12 Day Birdwatching | Adventure Travel Plan | Druk Asia

12 Day Birdwatching Travel Plan

Star 5 5.0 / 5.0
3 Reviews ( Read Reviews )
Black Necked Crane

Black Necked Crane
Black Necked Crane


Bhutan Tour Itinerary

Day 1

Day 1 : Arrival in Paro, Bhutan

Welcome to Bhutan, the Land of the Thunder Dragon. Touching down at Paro International Airport, you will be greeted by your guide upon exiting the arrival hall. Today, we will take it easy to acclimatize to the altitude. After lunch drive to the north of Paro valley. This area, the riverbank of Paro Chu is best known for ibis bill. They are found in this area throughout the year. (Depending on arrival of flight time). Evening ends with a walk through Paro’s main shopping district.

 

Day 2

Day 2 : Paro to Thimphu

Built as a watch tower the Ta Dzong, it has since been turned into the national museum. This Dzong was converted into the National Museum in 1968. The museum boasts antique Thangka, textiles, weapons and armour, household objects and rich assortment of natural and historic artifacts. After which, visit the largest Dzong, Thimphu Dzong, which is also the seat of the office of the King of Bhutan. Afternoon drive towards the north of Thimphu valley to Dodina, here you may see black faced laughing thrust, brown dipper, spotted laughing thrust, Fire capped Tit.

 

Day 3

Day 3 : Thimphu to Punakha

Dochula Pass - the 108 chortens was built by the present Queen Mother of Bhutan Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck to commemorate Bhutan’s victory over indian militants and to liberate the souls of the souls lost. In this area you may see Satyr Tragopan, Spotted Nutcracker, Large Hawk Cuckoo, Darjeeling Woodpecker, Yellow billed Magpie, Chest Tailed Minla, Collard Blackbird, Ultramarine Flycatcher, Brown Bullfinch, etc.

Built in 1637, Punakha Dzong continues to be the winter home for the clergy, headed by the Chief Abbott, the Je Khenpo. It is a stunning example of Bhutanese architecture, sitting at the fork of two rivers, portraying the image of a medieval city from a distance. The dzong was destroyed by fire and glacial floods over the years but has been carefully restored and is, today, a fine example of Bhutanese craftsmanship.
 

Day 4

Day 4 : Punakha, Excursion

In the morning, drive to Menchuna and start birding descending to Punakha in cold broad-leaved forests. You may see Scarlet Finch, Black Drongo, Chestnut bellied Nuthatch, Slaty backed Forktail, Gorgeted Flycatcher, White throated Laughing thrust, Eurasian Jay, Wedge Tailed Green Pigeon, Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Verditer Flycatcher, etc.
 

Day 5

Day 5 : Punakha, Excursion

In the morning, drive to Tashithang and birding in warm broad-leaved forest. You may see Great Barbet, Barred Cuckoo Drove, Magpie Robin, Green Magpie, Palla’s Fish Eagle, Osprey, River Lapwing, Ruddy Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon, Common Merganser, Pied Kingfisher, Red-vented Bulbul, Golden throated Barbet, Golden throated Barbet, Kalij, Pheasant, Orange bellied Leaf bird, Common Buzzard, Great Cormorant, Crested Bunting, etc.

 

Day 6

Day 6 : Punakha to Gangtey

In the morning, drive to Gangtey via Wangdue, one of the major towns and district headquarters of Western Bhutan. We then climb steadily passing through semi-tropical vegetation and then finally onto Phobjikha valley (3,100 m) with an alpine environment of rhododendrons and dwarf bamboo. Afternoon walks into the habitat of cranes, and studies the cranes and also visits the crane centre situated in the heart of the valley.

 

Day 7

Day 7 : Gangtey to Trongsa

Early morning studies the behavior of the cranes and other birds inhabited in the region and then drive to Trongsa over the Pelela pass (3,300m) and enroute visit Chendebji Chorten, passing through warm/cold broad-leaved and coniferous forests. You may see Mountain Bulbul, Striated Bulbul, common Kestrel, Spot-winged Grosbeak, Mountain Hawk Eagle, ward’s Trogon, Satyr Tragopan, Whiskered Yuhina, Wall Creeper, Himalayan Swiftlet, Himalayan Monal Pheasant, Blood Pheasant, Snow Pigeon, Cross bills, Fire-tailed Sun bird, Plain Mountain Finch, etc.

 

Day 8

Day 8 : Trongsa to Tingtibi

Morning drive towards the south of Trongsa in to the valley of Tingtibi and birding to Yeshi Zam, best place for spotting Yellow-rumped honey guide. Birding in cold broad-leaved forests. Birding in Namling areas. These areas possess best-unexplored forest in Bhutan. You may see ward’s Trogon, Satyr Tragopan, Grey chinned Minivet, Chestnut breasted Partridge, Striated Laughing thrust, etc.

 

Day 9

Day 9 : Tingtibi

Today birding in warm broad-leaved forests. You will see Rufous-necked hornbill, Blue throated bee-eater, Maroon Oriole, Racket tailed Drongo, Red headed Trogon, Grey Treepie, Grey Nightjar, Hill Prinia, Asian Emerald Cuckoo, Great hornbill, etc.
 

Day 10

Day 10 : Tingtibi to Trongsa

Morning drive towards the south of Trongsa in to the valley of Tingtibi and birding to Yeshi Zam, best place for spotting Yellow-rumped honey guide. Birding in cold broad-leaved forests. Birding in Namling areas. These areas possess best-unexplored forest in Bhutan. You may see ward’s Trogon, Satyr Tragopan, Grey chinned Minivet, Chestnut breasted Partridge, Striated Laughing thrust, etc.

 

Day 11

Day 11 : Trongsa to Thimphu

Early morning drive to Thimphu over the Pelela and Dochula pass and enroute visit Wangdue Dzong. Dinner and overnight at hotel.

Day 12

Day 12 : Depart Paro

Today we will bid fond farewell to this beautiful Himalayan country and take an early flight back to Singapore. We hope by now you would have made some friends and also kept many photos and beautiful memories of Bhutan! And we look forward to seeing you again in this beautiful land of endless Enchantments! Tashi Delek!


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Recent Customer Reviews

Star 5 5.0 / 5.0 ( Read Reviews )


 
NL
Nancy Lam
United States, Oct 2015
Star 5

5 of us just returned from our 7 Days 6 Night Bhutan trip arranged by Sonam from Druk Asia. Everything went on very well and we would like to thank again our tour guide Ugyen and our driver Kimpo who did a very fantastic job taking real good care of us. Tour guide Ugyen was knowledge, telling us all about this peaceful and friendly country and our driver Kimpo even went up all the way to the top of the Tiger Nest with us, both guide and driver making sure that 2 of our senior members were ok with the long hike. Would definitely book with Druk Asia again and highly recommend them to anyone who wishes to go to Bhutan.

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Y
Yiwen
Singapore, Oct 2015
Star 5

Dear Sangay,

Kuzuzangpola!

We enjoyed our stay in Bhutan a lot - the awesome scenery, fresh air, healthy meals and beautiful people of Bhutan are very memorable. It was a hassle-free experience traveling with Druk Asia; everything was well planned, we only need to pack our luggage and be there to experience this wonderful trip!

We would also like to thank our guide, Kinley, and driver, Nedrup (I hope I spelled it correctly), who were both very patient with us. They also went the extra mile to bring us to the riverside when we kept saying that the river looks very clear and stunning. We also enjoyed the additional experience of a picnic and playing with darts the Bhutanese way. The only pity was that we didn't get to go the farmhouse for dinner that our guide initially planned.

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KH
Kim Harfitt
United Kingdom, Sep 2015
Star 5

Hi Sonam,

I just wanted to drop you a line to say thank you very much for helping us to organise our recent trip to Bhutan.

I think I can speak for all of us when I say that the trip far exceeded our expectations and we have all fallen in love with the people and places we saw in Bhutan.

Kinley and our driver were nothing but helpful and friendly throughout and were extremely accommodating when it came to organising a birthday cake for Declan or changing hotel plans on the last night of the trip. We were very appreciative of these things.

We will not hesitate to recommend Dru kAsia to friends and family who are interested in a trip to Bhutan.

Many thanks again to yourself and the team at Druk Asia that helped make our holiday an unforgettable one. Definitely a trip of a lifetime. Than

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