We first ran this aptly named program three years ago, and it lived up to its billing—we saw lions and tigers and bears—and lots of birds. (click here for the complete list.) We start in Sasan Gir National Park, the only place in Asia where lions still exist. But Gir is also home to India’s other big cats, such as leopards and lesser cats such as jungle cat and rusty spotted cat. All of these cats will be among our mammal targets on our morning and evening safari drives in Gir. And let’s not forget the birds—250 species of birds can be found here. Our major targets include White-rumped and King Vulture, Rock and Jungle Bushquail, Black and Painted Francolin, and a suite of larks, including Sykes’s, Short-toed, Rufous-tailed, and Singling Bush Lark.
Next up is Velavadar Blackbuck National Park, a sanctuary famous for its large variety of antelope species, in particular the Blackbuck, which is characterized by elegant spiraling horns that can be two-feet long in mature males. Other target mammals include Jackal, Hyena, and Indian Wolf. Birding is good here, too—over 265 species have been recorded here; it’s particularly good for raptors; our targets include three kinds of falcon (Red-necked, Laggar Falcon, and Saker), two kinds of harrier (Hen and Pallid), and Greater Spotted Eagle. Other specialty birds include two kinds of crane (Common and Demoiselle) and the rare Lesser Florican.
Once the former hunting grounds of the Maharajas of Jaipur, our next national park, Ranthambore, is one of the biggest and most renowned national parks in India. It’s the best place in the world to see tigers in the wild and, if we’re lucky, we might see sloth bears here, too. (On our 2023 trip, we saw tigers on three drives and sloth bears twice.) eBird reports 330 bird species at Ranthambore.
Our last national park is Keoladeo. Because of its varied ecosystems, India is home to 1300 bird species, including over 60 endemics. It’s a birder’s paradise, particularly in its sanctuaries where critical habitat has been preserved. The jewel of these sanctuaries is Keoladeo National Park. Almost a third of India’s bird species can be found here. Declared a protected sanctuary in 1971, UNESCO designated the park a World Heritage Site in 1985. Because much of the park is wetlands our targets here include Bar-headed Goose, Greylag Goose, Knob-Billed Duck, Common Shelduck, Ruddy Shelduck, Cotton Pigmy Goose, Gargany Teal, Falcated Duck, Common Teal, Ferruginous Pochard, Red-Crested Pochard, Greater Flamingo, Yellow Bittern, Black Bittern, Striated Heron, Painted Stork, Asian Openbill, Black-Necked Stork, and Saras Crane. Additionally we’ll look for Siberian Rubythroat, Bluethroat, Long-Tailed Nightjar, Savana Nightjar, Blue-Tailed Bee-eater, and Lesser Goldenbacked Woodpecker.
In addition to searching for these birds and mammals, we’ll also enjoy great cuisine, cultural excursions to local markets, and some of Rajasthan’s most famous sites: the Amber Fort in Jaipur, the world’s largest and deepest step well at Chand Baori, and, of course, the Taj Mahal.
Date: February 1-26, 2026
Cost: USD $7,000 per person based on double occupancy. A single room supplement is USD $1,500, and a 5% government tax will be added to the final price per person. The tour is limited to 8 people.
For more information, or to sign up for this trip, contact Eric Schroeder at travelprogram@goldengatebirds.org. Please do not contact the vendor.