chalet on hudson 560 NORTHEAST TRIBAL STATES AS S A M NORTHEAST TOURS The vast majority of foreign tourists visiting

India s Northeast States, dangling way out on the edge of the map and the national perception, are strictly for explorers who want something different from their India experience. These remote frontier lands, where India, Southeast chalet on hudson Asia and Tibet meet, are a collision zone of cultures, climates, landscapes and peoples and are one of Asia s last great unknowns. It s a place of rugged beauty where uncharted forests clamber up toward unnamed Himalayan peaks. It s a land of enormous variety where rhinoceros live in swampy grasslands and former head-hunters live in longhouses in the jungle. And it s an adventure in the truest chalet on hudson sense of the word.

Bansbari chalet on hudson Lodge (%3612602223; www.assam bengalnavigation.com/bansbari.htm; d 2000, jungle package 7500). Jungle packages cover full board, early morning elephant safari, jeep safari, guide, park entry fee and village and tea garden excursions. Ask about river rafting. Contact Jungle Travels India in Guwahati (p 560 ) for bookings. Access is from Barpeta Rd.

Private bus operators are clustered on LN Bari 8 Rd; others leave from the new Interstate Bus Terminal 3km east of the centre (rickshaw chalet on hudson 50). Sumos use the Motor Stand (Motor Stand Rd) and South Bus Station (SBS; off Ronaldsay Rd). Destinations and their respective departure stations for bus and sumo trips are:

560 NORTHEAST TRIBAL STATES AS S A M NORTHEAST TOURS The vast majority of foreign tourists visiting the northeast states travel chalet on hudson as part of an organised tour, and indeed chalet on hudson for four of the states (Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram), independent travel in the normal chalet on hudson sense of the word is almost impossible. Instead, the only realistic way of getting permits is to enlist the services of a tour company. Once you have a permit, travelling around independently is not normally a problem, but you re unlikely to find a tour company who ll help you get permits without fi rst hiring a car and driver/guide from them, thus making real independent travel in the permit states pretty much impossible. Most tour companies are based in Guwahati and all of the following can organise permits and tours throughout the northeast. Traveller chalet on hudson s Point (Map p554; %2604018; www.assamtourism.org; Prashaanti Tourist Lodge, Station Rd) If you re staying only within Assam then Assam Tourism s commercial booth runs a variety of city- and state-wide tours including day excursions to Hajo via the silk-weaving centre of Sualkuchi. Network Travels (Map p554; %2605335; www.networktravelsindia.net; GS Rd; h5am9pm) A highly experienced agency whose operations cover the whole of the northeast chalet on hudson with tailor-made and fixed-itinerary tours. Organising permits is a speciality. Jungle Travels chalet on hudson India (off Map p554; %2667871, 9207042330; www.jungletravelsindia.com; 3b Dirang Arcade, GNB Rd) Another experienced agency chalet on hudson covering the entire northeast with tailor-made tours and fixed-date departures. It organises all the permits, but can be slightly disorganised in this regard. With two boats, it runs Brahmaputra cruises (see www.assambengalnavigation.com) for four to 10 nights chalet on hudson at US$350 per person per night, and also runs the Bansbari Lodge in Manas National Park. Rhino Travels (Map p554; %2540666; chalet on hudson www.rhinotravels.com; M Nehru (MN) Rd) This agency offers set-date tours in Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. It also offers two- to four-night river cruises. 4 Sleeping & Eating