• No one will want to miss the magic of our first morning in the mangroves so with the first rays of the day we will board country boats for a silent paddle through a nearby channel.

• Dawn is one of the best times to catch a glimpse of the normally nocturnal Royal Bengal tiger. While wildlife sightings are never guaranteed, there are an estimated 400 of the world’s biggest cats found here – the world’s largest remaining population – so there’s no better place to be looking.

• After a good breakfast we will go ashore with armed Forest Guards to hike a trail that is used by tigers more than people. Tiger tracks can be found everywhere here and we will have an eerie feeling that tigers are watching us, even if we fail to spot them.

• The Harbaria trail also provides an excellent opportunity to study the vegetation of a tropical lowland forest including the famous Sundri trees from which he Sundarban Forest takes its name.

• From Harabaria we have a 6-8 hour cruise south through intricate back channels to Kotka. The great diversity of this mangrove forest and the rich wildlife it harbors will be unveiled to us with one wonderful discovery after another.

• A huge crocodile sunning on a river bank, a monitor lizard hiding amongst the mangrove roots, rhesus monkeys feeding on leaves in the tees, great egrets standing motionless in search of their prey and 8 different species of kingfishers darting into the water and back to their perches with blazing colors are among the many sights we’re likely to see.

• Following lunch on board, we will have an open forum discussion on tiger conservation and come up with action plans for students to pursue through their schools to help save them.

• Tiger populations have fallen 95% in the past century due to poaching and habitat destruction and they are now listed as the world’s most endangered major species. With only 3,200 tigers remaining worldwide the Sundarban population represents nearly 13% of all tigers on earth.

• Arriving in Kotka in the late afternoon, we will have another excursion ashore. This time our tiger trail will lead us through a deep forest that receives the full force of cyclones that seasonally arrive from the Bay of Bengal. Spotted deer are found in great numbers here following troops of Rhesus monkeys that drop leaves from trees overhead, which the deer feed on.

• After returning to our vessel for a delicious dinner we will watch an excellent documentary film on the Sundarbans titled “Swamp Tigers”. A group-sharing circle by candlelight under the stars on the top deck will then end a perfect day.

Overnight: Aboard ship, Kotka – Sundarbans