Socialist Republic of Vietnam

• Cat Tien National Park

  InformationSatellite View
  Cat Tien National Park is one of the top birding spots in Vietnam, but enough has been written about it elsewhere to need mention here, anyone making the trip to Da Lat should visit Cat Tien en route.

• Cuc Phuong National Park

  WebsiteSatellite View
  This National Park was established in 1962, making it the first National Park in Vietnam. Only 120km South-West of Hanoi, it can be reached in less than three hours. The main entrance is accessible with public transport; the best place to stay though is Bong substation, a further 16km into the park. Try and avoid weekends, as it can get very busy and noisy, Cuc Phuong is a popular day trip for school classes out of Hanoi. With 307 species of birds counted so far, you should plan at least a couple of night's stay. Silver Pheasant are easy to see on the road between the main gate and the substation. Other birds of note are Pied Falconet, Red-collared Woodpecker, Silver-breasted Broadbill, Blue-rumped and Bar-bellied Pittas (common on the trails around the substation); and Limestone Wren-Babbler in the valley to the Silver-cloudy Top.

• Da Lat Plateau

  InformationSatellite View
  One of the three Endemic Bird Areas identified by BirdLife International in Vietnam, the plateau is home to such endemics and near-endemics as Collared Laughingthrush, Vietnamese Greenfinch, and Grey-crowned Crocias. The best places to bird are Tuyen Lam Lake, close to the town of Da Lat, and Mount Lang Bien. Once again, accommodation is plentiful, Da Lat is a must with newly-wed Vietnamese, and transportation can easily be arranged locally. About 300km from Saigon the road trip takes about 5-6 hours, and there are daily flights.

• Sapa

  Satellite View
  Located in the far North-west of Vietnam, near the Chinese border, Sapa is located close to Mount Fan Si Pan (the highest peak in SE Asia at 3,142 meters) and the Hoang Lien Nature Reserve. The location and altitude mean seeing birds that will be hard to see elsewhere in Vietnam. Sapa can easily be reached from Hanoi by night train, there is plenty of accommodation in all price ranges, and excursions can easily be organized locally. Ham Rong Botanical Garden in Sapa is well worth checking out early in the morning for Blue Whistling Thrush, Blue and Chestnut-bellied Rock Thrush, Flycatchers, Bulbuls and Parrotbills. The road between the Silver Waterfall and the Pass of Clouds a few kilometers out of Sapa makes for some excellent birding, the only place in Vietnam where Little Forktail has regularly been seen.

• Xuan Thuy

  InformationSatellite View
  This is the Red River Delta, about 120km South-East of Hanoi. A Ramsar site, it is best visited in winter for specialties like Black-faced Spoonbill, Nordman's Greenshank, Spoon-billed Sandpiper and Saunder's Gull. A word of advice: not only is Xuan Thuy extremely hard to find if you don't speak Vietnamese, it is also inside a military area, as I found out in person, the soldiers are very suspicious of birders, loaded with optics, that have not made prior arrangements. It is advisable to make prior arrangements for a permit and accommodation through, for example, the BirdLife International office in Hanoi. Accommodation is just more than basic, the food is horrible, and the boat trip to the mud flats (a must) a real rip-off, but the quality of birds more than makes up for it.

• Hanno Stamm

  Sa Pa District, Lao Cai Province, Vietnam | rdm.sapa@victoriahotels-asia.com

• Number of bird species: 948

  (As at April 2020)

• Number of endemics: 17

  Orange-necked Partridge Arborophila davidi,
  Vietnam Partridge Arborophila merlini,
  Edwards's Pheasant Lophura edwardsi,
  Germain’s Peacock-pheasant Polyplectron germaini,
  Dalat Shrike-babbler Pteruthius annamensis,
  Dalat Bush Warble Locustellaidonea,
  Black-headed Parrotbill Psittiparus margaritae,
  Black-crowned Fulvetta Schoeniparus klossi,
  White-throated Wren-babbler Napothera pasquieri,
  Vietnamese Cuti Cutia legalleni,
  Black-hooded laughingthrush Garrulax millet,
  Orange-breasted Laughingthrush Garrulax annamensis,
  Chestnut-eared Laughingthrush Garrulax konkakinhensis,
  Golden-winged Laughingthrush Trochalopteron ngoclinhensis
  Collared Laughingthrush Trochalopteron yersini,
  Grey-crowned Crocias Crocias langbianis,
  Black-crowned Barwing Actinodura sodangorum

• Birds of South-East Asia

  | By Craig Robson | Christopher Helm | 2014 | Edition 2 | Paperback | 544 pages, 120 plates with 3600+ colour illustrations; 3 b/w illustrations, 1 colour & 1 b/w map | ISBN: 9781472916693 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Birds of Vietnam

  | By Richard C Craik & Lê Quý Minh | Lynx Edicions | 2018 | Paperback | 400 pages, 1900+ colour illustrations, 870+ colour distribution maps | ISBN: 9788416728107 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Collins Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia

  | By Norman Arlott | William Collins | 2017 | Hardback | 432 pages, 178 plates with colour illustrations; colour distribution maps | ISBN: 9780007429547 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Pocket Photo Guide to Birds of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

  | By Peter Davidson | Bloomsbury Publishing | 2016 | Paperback | 144 pages, colour images, one full-colour map | ISBN: 9781472932846 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Pocket Photo Guide to the Birds of Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos

  | By Peter Davidson | Bloomsbury Publishing | 2016 | Paperback | 144 pages, colour photos, 1 colour map | ISBN: 9781472932846 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• The 125 Best Bird Watching Sites in Southeast Asia

  | Edited by Yong Ding Li & Low Bing Wen | John Beaufoy Books | Edition 2 | 2018 | 404 pages, colour photos, colour maps | ISBN: 9781912081523 Buy this book from NHBS.com

• Bao tang Dong vat - Hanoi Zoological Museum

  Information
  The museum contains about 1000 large mammal, 3000 bird, over 400 fish, over 650 snake and some turtle specimens. Many specimens, including a mounted collection, date from the French colonial period.

• Birdlife International – Vietnam Programme

  Website
  BirdLife International in Indochina website covers our activities in Cambodia, Myanmar and Vietnam. You can read about our recent work and the updated news by visting our latest newsletter The Babbler…

Abbreviations Key

• BR Cần Giờ Mangrove Forest

  Observatory WebsiteSatellite View
  Dugong have been reported to occur seasonally in seagrass beds at the site, although these reports have not been confirmed. The intertidal mudflats and sandbanks at the biosphere reserve are an important habitat for migratory shorebirds.

• EBA De Lat Plateau

  WebpageSatellite View
  This EBA includes the southern part of Vietnam's western highlands which lie within the country's Lam Dong province and adjacent parts of Dak Lak and (probably) Ninh Tuan provinces. Several of the mountains in this area rise to over 2,000. The restricted-range species are all found in tropical montane broadleaf evergreen forest, except for Carduelis monguilloti which is usually found in pine forest. The other three species which are confined to the EBA all appear to have restricted altitudinal ranges: Garrulax milleti occurs at relatively low altitudes up to 1,650.

• NP Xuân Sơn

  InformationSatellite View
  Xuân Sơn National Park (Vietnamese: Vườn quốc gia Xuân Sơn) is a national park of Tân Sơn District, Phú Thọ Province, Vietnam. It was established on August 9, 1986 as a nature reserve, and it covers an area of 150.48 square kilometres. The park lies at the extreme south-eastern extent of the Hoang Lien Mountains, 45 kilometres south-west of the confluence of the Red River and Black Rivers.

• NP Ba Bể

  InformationSatellite View
  Ba Bể National Park is a reserve in Bắc Kạn Province, Northeast region of Vietnam, set up to protect a freshwater lake (Ba Bể Lake) along with surrounding limestone and lowland evergreen forests. It is located about 240 kilometers northwest of the capital city Hanoi. It is the largest natural fresh water lake, stretching about 8 kilometers in the north-south direction. 233 bird species, 43 reptile and amphibian species among them the king cobra and the Vietnamese salamander (Paramesotriton deloustali), have been recorded. In Ba Be lake, 106 fish species from 61 genera, 17 families, and 5 orders have been recorded. The park is also noteworthy for its diversity in butterflies for which 354 species have been recorded.

• NP Ba Vì

  InformationSatellite View
  The park is 10,815 ha (26,720 acres) in area, and is located in the Ba Vì mountain range. The park has rich and diverse tropical and subtropical species of flora and fauna.

• NP Bach Ma

  InformationSatellite View
  The 330 species of birds that have been observed in the park represent over one-third of the species found in Vietnam. There are seven species of pheasants, including the rare endemic Edward's pheasant Lophura edwardsi. Historically this species was very common in the forests along the foot of the mountain but was already considered to become extinct by the 1940s. More than 50 years later, it was rediscovered in the park and has become one of the symbols of Bach Ma National Park…

• NP Bidoup Núi Bà

  InformationSatellite View
  Bidoup Núi Bà National Park Located in Lâm Đồng Province, Bidoup Núi Bà National Park covers an area of 64,800 hectares (160,000 acres) and was established in 2004. It is formed mostly of forest area, and is hemmed between two mountain ranges of the Bidoup and the Lang Bian. It is also well known for its richness of endemic species of flora and fauna. Of the 1468 species of plants, 62 are rare species spread under 29 plant families and recorded in the Red Book 2000 of Vietnam. It is a store house of 250 species of wild orchids. The list of rare animals includes 52 species. The grey-crowned crocias, black-hooded laughingthrush and collared laughingthrush are the commonly seen bird species in the park

• NP Cat Tien

  InformationSatellite View
  This park covers 74,000 Hectares of lowland forest and swamp and is home to numerous birds and mammals. One of Vietnams most important and largest National Parks. Supported by the WWF, projects include surveying the small population of Javan rhinoceros, that still exist in the area the last remaining population on main land. Other mammals include Elephant, Gaur and tiger. Many birds can be found, including such specialities as Germain's Peacock Pheasant, Bar-bellied Pitta and the rare endemic Orange-necked Partridge…

• NP Cát Bà

  InformationSatellite View
  The Cát Bà langur, also known as the white-headed langur (Trachypithecus poliocephalus) is resident within the park and is classified by the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a critically endangered primate; one of the rarest in the world.

• NP Côn Đảo

  InformationSatellite View
  Located in Bà Rịa–Vũng Tàu Province, Côn Đảo National Park is an archipelago of 16 islets covering an area of 19,998 hectares (49,420 acres). Forest and forestland cover 5,998 hectares (14,820 acres) and a biodiversity marine protected area covers the remaining 14,000 hectares (35,000 acres). The largest of the three islands is Côn Sơn. It was gazetted as a national park on 31 March 1993. Its coastal environment is famous for its scenic vistas and varied coral reefs. Fauna reported consist of 24 species of mammal, 69 species of bird and 42 species of reptiles and amphibians.

• NP Cúc Phương

  InformationSatellite View
  Cúc Phương National Park is located in Ninh Bình Province, in Vietnam's Red River Delta. Cuc Phuong was Vietnam's first national park and is the country's largest nature reserve. The park is one of the most important sites for biodiversity in Vietnam. Bird species include bar-backed partridge, scaly-breasted partridge, silver pheasant, red junglefowl, grey peacock-pheasant, laughingthrushes, red-vented barbet, green-eared barbet, scimitar-billed babblers, brown hawk-owl, scarlet minivet, racket-tailed drongos, racket-tailed treepie, white-winged blue magpie. Migrant species include thrushes, flycatchers, tits, finches, pipits amongst others. Hornbills can also be spotted in the forest.

• NP Hoàng Liên

  InformationSatellite View
  Hoàng Liên National Park was gazetted in 2002 to cover a total area of 29,845 hectares (73,750 acres) of special forests, in Lào Cai province, it includes the high mountain system of Hoang Lien Son range with its Fansipan peak (3,143 metres (10,312 ft)). There is a buffer area of 38,724 hectares (95,690 acres). About 2,000 species of plants including several red listed species) are reported. Ancient mushroom species are also noted in the high mountain areas bordering China. 66 species of mammals (including black gibbon and silver-cheeked langurs), 41 amphibians and 61 reptile species (includes the rare spike frog) and 347 species of birds.

• NP IBA Chư Yang

  InformationSatellite View
  Chư Yang Sin National Park is located in Đắk Lắk Province, covers an area of 58,947 hectares (145,660 acres), which includes a range of high mountains in the northern part of the Southern Annamite Mountains. It is an Important Bird Area with grey-crowned crocias, which is endemic and also globally endangered.

• NP Lò Gò-Xa Mát

  InformationSatellite View

• NP Núi Chúa

  InformationSatellite View
  Núi Chúa National Park is a very special and unique area and is one of the priority areas for nature conservation in Vietnam. It is one of the few remaining sites in Southeast Asia where the coastal and marine habitats are still in relatively good condition, and it protects an impressive and largely intact biodiversity. It contains unique semi-arid vegetation and sea turtle nesting beaches, and is located on a promontory bordering a marine park with coral reefs. 72 mammal species and 181 bird species have been recorded in Núi Chúa National Park. The Park also supports a number of mammal and bird species of global conservation concern, including the Black-shanked Douc Pygathrix nigripes, Pygmy Loris Nycticebus pygmaeus, Asian Black Bear Ursus thibetanus, Sun Bear (U. malayanus), Large-antlered Muntjac Muntiacus vuquangensis and Siamese Fireback Lophura diardi.[1] It is reported to have the highest known population of Black-shanked Douc in Vietnam.

• NP Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng

  InformationSatellite View
  The park is home to over 200 bird species, inclusive of several rare birds such as: chestnut-necklaced partridge, red-collared woodpecker, brown hornbill, sooty babbler and short-tailed scimitar babbler.[30][47] There is good evidence for the Vietnamese pheasant (Lophura hatinhensis) and imperial pheasant (Lophura imperialis) species at Phong Nha-Kẻ Bàng area.

• NP Phú Quốc

  InformationSatellite View
  Phú Quốc National Park is a national park on Phú Quốc Island, in the Kiên Giang Province of Vietnam's Mekong Delta Region. This park includes land and sea area, protecting oceanic species such as dugong.

• NP Pù Mát

  InformationSatellite View
  Pù Mát National Park lies in Nghệ An Province and has an area of 911 square kilometres (352 sq mi) (strict protected area of 895.17 square kilometres (345.63 sq mi), ecological recovery zone of 1,596 hectares (3,940 acres) at the middle of the larger Western Nghệ An Biosphere Reserve. With 241 mammal species, 137 bird species, 25 reptiles and 15 amphibians it is also known as "Vietnam's great museum of animal gene pool.

• NP Tam Đảo

  InformationSatellite View
  22 species are endemic to North Vietnam including nine bird species, four reptiles, three amphibians and six species of insect; six are endemic to Vietnam (five bird species and one species of amphibian).

• NP Vũ Quang

  InformationSatellite View
  This park contains biodiversity. Saola and Giant muntjac are species found in this park. Vũ Quang is a remote forested region of Vietnam, in which several new species of deer and antelope have been discovered since the 1990s. Some are so new that scientific description is still pending, although most have local names.

• NP WII Xuân Thủy

  InformationSatellite View
  Xuân Thủy National Park is a part of the Hong River Biosphere Reserve in Nam Định Province. The park was the first wetland area to be announced a Ramsar site in south-east Asia and is internationally significant as a migratory bird habitat. Xuân Thủy National Park is a staging and wintering area for shorebirds, gulls and waterfowl in the coastal zone of the Red River Delta. The National Park is a living space for 250 species of birds (150 migratory and 50 water bird species) from 41 families and 13 orders. 9 species are designated as endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species for example the spoon-billed sandpiper and Nordmann's greenshank.[8] 65- 75 black-faced spoonbill – who were chosen to be the symbol of Xuân Thủy National Park - are seen in the migratory season. The total number of black-faced spoonbill in the world are about 1000, it shows that 5% of the whole population of the species are living in Xuân Thủy National Park during the winter season. The park also provides a habitat for other rare animal species.

• NP Yok Đôn

  InformationSatellite View
  The vegetation at Yok Don National Park is dominated by a mosaic of deciduous forest and semi-evergreen (mixed deciduous) forest, with smaller areas of evergreen forest, particularly on hills and along watercourses; one of the most biodiverse forest in Vietnam. This park is an important site for the conservation of globally endangered species such as Indochinese tiger, Indochinese leopard, Indian elephant and gaur.

• NR Phuoc Buu

  InformationSatellite View
  Although established in 1986, Binh Chau - Phuoc Buu Reserve is relatively unknown. This low, sandy, coastal wetland forest - seems almost like scrub bushland - but it is in fact a valuable link in Vietnam's network of natural forests and wetlands. The Reserve has no tourist facilities. It is serviced only by a dirt road.

• NR Pù Luông

  InformationSatellite View
  The reserve is located along two parallel mountain ridges, that run from north-west to south-east, and are divided by a central valley, which contains several human settlements and a large agricultural land area, therefore, is not included within the nature reserve. Pù Luông is endowed with great biodiversity, its flora and fauna is closely associated with the Cúc Phương National Park 25 km south-east.

• Wetlands

  WebsiteSatellite View
  Viet Nam currently has 9 sites designated as Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Sites), with a surface area of 120,549 hectares.

• AnNam Birding

  Tour Operator
  Vietnam birding tours

• VietBird Ltd

  Tour Operator
  Birdwatching Tour - Vietnam's endemics & specialties (22-days) is specifically designed to explore all the essential birding sites for the endemics & other regional specialities of Vietnam.

• Vietnam Birding

  Tour Operator
  Welcome to Vietnam Birding, the specialist for individually-tailored custom birdwatching tours and escorted small group birdwatching tours to Vietnam

• Wild Tour Vietnam

  Tour Operator
  Figures for the total number of bird species recorded in the country range around 870 species. The high bird species richness in Vietnam can be attributed to the wide latitudinal and elevational variation present within the country, which has led to the development of a wide range of habitat types

• WildBirdEco

  Website
  Our tour service has run the business for 15 years. We are also well known to local media as Thailand

Click on WAND to see Fatbirder’s Trip Report Repository…

• 2010 [03 March] - Hans Matheve

  Report
  …A full day was spent near the bamboo covered hills in the Dac Lua area, about 16 KM from the HQ. Here we hoped to see the Orange-necked Partridge which we unfortunately only heard. There were no real trails and we just tried to enter the bamboo wherever possible. There is also a pool (almost dried out when we were there) which might hold some water birds. Again we were dropped off and picked up by a pre arranged vehicle….

• 2013 [12 December] - Bengt Legnell

  PDF Report
  In Dutch

• 2014 [03 March] - Florian Klingel - Bach Ma National Park

  Report
  …Next morning, started well: I got nice views, with coffee in hand, of Black-throated Laughinthrush, Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush, White-browed Scimitar Babbler and Ratchet-tailed Treepie just below the restaurant. Later, with Nhan, we tried hard to find the Short-tailed Scimitar Babblers (now called Indochinese Wren Babbler), we had a few singing but they refused to show. Only with the last light of the day, we finally got to see a pair, in the gully right below the stairs of the trail learding from the restaurant to the waterfalls. We were lucky with Silver Pheasant and had nice views of a male and female down the slope from the road. Indochinese Green Magpie was seen well several times, but the Red-headed Trogons were surprisingly difficult to see….

• 2014 [12 December] - Glen Valentine

  PDF Report
  ...Legendary and iconic avian gems such as Giant and White-shouldered Ibis, White-rumped Falcon, Bengal Florican, GreaterAdjutant, Black-headed, Great Slaty and Pale-headed Woodpeckers, Germain’s Peacock-Pheasant, Green Peafowl, Bar-bellied Pitta, Red-vented and Indochinese Barbets, DalatShrike-babbler, Indochinese Green Magpie, Red-billed Scimitar Babbler, Orange-breasted and Collared Laughingthrushes, Vietnamese Cutia, Grey-crowned Crocias, Yellow-billed Nuthatch and Vietnamese Greenfinch are just some of the many mouth-watering highlights available...

• 2015 [02 February] - Joshua Bergmark - Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam

  PDF Report
  ... a Tropical Birding group had Slaty-breasted Rail lined up in the scope, and a Spot-breasted Woodpecker hung around briefly (Nathan's first woodpecker, finally, after 3 other Asia trips) but unfortunately the best birds came out after they left.

• 2015 [03 March] - James Eaton

  PDF Report
  This comprehensive tour of Vietnam targeted almost all of the countries endemics and near-endemics, andincredibly, we saw every single one of them amongst a total 358 species recorded on the tour.

• 2015 [03 March] - Tom Wheatley - Mang Den, Kontum Province

  Report
  ...I am an amateur birdwatcher who has birded extensively in South East Asia and this document should be treated as such. This is was not a professional survey, I did not band or handle any birds. I relied on my binoculars, camera, my ear and Craig Robson's field guide.

• 2015 [09 September] - Dominic Le Croissette - Dalat

  Report
  The endemic-rich Dalat Plateau is a great place for a few days birding, with the three key sites all within 20 minutes drive of the town center. I first visited in 2006, when I was new to south-east Asian birding, and made only a single outing to Lang Bian mountain – predictably seeing only a small selection of the available birds. Nine years later, a bit more time, more skill and experience, and a more targeted approach produced sightings of the majority of the area’s endemics and special birds among a healthy total of 106 species.

• 2016 [02 February] - Dominic Le Croissette - South and Central Vietnam

  Report
  In mid January, I had a great opportunity to revisit southern Vietnam for the second time in less than four months. My friend Yann Muzika had arranged an 11-day birding and photography tour of the Dalat Plateau and central Annam, with well-regarded guide Duc Tien Bui – did I want to join them in return for a very reasonable contribution towards the costs? With a tempting menu of target birds on offer, including some highly sought-after Laughingthrushes, and the chance to connect with one or two Dalat endemics that I missed last time around, it was an easy decision to make.

• 2016 [10 October] - Florian Klingel

  Report
  ...Black Drongos were moving southwards continuously and many Sparrowhawks (probably Chinese) with them. We had spent a lot of time to look for waders, so not that much time was left to search the island for resting passerines, and we had no really spectacular sightings. Still good though, with Siberian Rubythroats, Siberian Blue Robins, a Red-flanked Blue-tail, Eastern Crowned Leaf Warbler and other Phylloscopus Warblers, several Chestnut-winged Cuckoos. We also flushed a Red-legged or Slaty-legged Crake but could not see the legs unfortunately.....

• 2016 [12 December] - Dave Stejskal

  Report
  ...Among the targets we were able to track down here were Red-vented Barbet, Red-collared Woodpecker, Pied Falconet, White-winged Magpie, Limestone Leaf Warbler, Gray-cheeked Warbler, White-tailed Flycatcher, Fujian Niltava, Rufous-tailed Robin, Limestone Wren-Babbler, Rufous-throated and Black-browed fulvettas, Gray-backed and Japanese thrushes, Chinese Blackbird, Fork-tailed Sunbird, and even an immature male Green Cochoa for some at Bong Substation!....

• 2017 [04 April] - János Oláh

  PDF Report
  Birdquest was the pioneer birdwatching company to take birders to Vietnam and ever since we have returned regularly to this amazing country! Indochina has many endemics and an additional wide range of special birds. Vietnam hosts a fairly large number of birds found nowhere else, and it is amazing how much more we see nowadays on the tour compared to the lists of 1990’s.

• 2017 [04 April] - János Oláh - Expedition

  PDF Report
  Following the Birdquest regular tour to Vietnam we offered an expedition this year to try and locate some rare birds which are new to Birdquest and at the same time get some information how some of these birds could be integrated to our main tour or make it a regular extension.

• 2017 [11 November] - Dave Stejskal

  Report
  among many highlights, was that wonderful pair of Black-crowned Barwings en route to Mang Den. I had my doubts that we would ever find this one on that day, but it all worked out beautifully in the end! Mang Den produced some other quality endemics for us, notably the recently-described Chestnut-eared Laughingthrush and the dapper Gray-crowned Crocias, both of which were seen very well indeed. The Dalat/Di Linh area was our other endemic species center, where we added Vietnamese Greenfinch, Dalat Shrike-Babbler, Black-headed Parrotbill, Collared Laughingthrush, Vietnamese Cutia, and Black-crowned Fulvetta.

• 2017 [12 December] - Bengt Legnell

  PDF Report
  First we drove through Hanoi, now an exploding metropolitan of 10 million people, made a brief visit to the Botanical Garden there – stake out for Japanese Thrush, Rufous-tailed Robin & a male Fujian Niltava (interesting to see how bird-photography seem to have taken on in Vietnam. There was a small army of long-lensed photographers present) and lunch at a restaurant by the garden. The eatery had their own micro-brewery in the back-yard so a few of us emptied a few pints of arguably the best beer we got served during the trip.

• 2018 [03 March] - Craig Robson

  PDF Report
  2018 brought the most comprehensive itinerary since our first pioneering tour here in 1991, and one thing is for sure, we see a hell of a lot more these days. In the lowlands of Cochinchina, at Cat Tien National Park, we enjoyed such mouth-watering specialities as Orange-necked Partridge, Germain’s Peacock-Pheasant, Green Peafowl, Blyth’s Frogmouth, Blue-rumped and Bar-bellied Pittas...

• 2018 [04 April] - James Eaton

  PDF Report
  This comprehensive tour of Vietnam targeted almost all of the countries endemics and near-endemics, and we saw nearly every single one of them, with a total 382 species recorded on the tour. Starting in the hot and humid south, with Bar-bellied and Blue-rumped Pittas, Germain’s Peacock Pheasant and a haul of woodpeckers, we quickly pulled in all the Dalat endemics including spectacular views of all the laughingthrushes and Grey-crowned Crocias, with a bonus Blue Pitta. We then worked our way north...

• 2019 [04 March] - James Eaton

  PDF Report
  This comprehensive tour of Vietnam targeted almost all of the countries endemics and near-endemics, and we saw nearly every single one of them, with a total 383 species recorded on the tour. Starting in the hot and humid south, with Orange-necked Partridge, Bar-bellied Pitta, Germain’s Peacock Pheasant, Green Peafowl and a haul of woodpeckers, we quickly pulled in all the Dalat endemics including spectacular views of all the laughingthrushes and Grey-crowned Crocias, with bonus Blue Pitta and Hodgson’s Frogmouth.

• 2020 [02 February] - Ken Behrens

  PDF Report
  Vietnam is one of Asia’s biologically richest countries. Unfortunately, it’s also famous as a place that is over-hunted and over-trapped, and heavily populated, making the wildlife viewing quite difficult.

• 2020 [04 March] - Mike Nelson

  PDF Report
  Vietnam has is one of Asia’s premier birding destinations with many endemics and near endemics spread across a wealth of habitats. Our comprehensive tour covers most of these but sadly we had to cut this year’s tour short with the spread of the Covid-19 Virus. With most of the country suddenly shut down, and travel restrictions imposed literally overnight, including parks and hotels, it left us no option but to call time on this amazing birding destination, but not before we’d racked up an impressive list of some of Vietnam’s most sought-after birds. These included such gems as Bar-bellied, Blue-rumped and Blue Pitta, Collared and Orange-breasted Laughingthrush, Rufous-throated and Bar-backed Partridge, Siamese Fireback, Vietnamese Cutia and Greenfinch, Grey-crowned Crocias, Annam Prinia and Indochinese Wren-Babbler to name a few.

Click on WAND to see Fatbirder’s Trip Report Repository…

• Hotel Sofitel Metropole Hanoi

  Accommodation
  About half of Cat Ba island (which has a total area of 354-sq. km) and 90-sq. km of the adjacent inshore water was declared a National Park in 1986 in order to protect the island's diverse ecosystems. More than 20 species of mammals, 69 species of birds and 20 species of reptiles and amphibians can be found in the National Park

• Birds of Vietnam

  Website
  What's so great about a list of bird names? After all, the names that men give are just a pale reflection of the birds themselves. Well, bird-lovers may rejoice in biodiversity, but in matters linguistic they tend to use common or garden English as a lowest common denominator. So, in the interest of 'lingua-diversity', here it is: a list of bird species of Vietnam, with names in Vietnamese, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Malay, Indonesian, and French

• Birdwatching Vietnam

  Website
  Welcome to Birdwatching Vietnam, the birding guides team of Wildtour Company who are researching birding condition in Vietnam and specially arrange for individually birding tour as well as escorted small group birdwatching and wildlife exploring tour…