Ranthambore Canter Safari

What riding a Canter is actually like

A Canter is a wide, open-sided bus built for the park, with bench seating across the back and along both sides. It carries twenty passengers, a driver and a licensed forest guide, and it sits noticeably higher off the ground than a Gypsy. That height is the thing people notice first: you can see over the grass and scrub without standing up, and the whole valley opens up in front of you.

Because twenty people are looking at the same landscape at the same time, you hear things you would miss alone. Someone two rows back spots a deer movement; the guide turns the vehicle; the whole bus goes quiet. Then the tigress walks out and every camera comes up at once. There is a lot of friendly shouting, and it is part of what makes a Canter day good.

The limits are straightforward. Canters cannot enter zones 7 and 8, because the interior tracks are rocky and hilly, and those two zones are hard ground for a long vehicle. They stay on the wider circuits. In exchange you travel for the same three and a half hours and pay a good deal less per head than you would in a Gypsy.

Safari timings by season

Zones 1–5 close every Wednesday. Zones 6–10 close every Tuesday. Do not plan two Canter safaris on the same weekday.

What your fare covers

• Park entry permit filed with the Rajasthan Forest Department
• The Canter, a driver and a licensed forest guide
• All applicable taxes
• Children under five ride free and are not counted against the twenty seats

Not included: hotel pick-up and drop in Sawai Madhopur, the camera fee charged at the gate (payable in cash), and any meals or drinks.

Canter or Gypsy?

If your group is four adults or more, the maths usually favours the Canter, and the price difference is large enough to put towards your accommodation. Choose a Canter when you are travelling together, when you want the social side of a shared drive, or when you would rather not sit in an open vehicle for three hours.

Choose a Ranthambore Jeep safari if you have a long lens, if your group is two or three people, or if seeing zones 7 or 8 matters to you. Nobody sees different animals in the two vehicles. The difference is access, group size and price.

Making the most of a shared drive

• Take the first slot in the day if you can. Activity peaks in the cool hours, and the heat of late morning is when everything is lying down and still.
• Sit on the side facing the sun early. Your photographs will be sharper because you are not shooting straight into the glare.
• Ask the guide where the day's sightings have been. Guides are assigned per vehicle but they know the zone's activity, and it changes the route.
• Keep calls and music off. Twenty people sharing one vehicle means one person's speaker ruins the drive for everyone.
• Bring a hat and sunscreen. The roof is open and the light on an exposed track is stronger than it feels in a car.

Common questions about the Canter