Kenya Mega birding tour takes in twenty-six days of non-stop birding as we thoroughly explore this famous bird and wildlife country. Not only is this safari specifically planned to obtain a huge list of mouth-watering birds and animals, but also Kenya’s most sought-after endemics and rarities. Our 2007 tour smashed all records with an amazing 817 birds, plus an incredible diversity of large mammals and other wildlife. In fact, on our five Mega tours thus far, we have recorded an unbelievable 912 species (over 80% of Kenya's possible birds!) and 99 mammal species (an average of 77 per tour!). Our recently updated itinerary has been tweaked to cover new sites and recent taxonomical splits – putting our current record in jeopardy.
Our tour begins with an exploration of the lush Shimba Hills and Arabuko-Sokoke Forest. Here we will endeavor to find some of the rarest birds in Africa, including the diminutive Sokoke Scops Owl, Sokoke Pipit, Green-headed Oriole, Amani Sunbird and Clarke’s Weaver. We then travel through both Tsavo West and East Parks, offering excellent game viewing and a huge bird list. The isolated Taita Hills, with its critically endangered species, will no doubt be memorable, and we’ll search all elevations of the Aberdare’s and Mount Kenya’s slopes for avian gems such as Jackson’s Francolin, Bar-tailed Trogon, Eastern Bronze-naped Pigeon, localized Hinde’s Babbler and Abyssinian Ground Thrush. We then enter the true arid zone at Samburu-Shaba, where highlights should include Golden-breasted Starling, Vulturine Guineafowl, Williams’s Lark, Somali Bee-eater and Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse. The dry woodlands of Lake Baringo are home to Jackson’s Hornbill, Northern Masked Weaver and Somali Sparrow, while the famous Kakamega forest adds a plethora of forest specials with Blue-headed Bee-eater. Turner’s Eremomela, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat and Yellow-bellied Wattle-eye being notable targets. After exploring the papyrus swamps and moist woodlands along Lake Victoria, we finally enter the plains to visit arguably the most famous game reserve in the world, the fabulous Maasai Mara!
Sharpe's Longclaw, Sokoke Scops & Cape Eagle Owls, Sokoke & Malindi Pipits, Clarke's, Compact & Taveta Weavers, Hinde's & Scaly Babblers, East Coast Akalat, Green Barbet, Green Tinkerbird, Fischer's, White-crested, Ross's & Hartlaub's Turaco, Amani, Plain-backed, Tsavo, Violet-breasted & Golden-winged Sunbirds, Green-headed Oriole, Taita & Abyssinian Ground Thrushes, Taita Apalis, Taita & Kikuyu White-eyes, Jackson's & Elgon Francolins, Aberdare Cisticola, Abbott's, Golden-breasted, Magpie & Fischer's Starlings, Abyssinian Crimsonwing, Somali & Three-banded Coursers, Rock Pratincole, William's & Friedmann's Lark, Jackson's Hornbill, Red-naped Bushshrike, Somali Sparrow, Donaldson-Smith's Sparrow-Weaver, Somali & Blue-headed Bee-eaters, White-headed Mousebird, Turner's & Yellow-vented Eremomelas, Yellow-bellied & Jameson's Wattle-eyes, Vulturine Guineafowl, White-spotted Flufftail, Bar-tailed Trogon, Hartlaub's Bustard, Sooty Gull, Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse, Eastern Black-headed & Forest Batis, Donaldson-Smith's Nightjar, Forbe's-Watson's Swift, White-headed Wood Hoopoe, Pallid Honeyguide, Mombasa & Speckle-breasted Woodpeckers, African Broadbill, Grey-crested Helmetshrike, Papyrus Gonolek, Red-throated Tit, Uganda Woodland, Black-faced Rufous & Basra Reed Warblers, Somali Crombec, Southern & Yellow-bellied Hyliotas, Brown-chested Alethe, Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat, Easy Coast Akalat, White-throated Robin, Chapin's & Gambaga Flycatchers, Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher, Fire-fronted & Zanzibar Red Bishops, Jackson's Widowbird, Red-throated & Brown Twinspots, Grey-headed Silverbill, Steel-blue Whydah, Cuckoo Finch, Papyrus Canary, Southern Grosbeak-Canary, Oriole Finch.
Lion, Leopard, Black & White Rhinoceros, Cheetah, Striped & Spotted Hyenas, Reticulated, Maasai & Rothschild's Giraffes, Angola Pied Colobus, Grevy’s Zebra, Gerenuk, Serval, Golden-rumped Elephant-Shrew, Crested Porcupine, Small-spotted & Blotched Genets, African Civet, African Buffalo, African Elephant, Southern Tree Hyrax, Giant Forest Hog, Lesser & Greater Kudu, Harvey's Duiker, Suni, Sable Antelope
lowland & montane forests, Acacia savanna, papyrus swamps, rivers and wetlands, rocky gorges, grassland, semi-desert, coastal estuaries
warm to hot, dry conditions, but cool at higher elevations and occasional rain can be expected
6 with 1 Rockjumer leader
Our Mega tours are very fast-paced birding adventures designed for the dedicated lister and serious birder. The focus of the tour is to see as many of the endemics and area specials as possible in our given time. In order to cover the necessary route to maximise the species list we tend to spend a single night at most sites and travel large distances. There is very little down time aside from that spent driving from one site to the next. These tours are not suitable for dedicated or avid photographers; inexperienced or new birders; as well as anyone with serious mobility or health challenges.
comfortable to luxurious lodges, a few more basic hotels & tented camps
mostly easy birds with some difficult species
780 - 800+
Olorgasailie Prehistoric sites, Mt Kenya, Aberdare Mountains, Shimba Hills, Maasai Mara, Lakes Elementeita & Baringo, Masaai and other local tribes, African curios
good to excellent - time permitting
We have birded with David Hoddinott previously. As usual, David was exceptionally talented at finding birds and other wildlife, plus making certain that all participants were able to see them. David maximized our exposure to viewing birds and wildlife which made the tour a pleasurable experience.
Stuart took my "hit list" and ensured that I saw as many as possible. Driver/guide Jack and local guides also helpful. Accommodation and food generally good. One negative was that Landcruiser was cramped and difficult to enter and exit, but apparently a 4X4 is necessary for this tour. Overall very happy with the tour and total list. Other participants also enjoyed it.
This was one of the best five of the 53 guided birding tours I have taken! Paul Josop is not only a truly excellent local guide who knows African birds and their calls phenomenally well, but is also extremely pleasant to deal with, polite, supportive of all levels of participant birding skills and very thoughtful. Paul also has an infectious sense of humor: We all laughed a lot on this tour! He loves to teach participants the finer points of the biology of the animals and plants encountered on a tour; he also managed group dynamics very well. It is clear that Paul enjoys guiding and he is very focused on getting all of the tour participants onto every bird species we encountered: He is living proof of my dictum that ""A good local guide is a thing of joy"". Our two local guide/drivers, Roger in Tanzania and Edson in Kenya, were also excellent: They dealt very well with severely pot-holed African roads and erratic African drivers and traffic; they also pointed out very many birds and big game as we bounced through the national parks, reserves and paved roads, all filled with aggressive opposing traffic! They have my highest recommendation. However, I do urge the local tour operator, Tanzania Birding and Beyond, to have their Land Cruiser passenger seats rebuilt - they were singularly uncomfortable on our long drives. This Rockjumper tour has my highest recommendation for all levels of participants' birding skills.
Greg de Klerk was a wonderful leader. He knew exactly how to lead this relaxed tour. He always made sure that the needs of everyone in group were being met. He also demonstrated incredible knowledge of both the birds and the animals. I would go anywhere with him on another related tour.
Heinz Ortmann was charming and funny, outstanding on the birds and other animals, and excellent in dealing with the logistics. I would be very happy to travel with Heinz again.
Tour Leader: Richard Stratton Hatfield
Tour price (Per person): USD10,795 * GBP8,633 * EUR10,082 * AUD16,495
Single Supplement: USD1,510 * GBP1,208 * EUR1,410 * AUD2,307
Flight costs: USD110 * GBP88 * EUR103 * AUD168
Tour Leader: Stephan Lorenz
Tour price (Per person): USD11,495 * GBP9,193 * EUR10,736 * AUD17,565
Single Supplement: USD1,840 * GBP1,472 * EUR1,719 * AUD2,812
Flight costs: USD130 * GBP104 * EUR121 * AUD199
Kenya - Birds & Big Game (Relaxed) II 2024 - February 2024
Kenya - Highlights II 2023 - November 2023
Kenya - Highlights I 2023 - October 2023
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game IV 2023 - April 2023
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game III 2023 - April 2023
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game I 2023 - March 2023
Kenya - Mega Birding Tour I 2023 - March 2023
Kenya - Relaxed 2023 - March 2023
Kenya - Highlights 2022 - November 2022
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game V 2022 - September 2022
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game II 2022 - April 2022
Kenya - Mega Birding Tour 2022 - March 2022
Kenya - Highlights I 2021 - December 2021
Kenya - Highlights III 2021 - November 2021
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game III 2021 - April 2021
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game V 2020 - November 2020
Kenya - Tailor-made Mega 2020 - January 2020
Kenya & Tanzania - Birds & Big Game IV 2019 - May 2019