This is a fascinating tour with the perfect mix of uncovering the culture of this unique part of India and time spent in the famous National Park and Tiger Reserve of Sundarbans. Sundarbans is a huge area of forested islands that can only be visited by boat and it is a true wildlife paradise. As well as being the only mangrove forest in the world with an indigenous population of tigers, in total there are 58 species of mammals, 55 species of reptiles and around 248 species of bird, and is also home to many rare and globally threatened animals such as the fishing cat, estuarine crocodile and Gangetic Dolphin. The tour starts and finishes in Kolkata (Calcutta), the capital of West Bengal and the capital of British India until 1911.

Some of Kolkata's most famous monuments were built by the British and there are still echoes of its colonial past in the jostling chaotic streets. It is known both as a city of poverty and chaos and as the "City of Joy" and is a fascinating blend of extremes with many festivals and a vibrant cultural scene reflected in its literature, theatre, arts, music and dance. It is famed for being the home of Rabindranath Tagore, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 and the voice of India's spiritual heritage; you can visit the school he founded in 1901 in the traditional gurukul system where his aim was to create a world where man exists in perfect harmony with nature. This famous school, Shantiniketan, is the embodiment of serenity and peace, far removed from the noisy streets, where imposing sculptures and paintings greet you at every turn and captivate your senses.