Best Jungle Lodge (JLR) to stay in Karnataka

Many are fancied by the forest stay and Jungle Lodges in particular. I’ve been asked few times what is the best Jungle lodges campus to stay in Karnataka. There’s no single answer to that question. Each campus is unique and lots of things vary based on what exactly you’re looking for when you stay at Jungle lodges.  I’ve personally stayed at some of their key resorts- Kabini, K-Gudi, Kali Adventure Camp, have been to few more as a visitor (Bheemeshwari, River Tern Lodge, Old Magazine House, Galibore. Based on my personal experience and observations, below is a chart that indicates what to expect from each of JLR campuses. You may go through this comparison and decide for yourself.

This post assumes that you're familiar with concepts of Jungle Lodges and Resorts. If not, read this post first.

Tented Cottage at Kabini River Lodge

Info 1: Pricing and Quick Review

May 2021 Update: Pricing shown below is of 2014. Now JLRs cost twice as much. [Details]

#	Campus	Pricing /person /night (#1)	Value for Money	Alternate stay options available?	Quick Review
1	Kabini River Lodge	6400 Rs	Medium	Yes	Most expensive of all JLRs, not exactly inside the forest and is surrounded by villages. River view is not so great, safari is good, probably the best. Read my review of JLR Kabini Alternate options: Orange County Kabini and Kabini resort
2	Kali Adventure Camp	3200 Rs	Low	Yes	Now almost inside Dandeli town, lots of noise from city and factory activities. Appears overhyped and overpriced. Alternate options: Old Magazine House, Hornbill Resort Read: our bad experience at Kali
3	Bandipur	4700 Rs	Low	No	Heavily commercialized with quick visit tourists.
4	K Gudi Wilderness Camp	4250 Rs	High	No	Calm, Serene deep inside the forest. No river or water body, elephant ride, forest safari and tribal visit are good.
5	Bheemeshwari	4300 Rs	High	No	Very Close to Bangalore, often crowded with corporate guests. Good for bird watching, trekking, fishing. Read: Birds at Bheemeshwari
6	Galibore	4600 Rs	Medium	No	Similar to Bheemeshwari, but little farther from city and deeper into the forest. Better for solitude.
7	Doddammakali (seems to be closed)	- NA	-	No	Seems to be closed now
8	River Tern Lodge	5200 Rs	Medium	No	Island inside dam catchment water will be good experience. Full review: JLR Badhra Dam
9	Dubare Elephant Camp	3800 Rs	Medium	Yes	The coorg campus is good for elephant ride, bathing and water sports in river Kaveri Alternate options: Other resorts in Coorg
10	Old Magazine House	1450 Rs	High	Yes	Best for bird watching and good value for money. One of the cheapest (among JLRs) places to stay. Dorm bed good for budget travelers, but not recommended for women and children. Alternate Options: Kadu Mane, Dandeli Jungle Camp
11	Devbagh Resort	4200 Rs	Low	Yes	Only sea facing JLR campus. It is more like a sea side commercial resort than a forest themed place - what JLR is supposed to be
12	Pilikula Nisargadhama	2700 Rs	Low	Yes	Close to Mangalore city and near to popular picnic spot. Don't expect forest ambiance. Alternates: Hotels Mangalore city
13	Black Buck Resort	3305 Rs	Low	-	-
14	Om Beach Resort	2200 Rs	Low	Yes	Recently added one, probably because of Gokarna’s popularity as tourist destination- more like a commercial hotel than a forest themed resort. Alternate options: Lots of budget hotels available in Gokarna town at one tenth of this price.
15	Sahyadri Resort (Not yet operational)	-	-	-	-Looks like a new property near Jog falls, More details yet to emerge.
16	Sloth Bear Resort (Hampi)	3200 Rs	-	Yes	-
17	Bannerghatta National Park	2500 Rs	Medium	No	Closest JLR campus to Bangalore and inside a heavy touristy Banngerghatta National park. Dorm beds available. Unless you’re very particular about this place, you can explore the national park as a day tourist and spend your money to stay elsewhere, say Bheemeshwari Detailed review available here

#1: For cheapest stay option, Per person per night. 

• You'll have to book for 2 people minimum for a room or pay 30% extra for single occupancy. (Old Magazine house and Bannerghatta are the only exceptions where you can book a dorm bed for one person only). 
• Non Indians are charged 50% more.
• Off season discounts may apply (Usually 20% on week days, 10% on weekends)
• Every year, I am noticing an upward revision of 10-15% in the tariff

Info 2: Generic Information

#	Campus	Distance from Blr (kms)	Nearest City	Day Visit Allowed? (#2)	Best Season	Have I been to this campus?	How good it is for adventure sports/ activities
1	Kabini	300	Mysore	No	Oct-Dec	Yes Review	Average
2	Kali Adventure Camp	500	Dandeli	No	Nov-Jan	Yes	Very Good
3	Bandipur	200	Mysore	No	Oct-Dec	No	Average
4	K Gudi	230	Mysore	No	Oct-Feb	Yes	Average
5	Bheemeshwari	100	Bangalore	Yes	Sep-Dec	Yes	Very Good
6	Galibore	100	Bangalore	Yes	Sep-Dec	Yes	Very Good
7	Doddammakali (seems to be closed)	-	Bangalore	No	-	No	-
8	River Tern Lodge	280	Shimoga	No	Oct-Feb	Yes Review	Average
9	Dubare	240	Madikeri	Yes	Oct-Feb	Yes	Very Good
10	Old Magazine House	500	Dandeli	No	Oct-Feb	Yes	Very Good
11	Devbagh Resort	520	Karwar	No	Oct-March	No	Good
12	Pilikula Nisargadhama	360	Mangalore	No	Oct-Feb	Yes	Good
13	Black Buck	780	Bidar	No	Oct-Feb	No	-
14	Om Beach Resort	480	Gokarna	No	Oct-March	No	Poor
15	Sahyadri Resort (Not yet operational)	-	-	-	-	No	-
16	Sloth Bear Resort (Hampi)	380	Hosakote	No	Aug-March	No	-
17	Bannerghatta National Park	50	Bangalore	No	All 12 months	Yes	Average

#2: Day visit usually costs 50% of overnight stay. Involves entering the resort at 10.30-11AM, welcome drink, lunch, tea/coffee and some basic activities like trekking/coracle ride. Available only at select places. 

Bird watchers at Old Magazine House

Info 3: Comparison of facilities and prospects

#	Campus	Probability of sighting wild animals during safari	Mobile connectivity strength	Probability of sighting birds around the campus	Main Activities	Solitude Factor (away from city, deep into woods)
1	Kabini	High	Low	High	Safari & Birding	Medium
2	Kali Adventure Camp	Low	High	Very High	Rafting	Very Low
3	Bandipur	Medium	Medium	High	Safari	High
4	K Gudi	Medium	Nil/Low	Medium	Safari	Very High
5	Bheemeshwari	-(No Safari)	High	Very High	Water sports, birds	Medium
6	Galibore	Low	Low	Medium	Water sports, birds	Very High
7	Doddammakali	Low	Low	Medium	-	Very High
8	River Tern Lodge	Low	High	Medium	Water sports, wild life	High
9	Dubare	-	High	Low	Elephant ride, water sports	Medium
10	Old Magazine House	Low	Medium	Very High	Bird watch, water sports	High
11	Devbagh Resort	-	High	Low	Water sports	Low
12	Pilikula Nisargadhama	-	High	High	Zoo and water sports	Low
13	Black Buck	Low	-	-	Coracle ride, treks	High
14	Om Beach Resort	-(No Safari)	High	Low	Beach & Temple visit	Very Low
15	Sahyadri Resort (Not yet operational)	-	-	-	-	-
16	Sloth Bear Resort	High	-	-	Wild life and heritage site
17	Bannerghatta National Park	High	High	High	Wild life	High

Disclaimer:

• Information above is indicative only and may change from time to time
• Personal judgment and observations only. Not officially endorsed by JLR.
• There’s no Guaranteed Darshan during forest safari. Animal sighting depends largely on luck. For Guaranteed Darshan, go to Zoo.
• A lot also depends on what exactly you’re looking for from the stay. Some prefer relaxed stay, others want lots of activities. Few are interested in birds while others in animals. Few want great food while others look for adventure activities. Pick your choice depending on what you look for.
• Some of the places which I’ve not been to in person, are detailed based on information and feedback available on the net. Please use your discretion.

Read a generic review of Jungle loges to understand what to expect from your JLR stay: JLR general review

Related: Hoysala village resort, Hasana *