Explore the village bazaars of Pench National Park

Every week, Pench plays host to two charming village markets, the first on Wednesday and the other on Saturday. They’re different to your typical market in the sense that there’s almost nothing that you can’t find there. Name any item and I guarantee you they sell it; teaspoons, screwdrivers, poultry, tyres, shoes and slippers. You can even buy jewellery on credit. Vendors bring huge trunks of it, and you’ll see ladies come and select what they want after which they can pay in instalments every week.

The markets sprawl over a huge section of land among the trees and fields but there’s some order to it. Most of the vendors have been in their same designated spot for a long time. Everyone keeps to their patch, pulling up in the morning like clockwork and unloading their stock.

We at Pench Tree Lodge have a very strong bond with the nearby villages. Support from the community is very important to us- after all they’re vital to a sustainable environment. Our fantastic relationships with the local villages mean that the residents will happily show you around their houses, ingenious two-storey creations of mud and thatch built almost entirely without the use of bricks or cement. Everyone loves it. Even when we pass by on safari, all the kids race out to wave at you. It’s heart-warming