BHUTAN EXTENDED BIRDING TOUR

Our extended birding tour to Bhutan covers many of the best birding sites in the country. In addition to birding, Bhutan is a culturally fascinating country, especially the School of Arts and Crafts and several museums in Thimphu, the elaborately decorated Punakha Dzong, and the many stupas or chortens found throughout the country in towns and in mountain passes. Many of the mountain passes are adorned with banners and prayer flags as well in this deeply religious country. The topography of Bhutan offers majestic scenery in the foothills of the Himalayas, sometimes challenging roads that can be quite narrow on steep mountainsides in places, and of course superb birding from the lowlands near the southern border with India, subtropical foest in the foothills, temperate forest at middle altitudes, and alpine meadows in high elevation passes through the mountains. In 2021 Bhutan increased its sustainable development tax to $200/day for each person visiting the country, making tours quite expensive. However, the tax was temporarily reduced in 2023 to $100/day, and this reduction has been extended now through 2027, so the best time to visit this fascinating country is soon. Finally, we can honestly say that our prices for birding tours to Bhutan are much better than most competing tour operators because we rely on expert buides in Bhutan and do not have to pay the sustainable development tax and other expenses for a foreign guide to lead the tour.

Our tour begins with international arrival at the airport in Paro on the morning of the first day of our tour followed by transfer to the capital city of Thimphu. We recommend flying to Paro from Bangkok on days when early morning flights are available. Upon arrival, we have a good chance to seeing the unique Ibisbill along the river not far from the airport. From there we transfer to Thimphu, about an hour's drive. We'll have the afternoon to visit the extraordinary School of Arts and Crafts in Thimphu. The following morning we'll drive north to Jigme Dorji National Park to bird that section of the park followed by an afternoon visiting several cultural sites in Thimphu. We then drive eastward over Dochu La (Pass) to Punakha with birding en route. In the afternoon we'll visit the famous Punakha Dzong, a site not be be missed. We then head south to Damphu in the Tsirang District, an area of superb birding in temperate forest. En route we'll stop to look for the critically endangered White-bellied Heron at a site where it is known to nest. From Damphu we continue south to Gelephu on the border with India. We'll spend a full day there birding the lowlands and foothills outside Gelephu. We then drive east and then north upslope toward Tingtibi. This region offers some great birding. The area is unspoiled forest protected in large part by the Royal Manas National Park. We'll spend sseveral days birding outside Tingtibi, along the road to Panbang, and then along the road to Nganglam. After several nights in this region, we'll drive north on a relatively new road toward Yongko La. We'll spend 4 nights in this incredibly bird rich area birding various sites near our hotel in the highlands above Yongko La and at higher elevation toward Namling and the pass. We then bird our way westward toward Chumey, stopping as need for missed species at Namling and Sengor en route. After a night in Chumey, we'll drive to Trongsa and then onward to the Phobjikha Valley. Next morning we'll visit the highlands of Pele La for a morning of birding before driving back to Paro. Once back in Paro we'll devote one day to hiking up to Tiger's Nest Monastery, located on a secluded mountainside and reached by a 5-6 hour hike roundtrip. On our final day we'll bird the highlands of Cheli La Pass outside Paro and some wetlands near Paro. The tour ends the next morning at the airport in Paro.

Tour Considerations

PACE - The pace of this tour is generally easy but requires early starts most days.

DIFFICULTY - Most birding is along roadsides that are level or slightly inclined. Traffic is generally not an issue. Some birding will be at higher elevation passes reaching 3700m (12,100ft). Road conditions are greatly improved compared to 10 years ago and are no longer problematical.

CLIMATE - The climate in Bhutan is very diverse due to it's mountainous landscape. During March to May the weather is mild, dry, and sunny. June to August is monsoon season with heavy rains. September to November is cool and sunny. December to February is cold and dry. The subtropical lowlands are hot and humid year-round. The temperate central region has cool winters and warm summers with less rainfall.

BIRD ACTIVITY- Peak breeding activity is from March-May. Flowering plants are in bloom and birds are very active. During September to November, mixed species flocks are prevalent, which offers very good birding. Birding in the mountains during monsoon season is extremely difficult due to bad weather and bad road conditions. Black-necked Cranes are only present from December to February.

PHOTOGRAPHY - Bird photography is opportunistic but feasible along the roads. Photography is permitted at the School of Crafts and Arts but not in the Postal Museum.

• Photos from Past Tours
• Travel Information

BIRDING LOCALES
FOR THIS TOUR

• Chele La Pass
• Dochu La
• Gelephu Area
• Jigme Dorji National Park
• Phobjikha Valley
• Punakha
• Royal Manas National Park & Panbang
• Tingtibi Area
• Trongsa Area
• Tsirang
• Yongko La
• Yotong La