger
Mountain. It has excellent guides and is environmentally friendly.
There are three places run by Tiger Tops in the park.
Jungle Lodge is the original Tiger Tops place. The buildings are made
of traditional materials and are on stilts. The comfortable rooms
are solar-heated, but do not have electricity. It costs $450/600.
Open 1 September to mid-June and is closed during the monsoon. It
has a great location.
The Tented Camp (a Tiger Tops place), 3km east of the lodge, has safari
tents with modern toilet and shower facilities for $250/325. It is
in the beautiful Surung Valley. Open 1 October to 30 April.
Tharu Village Safari Resort (411-225; email: tiger@mtn.mos.com.np),
also a Tiger Tops place, has traditional Tharu style long houses built
from wood, mud and grass reeds, and has wall paintings. The well-designed,
comfortable rooms each with a queen-size and single bed with a bathroom
are $175/225. It has a pool. It is actually a little outside the park
on the north bank of the Narayani River. It is open all year.
Between Jagatpur and Ghatgain
There are several places between Jagatpur and Ghatgain, around 18km
from Sauraha. These places are near the Kasara park office. Buses
go hourly in the morning between Jagatpur and Narayanghat.
These places are more secluded and you will not see so many travelers
here. There also are not many facilities, like there are in Sauraha.
Sunset View Lodge, Ghatgain,
Riverview Lodge (29347), Ghatgain,
Nature Darai Village, 1½ km west of Jagatpur,
Ghumtee Rivievra Lodge, Ghatgain, has mud and thatch cottages and
nice ground. It has a good view of the river.
Rapti Riverview Lodge, Ghatgain, has basic rooms.
Gharial Safari Jungle Resort, between Jagatpur and Ghatgain, has a
nice garden next to the Rapti River. It has luxury tents. It is 2½
km from Jagatpur.
Safari Narayani Lodge (20130; Kathmandu office: 525-015; email: info@nbe.pc.mos.com.np),
Ghatgain, has luxury rooms. It has its own jeeps and elephants. It
has a good restaurant.
