3 Useful Tips for the Budget Bhutan Bird Watching Tour

Bhutan is a veritable paradise for ornithologists, who come to this isolated Himalayan kingdom for the beauty of the species and the variety of rare birds that can only be found here in the Himalayas. With more than 670 species of birds recorded in Bhutan, of which around 50 species are migrant birds for the winter season, this high Himalayan Shangri-La is the ideal destination for ornithologists and twitchers from around the world.

A birding tour of Bhutan is quite expensive, as you will still be paying the normal tourist Minimum Daily Package (MDP) amount, which is 250 US dollars per night in the peak seasons. However, if you are looking to save money on a tour for birdwatching in Bhutan, this is possible, with a little inventive management.

Birding in Bhutan in Group

The most obvious way to save money is to go in a group of tourists that also want to see the birds of this isolated Himalayan kingdom. Group tours can help with saving money on the costs outside the Minimum Daily Package (MDP) amount, such as your tips for guides and drivers. With all tours being all-inclusive, the off season may be a better time to save money.

Avoid Taking a Birding Tour in a Group of less than 3 People

However, if you are traveling in any season, it is best to join a group of at least three people, to save from paying the supplements that are applicable for single tourists and couples in Bhutan, which equals as much as an additional 40 dollars per day.

Group Size Discounts Available for Group of over 11 People

You can also come to Bhutan in much larger groups, if you can find a group to join or organize one yourself. Groups of 11 or more tourists have significant discounts on the cost of the tours. For a group of 11-15 people, one member of the group gets a 50% discount on the MDP, and for groups of 16 or more, he MDP Discount for one member is 100%. Duration discounts are also available for trips of more than 8 nights.

Birding in Bhutan in Off Season

If you are thinking more along the lines of traveling to Bhutan for birding in the low seasons for tourism, then you are in luck in Bhutan. The low seasons in Bhutan are good for catching some of the best species of birds in Bhutan, though you can be a little limited on the travel windows and the places you can visit.

Bhutan Bird Watching Tour in June

June is the best low-season month to travel for the summer birdwatching trips, as the monsoon season is still just beginning, so the rains are not yet too heavy. This allows you to make the most of the indigenous and summer migratory species of birds in Bhutan. And this also gives you the advantage of having less-crowded sites for your trip. With the main birding period running from March through May, you can travel in June for less, with all the quality and experience of a peak-season trip, and without being inconvenienced at the popular birding sites. June is a warm month in Bhutan, with temperatures reaching up to around 22-30 degrees. However, it can be very humid, with heavier rains in the latter part of the month.

Bhutan Bird Watching Tour in December

December is also an off-season time of year for birding, but can have some major benefits when it comes to traveling. A December birding tour can take you to some of the more remote and least explored areas of Bhutan for bird watching, including the beautiful Royal Manas National Park, the oldest of Bhutan’s protected areas. The park is the home of some of the region’s most beautiful and rarest species of Himalayan birds. This is also one of the best times to visit to see the stunning black-necked cranes in Phobjikha, as the main tourists attending the Black-Necked Crane Festival in November have already left. The weather in December can be pretty cold, reaching just below freezing in many places in the main tourist areas of the kingdom. However, rainfall is low and the skies are clear, so you can get a much better view.

What bird species you can expect in off season?

June may not be the peak season for birding, but that does not mean you will miss out. Normally, the first few weeks of June are better, with many of the species you want to see still here, and not yet having moved for the summer to cooler climes. Not only can you get a good view of the main species that can be found all year round, from the four species of pheasants and the beautiful Ibisbill to the Yellow-rumped Honeyguide, the Rufous-necked Hornbill, the Ward Trogon, and the Beautiful Nuthatch. You can also see some of the summer visitors that come early, including the flycatchers and cuckoos that are frequent summer visitors to the kingdom.

In December, you have one of the best opportunities to visit Phobjikha and get up close and personal with one of the rarest birds on the Tibetan plateau. December is also a good time to see the local species, including those pheasants, the Ibisbill, the Honeyguide, the Trogon, and the many species of Nuthatches, to name a few. However, the highlight of traveling to Bhutan in December is the chance to visit the Gangtey Valley and see the rare and endangered Black-Necked cranes in their natural habitats of their winter home. Every year, these beautiful rare creatures descend on the Gangtey Valley for the winter, flying far from their summer breeding grounds in northern Tibet. By December, they have settled in and are easier to see. Feeding in the fields of the valleys around Phobjikha, you have a good chance of getting plenty of shots of these amazing birds.

What is the best time for birding in Bhutan?

If you are looking at the best times to go for a Bhutan bird watching tour, then you should be traveling from March to May and around October and November. While slightly outside the main tourism seasons for Bhutan, these are the months when the weather is best for both the indigenous and migratory species of birds in Bhutan. With better weather to travel in, you can find more species of the birds that are heavily active, and easier to spot, in the best birding sites across the kingdom.

Go Bird Watching to East Bhutan

It’s more Valuable to Go Birding in East Bhutan

Eastern Bhutan is a great place to go birding, and the area has some species of birds that you cannot find in Western and Central Bhutan, due to the warmer climate and lower altitudes. Of the many species that you can find in the east of the kingdom, you can also see some of the rarer birds of Bhutan, including such amazing species as the Golden breasted Fulvetta, the Black Eagle, the Oriental Cuckoo, the Speckled Wood Pidgeon, the Blue-winged Laughing Thrush, the Brown Parrot Bill, and the Darjeeling Woodpecker, to name just a few.

Discounts Available for the Longer Duration to East Bhutan

The longer tours that are needed to visit Eastern Bhutan are also subject to some great discounts, as we mentioned previously. As you will need to travel for more than ten days to make the most of the trip to see the rarer birds of Eastern Bhutan, you can get the discounts for traveling in Bhutan for more than eight nights and more than 14 nights.

Recommended Routes for Budget Bhutan Bird Watching Tour

If you are thinking of planning to travel to Bhutan for a birding tour, then we have some great itineraries for you to choose from, including our famous 10 and 19 day tours.

10 Days Bird Watching Tour in Central Bhutan

An awesome trip to Bhutan for birding for a period of ten days, this great trip from Bagdogra takes you to some of the best birding spots in south-central Bhutan. The sub-tropical broad-leafed forests of the southern areas of Bhutan contain a variety of birds that you can find nowhere else, and especially not in the higher altitudes, as well as many of the species that can be found in central and western Bhutan in general. You can spend a few days sightseeing as well, in Thimphu and Punakha, as well as spending plenty of time birding in the areas around Shatem Camp in the Jigme Dorje national Park, Phobjikha, Trongsa, and Zhemgang.

19 Days Far East Bhutan Bird Watching Adventure

If you are looking to travel a little further afield, then this tour from west to east is the ideal trip for you. The tour starts in Paro, on your arrival at the airport, and takes you through a plethora of amazing birding sites that span the entire breadth of the kingdom. Following the famous Lateral Highway, this tour traverses alpine and temperate climates, six mountain passes, and a huge number of valleys to give you the best options for bird watching in the kingdom.

Conclusion

If you are planning a birding tour of Bhutan, then it need not be the hugely expensive trip that you expected it to be. With plenty of discounts available for those that pan carefully, and in groups, the low season for tourism in Bhutan is also a great time to travel for birding. And with discounts available for longer Bhutan tours, you can also get to the furthest remote locations to see birds that most people never get to see.