Central Thailand Birding Tour

In the morning, we’ll head back into Khao Yai, where we’ll be walking up to the top of the park to search for the highly sought-after Silver Pheasant and the Siamese Fireback – Thailand’s national bird.

As we get to the peak, there is a boardwalk which offers an ideal location to see species we may have missed on the previous day. We’ll spend the whole day looking for target species such as the Red-headed Trogon, Orange-breasted Trogon, Banded Kingfisher, Common Green Magpie, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Long-tailed Broadbill, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Black Eagle, Hill Blue Flycatcher, Mountain Bulbul, Ashy Bulbul, Vernal Hanging-parrot, Red-breasted Parakeet, Bar-winged Flycatcher-shrike, Common Iora, Sultan Tit, White-browed Scimitar-babbler, White-crested Laughingthrush, Black-throated Laughingthrush, Heart-spotted Woodpecker, Blue Whistling-thrush, Orange-headed Thrush, Thick-billed Green Pigeon, Mountain Imperial Pigeon, Brown-backed Needletail, to name a few.

Where you will be staying: Fortune Hotel

This morning, we’ll leave our hotel and head for the limestone mountain in Saraburi Province in search of the country’s endemic species, the Rufous Limestone Babbler. Other birds that can be found here include the White-rumped Shama, Coppersmith Barbet, Ashy Drongo, Black Drongo, Taiga Flycatcher, Asian Brown Flycatcher, and more.

Around midday, we’ll embark on a approximately 4-hour drive to Phetchaburi province. Once there, we’ll venture into the rice fields, dedicating 2 hours to this rich habitat. Here, we’ll have the opportunity to spot the critically endangered Yellow-breasted Bunting, along with other notable species such as Baya Weaver, Asian Golden Weaver, Amur Stonechat, Grey Wagtail, Pied Fantail, Greater Coucal, Asian Koel, Oriental Reed Warbler, Freckle-breasted Woodpecker, Asian Pied Starling, Black-collared Starling, White-breasted Kingfisher, Little Green Bee-eater, Zebra Dove, Spotted Dove, Red-turtle Dove, Asian Palm Swift, Germain’s Swiftlet, Black Drongo, Brown Shrike, Plain Prinia, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Streak-eared Bulbul, Scaly-breasted Munia, White-rumped Munia, and Plain-backed Sparrow.

Where you will be staying: Sun Hotel

After enjoying breakfast at the hotel, we will set out for the Pak Thale saltpans, renowned as the country’s best and most well-known habitat for shorebirds. This morning holds great potential for observing numerous shorebirds and waterbirds, including the Spoon-billed Sandpiper, Nordmann’s Greenshank, Asian Dowitcher, Eurasian Curlew, Eurasian Whimbrel, Bar-tailed Godwit, Black-tailed Godwit, Great Knot, Red Knot, Curlew Sandpiper, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Terek Sandpiper, Marsh Sandpiper, Greater Sand Plover, Lesser Sand Plover, Red-necked Stint, Common Greenshank, Common Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Black-winged Stilt, Grey Plover, Pacific Golden Plover, Ruddy Turnstone, Brown-headed Gull, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Common Tern, Little Tern, Little Cormorant, Indian Cormorant, Painted Stork, Grey Heron, Great Egret, Intermediate Egret, Little Egret, and more.  

Following lunch, we’ll embark on a boat journey through mangroves to Laem Phak Bia sand spit, where we’ll seek out special shorebirds, notably the increasingly scarce Malaysian Plover and the recently elevated White-faced Plover. Other species in the mangroves and on the sand split include Collared Kingfisher, Black-capped Kingfisher, Brahminy Kite, Chinese Egret (a rare waterbird), Javan Pond Heron, Striated Heron, Sanderling, and Lesser Crested Tern. Other species we may see include Wood Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Long-toed Stint, Pied Avocet, Asian Openbill, Spotted Dove, Zebra Dove, Red Turtle Dove, Little Green Bee-eater, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Black Drongo, and Oriental Magpie Robin.  

Where you will be staying: Baan Maka Nature Lodge. 

The following morning, our anticipation drives us to set off early, determined to reach one of Thailand’s premier birding sites. Utilizing our 4×4 vehicle, we’ll navigate to the summit of the park and head to Panoenthung Campground. The star attraction of this region is the Ratchet-tailed Treepie, an exclusive local endemic found solely on this peak, making it an unparalleled sighting unavailable elsewhere in Thailand.  

In addition to the Ratchet-tailed Treepie, this area offers a diverse array of bird species, including the impressive Great Hornbill, Collared Babbler, White-browed Scimitar-babbler, Great Barbet, Blue-throated Barbet, Greater Green Leafbird, Banded Kingfisher, Lesser Racket-tailed Drongo, Hair-crested Drongo, Grey Treepie, Red-headed Trogon, Flavescent Bulbul, Black-crested Bulbul, Mountain Bulbul, White-browed Shrike-babbler, Verditer Flycatcher, Dark-sided Flycatcher, Rufous-browed Flycatcher, Black-winged Cuckoo-shrike, Long-tailed Broadbill, Orange-bellied Flowerpecker, Streaked Spiderhunter, Rufous-fronted Babbler, Yellow-bellied Babbler, White-rumped Shama, and many more. 

Where you will be staying: Baan Maka Nature Lodge. 

Following a light breakfast at the lodge, we will return to the park, dedicating today to the lowland section. Birding along the roadside and forest edge, it will allow us to see targets such as Oriental Pied Hornbill, Great Hornbill, Tickell’s Brown Hornbill, Crested Serpent Eagle, Black-thighed Falconet, Greater Flameback, Greater Yellownape, Great Slaty Woodpecker, Greater Racket-tailed Drongo, Bronzed Drongo, Ashy Drongo, Asian Barred Owlet, Dollarbird, Indochinese Roller, Sultan Tit, Black-and-Red Broadbill, Black-and-Yellow Broadbill, Banded Broadbill, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Orange-headed Trogon, Golden-crested Myna, Hill Myna, Black-crested Bulbul, Black-headed Bulbul, Stripe-throated Bulbul, Ochraceous Bulbul, Vernal Hanging-parrot, Blue-winged Leafbird, Great Iora, Blue-eared Barbet, Green-eared Barbet, Coppersmith Barbet, Blue-bearded Bee-eater, Chestnut-headed Bee-eater, Asian Fairy Bluebird, Common Flameback, Crimson Sunbird, Ruby-cheeked Sunbird, and many more.  

After a satisfying lunch, we’ll spent the afternoon in a fantastic bird hide found just outside the park. The hide will allow us to see sought-after but otherwise trickier to spot species such as the Green-legged Partridge, Bar-backed Partridge, Ferruginous Partridge, Grey Peacock-pheasant, Blue Pitta, White-crested Laughingthrush, Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush, Greater Necklaced Laughingthrush, Emerald Dove, Racket-tailed Treepie, Siberian Blue Robin, Puff-throated Babbler, Brown-cheeked Fulvetta, Black-naped Monarch, Hill Blue Flycatcher, Indochinese Blue Flycatcher, Black-crested Bulbul, Black-headed Bulbul, Stripe-throated Bulbul, and many more.   

Where you will be staying: Baan Maka Nature Lodge. 

On the final morning of the tour, we will revisit the lower section of the park to seek out any other species that eluded us on the previous day. Then, after a rewarding birding session, we’ll head back to the lodge for lunch before driving back to Bangkok, where we’ll say our goodbyes, whilst going over our extensive checklist!