Intro to Sundaic birding - where to go? (1 Viewer)

[cranefan]

Hello all,

I am going to Jakarta with work in late March, and am planning to add on some leave for a 5-6 day birding trip somewhere in the region after meetings are done. I've been to Thailand several times, but I've never been to Indonesia before, and have only once been to Peninsular Malaysia, many years ago, so there are plenty of new birds to see in the region.

I am hoping to arrange a bespoke trip with a guide, and my focus would be on seeing a decent proportion of the birds in one area rather than trying to cover multiple areas. I thought of maybe a national park in Sumatra and Borneo (either Malaysia or Kalimantan), and I'd love suggestions of where might be a good place to try? I'd also love suggestions for local guides I could hire!

Many thanks in advance

 

[Welsh Peregrine]

Sabah is great birding; you won’t clean up in a week so you need to choose priorities.

 

[pbjosh]

The best birding with decent logistics and without losing a lot of time to traffic would be Sabah or Taman Negara + Bukit Fraser probably.

Lots to see and do on Java but you’ll spend more time driving and the sites you bird will be less impressive. Lots of endemics and you’re already there though.

 

[DMW]

There's a lot to choose from, but some suggestions would be Gunung Kerinci and the Tapan Road on Sumatra, Danum Valley or Mt Kinabalu in Sabah, Taman Negara, Gunung Gedi in Java.
If you can break yourself away from the Sundaic region, there's plenty more Indonesia to consider, with Sulawesi a great place to see a lot of new birds in a short time. The domestic airline network is excellent and it's quicker to fly to far-flung islands than cross Jakarta at rush hour!

 

[cranefan]

Thank you for all these suggestions! Looking into it further, I think I'm quite keen to leave Malaysia for another time, and either stay in Java, or head to Gunung Kerinci or Way Kambas in Sumatra. If anyone has any suggestions for guides (or lodges with good guides attached) in either spot, that would be amazing!

 

[DMW]

I believe Way Kambas is currently closed. For Kerinci, Pak Subandi's homestay has been the go-to for birders for decades. I think his son in law Dwi now does most of the guiding, and has hides at feeding stations. They seem to have a Facebook page subandikerincitour.