Birdwatching holidays, birding trips & tours

BIRDWATCHING HOLIDAYS DIRECTORY

 

Africa Journeys Escapes

based: Nairobi, Kenya
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Africa holiday specialists based in Nairobi, Kenya – with representatives across many other African cities and countries. Africa Journeys Escapes create, arrange and operate a wide range of animal watching tours, classic African holidays and custom safaris; for groups, individuals and families.

| animals/safari | walk/trek safari | horseback safari | diving/snorkelling | birdwatching | sea fishing/angling | family | Africa |

 

uk flagAigas Field Centre

based: Inverness-shire, Scotland, UK
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Discover the wildlife of Scotland on ready-made or tailored nature and wildlife holidays, including animal and bird watching, wildlife and nature photography; see pine martens, badgers, otters, beavers, dolphins, red deer, capercaillie, red squirrels, ospreys, red kites ... Accommodation is in timber lodges in the arboretum of the House of Aigas. Specialist small group tours also catered for.

| animal/safari | whale/dolphin watching | birdwatching | photographic | Scotland |

 

uk flag Bird ID Company (The)

based: Norfolk, UK
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Offering a variety of birdwatching tours across East Anglia, visiting well-known reserves and other birding sites in Suffolk and Norfolk. Scheduled tours range from 1 to 5-days and cater for all abilities, from novice birdwatchers to the more experienced, who may be targeting specific species.

| birdwatching | England |

 

Catalan Bird Tours

based: Barcelona, Spain
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Guided birding breaks in Catalonia in NE Spain, bespoke or scheduled group birdwatchers holidays, in an area offering a wide range of habitats and an ideal location to observe bird migrations.

| birdwatching | Spain |

 

uk flag Cairngorms Birding

based: Cairngorms, Scotland, UK
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Guided birdwatching tours and holidays in the Cairngorms National Park and the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, with Simon Pawsey, a professional birdwatching and wildlife guide. Also 4-day Cairngorms Birding School of Birding holiday courses covering all aspects of birdwatching to help you to become a better birder.

| birdwatching | Scotland |

 

Entrée Destinations

based: British Columbia, Canada

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Polar bear safari and photo shoot, Churchill in northern Manitoba, Canada. A tour designed to provide keen wildlife photographers with ground level opportunities to photograph polar bears, caribou, Arctic fox and other wildlife in an untrammeled setting.

| animals/safari | bear watching | walking/trekking safaris | photographic safaris | photographic | birdwatching | Canada |

 

uk flagG Adventures five star Featured Site

based: Canada, London & Worldwide

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G Adventures logoUnique and authentic global adventure travel experiences for those willing to go beyond conventional tourism. Wide range of trips for animal and nature lovers, such as game and wildlife viewing, safaris, Galapagos trips, Antarctica, rainforests, cloud forests, volcanoes, hot springs, bird watching and river journeys. Ethical and sustainable tourism at its best.

| birdwatching | Africa | South America | Asia | Worldwide |

 

uk flagRufflets Country House Hotel
based:
Fife, Scotland, UK

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A 4-star country house hotel just 1 mile from St Andrews, offering a variety of short breaks, including weekends, romantic and Valentine, Christmas and birdwatching breaks and golf packages. Rufflets has been in the same family ownership since 1952, and offers a relaxing atmosphere to get away from it all.

| weekends/short breaks | Christmas/New Year | valentines | romantic | golf | bird watching | Scotland |

 

uk flagSaga five star Featured Site
based: Kent, UK

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SagaBrrdwatching holidays for travellers 50+. Spot some of 100's of bird species, like the marble duck and black stork, at one of Europe's most important wetland reserves in Spain; or go further afield to Costa Rica's rainforests in search of toucans, macaws, hummingbirds and flycatchers. These birdwatching Special Interest Holidays feature visits to a variety of watching sites and are accompanied by an experienced tour host with a passion for ornithology.

| birdwatching | singles | UK | Europe | Worldwide |

 

 

Touring Galapagos

based: San Cristobol, Galapagos, Ecuador

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Based in San Cristobal Island, Touring Galapagos offers true local expertise for Galapagos Islands travel. They offer tailor-made itineraries and strive to offer the most unique and creative luxury experiences that Ecuador and Galapagos offer. Their natural history tour itineraries include top locations, with snorkeling and day tours using reliable Galapagos Yachts, Hotels, Tent Camps and highly rated Naturalist Guides.

| tailor-made | animals/safari | birdwatching | diving/snorkelling | sailing (large boat/sail ship) | ocean cruises | theme cruises | Galapagos Islands | Ecuador |

 

uk flagTourRadar five star Featured Site

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Tourradar logoHuge selection of wildlife tours, safaris and birdwatching trips from many different suppliers, all in one place. TourRadars bird watching holidays and trips range from 1 day to 17+, and offer tours throughout the globe. They offer everything from Birding in the Danube Delta, to Bird Watching in Sri Lanka or combined Wildlife and Bird Watching Safaris in Tanzania ... so much choice!

| animals/safari | birdwatching | Worldwide |

 

Unforgettable Travel

based: London, UK

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Bespoke worldwide luxury private tours, hand crafted by experts. Journey types include: honeymoons, wildlife holidays and African safaris, food and wine tours, cultural and heritage trips, small ship cruises, family adventures, luxury train travel, beach breaks, luxury active travel, multi-centre holidays and luxury road trips.

| tailor-made | animals/safari | birdwatching | ocean cruises | gastronomic | wine | wedding/honeymoon | family | railway tours | sightseeing | Worldwide |

 

 

TRAVEL-QUEST PICKS: TOP BIRDING DESTINATIONS

Our selection of top birdwatching destinations

With so many destinations described as a 'birdwatchers paradise' it can be hard to know where to start. Our lists are intended to inspire, they're not so much about the rarity of the species, but about suitability as a holiday destination for birders. They're split into 3 themes with a top selection for each:

A) THE BIG DESTINATIONS

B) THE WETLANDS

C) TOP UK DESTINATIONS

 

TOP PICKS: THE BIG DESTINATIONS FOR A BIRDWATCHING HOLIDAY

These are the 'must see' destinations for birdwatchers, the ones that should appear of every birders bucket list.

 

1 Iceland

WHY?: The cliffs at Látrabjarg for huge bird populations (northern gannets, guillemots, razorbills and tens of thousands of puffins). Lake Myvatn and it's wetlands for water-birds (up to 16 species of duck). The Snaefellsnes Peninsula and Breidafjordur Bay for a huge range of habitats and variety of species. The geothermal volcanic landscape of the Reykjanes Peninsula for harlequin duck, great northern loons, grebes, cormorants, kittiwakes ... The Westman Islands with steep sea cliffs and plentiful sea-birds. Jokulsargljufur preservation area, home to Dettifoss Europe's most powerful waterfall.

 

2 Papua New Guinea (PNG)

WHY?: Birding in one of the World's last truly wild and least explored places. Papua New Guinea has earned its place as a classic birdwatching destination, offering habitats from lush mountain forest to coast and tropical lowland. There are at least 760 bird species to be found, from cassowaries and kingfishers to fantails and honeyeaters; in particular it is home to more than 40 species of birds-of-paradise. Papua New Guinea is still building its tourism infrastructure so it might not be the easiest of birding destinations for a DIY trip, but more and more packaged trips there are now becoming available.

 

3 Galapagos Islands, Ecuador

Galapagos Blue Footed BoobyWHY?: High on the list of the world's best birding destinations are the volcanic islands of the Galapagos, in the Pacific, 600 miles west of Ecuador. They are a World Heritage Site, a World Biosphere Reserve and, because of their remote location and isolation, home to many unique species. Among the top draws are the Galapagos penguin, frigatebirds, waved albatross, red-billed tropicbird, brown pelicans, great blue heron, and numerous boobys. Possibly the most well known of the land birds are the Darwin's finches (13 species), named for their relevance to the evolutionary theories of Charles Darwin.

 

4 Antarctica

WHY?: Penguins of course, the symbol of Antarctica. For birders this is not a destination for counting species, rather for immersing oneself in huge numbers of just a few. Antarctica offers vast, beautiful, icy landscapes inhabitated by the four main penguin species (Adelie, Chinstrap, Gentoo and Emperor) in their millions. Visits to Antarctica are carefully controlled and the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (www.iaato.org) provides lots of information.

 

5 Botswana and the Okavango Delta

WHY?: For the astonishing abundance and diversity of birds in the world's largest inland delta, which drains huge portions of S Africa. A place to spot over 400 species including the African fish eagle, Malachite kingfisher, shoebill storks, hammerkopand, Pel's fishing owl, etc, etc.

 

TOP PICKS: THE BEST WETLAND BIRDING HOLIDAY DESTINATIONS

Without doubt wetlands are one of the most important bird habitats, used for breeding, feeding, shelter and as a stop-over spot along migratory routes and flyways. You'll find wetlands in our Big Destinations list too.

 

1 The Brazilian Pantanal

WHY?: The world's largest contiguous tropical wetland, the Pantanal, covers a vast area in the south-west of the country; most of the Pantanal is within Brizil, with much smaller sections in Paraguay and Bolivia. It's made up of a complex system of floodplain, marshland, lagoon and interconnected drainage channels, creating a marvellous habitat for birds. Counts vary, but it's considered to be home to at least 700 different species, including birds such as the jabiru stork and the endangered hyacinth macaw.

 

2 The Everglades and Southern Florida

WHY?: The Everglades have a unique ecosystem of shallow, slow moving rivers of sawgrass marsh, interspersed with cypress swamp, hardwood hammocks and mangrove forest, covering a vast area from Lake Okeechobee to Florida Bay. The area is well known in birding circles for having the largest concentration of wading birds in America; it's also famous for its alligators! Within the Everglades, the National Park is home to over 360 species, including herons, vultures, pelicans, egrets, storks, pelicans, eagles, owls, ospreys, spoonbills and woodpeckers.

 

3 The Camargue, France

Camargue birdsWHY?: The Camargue (SE France) is the delta of the River Rhone, is the largest river delta in W Europe and is one of its best known wetlands. It offers a huge diversity of habitat including shallow lakes and lagoons, reedbeds, marshes, stony desert, woodland, limestone hills and mountains. Its emblematic birds, greater flamingos, can be admired in their thousands in the Parc Ornithologique de Pond de Gau bird sanctuary, near Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. But the area is home, or a migratory stop-off, for a huge number of species (over 400) including: herons, eagles, owls, bitterns, storks, ibis and terns.

 

4 The Danube Delta, Romania

WHY?: The Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve, on the Black Sea coast, is part of the largest continuous marshland in Europe and has the world's largest reed bed, as well numerous freshwater lakes connected by a network of channels, reed islands, lagoons, marshland, woodland and pasture that attract over 330 bird species. Highlights include the largest colony of pelicans outside of Africa, as well as white storks, spoonbills, herons, ducks, white-tailed eagles, egrets, vultures, cranes, cormorants, warblers, ibis and red-breasted geese. Areas of the wetland can only be accessed by boat or canoe which allows visitors to observe the birds at very close quarters. A permit is required to enter the Biosphere Reserve (included with arranged tours, independent travellers can buy permits from the Reserve administration and Tulcea travel agencies).

 

5 Kerala backwaters, Southern India
WHY?: Birding in paradise, the Kerala backwaters are an extensive interconnected network of canals, lakes, lagoons and inlets that run along the coast, forming over 900 km of waterway. Fresh water from numerous rivers meets the salt water of the Arabian Sea resulting in a unique ecosystem that attracts birds, other wildlife and lush vegetation. The place to visit is Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary on Vembanad Lake, the largest of the backwater lakes and an excellent spot for seeing migratory birds or breeding resident wetland species, species such as the Indian darter, little cormorant, egrets, kingfishers, herons and white ibis.