Wonders of Northeast India, including the Hornbill Festival

Welcome to incredible India! On arrival you will be met by one of our representatives at transferred to the hotel. The rest of the day is free to relax or explore the local surrounds. Kolkata is a fascinating city – full of life, vibrancy and culture. Although no activities are planned, your guide will be on hand to offer help and recommendations.

Kolkata is an intoxicating city to explore, and today we will discover why. As one of India’s largest cities and the former capital of British India, the city is regarded as the artistic and cultural capital of the country. After breakfast at the hotel, we will head to Kumartuli, the atmospheric potters district. The maze-like alleys are home to over 550 different workshops that create religious idols all year-round. The idols are primarily created for the Durga Puja Festival, and wandering the narrow streets offers a rare glimpse into the ritual and skill involved in creating these idols from clay and bamboo. After exploring, we will take a ferry to the Mullick Ghat Flower Market, the largest flower market in Asia. Crossing the mighty Hooghly River by boat offers the chance to view this heaving metropolis from the water as we pass under the iconic Howrah Bridge. We will also visit the grand Raj-era Victoria Memorial before returning to our hotel by late afternoon. The rest of the day is free to spend at your leisure.

After breakfast, we’ll fly to Jorhat before continuing on our journey to Majuli Island. Along the way we’ll stop at the 115-year-old Haroocharai Tea Estate for lunch. After lunch we’ll drive to Neemati Ghat, where we’ll board a ferry Majuli Island. Majuli is the world’s largest river island, but it is slowing disappearing as the land is eroded by monsoonal floods and the mighty Brahmaputra River. Majuli is renowned in Assamese culture as home to the medieval Xatras (monasteries) where monks practice Assam’s distinctive form of Vishnu worship. The afternoon is yours to relax and enjoy the change of pace after the bustling streets of Kolkata.

After breakfast we’ll visit some of the most significant Xatras on Majuli. Visiting the Xatras is an eye-opening glimpse into the lives of the monks who still lead austere lives mastering religious scripts, art, music, dance and handicrafts. We’ll visit Dakshinpaat Xatra, where monks lead a celibate life; followed by Natun Samaguri Xatra, where the monks are allowed to marry. Following that, we’ll visit Natun Samaguri Xatra, known for a 400-year-old tradition of religious mask making started by Srimanta Shankardev. The rest of the afternoon is free for you to soak up the atmosphere of the beautiful island. Take a walk through the rice fields or enjoy some bird watching at the wetlands.

After breakfast we’ll hire some bikes and cycle around the local villages. The bike hire scheme was set up to promote sustainable tourism in the area and is one of the best ways to slowly explore the villages and beautiful surroundings. Alternative transport will be provided for those who don’t wish to cycle. We’ll visit Mishing village, home to the Mishing tribe, who live in distinctive houses built on raised platforms and make up almost half of the population of Majuli. After our bike ride we’ll return to our accommodation. The rest of the afternoon is yours to relax or explore. Don’t forget to watch the sun set over the Brahmaputra River as people head home by boat. In the evening we’ll enjoy a traditional tribal feast. The food on offer is very unique, and there will be plenty of unusual fish, meat and vegetarian delicacies on offer. Finish off the meal by trying the local rice beer, known as Apong.

After breakfast we’ll say goodbye to Majuli Island and start the journey to Kaziranga National Park, which is home to elephants, tigers, primates and India’s famous one-horned rhino. After travelling by ferry and private vehicle, we’ll reach our accommodation inside the park. The park consists of several ranges, and over the next two days you’ll visit the Central Range (home to tigers), the Bagori Range (home to rhinos, elephants and water buffaloes) and the Burapahar Range (home to Capped Langurs and India’s only ape, the Hollock Gibbon). The afternoon is yours to relax in our luxurious riverside accommodation, from where you might even be able to spot rhinos grazing in the neighbouring grasslands.

Today we’ll explore the park with morning and afternoon jeep safaris. Our safari guide will choose which range of the park to cover and will make sure that we pay a visit to all three ranges over the next two days. In between safaris you can relax at the resort.

This morning we’ll enjoy our final jeep safari in Kaziranga National Park. In the afternoon we’ll drive to Jorhat, where we’ll spend the night before heading off on our adventure to the tribal north-eastern state of Nagaland.

We’ll rise early to catch the Shatabdi Express train to Dimapur. The train journey will take two hours and is the perfect time to sit back and enjoy the passing scenery.

We’ll arrive in Dimapur in time for a late breakfast before continuing by private vehicle to Kohima, the capital city of Nagaland. Kohima is scattered across a series of forested ridges and offers picturesque views of the valley below. After checking into our hotel, we’ll visit the War Cemetery, which stands at the battle site of the 64-day Battle of Kohima where the Allied Forces won a decisive battle over the Japanese. The cemetery is one of the most historically significant reminders of the war in this part of the world. We’ll also visit the Central Market, where tribal people gather to buy and sell local delicacies.

After breakfast we’ll attend the colourful opening ceremony of the Hornbill Festival at the Kisama Heritage Village. We’ll spend the day at the festival site enjoying the local delicacies on offer as well as the famous Naga hospitality. We’ll experience traditional Nagaland dances, songs, games, food, religious ceremonies, and tribal lore. Attending the festival and seeing the different Naga tribes in their full warrior dress is truly a once in a lifetime experience. The Hornbill Festival is organised annually to preserve the culture of the diverse local tribes. Although each tribe has their own festivals, the Hornbill Festival is an important social and cultural event, as well as an opportunity for all the tribes to meet. The festival is named after the hornbill bird, common to the folklore of all the tribes. After leaving the festival site, we’ll visit Kigwema Village. The village is home to the Angami people, one of the major Naga ethnic groups. Several households in the village welcome tourists, which will give us a rare peek into the lives of the tribespeople away from the festival site.

After breakfast we’ll head to Kisama Heritage Village to enjoy the festivities for another day. We’ll be able to watch jaw-dropping performances and enactments of the traditional way of life for the various tribes as well as eat delicious Naga food until we can’t take any more. In the evening we’ll visit the iconic Kohima Cathedral to enjoy the panoramic views of the city.

Today we’ll say goodbye to Nagaland. We’ll have breakfast at the hotel before taking a scenic drive to Dimapur, where we’ll board a flight to Kolkata. We will arrive in Kolkata by mid-afternoon and transfer to our accommodation. The rest of the afternoon is at your leisure. You might wish to explore the local area or do some last-minute souvenir shopping.

We will transfer you to the airport in time for your return flight home. We look forward to seeing you on another Ekno experience soon.