Guwahati: As elephant safaris restart at Kaziranga’s grasslands, tourists will be able to ride through the Unesco World Heritage Site from Nov 1 for the 2026–27 tourism season.Preparations are underway to resume safaris in the Bagori and Kohora ranges of Kaziranga National Park and Tiger Reserve, with officials verifying documents and conducting health checks on elephants, divisional forest officer Arun Vignesh said.“During the health check-up, the temperament and age of the elephants are also taken into consideration before they are allowed to participate in safaris,” he added.Measures to ensure the safety of elephants and tourists will be finalised soon, Vignesh said.Typically, 45–50 elephants are engaged for safaris each year, including five to 10 owned by the park. The rest are hired from private owners after due procedures, he said. The number for the upcoming season has not been finalised, as some of the park’s elephants may be assigned to patrolling and other duties.Elephant safaris are arranged mainly to enable tourists to spot rhinos, as visitors cannot approach them closely, Vignesh added.Kaziranga reopened for the 2026–27 wildlife tourism season on Oct 3 with jeep safaris after its annual monsoon closure.The park recorded 4,68,147 visitors in 2025–26, its highest annual footfall and more than 15% higher than the 4,06,564 visitors recorded in 2024–25. International visitors rose from 17,693 to 30,474.Forest minister Jayanta Mallabaruah said the focus would be on improving visitor experience, strengthening responsible ecotourism and creating economic opportunities for communities around the protected area.
