Our 17-day Ethiopia birding tour comprehensively covers this unique country and every single endemic bird is targeted (Ethiopia has the second highest count of endemics on the continent). Up to five hundred species of birds and many rare mammals can be expected and the ease of the birding is quite remarkable. Ethiopia is also one of Africa’s most rewarding photographic destinations.
In central Ethiopia we explore massive Rift Valley lakes teeming with birds, moss-draped montane forests supporting a wide selection of endemics, the high Bale Mountains home to the critically endangered Ethiopian Wolf, the impressive Jemma Valley and Awash National Park, a Mecca for game and bird watching in Ethiopia (home to an incredible six species of bustard!). Key Ethiopian bird species we will seek include Spot-breasted Lapwing, Blue-winged Goose, Rouget’s Rail, Wattled Ibis, Ankober Serin, Yellow-fronted Parrot, White-backed Black Tit and Abyssinian Woodpecker.
Ruspoli's and White-cheeked Turaco, Stresemann's Bush Crow, Spot-breasted Lapwing, Blue-winged Goose, Rouget’s Rail, Wattled Ibis, Ankober Serin, Yellow-fronted Parrot, Black-winged Lovebird, Erkel's & Harwood's Francolin, White-backed Black Tit, Abyssinian Woodpecker, Donaldson-Smith's Nightjar, White-tailed Swallow, Archer's (Sidamo), Gillett's and Somali Short-toed Lark, White-winged Collared Dove, Nile Valley & Black-bellied Sunbird, Arabian and Hartlaub's Bustard, Golden-breasted, Magpie and White-billed Starling, Pygmy Batis, Red-naped Bushshrike, Juba Weaver
Ethiopian Wolf, Gelada, Hamadryas Baboon, Mountain Nyala, Giant Mole Rat, Serval, Guenther's and Salt's Dikdik, Gerenuk, Lesser Kudu, Beisa Oryx, Soemmering's Gazelle
montane forest, Afro-alpine moorland, Acacia savanna, Rift Valley lakes, semi-desert
temperate in highlands, hot and dry in lowlands
8 with 1 Rockjumper leader
moderate pace, mostly undemanding walks
comfortable to basic hotels
not challenging
475-500
spectacular montane scenery, interesting ancient farming methods
excellent
This tour was our first one with Greg de Klerk. I would certainly go with him again. He is an extremely good birder, quick to locate birds and get all of the tour group on them. He worked hard to get those difficult endemics. His sense of humour added greatly to the group experience. What I most appreciated about Greg was his method of helping us to see the necessary field marks to identify a bird and to explain the difference between a bird and one that looked similar. I was therefore sure of the identity of every bird we had.
Julian was a wonderful leader, knowledgeable, enthusiastic and attentive to our needs. The local guide, Bereket, was also excellent and worked particularly hard when we had to find accommodation at short notice. The cultural guide Frui was very knowledgeable and shared both his knowledge and his experience of Orthodox Christianity with us in a very helpful manner. We saw a lot of birds and a good variety of mammals. In addition the food was very interesting and the coffee outstanding.
Greg de Klerk was an excellent guide and his lively manner and humour did much to make the trip enjoyable.
This tour far exceeded our expectations. The pace was mostly fast, and many days were long with early starts, but we fully expected this for an endemic search tour; but we still managed lots of comradery, jokes, and cocktail time. We fulfilled our tour goal of finding all the endemic island species plus most of the endemic subspecies, including those that are most likely to be split in the future. We also got to sample the local culture and food of every island. Our tour was extremely productive and a very fun trip. We had a very experienced group of participants, and everyone was pleased with the tour. Our leaders were exceptional. Forrest Rowland and Ryan Chenery made an excellent team. Both are very knowledgeable, personable, and funny, as well as expert birders. Their knowledge of the species was profound. They worked hard to find each target and to make sure that everyone got on the birds. On several islands, we also had local leaders/drivers who were top-notch birders. They thoroughly knew their local species habits and vocalizations. The Lesser Antilles are Ryans domain; he expertly planned and conducted the tour. When you lead a group of people to ten different islands in 14 days via airplanes, ferries, and speedboats, you know that various matters will require attention and Ryan adeptly dealt with all issues that cropped up, most of which were not even apparent to us. Thanks, also, to Ryans wife Alexandria, who we got meet on their home island of Barbados, who ran the back-office logistics dealing with confirmations and handling real-time changes, as needed. The team of Forrest, Ryan, and Alex kept everything running smoothly and seamlessly. The Rockjumper home office also did a great job of handling the registration and payment processes and all associated travel paperwork and communications. This was our first Rockjumper tour, but it certainly wont be our last.
The guide, Greg de Klerk, did a good job. He was well informed regarding the participants and tried hard to accommodate everyone's needs. He made a good effort to inform us daily as to what birds we might see, which was very helpful.
15 Nov 2024 - 01 Dec 2024 (17 days)
USD6,295 - 1 Space Available
Tour Leader: Robert Williams
Tour price (Per person): USD6,295 * GBP4,988 * EUR5,842 * AUD9,670
Single Supplement: USD390 * GBP309 * EUR362 * AUD599
Can be linked with: Ethiopia - Lalibela Historical Extension II 2024
04 Dec 2024 - 20 Dec 2024 (17 days)
USD6,995 - Spaces Available
Tour Leader: Robert Williams
Tour price (Per person): USD6,995 * GBP5,543 * EUR6,492 * AUD10,745
Single Supplement: USD390 * GBP309 * EUR362 * AUD599
Can be linked with: Ethiopia - Lalibela Historical Extension II 2024
Tour Leader: Julian Parsons
Tour price (Per person): USD7,095 * GBP5,622 * EUR6,584 * AUD10,899
Single Supplement: USD470 * GBP372 * EUR436 * AUD722
Can be linked with: Djibouti - Extension I 2025
Tour Leader: Quinton Paul Josop
Tour price (Per person): USD7,095 * GBP5,622 * EUR6,584 * AUD10,899
Single Supplement: USD470 * GBP372 * EUR436 * AUD722
Can be linked with: Ethiopia - Lalibela Historical Extension II 2025
02 Dec 2025 - 18 Dec 2025 (17 days)
USD7,695 - Spaces Available
Tour Leader: Quinton Paul Josop
Tour price (Per person): USD7,695 * GBP6,097 * EUR7,141 * AUD11,820
Single Supplement: USD470 * GBP372 * EUR436 * AUD722
Can be linked with: Ethiopia - Lalibela Historical Extension II 2025
Ethiopia - Lalibela Historical Extension I 2024 - January 2024
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding I 2024 - January 2024
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding II 2023 - November 2023
Ethiopia - Summer Endemics 2023 - June 2023
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding (Small Group) 2023 - February 2023
Ethiopia - Brewer 2023 - January 2023
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding III 2022 - November 2022
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding (Small Group) 2022 - February 2022
Ethiopia - Budget Birding 2019 - November 2019
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding II 2019 - November 2019
Ethiopia - Summer Endemics 2019 - May 2019
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding I 2019 - January 2019
Ethiopia - Budget Birding 2018 - November 2018
Ethiopia - Mega Birding 2018 - January 2018
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding I 2018 - January 2018
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding III 2017 - November 2017
Ethiopia - Glendinning & Welman 2017 - February 2017
Ethiopia - Endemics Birding II 2017 - January 2017