Guatemala | Birding Guatemala’s Highlands and Lake Atitlán

Arrive at La Aurora International Airport in Guatemala City, Guatemala. *Please schedule your flight to arrive no later than 2 pm. After clearing immigration and customs, meet our local representative outside the airport and travel to Antigua, which is about an hour away depending on traffic. This evening, enjoy a welcome orientation by your Guatemalan group leader in preparation for your upcoming journey.

After breakfast, visit Cerro Alux, located between Guatemala City and Antigua Guatemala. This mountain chain is part of the Central American pine-oak forest ecoregion and is home to several highland endemics. It is the wintering habitat for at least 25 species of American wood warblers along with other migratory species. After lunch, travel to Finca El Pilar, a private reserve with pine-oak forest and excellent trails for birding. Walk the trails looking for species such as Blue-throated Motmot, Bushy-crested Jay and Blue-and-white Mockingbird and visit the hummingbird feeders. Return to Antigua in the evening for dinner and overnight. Evening birding checklist review.

Early morning check out for 5:00am departure to Finca San Cayetano. Have breakfast, and then explore the coffee farm and estate located in the hills surrounding Antigua Guatemala. The estate is known for its high quality coffee beans and offers a range of activities for visitors to enjoy. Continue 1.5 hours and then have lunch at a local restaurant. After lunch, drive 1.5 hours to Panajachel, situated on the shores of Lake Atitlán. Transfer 40 minutes by boat ride to Santiago Atitlan to the dock of Hotel Bambu. Check in and have dinner. This town is nestled between two volcanos, Volcán San Pedro and Volcán Toliman, right on a bay of Lake Atitlán. This evening birding checklist review.

This morning, enjoy birding at Parque Mirador Rey Tepepul, an 8,650 acre forest park with a wide altitudinal range. Although newer to bird tourism, this park has great birds, including the Yellow naped Parrot, Blue crowned Chlorophonia, and the Azure rumped Tanager. Have lunch at the hotel. This afternoon visit San Juan La Laguna area on the western shore of Lake Atitlán, another newer site for bird tourism. Seek out the rare Belted Flycatcher along the lower slopes of Volcán San Pedro. You may also come across the Lesser Roadrunner and other dry forest species such as the White faced Ground Sparrow. Visit the local weaving cooperative before returning to the hotel for dinner. This evening birding checklist review.

This morning birding in the gardens of the hotel and along the shore of the lake. Have breakfast and then depart for the approximately 3-hour drive to Los Andes. Check-in and have lunch at the hotel. Finca Los Andes is situated at the southern slopes of the Atitlán Volcano. The cloud forest that lies between the tea gardens and the coffee fields are abundant in wildlife, especially birds, among them the elusive Resplendent Quetzal. Los Andes is also home to the rare Cabanis's Tanager, also known as the Azure rumped Tanager. This small, blue, exquisite bird's highly localized habitat is shared by hundreds of local and migrating species, including a host of hummingbirds, orioles, flycatchers, trogons and motmots. Sixty percent of the reserve is original forest, most of it along the slopes of the dormant volcano. In 2001, Los Andes was declared a private nature reserve, and it is a founding member of Guatemala's Association of Private Nature Reserves. The Reserve works closely with the residents to promote self sufficiency, health and education. Present programs for conservation include artificial nests for the Quetzals. The reserve has a reforestation program approved by INAB (The National Forestry Institute), as well as eucalyptus forests planted for firewood. Coffee and quinine prunings also supply lumber and firewood. Financial and technical assistance are provided to buy and install efficient wood burning stoves in the workers' houses. Los Andes has its own hydroelectric plant, which generates all the power used on the estate. Have dinner at the hotel. This evening birding checklist review.

This morning boxed breakfast and then drive in pickup trucks up to the higher forest above the tea plantations where a nice set of trails may allow us to find the Resplendent Quetzal. Tody Motmots and Emerald Toucanets, as well as deep forest species such as Singing Quail, Spotted Nightingale Thrush and Scaled Antpitta, are also present. Lunch back Los Andes and then continue with birding at the reserve. The local residents are being trained as guides to provide them with an alternate source of income and hunting has been prohibited. Hummingbird feeders at the lodge may attract the Blue tailed Hummingbird as well as Violet and Rufous Sabrewings. The rarer Wine throated Hummingbird may also appear. Tonight after dinner, there will be an optional walk for owling. This evening birding checklist review.

This morning birding at the farm and gardens followed by breakfast at hotel. Depart for Los Tarrales, after approximately 2 hours, stop for lunch, and then continue 30 more minutes to Finca Los Tarrales. Check in, and head over to Los Tarrales Natural Reserve. Los Tarrales ranges in altitude from 2,300 to 11,500 feet and provides great access to various types of forest and more than 340 species of birds from lowland to highland habitats. The reserve is part of the Atitlán Important Bird Area and harbors 21 regional endemic bird species, including Horned Guan, Highland Guan, Azure rumped Tanager, and Blue tailed Hummingbird. There is also an impressive abundance of migratory birds in the area, including Swainson's Thrush, Tennessee, Magnolia, and Black and white Warblers, Western Tanager, and Orchard Oriole. Los Tarrales is also home to several species of raptors, including the Black Hawk Eagle, and sometimes the gorgeous Black and white Owl. Mornings and evenings at the reserve are great for observing commuting parrots, including four species of parakeets and parrots. This evening birding checklist review.

Spend a full day birding in Los Tarrales today exploring the reserve's lower and upper trails in search of a diversity of birds, including displaying Long tailed Manakins. Los Tarrales is private and self sustaining; costs are covered from income made selling coffee, ornamental plants, and honey, and through tourism services. Sixty Maya Kaqchikel families live within the protected area, working in agricultural production, as forest rangers, and in tourism. Los Tarrales also has a private primary school for children living on the reserve, offering classes in nature, science, and conservation in addition to the standard disciplines. At lunch, take some time to enjoy the reserve's feeders, where Orchard, Altamira, Spot breasted, and Baltimore Orioles come to feed along with Rufous naped Wrens and Yellow throated Euphonias. This evening, birding checklist review.

This morning birding at Los Tarrales followed by breakfast. Drive approximately 1 hour to San Andres Metabaj archaeological site for birding. Continue approximately 1 hour to Panajachel on the northeast shore. Check in and have lunch. After lunch, visit the Atitlán Reserve for additional opportunities to spot target species. Later, enjoy some free time to go shopping or relax and take in the views of Lake Atitlán from the hotel. Before dinner, meet with a representative of Asociación Vivamos Mejor and learn more about their work with communities surrounding Lake Atitlán. Evening birding checklist.

This morning, visit Corazón del Bosque, a reserve located higher up in the pine oak forest zone. The star bird here is the stunning and uncommon Pink headed Warbler. While looking for the warbler, you may catch a glimpse of the Mountain Trogon, Spotted Woodcreeper, Yellowish Flycatcher, Rufous browed Wren, Olive Warbler, Crescent chested Warbler, White naped Brushfinch, and the local form of the Yellow eyed Junco, the "Guatemalan Junco," which many consider a separate species. After the visit, head back to Guatemala City and enjoy lunch at a local restaurant en route. Arrive in Guatemala City in the late afternoon with time to freshen up before the farewell dinner at the hotel. Final bird checklist and farewell briefing.

Airport shuttle service for hotel transfers.