Fifty years in one forest
In 1974 a young Delhi couple, Tejbir and Malvika Singh, drove to Ranthambore for the first time. The reserve had come under Project Tiger the year before, and its field director was Fateh Singh Rathore, the forester who made its tigers bold enough to be seen by day. The Singhs were filming Rajasthan's wildlife, and they kept coming back.
A family of tiger people: Malvika's brother was the naturalist Valmik Thapar, one of the most influential voices for the Indian tiger, who wrote and filmed extensively about Ranthambore and died in 2025.
- Family's first visit
- 1974, Tejbir and Malvika Singh
- Jaisal's first visit
- 1979, aged eight weeks
- Camp opened
- October 2000
- Sister camps
- The Serai (2009), SUJAN JAWAI (2013)
- Run by
- Jaisal and Anjali Singh
- The Ranthambhore Foundation: in 1988 Valmik Thapar founded it with friends including Jaisal's parents, to make conservation work with the villages around the park rather than against them.
- A childhood in the park: Jaisal grew up under the banyan at Jogi Mahal, learning to read kills, trails and alarm calls from the foresters and trackers of the day.
- The camp itself: he built Sher Bagh in 2000 on the family's private farm, on the periphery of what is now the Ranthambhore Tiger Reserve, when he was about twenty.
- What followed: Sher Bagh became the first SUJAN camp, followed by The Serai near Jaisalmer and SUJAN JAWAI among the leopard hills of the south.
- Public service: Jaisal has served on Rajasthan's state wildlife bodies, which tells you how seriously the family takes the forest beyond the camp gate.
- Read more: our Ranthambore guide tells the park's own story, and our journal on the tigers of Ranthambore goes deeper.
A camp in the old safari manner
The look: the camp evokes the 1920s and the safari camps of that age, with canvas tents, brass fittings, old maps and the family's tiger photographs on the walls.
Campaign furniture: each tent is furnished with bespoke campaign-style pieces, the folding, travelling furniture that was once carried by bullock cart from one camp to the next.
- Bathrooms: every tent has its own, many with a brass bathtub and an open stone shower, and a private veranda looking onto the garden.
- The gardens: after twenty-five years they have grown lush, so the tents now sit among trees, lawns and flowering shrubs with the forest beyond.
- Larger suites: a few are set apart behind walls, some with private heated dip pools and some with room for a family. We request the right one when we book, but allocation stays with the camp.
- The pool: there is a shared pool for all guests, welcome in the warm weeks of March, April and May.
- Your own jeep: each tent comes with a private vehicle and a dedicated naturalist and tracker team, so you set the pace of every drive.
- The real luxury: field staff who have driven these tracks for decades. Ask about the tigers holding territory this season and you will get a history lesson and a family tree.
Why the naturalists matter more than the zone
Everyone shares the zones: no lodge can promise a better tiger, because every guest in Ranthambore drives the same routes under the same rules.
What a good naturalist adds: knowing which tigress has cubs and where she drank last, reading langur, chital and sambar alarm calls, and placing the jeep for the light.
- Safari zones
- Ten, each with a fixed route
- Drives
- Twice daily, about three hours each
- Permits
- Rajasthan forest department, tied to passports
- Bird species
- More than 300 recorded around the park
- Vehicle we book
- Six-seat open Gypsy
- Knowing when to wait: the best sightings often come from turning off the engine at the right bend and simply listening.
- Knowing when to leave: an ethical naturalist won't crowd a tiger, won't let a driver race to a sighting and won't treat an empty drive as failure.
- More than tigers: a good morning may bring a sloth bear digging for termites, a leopard on a ridge or a crocodile on the bank of Padam Talao.
- Learn the names: Ranthambore's tigers are catalogued by number, and naturalists know their family lines. Our journal on Machli the tigress tells the story of the most famous of them.
- Learn the etiquette: our page on tiger and leopard safaris explains the zones, the vehicles and how to behave at a sighting.
Anglo-Indian dinners by the fire
Farm to table: produce comes from the camp's own organic garden and from local farmers, so the menu follows the season.
The style: Anglo-Indian camp cooking, soups and roasts alongside curries, dals and fresh breads, often served by the campfire.
- Live cooking: the outdoor kitchens cook in front of you on many evenings, which children love to watch.
- The best meal of the day: breakfast after a cold dawn drive, with eggs, parathas and hot tea.
- The Junglee Cooking Class: junglee means wild, of the forest. It is a relaxed way to spend the hot hours with children or friends.
- What's included: breakfast, lunch and dinner are part of the stay. Drinks are charged separately.
- Dietary needs: tell us about Jain, vegan or allergy needs before you arrive, and the kitchen plans for them. Our Rajasthani food guide explains the region's dishes.
The Jungle Spa under the peepal trees
What it offers: Ayurvedic therapies with natural oils and organic products, including massage, reflexology and longer Ayurvedic rituals.
When to book: late morning, after breakfast, so you are rested before the afternoon drive.
- Why it matters here: two dawn drives in an open jeep leave stiff shoulders and dry skin. A massage in the shade of old trees is close to a necessity.
- For the restless: there is a gym, and the camp gardens are good for a slow walk in the evening.
- Learn more: our page on spas and Ayurveda explains the traditions and what to ask a therapist.
Beyond the jeep
A walk to Ranthambore Fort
The walk: the camp arranges a guided naturalist walk up to the fort, one of the Hill Forts of Rajasthan inscribed by UNESCO in 2013.
- Its history: held by the Chauhans, defended by Hammir Dev against Alauddin Khalji until it fell in 1301, surrendered to Akbar in 1569, and held by Jaipur from the eighteenth century.
- On top: ruined palaces, tanks and the Trinetra Ganesh temple, with langurs, peacocks and sometimes pugmarks on the path.
Dastkar Ranthambhore
What it is: a non-profit craft initiative founded in 1989 that employs women from the villages around the park. SUJAN has supported it for many years.
- What you see: block printing, patchwork and embroidery, made and sold by the artisans themselves.
- Why it matters: it is conservation that pays the people who live beside the tiger. Our page on block printing and crafts explains the techniques.
The villages and farms
- Neighbours: families around Sherpur have lived beside the forest for generations, and some were resettled from inside the park when it was created.
- A village walk: a short walk with a guide gives you their side of the story. Our page on rural homestays describes deeper village stays.
Conservation you can see
A visible contribution: SUJAN adds a conservation contribution to each stay, shown separately on the bill, for community and wildlife work around its camps.
A long record: the family's support for Dastkar and its part in the Ranthambhore Foundation's early years are matters of public record.
- Local jobs: much of the field and kitchen team comes from the surrounding villages.
- Why that matters: living beside a tiger reserve has real costs, from crops raided by deer and wild boar to livestock lost to big cats.
- Ask every lodge: who do you employ, how do you treat your neighbours, how do your naturalists behave at a sighting? Sher Bagh answers well.
- Our standards: our page on travelling responsibly sets out what we look for, and wildlife lodges compares the camps we use.
What most visitors miss
The banyan at Jogi Mahal: beside Padam Talao grows one of the largest banyan trees in India, its aerial roots spreading over a great area. It is where Jaisal Singh grew up watching tigers.
The view across the lake: from Jogi Mahal, the fort walls rise above Padam Talao, one of the classic scenes of the park. Ask your driver to pause there.
- Rajbagh's ruins: old pavilions and arches stand in and beside Rajbagh Talao, relics of the Jaipur maharajas' hunting days, and tigers have been photographed among them.
- The crocodiles: mugger crocodiles bask on the banks of the lakes on winter mornings, and most guests drive straight past them.
- Letters to Ganesh: at the Trinetra Ganesh temple on the fort, families still post wedding invitations to the god, and the priests read them out.
- The birds of the camp: the garden at Sher Bagh is full of them at dawn, and a slow walk with binoculars before breakfast is a safari of its own.
- The people: the trackers, drivers and Dastkar artisans are the reason the forest survives. Ask them about their villages.
When to stay at Sher Bagh
Check the dates: Sher Bagh has traditionally closed from mid-May through the monsoon, but SUJAN has recently listed it as open year-round. We confirm dates for travel near the edges of the season.
October and November: the forest is fresh and green after the rains, with soft light and comfortable days.
- Camp season
- Traditionally early October to mid-May
- Core zones closed
- About July to September
- Coldest drives
- December and January
- Best sightings
- April and May, near water
- Busiest weeks
- Christmas, New Year, Indian holidays
- December and January: cold dawn drives. Bring a warm jacket, gloves and a hat, and accept the blankets and hot water bottles.
- February and March: warm and lovely, with the orange palash, the flame of the forest, in flower.
- April and May: often above forty degrees by midday, but the forest is bare and animals gather near water. Serious photographers come now.
- Month by month: our guide to the best time to visit Ranthambore has the detail, and best time for tigers weighs the months for sightings.
Who will love Sher Bagh
Wildlife lovers and photographers: this is the camp for people who care most about the forest. Ask for the senior naturalists and add extra drives.
Families with curious children: trackers teach children to read pugmarks and alarm calls, and the cooking class fills the hot hours. Book family suites early.
- First-time safari travellers: three nights here is a superb introduction, because the people around you explain everything without being asked.
- Couples wanting a silent retreat: you may prefer Aman-i-Khas, which is at its best between drives.
- Families wanting space and polish: large gardens and the comfort of a big hotel are at The Oberoi Vanyavilas.
- Travellers who dislike canvas: stay elsewhere and come for the drives. Our guide to luxury hotels in Ranthambore compares them all.
Sher Bagh on our journeys
Palaces and Tigers: three nights here between Jaipur and the leopard country of Jawai, a natural SUJAN pairing.
Big cats and birds: Sher Bagh follows the wetlands of Bharatpur and leads south to Bundi, Udaipur and Jawai.
- Golden Triangle with Ranthambore: three days of forest added to a classic first visit to India.
- Family: Jaipur, Ranthambore and Udaipur: the days older children remember most.
- All three SUJAN camps: Sher Bagh for tigers, JAWAI for leopards and The Serai for the desert, with drives planned so no day is too long.
- Tigers or leopards: our journal on Jawai or Ranthambore explains how the two reserves differ, and why many people choose both.
Before you go
Passports: safari permits are issued in each guest's name and passport number, so we collect these early and carry copies for the gate.
Zones are allocated, not chosen: your naturalist makes the most of whichever zone each drive is given, and we never promise a particular one.
- Permits need
- Passport details for every guest
- Book
- As soon as dates are fixed
- Allow
- Three nights, four to six drives
- Children
- Age limits apply to some activities
- Pack
- Warm layers, scarf, binoculars
- Cameras: a long lens helps, but a good pair of binoculars matters more for most guests. Drones are not allowed in the park.
- Health: dawn drives are cold and dusty. Bring lip balm, a scarf for your face and any medicines you need, as the nearest big pharmacy is in town.
- Money: tipping your naturalist, tracker and driver at the end of a stay is customary. Our page on money and tipping explains what is usual.
Getting to Sher Bagh
By train: fast trains from Delhi to Sawai Madhopur are often quicker and calmer than the road. Our page on trains in Rajasthan explains classes and booking.
By road from Jaipur: about three hours from the airport, the usual way in for guests flying into Rajasthan.
- Nearest station
- Sawai Madhopur, about 25 minutes
- From Delhi by train
- Around five hours
- From Jaipur
- About 180 km, roughly three hours
- Charter airstrip
- Sawai Madhopur, about 30 minutes
- From Agra
- Five to six hours by road
- By charter: helicopters and small aircraft can land at the Sawai Madhopur airstrip. Our helicopter and charter journeys team can arrange it.
- From Agra: a long drive, best broken at the Abhaneri stepwell.
- Permits first: we book safari permits as soon as your dates are fixed, because they sell out in winter.
What we tell friends before Sher Bagh
Book early: permits for popular zones and the camp's best tents go months ahead in winter.
Stay three nights: with one afternoon off for the fort or Dastkar.
- Dress for the forest: muted greens and browns, a scarf against dust in April and May.
- Keep it quiet: low voices at sightings, and never ask a driver to chase an animal.
- Ask about the tigers by name: the family histories of the cats are half the joy.
- Mind the festival: avoid Ganesh Chaturthi week, in August or September, if you want a quiet fort.