Cuba | Cuba`s Birding Hotspots

Upon arrival in Havana, you will be met and taken to your Casa Particular. Check-in begins at 3 pm.

After breakfast, meet your guide, driver, and Cuban ornithologist, who will accompany you throughout the entire program and help facilitate meaningful interactions with the local community at each location. This morning, visit the National Botanical Gardens. Here you will search for Western Spindalis, Red-legged Honeycreeper, Cuban Emerald and a variety of migrants including Prairie and Cape May Warblers, American Redstart, and Northern Parula. Later, walk along the cobblestone streets and plazas of Old Havana, which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Admire the unique and historical architecture, as well as picturesque monuments, fortresses, churches, and palaces. On this walk you might add Cuban Blackbird, Royal Tern, Greater Antillean Grackle, and others to the trip list. Tonight have dinner at a local paladar, a small family-run restaurant.

Depart for Viñales in western Cuba. Along the way, make a stop to look for the declining endemic Cuban Grassquit. Another great spot for birding is at Las Terrazas, a UNESCO-designated Biosphere Reserve. Here you'll be guided by Justo Arteaga from the Ecological Station of Las Terrazas. Las Terrazas is not only a nature reserve but also a self-sustained ecological community that began as a reforestation project in 1967. Target species are Cuban Grassquit, Cuban Trogon, Cuban Tody, Red-legged Honeycreeper, and Olive-capped Warbler. Meet with community residents who helped save this site that is now a model of sustainability and ecotourism. This afternoon, continue to Viñales, an area famous for its massive limestone formations called mogotes and home to species such as the Cuban Solitaire, Cuban Tody, Cuban Pewee and Cuban Bullfinch.

This morning, continue birding Viñales hotspots, looking for Cuban Solitaire, West Indian Woodpecker, Scaly-naped Pigeon, and the endemic Yellow-headed Warbler. Afterwards, head toward Zapata Peninsula where you will spend the next few days birding the varied habitat of this renowned area.

The Zapata Swamp is Cuba's largest wetland and a Ramsar-designated Wetland of International Importance. The Zapata area, sprawling nearly 1,700 square miles, consists of scrub, mangrove swamp, and coastline. Over 200 species have been recorded here. Today will be an early start for the Santo Tomás area, where you may find the sought after endemic Zapata Wren and Zapata Sparrow. After lunch, enjoy birding at Las Salinas, an area frequented by many species of waterbirds that live in mangrove swamps, coastal lagoons, and woods. Over 165 indigenous and migratory birds, as well as mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, and invertebrates, are found here. Expect to see flamingos, herons, pelicans, Roseate Spoonbill, Glossy and White Ibises, Peregrine Falcon, Cuban Black Hawk, Belted Kingfisher, and others. Have dinner out at a local restaurant.

After breakfast, leave for the Bermejas site. Target species include the Cuban Parakeet, Cuban Pygmy-Owl, Bee Hummingbird, Cuban Green Woodpecker, Fernandina's Flicker, Cuban Trogon, and Cuban Tody. A mosaic of dry forest, swamp, mangrove, and mudflats, the Zapata Peninsula is one of the best preserved ecosystems on the island. Other species you might encounter are Bare-legged Owl, Loggerhead Kingbird, Great Lizard-Cuckoo, Blue-headed Quail-Dove, and Gray-fronted Quail-Dove. Enjoy lunch at a local restaurant with Zapata-area conservationists, who will provide updates on projects underway to preserve Cuba's largest wetlands. Dine at a paladar and meet the owners, who will provide insight about their entrepreneurial activities.

This morning take some time to bird in the national park, looking for any species that might have been missed. Then travel approximately four hours to the Morón area with some possible birding stops along the way. Morón will be your base for the next couple of days, providing convenient access to Cayo Coco and the surrounding islands for opportunities to see more endemic and migrating species.

The Cayo Coco area is an ideal spot for observing Cuba's bird life. Start the day at Cayo Guillermo and spend the afternoon at Cayo Romano. Look for Oriente Warbler, Thick-billed Vireo, Bahama Mockingbird, and Cuban Gnatcatcher, in addition to a variety of waterbirds including the West Indian Whistling-Duck. For those who are interested, the waters and reefs here offer some of the best snorkeling in the world.

Begin the day at Cayo Paredón Grande, hopefully spotting any species you may have missed. There should also be a chance to spot migrating birds moving through the area. Enjoy a farewell dinner this evening at a local paladar.

This morning there will be a group transfer to the Camagüey Airport in time for flights back to the U.S.