Shillong, Cherrapunji and Kaziranga

• Shillong
• 1,525 m
• 120 km from airport · 3.5 hrs
• Dinner

Pickup at Guwahati airport and a climb up NH6 through Jorabat and Nongpoh, where pineapple sellers line the road from June to September. The first view of Umiam Lake comes about 15 km before Shillong; we stop at the viewpoint above the dam for 20 minutes. Check in at your Shillong hotel by mid-afternoon. In the evening walk Police Bazar and Ward's Lake, or head to one of the live-music cafes on Laitumkhrah. Shillong sits at about 1,525 m, so evenings from November to February drop to 5 to 8 degrees Celsius; pack a jacket.

• Sohra
• 1,484 m
• 60 km · 2.5 hrs with stops
• Breakfast, Dinner

After breakfast we drive up to Shillong Peak, at 1,965 m the highest point in the Khasi Hills, inside an Air Force area where you show ID at the gate. Next is Elephant Falls, three tiers down a staircase of about 200 steps. The road to Sohra then crosses the Mawkdok Dympep valley, where a short stop at the viewpoint is worth it. Check in at Sohra by lunch. The afternoon is for the Seven Sisters Falls viewpoint and Ramakrishna Mission's small museum of Khasi life. Sohra has few restaurants, so dinner is usually at your resort.

• Shillong
• 1,525 m
• 60 km · 2 hrs plus sightseeing
• Breakfast, Dinner

Be at the Nohkalikai viewpoint by 8 am. The falls drop about 340 metres into a green plunge pool, and on most winter mornings the gorge is clear until about 10 am, after which cloud rolls in. Then Mawsmai Cave, a short lit limestone passage with one squeeze point that most children love; it takes 20 to 30 minutes. Stop at Arwah or Dainthlen Falls if time allows, then return to Shillong by late afternoon. Free evening in town. Village and site entry fees in Sohra are small and paid at each gate.

• Kaziranga
• 70 m
• 270 km · 6.5–7 hrs
• Breakfast, Dinner

The longest day. We leave Shillong at 7 am, drop down to Jorabat on the edge of Guwahati and turn east on NH27 past Jagiroad and Nagaon. Lunch is at Nagaon, roughly the halfway point. From Nagaon, NH715 runs beside tea gardens and, near Kohora, along the park boundary, where rhino are sometimes visible from the road in the grass on the right. Arrive at your lodge by 3 pm. The rest of the day is free; most families take a short walk through the neighbouring tea garden or visit the Kaziranga Orchid and Biodiversity Park near Kohora.

• Kaziranga
• 70 m
• Local · park roads
• Breakfast, Dinner

Optional dawn elephant ride at Kohora or Bagori from November, at around 5.30 or 6.30 am. After breakfast the morning jeep safari enters the Central Range at Kohora, where open grassland and beels make rhino, wild water buffalo and swamp deer easy to see. After lunch the afternoon jeep goes to the Western Range at Bagori, known for the highest density of rhino in the park and big herds of wild buffalo. Tigers live here in good numbers, but the tall grass hides them and most visitors do not see one. Dinner at the lodge.

• Departure
• 55 m
• 215 km to airport · 5 hrs
• Breakfast

Breakfast and a relaxed start. We leave by 8.30 am for Guwahati airport, about 215 km away, stopping for tea at Nagaon. Book flights after 3 pm to allow for traffic on Guwahati's eastern bypass. If you prefer, we can drop you at Jorhat Airport instead, only 95 km and two hours east of Kaziranga. Families with a late evening flight sometimes add a stop at the Brahmaputra riverfront or Kamakhya Temple on the way into the city, which we can arrange if you tell us your flight time in advance.