A biodiversity hotspot and UNESCO World Heritage Site, it’s celebrated as one of the largest and most pristine wilderness regions in eastern India – and for its barnstorming success in rehabilitating the one-horned rhino from near extinction.

The landscape of Kaziranga is shaped by the whims of the Brahmaputra, which routinely bursts its banks and floods huge areas, forcing wildlife to migrate to hilltops as they’re transformed temporarily into islands. When the waters retreat, they leave grasslands pockmarked with shallow, reed-fringed pools, oxbow lakes, and pockets of woodland.

All of this makes for a unique stage for the stars of the show: Kaziranga’s two-thousand-plus one-horned rhinos, who represent a whopping two thirds of the world’s entire population. Having dwindled to fewer than 200 at the turn of the 20th century, their comeback has been a roaring success, and sightings on a game drive today are all but guaranteed. In the past, elephant-back safaris would get you skin-tinglingly close, but these have been suspended indefinitely – most likely due to pressure over elephant welfare (quite right, too). Jeeps are now the norm, which won’t get you as close but is good news for the animals.

Besides rhinos, Kaziranga is a refuge for tigers – though you’re unlikely to see one. Wild elephants, leopards, water buffalo, wild boar and deer are more likely, plus a magnificent supporting cast of bird life: spot-billed pelicans, bar-headed geese, Bengal floricans and red-breasted parakeets, to name a few.