wilderness chalets HEAD HUNTERS Throughout northeastern India and parts of western Myanmar the Naga tribes were long fe

Hotel Prag Continental HOTEL $$ (%2540850; wilderness chalets www.hotelpragcontinental.com; MN Rd; s/d from 1180/1725; a) The spacious and well-furnished rooms with wooden floors on offer at this hotel are as spotless as the aquarium full of brightly painted fi sh that sits in the reception. The staff are attentive and discounts easy to come by. It s on a quieter side street and has a good restaurant.

HEAD HUNTERS Throughout northeastern India and parts of western Myanmar the Naga tribes were long feared for their ferocity in war and for their sense of independence both from each other and from the rest of the world. Intervillage wars continued as recently as the 1980s, and a curious feature of many outwardly modern settlements is their treaty stones recording peace settlements wilderness chalets between neighbouring communities. It was the Naga s custom of headhunting wilderness chalets that sent shivers down the spines of neighbouring peoples. The taking of an enemy s head was considered wilderness chalets a sign of strength, and a man who had not claimed a head was not considered a man. Fortunately for tourists, wilderness chalets headhunting was officially outlawed in 1935, with the last recorded wilderness chalets occurrence in 1963. Nonetheless, severed heads are still an archetypal artistic motif found notably on yanra (pendants) that originally denoted the number of human heads a warrior had taken. Some villages, such as Shingha Changyuo in Mon district, still retain their hidden collection of genuine skulls. Today Naga culture is changing fast, but it was not a government ban on headhunting that put an end to this tradition wilderness chalets but rather wilderness chalets the activities of Christian missionaries. Over 90% of the Naga now consider themselves Christian.

Eco-Camp (%9435250052/09854019932; dm/d 200/1620, plus membership per person 50) organises all Nameri visits, including two-hour birdwatching rafting trips (two people 550). Accommodation is in tents , but colourful fabrics, private bathrooms, sturdy beds and thatched-roof shelters make the experience relatively luxurious. The camp is set within lush gardens full of tweeting birds and butterflies drunk on tropical wilderness chalets nectar. There s an atmospheric, and excellent, open-sided restaurant and the staff are simply superb. All up it gets our vote as the best place to stay in the entire northeast. It s very popular, so book way ahead. If it s full the government-run Jiabhoroli Wild Resort (%9954357376; tw 1200) just a short walk beyond the Eco-Camp, wilderness chalets has plain cottages that aren t quite as quaint as a cottage should be. It s very much the second choice.

10pm) Best of several closely grouped wilderness chalets options. Tripura Tourism (%2225930; www.tripura tourism.in; Swet Mahal, Palace Complex; h10am-5pm Mon-Sat, wilderness chalets 3-5pm Sun) Helpful and enthusiastic with many great-value tours.