Spread across 874 sq.km, Bandipur is one of the best places to visit as part of your wildlife tour in India. It can be visited along with Wayanad as part of Wayanad tour packages. It is part of the famous Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve along with Nagarhole National Park, Mudumalai National Park (12 Kms towards Ooty) and Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary. Bandipur forests used to be the private game reserve of the Maharajas of Mysore. This Sanctuary is one of the 15 sanctuaries belonging to the Project Tiger Scheme. Bandipur was declared a National Park under the Wildlife Protection Act in 1974.