Assam: River Island, Wildlife and Cultural Heritage

Assam offers a variety of travel experiences: protected areas with diverse landscapes, a large river island and places with vibrant cultural traditions. To plan your trip, you can first consider whether wildlife watching, island culture, temples and history, or a mountain landscape should shape your stay. The places differ not only in their themes, but also in the activities they offer and the time needed to explore each one.

Nature, wildlife watching and protected areas

Kaziranga National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1985 because of its natural environment, and is also a tiger reserve. It is located in the districts of Golaghat, Nagaon and Biswanath. Elephant and jeep safaris are offered in the park. Exploring the four main routes usually takes two to three days—a useful guideline if you would like to include several routes in your travel plans.

Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary in Morigaon district is considered to have the world’s highest density of one-horned rhinoceroses. Hoollongapar Gibbon Wildlife Sanctuary offers a different kind of wildlife watching: it is home to seven primate species and 219 bird species, and can only be explored on trekking tours. Visitors can observe wildlife at close range.

Wetlands and river landscapes also shape Assam’s nature experiences. Deepor Beel is Assam’s only Ramsar site and serves as a resting place for migratory birds; native and migratory birds can be observed there. Activities offered in Dibru-Saikhowa National Park include boat safaris for birdwatching and jungle trekking. The protected landscape in the Brahmaputra floodplain includes wet evergreen forests, tropical moist deciduous forests, bamboo, rattan and grassland. In Nameri National Park, visitors can combine jungle treks with rafting on the Jia Bharali River.

Majuli: River Island and Living Culture

Majuli, the world’s largest river island, lies in the heart of Assam and is surrounded by the Brahmaputra. Regular ferries connect the island with Nimati Ghat in Jorhat. If you are planning the crossing, check the schedule for your travel day. Boat tours are also offered on Majuli, giving visitors the chance to experience the island’s tranquil landscape.

The Satras on Majuli preserve a diverse cultural heritage: Sattriya dance, literature, Bhaona theatre, mask-making and boat-building. The Raas festival is also associated with the island. It is celebrated at the Satras on the full-moon day of the month of Aghun, which falls in the first or second week of November. If you would like to plan your trip around the festival, check the specific event dates.

Temples and History of Assam

The Charaideo necropolis contains 90 Moidams, the burial mounds of Ahom kings. The Charaideo Moidams are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Tai-Ahom rituals Me-Dam Me-Phi, the worship of ancestors, and Tarpan, the offering of libations, are also practiced at this site. Charaideo thus combines a clearly identifiable historical heritage with living religious traditions.

Kamakhya Temple stands on Nilachal Hill in Guwahati, the capital of Assam, and is considered one of India’s most famous Shakti shrines. The four-day Ambubachi festival is associated with the annual menstrual cycle of Mother Earth, worshipped as the goddess Kamakhya. In Sivasagar, Shiva Dol stands between Vishnu Dol and Devi Dol; it is described as one of the country’s most important pilgrimage sites. Also in Sivasagar is Borpukhuri, the second-largest man-made tank in Assam.

Different focuses for your trip

Those interested in a protected landscape at the foothills of the Bhutan Himalaya will find another wildlife-watching option in Manas National Park, where jeep safaris are offered. Visits to villages next to the park can offer insights into the lives of the Bodo people and into the traditional cloth weaving practiced by Bodo women.

Haflong, Assam’s only hill station, in Dima Hasao district, offers a different kind of landscape. At Haflong Lake, you can walk along the shore. By comparison, exploring Kaziranga’s four main routes usually takes two to three days. This can help you organize your trip around your preferred focus: an extended park exploration, island and Satra culture, temple sites, or a walk by the lake.

Discover more destinations: Nagaon, Sonitpur, Bongaigaon, Dima Hasao, Morigaon, Jorhat, North Cachar Hills, Kamrup, Ganesh Pahar, Bijni, Halidhibari, Tinsukia, Dibrugarh, Sonitpur, Kumguri, Barpeta, Sibsagar, Jorhat, Goalpara, Badarpur Rly Town, Khagari.

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