u/naresh_d007

I have always loved motorbikes. Owning 1 RE Himalayan and an XPulse200 has been one of the greatest flexes of my life. I have been to Bhutan so many times, but this September wanted to take a vacation for myself.

So, I called one of our guides in Bhutan and asked him to join me. But he didn't ride a bike, so he had to follow me in a car. Well, did it, but it was worth it for me.

Here's what I actually did:

Hired an RE Himalayan Scram411 from my good friend in Paro, asked him to get me all the permits, paid all the fees needed, and landed in Paro on September 3rd. I had never ridden the roads of Bhutan before, so I was a bit sceptical for a while, but since the roads were as good as Nepal's good highways, I didn't have to worry.

The first day, just a good head start to Thimphu, I stayed in Six Senses Thimphu. Met a few travellers and they were praising me so much on doing that, cause these rich fellas would never dare doing such arsy adventure, lol.

Had a lovely night spent at the hotel with the view of Thimphu Valley and got ready with all my stuff to put in the car. Since there was a car behind me, I didn't have to put a saddle or a box. Screwed off the and asked my friend at the Six Senses to help me get that box transferred back to Paro.

Day 2: Headed to Punakha

Started easy, and just a 75 km ride to Punakha was not too hectic. There were a few landslide zones which were pretty risky to cross through, but it was lovely to pass by. I had ridden my motorbike in Nepal in the worst-case scenarios; Bhutan just praised me.

The best thing about this day's ride was that the day was pretty sunny. But when I reached the top of the Dochu La, it was full of fog. Funny thing, out of all the coincidences on earth, I met my old client who came to Nepal, and I hosted a lovely Annapurna Journey for him, in Dochu La. Surprisingly, he was staying in the same hotel that I was staying at. We didn't meet last night, though. But today, we planned to have dinner together. He was so happy to see me, and he too praised me for riding the motorbike, cause he never knew how passionate I was about this stuff.

With the clean roads ahead, and lovely bird sightings throughout the highway, and sometimes the macaques, I headed towards Lobesa, Punakha. The highway will have a few vendors selling you either the oranges or some stuff fresh from the jungle. I didn't buy any, but did not miss greeting any of them. Everyone was just so friendly and welcoming.

Lobesa is a small village market for the locals. I started seeing the old houses, and an entrance to the rural part of Bhutan, now. The day grew hotter and hotter as I approached the lower valley of 1,350 metres. I went through the villages with phalluses (penis) painted, hung, or even carved on the wood pillars of houses and temples in Punakha. They worship it to pay respect to their ancient guru, Drukpa Kuenley, who started the grateful teaching of life and Buddhism in a very unconventional way to the locals.

Day 3&4: The bloody long ride to Panbang:

Since my visit this time had a purpose to do research on the wildlife tourism in Bhutan, Panbang in Zhemgang district of Bhutan never had to be missed.

I rode roughly 550+ kms today. But all the roads I rode through were completely safe and lovely to ride through.

My whole body ached when I did this ride. I couldn't sit properly either, because my bum was so sore, lol. But riding through the passes, meeting and greeting locals, and learning the new culture of the eco-capital of Bhutan was worth that bum-sore.

The best thing today was the birds, butterflies, and again the macaques. Throughout my ride, they were spotted every 10-15 kilometres from Trongsa onwards. Since I bought chhurpi (the chewy food made from yak milk), to chew on it throughout and not feel bored at all. The riverside ride through the Mangde Chhu was another highlight. I started around 5 AM from my hotel in Punakha and reached Tingtibi at around 1 PM to have lunch. Since many hotels were closed, my guide Phub found me a Nepali-owned restaurant, which gave me vibes of local Nepali restaurants in villages of Nepal. I asked them if they could make me a Nepali-style noodle soup. They didn't hesitate and made it for me.

Had a lovely talk with the locals, learning about their heritage and history. The butterflies were everywhere during this time in Tingtibi. Phub explained everything he could to me, and I kept on putting them in notes. After that lovely lunch, we headed on another 2 and a half hour ride towards Panbang, the border to India's Manas Tiger Reserve and Bhutan's Royal Manas National Park.

The lodge owner welcomed me with their own culture of greetings. I was offered Ara, in a glass, the local alcohol. I stayed here for one more day. I didn't get a chance to go on a rafting adventure cause the river was flooded. But got across the river on a boat run by the locals, visited the Royal Manas National Park.

Honestly, if anyone needs to learn how conservation works, you should learn from Bhutan. They preserve everything possible. Wild boars, tigers, golden langurs, birds, butterflies, deer, elephants, bison, and every other thing. Basically, anything that moves.

Since there was no Jeep Safari in Manas, I did a lovely walk around with an army conservationist inside the jungle. They've also got the Tiger Centre, that educated people on how to protect tigers and also how to be safe from them at the same time.

Day 5: Ride back to the highlands: Gangtey

Another long ride back. But today, I didn't have any sore bum. On the way back, I wanted to check out the lodge that Phub had been telling me about. The Berti Eco Lodge in Tingtibi. And honestly, that was the best flexible decision I made. I wish I had more time in Bhutan at that time of the year, I could've stayed in the eco-lodge for at least a night. But had to let go.

First things first, that lodge was established by the local administration of Tingtibi and handed over to 6 local women to operate. I did not get to meet all of them, just met the three, but it was inspiring. All of them were under the age of 35 and over 22, running that lodge. Right by the river. It was their plan to work on the renovation of it. They employed around 6 local men to work on furniture and hotel barriers. These women I saw were building some lake dock as well, the lake was man-made, btw.

The best thing is, I was able to spot the endangered species of Golden Langurs near the lodge. I spotted the Great Hornbill. And the major idea is their protection of the endangered species of Golden Mahseer, the tigers of the river. As they were only found in Bhutan, this lodge has been protecting the juveniles, letting them produce in their small-spring natural habitat, and release into the Mangde Chhu. Awesome, right? I felt my adventure was successful in exploring this stuff.

I headed back to Gangtey with another 5-hour ride. Since I was tired, I didn't think of going to the monastery to see the monks' prayers. Planned it for the next day.

Day 6: Back to Paro:

I went to the Gangtey Monastery. I always love the ancient monasteries being preserved, and not turned into modern buildings. Gangtey Lodge was one of them. I met the monks. Got a private blessing from the head monk as well before heading back to Paro.

The ride was easy and lovely again. Passing back through what I went. I came to know that I was overspeeding. Phub warned me, then I slowed down again. A 3-hour ride later, I arrived in Paro. Again, I stayed in the valley-top Six Senses Paro. Had a great massage at their spa and a lovely dinner at the fortress ruins of Chubjakha.

Day 7: Ride to Chele La Pass (the highest motorable road in Bhutan):

I gave Phub and my driver, Deepak Dai, a leave for the day as I rode to Chele La. The road was fully winding. I somewhat felt lazy riding that road at times, it was not altitude sickness, though. Just I was lazy. At times, I thought I should've just gone to the Tiger's Nest to hike. But that was for the next day. So just kept riding. Met a few locals at the top who were selling warm noodles from a truck. It was pretty resourceful to see. Once again, the weather told me not to get too much excited and not to open anything for the view. With all the clouds throughout, not disappointed, because I rode to the highest motorable altitude road in Bhutan at 3,900 metres, and I rode back to the hotel.

With that ride, I gave the motorbike back to my friend Gonju. I thanked him for giving me that motorbike in such great condition. Although I had to ask him to change the motorbike on the first day, he gave me a bike with a brake pad issue.

The rest of the time, my other bike went so well. I kissed goodbye and did the Tiger's Nest Hike the next day. Noted everything down, worked with Phub on the new trip I was building and flew back to Kathmandu.

I've stayed in this luxury lodge more than 5 times already, and every time I go here, I feel transported into the wild.

I have also stayed in Meghauli Serai, A Taj Safari and Barahi Jungle Resort (World-Class Lodges from Nepal), whose review I will share in my other posts, but this is an appreciation post of Banbas Chitwan, a Small-Luxury in the wild of Chitwan.

About Chitwan NP:

Established in 1973, Chitwan NP is the first National Park of Nepal. It was established to protect the endangered species of Nepal (the Bengal Tigers and the One-Horned Rhinos) from the hunting culture. As per my research in Chitwan, the high-end members of the East India Company were invited by Nepal's dynast prime-ministers for hunting. And that has even gotten the sale of more than $12000 just for one horn of a rhino. The Royal Families of Nepal had exploited that part, yet it was one of the first countries in South Asia to start the luxury safari inside the jungle.

Right now, nobody is allowed to stay inside the NP. The locals use the community forests as well as some parts of the NP to collect their daily firewood, grass, and sometimes their local snail food, the Ghongi.

Scattered over an area of 932 sq. km., this National Park has around 634 species of birds (remember that), 128 Bengal Tigers, and 694 Rhinos.

However, unlikely to what the African Safaris look like, Nepal's Safari in Chitwan is outta question for many people. So, if you come to Chitwan NP, disappointment is for sure, because tigers don't lurk all the time, rhinos mostly do. Sometimes, the leopards are spotted, and the sloth bears. And you have to be considered lucky enough to spot them all.

And that's the marketing which is killing all the people's idea about Chitwan. While Chitwan is one of my favourite places to operate, but with a completely different philosophy.

About the Lodge:

Banbas Chitwan is the isolated lodge in the village of Kumroj Chitwan, around 30 minutes drive from the Bharatpur Domestic Airport. But when you reach the lodge, you will feel completely shifted into the wild.

There are a total of 19 Villas right now. 8 of the Villas are away from the fish-lake, while the rest are attached to the lake.

For the bird-watchers and lovers, you know what a suitable location it is to have your rooms near the lake.

The whole area is pretty big, but walking around won't feel anything less than a bush walk.

F&B:

This is the thing that always makes me skeptical in any resort that I stay at. And the meals in Banbas Chitwan are truly amazing. They mostly serve the local cuisine. International Cuisines are not very popular in the resort. Try the Tharu Thali, and some more of the Tharu dishes like: Mushrooms, Snails (Ghongi), and local crabs & fish.

They usually do not serve the local alcoholic or non-alcoholic beverages, but if you mention your preferences for meals and drinks during booking, they get it done. That's what I like about the place, most of its flexibility.

Staff & Services:

They are very amazing. Super friendly, and they already know what you're actually looking for. They will be mostly present in the restaurant area. Well-trained. Especially during your meal service, they are present all the time for your call. They will be watching you, not creepily, but being present all the time.

And one more thing is, their rooms do not have a DND sign, because there won't be any staff in the villa areas unless you have pre-mentioned for your coffee and drinks to be served, or you call them.

The Rooms:

All the rooms of the villas come with a lovely balcony that gives you a view of the wildlife. Except for the family cottages.

The family cottages have open showers in them, and really feel like rustic luxury. The theme of these rooms is completely built with the architecture built, blending with a Tharu House. There is no big light inside the room, so you feel what feels like being inside a Tharu home, with a warm light diffusion from their kerosene lamp. However, there's no kerosene lamp in the room.

The only flaw I always experience in the luxury hotels of Nepal is the presence of TVs. They are such a call-off.

Beyond that, Banbas Chitwan is a lovely rustic luxury to stay at and experience the wildlife, up close.

What I did in Chitwan, staying at Banbas:

Day 1: Arrival and settle down:

The staff there already know me, and I was welcomed by my all-time favourite guide, Chhannu Dai. As soon as I got in the car, he gave me a cold towel, and he opened a cooler that he had brought and asked me what I wanted to drink, since it was too hot in Chitwan last week.

This was a small gesture, but a lovely one to work from a luxury operating hotel. Since cutting off sugar was my goal, the plain water worked very well for me.

When I arrived, the GM, my teacher of wildlife Journeys, Prakash Neupane, welcomed me. He was so happy to see me again at his property. The ride from the airport to the lodge was pretty short, 30 minutes, compared to Meghauli Serai, which is almost an hour, and that too, on an off-road.

I was escorted to my villa, next to the lake, they've got inside the lodge itself. They knew I loved the Villa stay, because I loved watching the birds eating fish from that lake, which was right on my balcony.

After an easy local Nepali lunch, Chhannu Dai brought me what I was there for: learning the ecosystem of humans and wildlife. We went to a nearby village. I sat with the locals, had a chat with them, from the young to the old. Tried a few Tharu snacks to munch on. The best thing about any Nepali family is that they are so friendly that they will always treat you like a little child, and their grannies would love to give them rock candies to munch on the road.

An easy walk through the village, and I saw some mahouts riding their elephants back home in the dusk with grass to carry for their cattle. The school children riding back home in there bikes. Bikes are pretty common among the Chitwan locals.

I went back to the lodge, heard the birds in those wilds. Sometimes could hear the barking deer calling his herd, and sometimes the peacock cooing. With a glass of beer with Prakash, I had my dinner.

Day 2: Jungle and the Local Eco-system Experience

I woke up before dawn as I heard something whooshing right across my balcony. I couldn't catch an eye on the creature. I later asked Chhannu Dai what it could have been; he told me the Great Hornbill. Well, unlucky me or maybe I was lazy enough not to go and watch it eating its favourite fruit from the trees.

We went inside the jungle with a crew from the restaurant, Chhannu Dai, and the driver. Being inside the national park in that heat was pretty tough. Yet, since it was right after the sunrise, it was one of the most beautiful experiences. No tigers this time, either. But I knew I was not there for the tigers this time; I had my own trips to prepare that would actually make sense to give an idea of the ecosystem. A lot of birds, though. I couldn't make a list of them. Chhannu Dai was telling me everything that he could for the birds, but me, well, it all went away from my head. Yet, I was able to spot barking deer, spotted deer, and of course, the one-horned rhinos fighting, and finally two little sloth-bears, who ran away as soon as they spotted us. The wild bison was spotted at a long distance. We reached a watchtower in the middle of the jungle when our jeep stopped. The restaurant crew went to the top of the treehouse, while I strolled around the treehouse, talking about the impact of the wildlife on human society that we took a walk around yesterday, and their impact on the wildlife.

Chhannu dai told me everything he could, and here are the things that I know:

1. The locals completely rely on these jungles to survive, whether it's their snail dish for food, crabs, fish, or firewood, grass, and even leaves that they need for their festival.
2. Water irrigation in their lands is from those rivers that we were going to go on a rowing boat the next evening.
3. And there were many locals who were attacked by the sloth bear, rhinos, and even the tigers hunting a few down.
4. Chhannu Dai himself was attacked by a rhino; he almost died, but survived, and then and there, he was telling me all these stories.
5. The wild elephants and deer have also attacked the locals. Elephants are furious, entering the villages and destroying the crops and houses of people. Deer are finishing the crops, too.
6. The poachers were there in some villages as well, who have been demolishing the ecosystem there, killing tigers and rhinos, and selling in the wildlife black markets. King Cobras are endangered because of the similar hunting as well in Chitwan.

Meanwhile, we saw the black colored Krait (strictly venomous), passing across the road into the bush. I am scared and intact at the same time while the boys from the watchtower called us. We went to the top. They had arranged a portable table and chairs right there at the watchtower with a lovely breakfast.

Was a really great experience doing that.

Post breakfast, we went for another 2-hour ride in the jungle. Still spotted the same animals and birds. Is really great to see the wildlife undisturbed inside that NP, and on the other hand, it worries me to see them being endangered slowly.

We returned to the lodge around 11 AM, when I saw the wild monkeys climbing the walls of the lodge to feed on some fruits. Well, I should say I never felt far away from the wild during my whole stay at Banbas.

I was free for a few hours as the day grew hotter. Swimming was the best thing for me, then.

The lodge does not have a spa in it, and that's their philosophy, as they believe in the wild.

This afternoon, I went to the same village again. I learned from the locals about how the food is sourced. I took myself deeper into the culture, as Chhannu Dai guided me, and the local family members did all that together. We harvested some mushrooms and picked a few veggies from the family's own land when I spotted a green viper in a nearby tree. Then I came to know from the family that these snakes won't harm us unless we harm them. Still, I was scared and had already thought of 1000 ways to die from a snake bite, lol.

I was not able to go harvest the snails, because it was usually done early in the morning. So, I just went back to the village and learned how to cook a few items with the Tharu culture. Saw them putting a whole rice bowl made from a banana leaf on the live fire.

Well, the mushrooms were made on the fire, too, over a black local wok.

And at that particular time, I talked with those locals, too. Learned about how they were surviving in that wild ecosystem.

The best thing is that the government gives jobs to many of the locals in the National Park itself. But beyond that, the government still has not been able to help the locals in maintaining the balance between the wild and society. This is the reason that almost 30-40% of the people have already migrated permanently to cities where they would feel safer. The lead member of the family I was with, Raju Tharu, mentioned that he himself bought the big land of his younger brother because his wife had passed away from an elephant attack and was mentally not prepared to stay in Chitwan and raise his two children. Raju himself is a farmer and sometimes goes to help the National Park Committee in building awareness among the locals.

We had a lovely Tharu lunch, and the best food was really the rice thrown on fire. The outside crust, then the sticky rice inside, was tasty to eat. Every food was curated so well that even Banbas' Head Chef had to join us. While Chef Narayan explained the food to me, I learned how resourcefully these people had been surviving. We in the cities are so privileged to live a super-flexed and flashy life.

We returned to the lodge by late afternoon. All I had in my thoughts was being with those locals and blending in to experience the ecosystem myself. And that's what I have always been capable of in creating immersive experiences in exotic places like this.

As the day came to an end, I once again sat with Prakash drinking beer on the balcony restaurant of the lodge and discussing how I was going to integrate these experiences into my trips, and we had to work together on this.

Prakash himself had been in the wildlife tourism of Nepal since the time of the Monarchy in Nepal. He used to run the lodge while lodges were allowed to be built inside the national park itself. He ran the second biggest of Chitwan at that time, Gainda Wildlife Resort, which was the then King Birendra's favourite lodge. The way he made sure the ecosystem of the wildlife was preserved, even after running such a luxury experience inside the NP, was really a remarkable job. Sitting with him and drinking beer, and listening to his young age of wildlife always inspires me to work on it, and here I am.

Day 3: Boat Rowing & Departure:

The dawn woke me up again with the bird calls. I had a knock on the door with the coffee. After coffee, I went again with Chhannu Dai, experiencing a last idea of the wild, the boat rowing safari.

We drove around 15 minutes to the bank of the Rapti River, where the boat crew was waiting for us. As we went on the rowing boat, we again started spotting the birds on the bank and flying right above us. The deer came to the bank to drink water. However, I couldn't see a hunting experience from the crocs. I spotted 2 Indian Gharials right below my boat and a few marsh muggers on the other side of the river for their Vitamin D.

As Chhannu Dai kept telling me their habits, I was feeling more meditated with the boat's slow rowing. And with a lovely boat safari of around 1.5 hrs, I was able to spot another rhino grazing. The morning experience like this in the wild is also a lovely idea of exploring Chitwan NP is what I learned and left the river. Came back to the hotel, where I had breakfast ready.

With the final meal at the lodge, I got ready for my departure. All the staff came together to give me a farewell. Was again another lovely gesture from them.

As Chhannu Dai dropped me off at the airport, I tipped him pretty well; he really did a great job. My driver, Lakpa Dai, who was silent all the time, did not let me feel his existence for even a second, but in fact, he was the one person managing every logistics on the ground while Chhannu Dai was busy maintaining a bridge between me and my experiences. I tipped him pretty well, too.

Price:

The room-only price of the lodge is way lower than you expect it to come at luxury range. The base price at BB is $200 per night. But when you go on their trip, I mentioned, you will be paying $700 per night for 2 pax for an all-inclusive holiday.