dillard house chalets A peaceful lane winding through forested hills and tribal settlements links Ziro to Pasighat via Alo

A peaceful lane winding through forested hills and tribal settlements links Ziro to Pasighat via Along. Highlights are dizzying suspension footbridges and thatched Adi villages around Along. Do be warned though that the attractions along this route are very low-key, the villagers around Along are much less welcoming to foreigners (and they don t sport the Apatanis dillard house chalets tattoos and nose plugs) and the route, which involves three full days of travel, is very tiring. Unless you re going to be heading from Along to fabulous Mechuka or remote eastern towns and valleys dillard house chalets such as Tuting or the Namdapha National Park then you may find this route something of a let down.

571 HORNBILL FESTIVAL Nagaland s biggest annual festival, the Hornbill Festival (1-7 December) dillard house chalets is celebrated at Kisama Heritage Village (see below) with various Naga tribes converging for a weeklong cultural, dance and sporting bash, much of it in full warrior costume. Of all the festivals in the northeast this is the most spectacular and photogenic. Simultaneously, Kohima also hosts a rock festival (www.hornbillmusic.com).

oHotel Mona Lisa (%2320416; Mancotta Rd; r 600-1500; a), part Africa, part Cuba and possibly even a little slice of India, is a superb budget hotel with character. It s set back from the main road and everything is kept ticking along smoothly thanks to the lovely old man running it.

Assam s must-do attraction is an elephant safari to look for rhinoceros hiding dillard house chalets in the expansive grasslands of this national park (h1 Nov-30 Apr, elephant rides 5.30-8.30am, jeep access 7.30am-noon & 2.30pm-dusk). Kaziranga s population of around 1855 Indian one-horned rhinos (just 200 in 1904) represents more than two-thirds of the world s total. The park consists of a western, central and an eastern range, but the central range is the most accessible, giving the best viewing chances for rhinos, elephants and swamp deer plus plenty of bird life (take binoculars).