The Mahua Kothi Lodge features 12 cottages, each of which is accessed by a spacious private courtyard with shaded seating and traditional stone floor. Interiors include wooden shutters, hand plastered mud walls washed with lime, roughly hewn wooden rafters and handmade pottery roof tiles. Floors are dressed in the locally sourced ‘Katni’ stone. Large wooden puppets adorn the walls while several small alcoves sport arches with geometric tribal patterns in keeping with local trends. A king-sized bed faces an enormous window overlooking a delightful wooded patch. A wide window seat with mattress covers and bolsters in tones of rust and burnt orange contrast delightfully with the vibrant green outside. Each ensuite bathroom features twin hand basins with vintage brass tap fittings placed in front of a glass window covering most of the wall. Bamboo blinds lined with raw silk can be drawn for a view of trees and bamboo thickets as guests ready for safari. The bath tub is lined beside a wall with beautiful ‘Jaali’ work while the step down shower area is provided with a shiny brass bucket and mug in case guests wish to take a ‘bucket bath’, as most rural Indians do.

Dig into authentic, sumptuous food, in the most panoramic settings ever. Each experience promises to be unique and private. Partake of as many as 3 breakfasts, including one inside the park. Follow it up with a light lunch, served by a personal butler. End the night under the starlit sky, or sit under a Mahua Tree, lit up with lanterns. Dining indoors is a treat as well with the traditional ‘thali’. Never eat two meals in the same location.

Rural accents, like a traditional vegetable garden or baghia, with a bullock cart that doubles as buffet table, and picnic lunches under the mahua tree, enchant and delight. Cocktails and traditional Indian fare are served in the light of the moon on magical evenings on the rooftop of the main veranda and greatly enhance the beauty of fragrant Indian nights.

Amenities include in-room Ayurvedic & Western spa treatments, a pool, a library, & yoga lessons.

The Bandhavgarh National Park is a 448 sq. km. area renowned tiger reserve. Nestled between the awe-inspiring Vindhya and Satpura ranges, the park features a dramatic landscape, with tropical forests and woodlands and steep rocky hills with flat grasslands in the valleys. Taking its name from the highest hill in the area, Bandhavgarh National Park has the highest density of tigers in the world. Packed with legends, its rugged jungles of sal trees and thickets of bamboo open out to sunlit grasslands and knolls, and hide the ruins of the ancient Bandhavgarh Fort.

The Bandhavgarh National Park has a large biodiversity, with over 37 species of mammals, more than 250 species of birds, 80 species of butterflies, and multiple species of reptiles. Apart from exploring the sunlit grasslands and its jungles of sal trees and thick bamboos, experiences at the Bandhavgarh National Park also include interactions with its indigenous Gond and Baiga tribes. These tribes are known to be among the oldest surviving in India. Exploring the wild forests without disturbing its serenity, is best done atop an elephant. This unique safari gets one closer to nature like no other safari does. To take home memories of this place, stores inside the Bandhavgarh National Park offer souvenirs like key-chains, t-shirts, wooden tribal handicrafts, and paintings from the Bandhavgarh School of Art.