Your journey begins with a gentle ascent from Delhi into the Himalayan foothills, where cooler air and rising ridgelines signal a shift into the temperate forests of Singalila Ridge. Here, oak and rhododendron forests cloak the slopes, forming one of the subcontinent’s most important transboundary habitats and one of the few regions where the elusive Red Panda survives. Exploration is slow and on foot, guided by expert trackers, offering first-time travellers an authentic understanding of Himalayan wildlife and altitude-driven ecosystems.

The landscape then transforms dramatically as you descend into Assam’s fertile floodplains and enter Kaziranga National Park, home to over 2,600 Indian one-horned rhinos, the largest population anywhere in the world, along with elephants and prolific birdlife sustained by the Brahmaputra’s annual floods. A visit to the Hoollongapar Gibbon Sanctuary adds a rare dimension, protecting around 150 Hoolock gibbons, India’s only apes, whose calls echo through the forest canopy. Together, these landscapes offer a compact yet deeply informative journey through two of Northeast India’s most vital and contrasting ecosystems.