Pilibhit Tiger Reserve in Uttar Pradesh has opened its 2026-27 ecotourism season with new online safari bookings, additional visitor accommodation and a new canteen, while international tourists arrived on the first day and all safari slots through November 9 were booked, according to officials.
The state’s ecotourism season began on November 1 across its tiger reserves. Minister of State for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Arun Kumar Saxena inaugurated the season at Pilibhit by performing havan-pujan rituals and flagging off safari vehicles. The opening marked the start of visitor access for the new season and brought domestic travellers as well as tourists from Australia, the United Kingdom and Sri Lanka to the reserve.
Officials said the arrival of foreign visitors on the opening day added momentum to local tourism activity. The reserve’s visitor economy is linked to the availability of safari access, accommodation and basic services within and around the protected landscape. This season’s additions are intended to make the visitor experience more organised and accessible while maintaining the reserve as a destination for wildlife tourism.
Pilibhit was declared a tiger reserve in 2014. Since then, it has developed a wider reputation among wildlife tourists, with officials attributing the growing interest to its rising tiger population and the scenic Terai landscape. The reserve’s growing recognition beyond India has helped bring international visitors alongside domestic travellers during the opening period.
The new visitor facilities include Tharu huts, water huts and tree huts. Authorities have also introduced online safari bookings, replacing the need for visitors to rely solely on arrangements at the reserve. A new canteen has opened at Sapt Sarovar, serving Bengali cuisine and catering to wildlife enthusiasts visiting the area.
The changes place visitor infrastructure alongside wildlife access at the centre of the new season. Accommodation, food services and booking systems are operational elements of ecotourism, determining how visitors enter and stay near protected areas. In Pilibhit, the additions are being introduced as interest in the reserve grows and as opening-day demand puts pressure on the available safari capacity.
According to an official release, all safari slots from the opening day through November 9 had been booked. The release did not provide the total number of available slots, the number of visitors accommodated in the new huts or details of the revenue expected from the season. It also did not specify whether further facilities would be added after the initial opening period.
The season’s next operational milestone is the continuation of safari visits through the bookings already made until November 9. The reserve’s facilities and visitor access will determine how the 2026-27 ecotourism programme proceeds after the opening rush.
