EUR0 SPACES AVAILABLE
Tour Price (Per person): Price to be announced
Pricing notes : Please contact our Tailor-made team on tailormade@rockjumper.com
Our Benin extension offers a great opportunity to see the localized Anambra Waxbill along with some other wonderful wetland species including Black Coucal, Levaillant's, Jacobin and Diederik Cuckoo, elusive Allen's Gallinule, Forbes's Plover, Senegal Lapwing, Collared Pratincole, African Openbill, Little Bittern, Black Heron, Yellow-billed Egret, African Pygmy and Grey-headed Kingfisher, Red-headed Lovebird, Yellow-crowned Gonolek, Oriole Warbler, Ethiopian Swallow, Slender-billed and Black-headed Weaver, Red-headed Quelea, Northern Red and Yellow-crowned Bishop amongst many others. We also travel across the small country of Togo giving guests the great opportunity to visit two seldom visited West African countries.
This tour is made available through our Tailor-made tours department. To explore this offering further for pricing, precise day to day itinerary, inclusions & exclusions, or to tailor the tour to your personal requirements, please contact our Tailor-made team on tailormade@rockjumper.com
Anambra Waxbill; Black Coucal; Allen's Gallinule; Forbes's Plover; African Openbill; Little Bittern; Black Heron; African Pygmy & Grey-headed Kingfishers; Red-headed Lovebird; Yellow-crowned Gonolek; Oriole Warbler; Slender-billed & Black-headed Weavers; Red-headed Quelea; Northern Red & Yellow-crowned Bishops.
wetlands, mashes, scrub
Hot & humid
8 with 1 Rockjumper leader
MODERATE TO CHALLENGING: This tour requires a good level of fitness, stamina, and overall health. It’s best suited for experienced birders who are comfortable with a more active itinerary. Please note that it may not be ideal for avid photographers, new birders, or those with mobility or health concerns.
Tour pace is moderate with one long travel day. Not suitable for anyone with mobility or health challenges.
Modern & comfortable in Cotonou, Benin
Birding is easy along open wetland areas & walking on flat tracks. Many species are approachable & provide good visuals in open conditions.
Good to excellent. No dedicated hides. Many species are approachable; habitat & lighting are often conducive.
Note that some of the comments I made regarding the Thailand extension apply to the main Thailand tour. I liked the sequence of sites visited; it ensured the Spoonbill Sandpiper was seen early on and then designed to minimize travel. Staying multiple nights at one site is always appreciated and seemed to be done as much as possible. The guides made special efforts to see bird species sought by the group; we saw more bird species than I expected. The drivers were excellent and also one of them, Jaime, was a good birder who helped the guides track down some species; it was an asset to have internet while in the vehicles. The drivers also produced an excellent video of the trip - a nice touch; they also did an excellent job with mid-morning breaks. I especially enjoyed visiting a hide all morning early on in the trip - it gave us a chance to see some elusive species but also several species very well. One morning was spent looking for a rare duck; I would have rather spent the time looking for a variety of Thai species. Quite a bit of birding was done along roads - it might have been better to bird trails etc. if they are available and afford good views of birds pointed out. Food was excellent (Uthai selected great dishes for the group) and accomodations were good. It was an enjoyable trip with rewarding looks at many of the bird species seen.
Lev was the perfect guide- knowledgeable, professional, polite, reliable. And well-dressed for the occasion with his bird-themed T-shirts! Everything was well organized and went smooth.
Stu is a personable, helpful, and organized guide and was a pleasure to travel with. He was ready to help not only with finding and identifying birds, but also with little problems that popped up during our trip, as they so often do. Our local guide was likewise consistently friendly and helpful. My main concern is that on this trip, as on past Rockjumper trips, there doesn't seem to be any effort to vet the physical ability of potential group members, and as a result those of us who are prepared for the experience are held back by those who are physically not ready for it. I know that trips are rated on the website in regards to the level of exertion required, but this does not seem to help -- I have been on multiple tours with people who are not physically capable of maintaining a steady level of exertion while birding. This is not fair to those of us who are.
The guides continued their superb and tireless efforts to find bird species during the extension to the main tour.
Bobby, our guide, was a solid & knowledgeable leader. His demeanor tends to be quiet & reserved, which worked for this group but may not work with all group dynamics. The lodging for this trip was a bit more rustic than I expected. The local guides used on this trip were excellent & offered additional intel into sightings or hot spots to explore. The group got all endemics possible & overall was a very good trip.
No Record Found
Sign up now and get the best deals straight in your inbox!
1-888-990-5552
info@rockjumper.com
