Few animals in the last century have suffered more than the tiger. In 1900 there were 100,000. Today, the World Wide Fund for Nature estimates that fewer than 3,500 remain in the wild, many in isolated pockets of Asia and far eastern Russia. Facing continued threats from shrinking habitats, human-animal conflict and poachers, only a handful of natural reserves can offer tourists reasonable assurances of spotting William Blake’s “Tyger! Tyger! burning bright / In the forests of the night.”

For now, the best opportunities are in India, which has at least half of the world’s remaining population of wild tigers. Most tiger adventures begin in one of the national parks in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh. Tiger safaris are available in the state’s Pench and Kanha National Parks, but the densest tiger population is found at Bandhavgarh National Park.

The former hunting preserve of the Maharaja of Rewa,