Balancing environmental conservation initiatives and tourism activities is crucial for the sustainability of both in an environmentally sensitive tourism destination. Notifying natural habitats of endangered wildlife as protected areas under various classifications such as national park, wildlife sanctuary, reserved forest, etc., is a key conservation initiative to protect the habitat and address extinction threats to endangered wildlife. Tourism activities such as safaris inside a protected area allow humans to experience wildlife in their natural habitats from a closer distance. This, in turn, also brings revenue collected as an entry fee from tourists, which goes into meeting expenditure involved in the management of the protected area. The increasing number of attacks on tourist vehicles in Manas and Kaziranga National Parks is reflective of the carrying capacity of protected areas in the state, which is figuring low in the list of priorities of forest authorities. Tourism activities in a protected area cannot alone be limited to entertainment, recreation and revenue considerations. An unrestricted number of visitors and safari vehicles is bound to have a negative impact on the movement, foraging, and breeding of wild animals and cause severe stress to them. Usually, animals in protected areas which allow tourism activities are habituated to human presence and do not exhibit any aggressive behaviour. An increasing number of incidents of rhinos chasing safari vehicles of visitors in Kaziranga and Manas have a correlation with a steady increase in the number of visitors in both world heritage sites, which requires determination of physical carrying capacity to fix the maximum number of visitors in a single safari trip. While there can be a broad framework based on animal presence, their trail intersecting with safari routes, etc., the determination of the maximum number of visitors will need to be site specific. The academic calendar year break coinciding with the tourism season in these two prime destinations has led to a sudden spurt in visitors, with parents and their wards planning a visit after annual examinations were over and before they get busy when the new academic year begins in April. Park visitors posting photos of sightings of glamour species like rhinos and tigers from close distances, apart from scenic landscapes and other species, is believed to be another factor behind increasing tourist footfall in these iconic wildlife destinations. Tourism is a sunrise industry in the Northeast as the region and ecotourism are promoted to the rural economy of the region, with benefits from tourism activities flowing to the rural population. Sudden enforcement of a new entry regime, including fixing the upper limit of daily visitors to Kaziranga and Manas, runs the risk of generating a negative sentiment among prospective visitors. A pragmatic approach is to popularise more ecotourism destinations in the state and the region so that the flow of visitors is not concentrated in the iconic sites. Attracting tourists to a new destination is not easy despite its tremendous potential and offering value-for-money tourism experiences. Multiple factors, including connectivity, growth of the hospitality sector and the site being a part of a wider and affordable tourism circuit, play a critical role in boosting tourism activities to such destinations. Developing new tourism circuits in the state and the region has become more viable with spectacular growth in air, railway and road connectivity. Homestays have flourished in existing and new tourism sites, holding out hopes for the development of new tourism circuits. Successful homestay models offer double benefits – providing a sustainable means of new income avenues for rural households. It also provides the ecotourist the opportunity to experience the cultural vibrancy of a new tourism site, such as community food culture, weaving and other handicrafts, festivals, rituals, farming practices and other economic activities, the application of traditional knowledge for sustainable living, etc. Promoting such alternative destinations, which are galore across Assam and other Northeastern states, requires a professional approach with close coordination between departments of tourism, environment and forest, and indigenous and tribal faith and culture. When the popularity of these sites grows, authorities of iconic wildlife sites such as Manas, Kaziranga, Pabitora, etc., will find it easier to gradually enforce the carrying capacity determined through scientific studies of behavioural changes in park animals and their correlations with increasing numbers of visitors. The Assam government’s decision to replace ageing gipsy vehicles with electric vehicles to reduce environmental impact from enhanced tourism activities will be sustainable only when the flow of tourists is regulated in such a manner so as not to cause stress to park animals. Alternative destinations offering equally exciting experiences of nature and the environment will be crucial to reduce pressure on the iconic sites. Incidents of animal aggression towards visitors in Kaziranga and Manas, if not addressed, will shape a negative image of tourism activities in these iconic sites as being unsafe. Allowing such an image to grow is unwarranted, as it will have an adverse impact on the overall flow of tourists into the state. The state formulating a policy to determine site-specific carrying capacity of all prime destinations is a pressing priority.