Which Wildlife Park?

My friend and I are going to be in India for 3 weeks from 30th August to 19th Sept and our itinerary so far is:

Mumbai 3.5 days
Kochi 1 day
Alleppey 6 days
Panaji/Baga 6.5 days
Mumbai again 1.5 day

We would really like to fit in a trip to a safari/wildlife park type place. I've read loads of posts in this forum but am a bit overwhelmed by the number of choices. Ideally the one we pick would be near-ish to Alleppey or Panaji. We wont have our own vehicle so it needs to be accessible. I've also seen pictures of people having tours round parks on the backs of elephants or other animals - this is not something we'd like to do. We would love to sight some elephants or big cats - is this likely? I have read mixed reports on this. Also, are most of them open all year round?

Thanks in advance!

Most of the parks are closed during monsoon (Mid June - September end) in India. You could try your luck at Sariska in Rajasthan.

Also read http://www.indiamike.com/india/india...es-sc-t172090/

We did think that could be the case, oh well, there is so much else we want to see and do. Thanks for the suggestion but for a 3 week trip I think Sariska is just too far away.

I think Parambikulam and Periyar National park in Kerala should be open.

Yes. Tourism is banned in all Wildlife sanctuaries / National Parks categorized as Tiger Reserves. This means No acco in Guest Houses owned by Forest Dept, No safaris, rides, treks into the park etc. You may stay in private lodges which are mostly outside the perimeter but you won't be let into reserve as a tourist.

We booked a Forest Dept owned lodge in a tiger reserve before the ban in June but they called and returned the money as soon the ban came into action in July. So, they are kind of strict about it.

It's reassuring to hear that India have taken that action for tigers, I hadn't really thought about the impact that kind of tourism could have