guatemala birding 

January 5-16, 2021 
Guided by John Cahill, Guatemala's Top Birder
Join Travis Audubon Society to see the Golden-cheeked Warbler in its winter territory!

     Join us for this unique birding tour to beautiful Guatemala. Building on the overwhelming success of our 2019 tours, we are again offering this opportunity to bird areas not offered by other bird tour companies, guided by Guatemala’s top birder, John Cahill.
              Your participation in our tour benefits both Travis Audubon Society and Community Cloudforest Conservation (CCFC), an environmental education program located near Cobán in central Guatemala. In addition to fabulous birds – including the near mythical Resplendent Quetzal – Guatemala offers you an amazing history of birding and conservation.
          First we begin our birding at the very same farm where Dr. Alexander Skutch lived for more than two years in the 1930s while studying birds and collecting plants. Here we’ll see a number of range-restricted birds that occur in this area such as Blue-throated Motmot, Black-capped Siskin, and what is possibly the most beautiful of all warblers, the Pink-headed Warbler.
          Then we work our way to the cloudforest, visiting several private reserves set up specifically for migrating birds. This area also gives Central Texas birders the possibility to see the Golden-cheeked Warbler on its wintering grounds in the very cloudforest where the species was first described by ornithologists in 1860! We will spend three nights and days at CCFC’s amazing environmental center, a totally off-the-grid building and a marvel in engineering.
We end our adventure in Tikal, perhaps the greatest of the Mayan cities. We’ll pick up a local cultural guide who will add to the experience. There are more amazing birds to see here as we walk among pyramids, like Keel-billed Toucan, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Ocellated Turkey, Tody Motmot, several species of parrots, and raptors including the rare Orange-breasted Falcon. We’ll also see some cool mammals like Coatis, Agoutis, and Spider and Black Howler Monkeys.
Our local guides will be John Cahill, the top birder in Guatemala (see his story on this eBird post) and in his early 20s, he is part of the new generation of birders. Comments from prior tours refer to John as “the best bird guide ever”. He is a birding rockstar and seems to know everyone in the country! He will be assisted by his father Rob Cahill. The Cahill Family runs Community Cloud Forest Conservation, which focuses on environmental education for the local Mayan school population, using Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s BirdSleuth program. They also run a leadership training program for girls and young women in sustainable agro-ecology, nutrition, cooking, health and family planning, career and educational options, eco-tourism, and other life-skills, with the goal of helping them stay in school and continue their education. The ultimate goal of agro-ecology is re-forestation of the cloud forest.  

         In addition to donations to both organizations, a half-acre cloud forest restoration will be dedicated in the name of Travis Audubon, thus offsetting your in-country carbon footprint while enhancing bird habitat.
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                                     This is a true example of sustainable tourism.

  • Accommodations:  We have selected simple lodging close to birding sites to reduce driving time, but all have private hot water bathrooms (unless listed). Albergue Caleras is an old farmhouse (where Dr Alexander Skutch began his studies of the tropics). The rooms have several beds each and share baths. Posada del Quetzal is a simple, local inn. The CCFC Center is off-the-grid with composting toilets. Tikal Inn runs on a generator with power only mornings and afternoons. Casa de Don David is a quaint tourist hotel.
  • Included: 11 nights hotel, all meals, ground transportation, taxes, entry fees, services of bilingual guides, tips for drivers, hotels, meals, and donation to Travis Audubon Society. 
  • Not Included: international airfare, travel insurance, alcoholic drinks, personal expenses, and tips for the guides. NOTE: in 2021, in-country flight included. 
  • Bring:  Binoculars, bug spray, hat, sunscreen, field guide (Peterson Field Guide to birds of Northern Central America, Fagan & Komar, 2016), field clothing, walking stick, rain & warm weather gear. More information upon registration.