Bandipur National Park is located in the Chamarajanagar district of the state of Karnataka. Bandipur National Park was once the hunting reserve for the Maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore. Established in the year 1974 as a forest tiger reserve under the Project Tiger, Bandipur is the most prominent national park located in the south Indian state of Karnataka and is best known for its varied wildlife boasting different biomes in the dry deciduous forest. It is considered as one of the best managed parks of India.
The park stretches across an area of 874 sq km with a great objective of protecting the endangered species like tigers and elephants in this region along with protecting and restricting the over-usages of the sandalwood trees in the reserve area. Around 80 kms of distance from the city of Mysore on the way towards Ooty, one of the major hotspots of the area, Bandipur National Park brings a warm and comfortable climate throughout the year with a normal temperature range of 24 to 28°C to enjoy the tourists for a marvelous wildlife tour. Monsoon is erratic here but it generally rains from June to September to bring more lushly varieties around the reserve areas.
The Bandipur National Park is the region always accosted with tremendous counts of wildlife species including varied mammals and vulnerable kinds of species like Bonner Macaque Nilgiri Langur (adjoining areas), Dhole, Common Palm, Civet, Smooth-coated Otter, Stripe-necked Mongoose, Jungle Cat, Tiger, Wild Boar, Chital, Gaur, Grizzled Indian Squirrel, Liontail Macaque, Indian Palm, Giant Flying squirrel, Golden Jackal, Sloth Bear, Indian Grey Mongoose, Striped Hyaena, Ratel, Indian Spotted Chevrotain, Rusty-spotted Cat, Sambar, Nilgiri Tahr (adjoining areas), Indian Porcupine, Hanuman Langur, Bengal Fox, Eurasian, Otter Small Indian Civet, Ruddy, Leopard, Cat Leopard, Indian Elephant, Four-horned Antelope, Indian Muntjac, Indian Pangolin, Mongoose, Indian Hare Red, Indian Giant Squirrel with more species on the list.
Tourists can visit the park between 10 am and 6 pm at nominal charges of Rs. 25 for Indians and Rs. 150 for foreigners.