Vietnam Bird Photo Tour

NOTE: ITINERARY MAY BE CHANGED FOR THE BETTER EXPERIENCE IF ANY
 

DAY 1 - 4 JAN 2025: HO CHI MINH CITY / TRAM CHIM

Welcome to Vietnam Bird Photography Tour leading by An Bui. You can arrive to Ho Chi Minh City in morning flight or coming to Ho Chi Minh City few days before the trip to relax. Afternoon transfer to Tram Chim National Park with 4 hours of driving.  

Overnight at hotel in Tram Chim. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at local restaurant.

Tram Chim National Park in the Mekong Delta is the 2,000th Ramsar site, which is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention. The 7,300-hectare Tram Chim National Park is a haven for over 230 bird species, including 32 rare ones of which 16 are endangered. It was recognized as a Ramsar site in 2012, the fourth in Vietnam.

Bird photography in Tram Chim we are mainly using the boat to explore the wetland. The boats is not too big, it is ideal of maximum 4 guests with tripod or handheld sharing the nice position on the boat. We will have the support of local people who know well the bird during shooting on the boat.

Opportunity of birdwatching in Tram Chim National Park: Plain Prinia, Asian Green Bee Eater, White Breasted Waterhen, Cotton Pygmy Goose, Malaysian Pied Fantail, Brown Shrike, Pheasant Tailed Jacana, Plaintive cuckoo, Barn Swallow, Common sandpiper, Black Winged Stilt, Indian spot-billed duck, Black Capped Kingfisher, Great Cormorant, Pied kingfisher, Little grebe, Oriental Honey Buzzard, Painted Stork, Black Headed Ibis, Glossy Ibis, Gray Heron, Great Egret, Black Drongo, Purple heron, Oriental darter, Grey Headed Swamphen.

DAY 2 - 5 JAN 2025: TRAM CHIM

We will have full day enjoy photography at Tram Chim National Park with 2 photography sections per day in early morning and late afternoon. Lunch and resting during the noon time.

Overnight at hotel in Tram Chim. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at hotel restaurant.

DAY 3 - 6 JAN 2025: TRAM CHIM / DONG NAI

Enjoy early morning boat trip for photography in Tram Chim National Park.

Afternoon transfer to Dong Nai with 5-6 hours of driving. 

Overnight at hotel in Dong Nai. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at local restaurant.

DAY 4 - 7 JAN 2025: DONG NAI

We will have full day enjoy photography at the bird sites in Dong Nai with 2 photography sections per day in early morning and late afternoon. Lunch and resting during the noon time.

Overnight at hotel in Dong Nai. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at hotel restaurant.

In Dong Nai especially Nam Cat Tien National Park is one of the most important protected areas in Indochina as it harbors a number of Indochinese endemics, many of which are largely restricted to Vietnam. Nam Cat Tien has an area of about 720 km2 and protects one of the largest areas of lowland tropical forests left in Vietnam. Since 2011. Surrounding Nam Cat Tien Forest are also having nice environment for birds such as Ma Da Forest and Thac Mai Forest.

Bird photography in Dong Nai we are mainly enjoy from the bird sites (bird hide or bird blind), with the support of local people who manage the sites, the chance to have nice bird photos are higher as well as the distance of photographer to the birds are closer that will help you have more chance to have a quality image. There are several bird sites in some different places in Dong Nai. Depend on the weather and actual situation then I will choose the best available bird sites for us.

Opportunity of birdwatching in Dong Nai: Banded Kingfisher, Indochinese Green Magpie, Indochinese Blue Flycatcher, Greater Racket Tailed Drongo, Ochraceous Bulbul, Scaly Crowned Babbler, Puff Throated Babbler, White Rumped Shama, Black Crested Bulbul, White Throated Rock Thrush, Siberian Blue Robin, Abbott's Babbler, Stripe Throated Bulbul, Ashy Drongo, Laced Woodpecker, Common Flameback, Silver Breasted Broadbill, Green Eared Barbet, Blue Rumped Pitta, Racket Tailed Treepie.

DAY 5 - 8 JAN 2025: DONG NAI / BUON MA THUOT

Enjoy morning bird shooting section in Dong Nai in the bird hide.

Morning transfer to Buon Ma Thuot with 6 hours of driving.

Overnight at hotel in Buon Ma Thuot. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at hotel restaurant.

Yokdon National Park is a Vietnam’s biggest and most biodiverse protected area. It is 115,000 hectares of dry deciduous forest. Declared a national park in 1992, Yok Don is home to more than 200 bird species. Best time to visit is from December to April during the dry season.

Bird photography in Yokdon, Buon Ma Thuot we will have the support of the local ranger to find bird during hiking in the forest of Yokdon. The walking distance is short to find the birds, because we have a vehicle to travel around the Yokdon National Park. The good chance for bird photography in Yokdon is this dry season, mostly the leaves are falling down, we will have more chance to discover and enjoy bird photography with the birds in the trees.

Opportunity of birdwatching: Laced Woodpecker, Common Flameback, Bee Eaters, Green Peafowl, Oriental Pied Hornbill

DAY 6 - 9 JAN 2025: BUON MA THUOT / YOKDON / BUON MA THUOT

Enjoy full day photography in Yokdon National Park with 2 sections of photography per day. 

Morning transfer to Yokdon National Park with 1 hour of driving.

Back to hotel in the late afternoon after sunset.

Overnight at hotel in Buon Ma Thuot. Breakfast, lunch and dinner at hotel restaurant.

DAY 7 - 10 JAN 2025: BUON MA THUOT / HO CHI MINH

Morning transfer to Ho Chi Minh City with 7 hours of driving.

Overnight at hotel in Ho Chi Minh City. Breakfast, lunch and Dinner at hotel restaurant.

DAY 8 - 11 JAN 2025: HO CHI MINH DEPARTURE

After breakfast, free at leisure until time transfer to the airport for your next destination. 

End of service.

VIETNAM BIRD PHOTOGRAPHY TOURS WITH AN BUI

Vietnam is home to an incredible diversity of other wild birds that live in the tropical forests. They are in rapid decline and have long remained nearly invisible to photographers. Wild habitats make photographing birds difficult, along with their shyness mainly due to intense hunting and poaching pressure. However, in recent years, with the expansion of ecotourism and the realization that wildlife photographers bring value to local economies, the tide is starting to change.

The tropical forests of beautiful Indochina are home to many Southeast Asian bird species, some of which are limited to Indochina. On this special trip with the help of excellent locals we will focus on finding and photographing some of the most spectacular birds that are attracted to feeding areas, where they can be observed from relatively spacious hiding places.

Following is listing spectacular birds that we have chance to photograph.
Pitta (Đuôi cụt) photography, with the potential to photograph Blue Pitta (Đuôi cụt xanh), Blue-rumped Pitta (Đuôi cụt đầu xám lưng xanh) and Bar-bellied Pitta (Đuôi cụt bụng vằn) (arguably the world’s most beautiful) Pittas at close range from hides/blinds.

We also have chance for photography of Pheasant (Gà lôi) at close range from hides/blinds including of Siamese Fireback Pheasant (Gà lôi xiêm lửa) and the delightful Germain’s Peacock (Chim công đực gốc Đức).

Photograph other attractive forest species from spacious hides/blinds, including Siberian Blue Robin (Chim cổ đỏ Siberian Xanh) and the delightful Orange-headed Thrush (Sáo đất đầu cam).

Experience the magical Cat Tien National Park, where we should be able to photograph other stunning species such as Green Peafowl (Chim công xanh) (peafowl chim công, peacock chim công đực, peahen chim công cái)

Visit the exciting Da Lat plateau, where we can photograph rare endemics including the stunning Collared Laughingthrush (Khứu đầu đen má xám) and Indochinese Wren Babbler (Chim khứu mỏ dài) from hides/blinds.

Bird photography tour leader
Every bird photo tour I lead myself including of planning and researching frequently at the national parks or area may have chance to see the wild birds. I work in the tourism field from 2005, and from 2018 I start leading the tour as photography tour leader. With my passion of nature and photography, I hope to support you during your bird photography tour in Vietnam. 

Naturalist tour guide or local birder
I also work a with expert local naturalist guide to ensure the highest-quality bird or wildlife experiences. Our expert guides are all-round naturalists with a wealth of field and travel experience. 

Carefully chosen accommodation
Our accommodation is chosen with one criterion in mind – whether our groups will enjoy staying there! So we select lodges, hotels and other centers which combine good facilities with character and good service, and the most importantly are within easy reach of the best wildlife areas. Wherever we stay, we make every effort to secure private en suite facilities, and single rooms where requested. We’re also quite keen on our food!

Transportation comfort
The road transport in Vietnam for bird photography are normally in good condition. For a small group of 1-2 guests we will use 7 seats car, for a small group of 3-6 guests we will use minivan for more comfortable and spacious in the car.

During the national park, we may use others means of transportation to get closer to birds for photography such as bicycle, jeep, mini truck and boats.

Walking distance
The walking effort during our Vietnam Bird Photography Tour is easy with the support of local naturalist guide. We will discuss more about shooting places with ideal shooting opportunity each day.

Climate
Normally the rain season is from May to Sep, but it is a little different of each part of Vietnam. In the highland or in the mountainous of the northern Vietnam the weather is quite different, and it may be really cold from Nov to Feb

Photographic Equipment
For bird photography in Vietnam, we recommend an effective telephoto length of 500–600mm or equivalent. We will often be shooting in fairly low-light conditions, making a full frame sensor preferable, as it will be advantageous to be able to shoot at high ISO without excessive noise. It is useful to bring your reliable tripod, tele converter.

Meal
We will enjoy local Vietnamese food almost the Vietnam bird photo tour, the regular meal plan for a day birth photography such as: The early morning shooting for birds is normally last 3-4 hours for the best lightning, so breakfast should be light and take away, it is including of coffee or tea, some cake, bean or energy food. Lunch and dinner will be served at the hotel or local restaurant with Vietnamese food.  

PRIVATE BIRD PHOTO TOUR VIETNAM
To maximize your experience of bird photo tour in Vietnam, I would like to recommend you do a private trip for you and your friends with small number of members. So, I can tailor made with your interests of bird photography including of destination, kind of bird photography chance, routing, quality of service. 

My suggestion destination for bird places in Vietnam due to seasonal

Jan - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy

Feb - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Tram Chim, Con Dao, Phu Quoc, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy, Tam Dao

Mar - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Tram Chim, Con Dao, Phu Quoc, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy, Tam Dao, Bach Ma

Apr - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Tram Chim, Con Dao, Phu Quoc, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy, Bach Ma

May (rainy season) - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim, Bach Ma, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy

Jun (rainy season) - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim

Jul (rainy season) - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim

Aug (rainy season) - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim

Sep (rainy season) - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim

Oct - Nam Cat Tien, Tram Chim

Nov - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Tram Chim, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy

Dec - Nam Cat Tien, Bidoup Da Lat, Tram Chim, Cuc Phuong, Xuan Thuy

Vietnam bird tour report

List of the birds in Vietnam that I take photo

https://anbuiphotography.blogspot.com/search/label/Birds