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Day trips birding in Vietnam? (1 Viewer)

S

Simon Wates

Well-known member
A close friend is off to Vietnam for 3 weeks next week with family and asked me if there are any recommended bird guides for a guided tour, so I said I'd ask around. She will be staying in Hanoi at first but will travel to the south and many spots between. Its not a dedicated birding holiday but she's an experienced birdwatcher and would love to have a day or two off and out with a good bird guide. Can anyone make a recommendation please?
 
Hi,
the most reputable bird tour operators in Vietnam are:
- Richard Craik, http://www.vietnambirding.com/
- Nguyen Hoai Bao, http://vietnamwildtour.com

In the North, there is also Bui Duc Tien, http://www.vietnampittatours.com

However, it's high season now and they all may be fully booked...

Independant birding is not difficult, but is best in National Parks that are difficult to do as a day trip from urban centres or usual tourist destinations. One or two nights in good Nationalparks (Cuc Phuong, Cat Tien, Bac Ma) is better

Some ideas for good birding that can be done as day trips or morning outings:
- Ba Vi NP from Hanoi
- Tam Dao NP from Hanoi (but see parallel thread for possible difficulties)
- Van Long or Cuc Phuong NP from Ninh Binh
- Tram Tom pass / Ham Rong gardens from Sapa
- Bac Ma NP from Hue, Danang or Hoi An
- Son Tra in Danang (not many birds but Douc Langurs)
- Rice fields, ponds, river around Hoi An (good by rental bicycle)
- Various sites around Dalat

Best, Florian
 
I know Vietnam is incredibly bird diverse, but if one were to choose just a handful of "must sees" what would they be? By the way, my friend has just received a field guide - but not sure which one.
 
Must sees in Vietnam, that would be the endemics. Best place for endemics anyway, and especially on a more touristic trip would be Dalat. Enough interesting things to do to keep the family happy for a couple of days, and good sites close enough for half day birding. All six endemics are not overly difficult to find...

Cat Tien National Park is also a great site for birding overall, and would also be interesting for family members not that much into birding.
 
Simon Wates said:
I know Vietnam is incredibly bird diverse, but if one were to choose just a handful of "must sees" what would they be? By the way, my friend has just received a field guide - but not sure which one.
Click to expand...

Grey-crowned Crocias would be one in the Tanung Valley.

Short-tailed Parrotbill and other goodies at Tam Dao.

Yellow-billed Nuthatch which we dipped and various Laughingthrushes.

Bar-bellied Pitta is a stunner and can be easy at Cat Tien.


A
 
Last edited:
andyadcock said:
Grey-crowned Crocias would be one in the Tanung Valley.

Short-tailed Parrotbill and other goodies at Tam Dao.

A
Click to expand...

just bear in mind that there are currently access questions at Tam Dao, for certain (see my recent thread) and apparently Ta Nung also (a locked gate that may be passable for a fee if you're lucky, plus overgrown trails and ongoing construction* - thankfully there are other alternative sites in that area, although possibly not as good for Crocias).

the Dalat plateau has more of the Vietnamese endemics than anywhere else, and a large percentage of the near-endemics and putative endemics so has to be the absolute must visit area if you are limited to one.

see here

http://www.vietnambirding.com/bird-specilities.aspx

6 of the 12 listed endemics are found only in the Dalat region (4 others in various locations in the Annamite mountains and 2 in the far north near Sapa), and there is also Dalat Shrike-Babbler which is split by the IOC.

bear in mind however that there are no good bird guides based in Dalat so the cost of a day out with one will likely be prohibitively expensive as it will need to cover their travel and accommodation from HCMC or Hanoi....

James

* for Andy's benefit this has all happened since 2002 ;) B :)
 
James Lowther said:
just bear in mind that there are currently access questions at Tam Dao, for certain (see my recent thread) and apparently Ta Nung also (a locked gate that may be passable for a fee if you're lucky, plus overgrown trails and ongoing construction* - thankfully there are other alternative sites in that area, although possibly not as good for Crocias).

the Dalat plateau has more of the Vietnamese endemics than anywhere else, and a large percentage of the near-endemics and putative endemics so has to be the absolute must visit area if you are limited to one.

see here

http://www.vietnambirding.com/bird-specilities.aspx

6 of the 12 listed endemics are found only in the Dalat region (4 others in various locations in the Annamite mountains and 2 in the far north near Sapa), and there is also Dalat Shrike-Babbler which is split by the IOC.

bear in mind however that there are no good bird guides based in Dalat so the cost of a day out with one will likely be prohibitively expensive as it will need to cover their travel and accommodation from HCMC or Hanoi....

James

* for Andy's benefit this has all happened since 2002 ;) B :)
Click to expand...


Re the Tam Dao thread James,
as I said, when you get back, I'd be really interested to see if the 'Water Tank Trail' still actually passes the water tank.


A
 
Last edited:
andyadcock said:
Grey-crowned Crocias would be one in the Tanung Valley.

Short-tailed Parrotbill and other goodies at Tam Dao.

Yellow-billed Nuthatch which we dipped and various Laughingthrushes.

Bar-bellied Pitta is a stunner and can be easy at Cat Tien.


A
Click to expand...

Thanks Andy, I think my friend's interested in the Pitta especially - it does look stunning!

James Lowther said:
just bear in mind that there are currently access questions at Tam Dao, for certain (see my recent thread) and apparently Ta Nung also (a locked gate that may be passable for a fee if you're lucky, plus overgrown trails and ongoing construction* - thankfully there are other alternative sites in that area, although possibly not as good for Crocias).

the Dalat plateau has more of the Vietnamese endemics than anywhere else, and a large percentage of the near-endemics and putative endemics so has to be the absolute must visit area if you are limited to one.

see here

http://www.vietnambirding.com/bird-specilities.aspx

6 of the 12 listed endemics are found only in the Dalat region (4 others in various locations in the Annamite mountains and 2 in the far north near Sapa), and there is also Dalat Shrike-Babbler which is split by the IOC.

bear in mind however that there are no good bird guides based in Dalat so the cost of a day out with one will likely be prohibitively expensive as it will need to cover their travel and accommodation from HCMC or Hanoi....

James

* for Andy's benefit this has all happened since 2002 ;) B :)
Click to expand...

Seems the Dalat plateau would be a top choice for my friend to concentrate time birding without a guide then. Great advice, thanks James.
 
Simon Wates said:
Thanks Andy, I think my friend's interested in the Pitta especially - it does look stunning!
Click to expand...

We saw them first at Cuc Phuong (Blue-rumped Pitta also) but at Cat Tien, they were abundant on the Crocodile trail, you could hear them hopping on the dry leaf litter.


A
 
The Ta Nung Valley site in DaLat is now a fully-fledged tourist attraction, complete with box office at the entrance, car park, restaurant and music. Feral pigeons in a dovecote are the latest attraction. Because people are living/working on-site, there may be quite a bustle, even at dawn, though the music may not start until 9AM. The birds, including Crocias, are still there, but may be a bit harder to find (possibly).
As Florian says, without a guide, staying at National Parks (e.g.Cuc Phuong, Nam Cat Tien) is the best bet, because the birds are almost literally on your doorstep and you can hire a bike.
 
The above comments about Ta Nung were based on a December visit, which happened to be particularly busy with tourists - it may have been an "opening" of some sort since "Ong Le" was present in person!!!
A second visit a couple of days ago showed two things: first, many of the usual birds, including Crocias and Sibias, still come close in the early morning and are usually easy to see at 6-8am (the staff living in the valley seem to wake up at 7.30am and there was no loud music on this occasion) and second, "improvements" are still occurring rapidly, including a footbridge across the dam and a new trail through the forest along the lower stream. In the short term, life here may be easier for the strolling birdwatcher. Probably best to avoid week-ends when visiting here (ditto Lang Bian). The entry fee is 30,000 dong.
 
glennmanc said:
The above comments about Ta Nung were based on a December visit, which happened to be particularly busy with tourists - it may have been an "opening" of some sort since "Ong Le" was present in person!!!
A second visit a couple of days ago showed two things: first, many of the usual birds, including Crocias and Sibias, still come close in the early morning and are usually easy to see at 6-8am (the staff living in the valley seem to wake up at 7.30am and there was no loud music on this occasion) and second, "improvements" are still occurring rapidly, including a footbridge across the dam and a new trail through the forest along the lower stream. In the short term, life here may be easier for the strolling birdwatcher. Probably best to avoid week-ends when visiting here (ditto Lang Bian). The entry fee is 30,000 dong.
Click to expand...

Another site which has totally changed (or is it another place?) since I was there. We just dropped down in to the valley from a small shack and eventually in to the woods. There was, to my eye, nothing potentially marketable as a tourist spot?

Crocias was pretty easy, seen on all of three visits.



A
 
Yes, that one is really a pity. Used to be one of the best sites in Dalat, a small place, easy to reach, and extremly birdy. But the owner of the land started to do some works there already years ago, but for many years it looked like not much was moving and the site was good as ever. Sadly that's over now. While Glenns last post sounds carefully optimistic, I guess in a couple of years the site will be one to be avoided. Tourist "attractions" like that in Dalat tend to keep expanding.
 
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