Bijapur Lodge

Best hotel we have been to around India. The lodge, the nature, the activities and most important, the people are incredible, we have been deeply pleased by the kindness of all the staff, what and incredible vision of hospitality. We recommend the lodge and the activities : leopard safari and diner in the nature

The hospitality of this place can't be questioned. Really well constructed aesthetically pleasing place with lovely personal touches. I loved the little gifts in our rooms with a bit of history behind its creation. We were the only guests and they treated us royally. Welcome drink was a fascinating unusual pink organic drink. Food was delicious. We are vegetarians and had no problem. I loved the Pyaj Kachori in the morning. Nice bonfire in the evening. The staff treated us like relatives on the way out, wishing for our safe travels with Prasad and I was genuinely touched by that. All the satff were uniformly warm and polite. The in house naturalist Ahmad Ali gave us a tour of the property with great enthusiasm and I'm pleased to see how they are trying to maintain green credential and helping the local community. Ali Bhai and Chandradeep ji went out with us for leopard safari and unfortunately this has to be the worst wildlife experience I have ever had. The fame of Leopards of Bera has spread far and wide and sadly that attracts people who have no respect for nature. I have travelled in all five continents and never ever I have come across a crowd more unruly, completely oblivious of others, boisterous, loud and totally disrespectful towards nature and the poor leopard. This beats the Mara river crossing crowd and even other places in India, like Tadoba. There is a reason why I do not like Indian tourists in the forest ( I'm an Indian by birth) and it was in full force here. One leopard was sighted and hundreds of jeeps descended on the poor leopard stressing it hugely. What hurt me was to see that jeeps were breaking branches and uprooting trees to make path for their clients to see the leopard. After seeing this pandemonium in the evening, next morning I made it very clear that I had no intention of seeing a leopard and taking part in this obnoxious circus. We enjoyed the exhilarating four wheel drive over the rocky terrain, had coffee, watched beautiful sunrise and did some birding. I genuinely feel bad to take one star away for reasons which are beyond their control but the main reason for coming here was to capture leopards and that was not fulfilled. So please avoid Indian holidays to avoid local crowd or go to a resort with exclusivity. The local resort owners must do something to stop this unregulated proliferation of safaris.

Our stay at Bijapur Lodge was just amazing. The surroundings, the rooms, the pool, the food and the staff, all were so great. Nothing was asked too much for the very generous staff. We were even suprised by a private candle light dinner by the pool! Also the leoparard safaris were unforgettable. We had a unique experience and will never forget our days in Brijapur Lodge. We hope to come back one day.