Not Only Hornbill Festival – Nagaland Phototour with Aman Chotani
Lens Partner – Zeiss
Travel Partner – Experience Destination

Hornbill festival is a massive international occasion celebrated annually (Dec 1-10) in Kisama village, Kohima. Before anything is spilled about this celebration, one must know that Nagaland is a land of eccentric cultural festivals. These festivals are held year round among the varied tribes in their respective towns and villages. The fundamental theme of these activities (in a nutshell) is to bring back to life the age old tradition of the ancestors for a brief moment as a matter of identification and to showcase an element of a long lost culture to the contemporary generation. Once the celebration is set off, all the people present in the event has the liberty to indulge themselves in the traditional luxury of delicacies, drinks, arts, crafts, music, attire, folklores, equipments, paintings, muses and etcetera at the costs ranging from free to extravagant.
Apart from indulging ourselves in the festive celebration, we are going to stay in few of the warmest homestays, hop villages from the first green village of India to a village where the digital age is yet to come, we are also going to trek to the mighty Dzukou valley, a night of camping in the wild and make many many new friends!
Looking forward to hosting you in our home!

Short Itinerary

Date – 1st December to 6th December, 2019 | 5 nights and 6 days

Arrival :- Fly to Guwahati on 30th Nov, 2019 on any flight that lands by 9 pm. Take the 11:30 pm train to Dimapur ( Nagaland Express).
Departure :- Fly out of Dimapur from 12:40 pm flight. It’s a connecting flight via Kolkata to all the major cities in India. You can alternatively choose to take an overnight train from Dimapur to Guwahati and fly out from Guwahati on the 7th.

1st Dec: Meet at Dimapur station and drive to Kigwema. Check-in in a super cute homestay and attend Hornbill for the rest of the day.
2nd Dec: Trek to the mighty and cold Dzukou Valley. A night in the wild.
3rd Dec: Trek back to the base and drive to the homestay. Attend night carnival at hornbill venue.
4th Dec: Morning Kigwema village walk followed by drive to the first green village of India, Khonoma.
5th Dec: A day in one of the remotest and kindest village where the digital age is yet to come.
6th Dec: Drive to airport as per flight timings.

Detailed Itinerary

1st December:
Drive to the Capital city of Nagaland.
Welcome to Northeast! Your trip starts with meet and greet at Dimapur station at 6:30 am. A 4 hour drive through tough and dusty roads with excellent drivers will take us to our beautiful homestay in Kigwema Village.
Freshen up. Sip unlimited cups of red tea (Lal chai) near the kitchen hearth, eat hearty breakfast, grab your cameras, wear you hats for we now head to the festival venue. Spend the rest of the day at the festival. Return back to the homestay at your own pace where a palatable dinner and good music awaits you.

2nd December:
Trek to the mighty Dzukou Valley.
The tea gets served early today as we prep ourselved for the next adventure. After breakfast, we pack essentials for 1 day and drive to Vishwema Village (starting point of trek to Dzukou valley). After 40 mins of bumpy ride and 90 mins climb through thick forest, we get the first view of the valley. Then onwards its a 2 hour easy walk in the beautiful valley to the resthouse where we camp for the night. This place offers beautiful view of the valley and we spend the evening at leisure sipping some wine by the campfire, singing our heart out or just silently reading a book.

3rd December:
A day into the wild and night Hornbill festival.
Suggest wake up super early today to grab the most magneficient view of Dzukou valley. Go for a morning hike around the valley for a bit. After DIY sandwiches for breakfast, we prepare for the trek back down to the base latest by 10:30 am.
Delicious lunch awaits for you at the homestay after which we are free to go to the hornbill venue again and spend the evening there.

4th December:
A day of village hopping in Nagaland.
After your morning cup of tea/coffee with magnificient view of paddy fields on one side and green mountains on the other side, we gear up for a 2 hour Kigwema Village walk. After Kigwema we drive to Khonoma, the first green village in Asia. The villagers have banned cutting of trees and hunting. A bold move considering their heavy dependence on the wild for day to day survival.
Today we will see the life of the regular Nagas closely, learn about the rich history and significance of the region during second world war. Meer the oldest lady of the village, learn about the village superstitions and traditions, the common meeting place of the local clans and understand the day to day life of the Nagas and take a stroll aimlessly in the beautiful paddy fields. Buckle up for some facinating story telling today.



5th December:
A day of re-living the pre digital/mobile phone era and re-connecting with nature.
Okay so today we give you the liberty of sleeping to glory and waking up at your own pace. After a delightful breakfast, we start an 18 Km drive to the village with zero mobile network. We are going to do this drive nice and slow with lots of stops to admire the view (I know what selfie kings and queens are thinking). This is the village where you’ll meet the most humble people. We will walk in the vast fields, will do a short hike to a hidden waterfall, pluck some fresh veggies from the fields and bring them back to the campsite or homestay to cook a savoury. Evenings will be spent around the campfire singing and laughing ourselves to good night sleep.

6th December:
Fly back home.
Today is the day we bid adieu.
Due to limited connectivity, we only have an option of catching the 12:40 flight from Dimapur. So the car will depart for airport at 7:30 am sharp.
In case the flights from Dimapur is expensive(due to high demand at that particular time) or doesnt seem very convenient, you may take the evening train from Dimapur to Guwahati and fly out from Guwahati the next day.

Accommodation Details

Day 1
Kigwema Village, Kohima Japfii Homestay
Day 2
Dzukou Valley
Camping beneath a zillion starts/ Dormitory.
Day 3
Kigwema Village, Kohima Japfii Homestay
Day 4
Khonoma Village, Kohima Dovepie iin
Day 5
Dzuleke Village, Kohima Camping or Super cute homestays.

Price per Head – Rs 35,000 / per person


or Pay via Bank Transfers Bank Details

Inclusions

Clean, Hygienic and comfortable Accommodation.
Point to point transfers from Dimapur station in the first day to Dimapur airport on the last day. (Transfers from kigwema homestay to hornbill venue is not included because we wanted to keep a flexibility of staying in the venue as long as one wants) Private cabs are readily available and will cost not more than Rs 200 one way.
Breakfast on all days.
LunchonDay2,3and5.
Dinner on Day 1, 2,3 and 5.
Trek Leader for Dzukou valley.
Professional guides during village walks.
Parking and Tollcharges
Driver Allowance, food and accommodation.
Inner Line Permits.

Exclusions

Airfare/RailFare
Any food and beverage cost apart from the ones mentioned above
Camera Fees
Local transfers from Kigwema homestay to Hornbill Venue.
Any Tips (We encourage to tip the locals. They earn low wages and your contribution will be of huge help for them)
Entry Tickets to Dzukou Valley, Museums, Parks, Cafes etc.
Any personal Expenditure (Shopping, medicines etc)
Costs arising out of unforeseen circumstances such as bad weather, landslides, road conditions and any other circumstances beyond our control.
Any items / services not specifically mentioned under the head ‘inclusions’.

Cancellation
For cancellations received up to 30 calendar days before the scheduled departure, a 20% cancellation fee will be charged.
For cancellations received 15 -29 calendar days before the scheduled departure date a 60% cancellation fee will be charged.
For cancellations received 7 -14 calendar days before the scheduled departure date a 80% cancellation fee will be charged.
For cancellations received within 7 calendar days before the scheduled departure date a 100% cancellation fee will be charged.
Registration Form

For more Details
Contact – travelwithamanchotani@gmail.com
Contact Person – Vrinda
Call to book your seat – 9873135123

About me

I, Aman Chotani, am a professional freelance travel photographer working for a travel agency – Cox and Kings and travel magazines like Outlook Traveller, Travel Biz, India Today, TLF Magazine etc. My experiences include capturing stunning images of inspiring destinations include India, Nepal, South Africa, Singapore, Switzerland, Turkey, Israel, Australia, and the UK.

I have been taking travel photography workshops across India as well as internationally in institutes like Delhi Photography Club, Vodafone, Mass Co Media, IIP, Social Bar, Gorillas Travel Club, DRDO, Istanbul Fine Art College, Israel Photo Tours and Singapore etc.

I have received awards from many prestigious organisations including The Siena International Photo Awards 2015 (Italy), IPA AWARD and United States in the Portrait Category. My work has been published in magazines and newspapers including National Geographic, Life Force Magazine, KLM I Fly Magazine, India Today, Creative Gaga, The Platform, Outlook Traveller, Travel Secrets and Dodho Magazine apart from many others.