World Wildlife Day: Here's a list of India's 5 best national parks and forests

If you crave going "into the wild", these national parks and forests should be on your bucket list.

India is blessed with a plethora of wildlife reserves, and visiting such places is truly exhilarating for many. There are numerous well-maintained national parks and forests across the country which allow you to experience wildlife in the most thrilling way possible.

So, on this World Wildlife Day, let's have a look at India's five such places that you should visit at least once in a lifetime.

Sasan-Gir Wildlife Sanctuary (Best time to visit: December to April)

Sasan-Gir Wildlife Sanctuary is spread over 1,412 sq. km with a core area of 258 sq. km in Gujarat. Founded on 18th September 1965, this park is the sole home of Asiatic Lions in India. It also has other wildlife species including leopards, striped hyenas, jackals, foxes, sloth bears, jungle cats, blackbucks, crocodiles, monitor lizards, and more.

Corbett National Park (Best time to visit: Mid-November to June end)

Located in Uttarakhand, Corbett National Park was established in 1936 to protect the imposing Bengal Tigers. The park is named after the famous hunter-turned-conservator Jim Corbett. It is home to five safari zones such as Dhikala, Bijrani, Jhirna, Dhela, and Durga Devi Zone, along with two buffer zones namely Sonanadi and Pakhro. Besides tigers, it also has goral, Himalayan tahr, golden jackal, spotted deer, elephant, and sambar deer, among others.

Kaziranga National Park (Best time to visit: November to April)

Kaziranga National Park in Assam is the sole habitat of the endangered one-horned rhinoceros in India. The park spreads over 429.69 sq. km and is also home to various other wildlife species including tigers, elephants, bears, swamp deer, wild buffalo, panthers, etc. Here, most tourists prefer to take a leisurely boat ride on the river and see the wildlife on the banks.

Bandhavgarh National Park (Best time to visit: Mid October to June end)

Located in Madhya Pradesh, Bandhavgarh National Park is arguably the best place in India to witness the elusive tiger in its natural habitat. Besides tigers, it also has a wide variety of deers, Nagai, striped hyenas, and leopards. It offers two safaris – one in the morning and the other one in the afternoon.

Kanha National Park (Best time to visit: April to early May)

Madhya Pradesh's pride Kanha National Park is famous for giving shelter to the rare and almost extinct species of the Swamp Deer (Barasinghas). Declared a reserve forest in 1879 and revalued as a wildlife sanctuary in 1933, this park spreads across a huge area of 940 sq km in the Maikal chain of hills. It is home to an excellent range of wildlife species such as jackals, wild pigs, Chital, blackbuck, sambar, barking deer, Indian bison or gaur, Indian fox, sloth bear, striped hyena, mouse deer, and more.

Apart from these, the list also includes Bandipur National Park, Hemis National Park, Ranthambore National Park, Sunderbans National Park, etc.