Follow our specialist birding tour guides on the ground to discover the avifauna of the best national parks and birding sites in Vietnam on a bird quest for 15 days 14 nights.
Vietnam Birding Tour Overview
The tour is designed for birding enthusiasts and ornithologists to explore the rich diversity in bird species in Vietnam. Our trip starts in Saigon or Ho Chi Minh City and concludes in Hanoi. The pace of the tour is moderate-hard with tour activities including walking, bird-watching, trekking, hiking, eco touring and sightseeing. More tourist destinations can be added upon request to make the traveller’s experience of Vietnam more fulfilled.
The accommodations and other travel services are quite basic at national parks in Vietnam. Most meals are included while at each park for your convenience of birding. Vietnam Birding is so far still off-the-tourist track and voted by our travellers the best nature, eco and bird-watching tour in Vietnam.
Day-to-day itinerary
Day1 Arrive Ho Chi Minh City (no meal)
Day2 Ho Chi Minh City - Nam Cat Tien (B/L/D)
Day3 Nam Cat Tien (B/L/D)
Day4 Nam Cat Tien (B/L/D)
Day5 Nam Cat Tien – Da Lat (B/L)
Day6 Da Lat (B/L)
Day7 Da Lat (B/L)
Day8 Da Lat – Da Nang (VN 1954: 0810-0930) - Bach Ma National Park (B/L/D)
Day9 Bach Ma (B/L/D)
Day10 Bach Ma National Park – Da Nang – Hanoi (VN 1514: 1305-1415) - Cuc Phuong National Park (B/-/D)
Day11 Cuc Phuong (B/L/D)
Day12 Cuc Phuong – Halong Bay Junk Cruise (B/L/D)
Day13 Halong Bay – Hanoi (B/L)
Day14 Hanoi at leisure (B)
Day15 Depart Hanoi (B)
{Inclusions
English speaking guide as on the tour itinerary;
Transportation as on the itinerary;
Air tickets for Da Lat - Da Nang - Hanoi;
Accommodation as on the itinerary;
Admission and permits during the guided times;
}
{Exclusions
Insurance of any types;
Drinks, laundry, phone bills or others not clearly mentioned as included;
}
Detailed itinerary
Day 1 Arrive at Ho Chi Minh City Saigon (no meal)
Arriving in Ho Chi Minh City, welcomed by Paradissa Travel tour guide and transferred to hotel. The rest of the day is at leisure.
Overnight in HCMC.
Day 2 Ho Chi Minh City - Nam Cat Tien National Park (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel
Travel by road to Nam Cat Tien National Park, 150km from HCMC in Dong Nai Province. Once off Highway One, the road uphill passes through large areas of rubber plantations to the national park. An incredible persity of birds and mammals live in the forest and wetland habitats of Nam Cat Tien which is estimated of 351 species of birds. Endangered birds to be found here include White-winged Duck, White-shouldered Ibis, Germains Peacock-Pheasant, Green Peafowl and the very elusive Orange-necked Partridge.
Mammal species found in the park include Indochinese Tiger, Asian Elephant and the last surviving Annamese Rhino, a sub species of the Javan Rhinoes, although it is extremely lucky to catch a glimpse of these. Wild boars, several species of deers and the rare Duoc Langurs and Crested Gibbons are sometimes seen. The afternoon is for bird-watching along the path from the park headquarters.
Lunch and dinner at the park.
Overnight in Nam Cat Tien.
Day 3 Nam Cat Tien (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the guest house.
A full day of bird-watching, we start early touring along the river road from the headquarters by jeep and foot. We’ll tour the Bird Lake to adore visiting waders and perhaps a glimpse of Green Peafowl. Interesting species to look out for include Germain's Peacock-Pheasant, Siamese Fireback, Scaly-breasted Partridge, Bar-bellied Pitta, Grey-faced Tit-Babbler, Green Imperial Pigeon and Mountain Hawk-Eagle.
Lunch and dinner at the park.
Overnight in Nam Cat Tien.
Day 4 Nam Cat Tien (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the guest house.
We start early for the 6km of walking eco-tour through forest to Crocodile Lake. Species that can be seen here include Green Peafowl by Crocodile Lake in early morning or late afternoon, Bronze-winged Jacana, Lesser Adjutant and Purple Heron. On our bird-watching tour today, look out for Red, Black and Banded Broadbill, Orange-breasted Trogon and Pale-headed Woodpecker amongst others.
Lunch and dinner at the park.
Overnight in Nam Cat Tien.
Day 5 Nam Cat Tien – Da Lat (B/L)
Breakfast at the guest house.
A final morning of birding along the headquarters road where Green-eared, Blue-eared and Lineated Barbet can often be seen perched high up in road-side trees. Continue our journey to Da Lat after lunch. It is a scenic drive through tea and coffee plantations to the cooler climate of the former colonial hill station, Da Lat.
Overnight in Dalat.
Day 6 Da Lat (B/L)
Breakfast at the hotel.
A full day of bird-watching at Mount Lang Biang where the evergreen forests are home to many interesting species including some endemics. Key species to be found at Mount Lang Biang include Silver Pheasant, Indochinese Cuckooshrike, Rufous-capped Babbler, Yellow-billed Nuthatch and Mugimaki Flycatcher. This is also the place to see two of Vietnam's endemics, the Collared Laughingthrush and the Vietnamese Greenfinch.
Overnight in Dalat.
Day 7 Da Lat (B/L)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Tuyen Lam Lake, only 3km from the centre of town, is one of Da Lat's other hotspots for birders. This is where the Grey-crowned Crocias was recently re-discovered after not being seen for 60 years. Other interesting species here include Red-vented Barbet, Spotted Forktail, Cutia, Black-hooded, White-cheeked and Collared Laughingthrush.
Overnight in Da Lat.
Day8 Da Lat – Da Nang (VN 1954: 0810-0930) - Bach Ma National Park (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel or takeaway breakfast.
Early transfer to the airport for the flight to Da Nang in the Central Region of Vietnam. On arrival, follow the scenic road to Bach Ma National Park. The road from the park entrance to the park guesthouse near the summit is very scenic with sweeping vistas of untouched rainforest and the coastal plain. The park accommodations are in renovated colonial villas and the ruins of once splendid holiday homes and hotels are scattered along the trails to the summit. There are many good trails for bird-watchers and for normal Eco travellers alike with several waterfalls and small lakes.
Overnight at Bach Ma.
Day 9 Bach Ma (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Bach Ma National Park is a very well-run Eco travel destination. A knowledgeable park tour guide will assist us with our birding tour at Bach Ma. Over 330 species of bird have been recorded at Bach Ma and specialties include the endemic Annam Partridge, the Crested Argus, Coral-billed Ground-Cuckoo, Blyth's Kingfisher and the Ratchet-tailed Treepie.
Lunch and dinner at the park.
Overnight at Bach Ma.
Day 10 Bach Ma National Park – Da Nang – Hanoi (VN 1514: 1305-1415) - Cuc Phuong National Park (B/D)
Breakfast at the park.
A final morning exploring the forest trails before leaving for Hue Airport to catch the early afternoon flight to Hanoi. On arrival in Hanoi, travel directly to Cuc Phuong National Park, a 3-hour road journey to the south of the capital city.
Overnight in Cuc Phuong.
Day 11 Cuc Phuong (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the park.
Enjoy full day bird-watching. The first national park established in Vietnam, Cuc Phuong is an area of limestone hills covered with large tracts of primeval rainforest. Key bird species here include Grey Peacock-Pheasant, Brown Hornbill, Bar-bellied, Blue-rumped and Eared Pitta, White-winged Magpie, Sultan Tit, Red-Vented Barbet, Limestone Wren-Babbler, Fujian Niltava and Pied Falconet.
Overnight in Cuc Phuong.
Day12 Cuc Phuong – Halong Bay Junk Cruise (B/L/D)
Breakfast at the hotel.
0700 A.M Transferred through the scenic countryside and the heart of the Red River Delta to the World Heritage Site of Ha Long Bay. The bay offers some 3,000 mountain islands and islets towering in the Gulf of Tonkin in the East Vietnam Sea.
Day13 Halong Bay – Hanoi (B/L)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Then, we will take a little sampan to visit a secret lagoon of Ha Long Bay while the surrounding mountains are just waking up. After that our cruise takes us further into the Bay of Bai Tu Long traveling past the Human Head Island, the Turtle Island, and the Duck Islet... to the studio site where the famous “Indochine” film was shot.
After the last feast on board for lunch, our junk travels back to the harbor for disembarkation at 12.00 A.M. We rejoin our car and make our way to Ha Noi. On arrival, we check into the hotel which is located in the heart of the Old Quarters of Hanoi.
Free time for dinner.
Overnight in Hanoi.
Day14 Hanoi at leisure (B)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Full day at leisure.
Free time for lunch and dinner.
Overnight in Hanoi.
Day 15 Depart Hanoi (B)
Breakfast at the hotel.
Transfer to Noi Bai Airport for departure flight. We trust you had a wonderful nature tour in Vietnam with Paradissa Travel.
Note: Best time of the year is March - April. Accommodation at national parks can be rather basic.
