Guided Birding Trips
Customized Bird Guiding
I usually guide privately several times a year, and in recent years, I have focussed increasingly on private guiding that is tailor-made to the interests, expectations and experience of individual clients, couples, and small groups of friends.
Guiding has enabled me to share some of the most incredible and sought-after birds with hundreds of international birders and has provided me with intimate knowledge of numerous birding hotspots. As well as private guiding, I currently lead tours for Limosa and WildWings, and have worked for companies such as Birdtour Asia and Birdquest in the past. Please Click here to see more about my experience.
My main aim is to provide you with a professional guide to accompany you on your birding trips, whether you are an individual, a couple, or a small group of friends. I am also always excited to assist birders with arrangements and guiding trips to less-known destinations for particular target bird species. If you are interested in organised tours with fixed dates, please visit the Limosa site here.
(photo Bornean Bristlehead, Sabah, Malaysia ©Nigel Voaden).
Why hire a professional guide?
Hiring a professional bird guide instead of going on an organised bird tour gives you the flexibility to plan your day according to your needs, stay in the accommodation of your choice and travel in vehicles that best suit you.
You can get up at a time that suits you, spend as long as you want searching for a particular species, take a siesta, or change your plans on the go, and even alter your itinerary, something that you can rarely do on any organised tour. It also means that you do not have to carry a telescope and tripod around all day, since this is something that a guide can do.
(photo Asian Dowitcher, Mongolia ©Roger Charlwood).
Planning your birding trips
Whilst I am not a bird tour agent, I can undertake various tasks on your behalf prior to your trip, such as proposing a customized itinerary according to your needs, or finding and communicating with a local tour agent to organise all or some aspects of your trip. When necessary, I work with a small network of experienced agents who regularly organise birding trips, and in whom I trust.
(photo Whitehead's Broadbill, Sabah, Borneo ©Cecilia Verkley).
Finding Rare Birds
As a keen birder who has seen well over 8,000 species, I have visited many remote birding destinations in search of highly localised species, so my knowledge of where to find particular bird species is exceptional. Hence if you need a guide to assist you in finding a particular bird or set of birds, please get in touch and I may be able to help.
(photo: Colourful Puffleg, Colombia ©Nigel Voaden)
The following photos depict birds that I have found for clients or friends on various trips
Philippine Eagle
Mindanao ©Nigel Voaden
Biak Paradise Kingfisher
West Papua ©Nigel Voaden
Oberholser's Fruit Dove
Halmahera ©Frank Lambert
Altai Snowcock
Mongolia ©Tumendelga Humbaa
Pink-headed Warbler
Chiapas, Mexico ©Nigel Voaden
Stoliczka's Bushchat
India ©Frank Lambert
Satanic Nightjar
Sulawesi ©Frank Lambert
Spectacled Eider
Alaska ©Nigel Voaden
White-naped Monarch
Halmahera ©Frank Lambert