The Park is spread over an area of 932 sq kms and located in the lowlands of the kingdom. The forest cover is predominantly sal forest, interspersed with tall grasslands, small hills, ox-bow lakes and flood plains.
The best time to visit Chitwan is from October through February, when the temperature averages 25 degrees Celcius. The months of March, April and June can be extremely hot, while July-September is the monsoon season when rivers swell and parts of the park are inaccessible.

Access and Accomodation
RNAC operates daily flights from Kathmandu to Meghauli ($72 each way). There are also flights to Bharatpur (Narayanghat) for $55 each way. The flights take about half an hour. If you want to stay at Sauraha, the budget accommodation place for Chitwan, get to Tadi bazaar, located 15 km east of Narayanghat on the Mahendra highway. Royal Chitwan National Park is easily accessible from Kathmandu, connected by a national highway from Bharatpur to Sauraha. Sajha Yatayat buses cost around Rs.80 from Kathmandu or Pokhara while tourist buses cost around Rs.150. There are also greenline air-conditioned buses between Kathmandu and Sauraha at Rs.480. Any travel agent in Kathmandu or Pokhara can make a booking.
The other exciting way to get to Chitwan is to take a two-three day rafting trip down the Trishuli River to Narayanghat, or directly into the Western edge of the park.

There are plenty of jungle lodges and hotels in and around Chitwan, broadly classified as those in the park and those in Sauraha. The lodges in the park are expensive and mostly cater to the package tourist arriving from Kathmandu. For budget accomodation, look around Sauraha and take your pick of a range of good lodges.