12 days from £2,695
(Inc flights)
Land only price from £2,095
All but two of the Neotropical bird families are represented in Bolivia’s national bird list of over 1,350 species which includes 18 endemics! Around Cochabamba we’ll look for rarities including Red-fronted Macaw, Cochabamba Mountain-finch and Bolivian Earthcreeper, while in cloudforest we’ll be hoping to see such species as Solitary Eagle and Rufous-capped Thornbill. We’ll visit the windswept altiplano, the most extensive area of high plateau on earth outside Tibet, before heading to our final stop – Lake Titicaca, Bolivia’s best-known geographical feature. Lake Titicaca provides a variety of habitats for birds such as saltflats and rolling hills, and its rich avifauna includes one of South America’s rarest birds, Berlepsch’s Canastero, plus Mountain Caracara, Bright-rumped Yellow-finch and Titicaca Grebe.
- Explore a wide range of highland habitats along the Andean Cordillera
- Look for waterfowl such as Cinnamon, Puna & Speckled Teals at Cochabamba
- Sickle-winged Guan & Straw-backed Tanager among other cloudforest species
- Crested Duck, Andean Flamingo & Andean Avocet on the altiplano
- Visit Lake Titicaca, reputed as the birthplace of the Inca civilisation
- In remote areas we may hear the ancient language of Aymara spoken
- Led by expert local naturalist guides
- Save money & combine with Naturetrek’s 'Bolivia – Lowlands' holiday
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Highlights
Andy Tucker
Andy is an Aquatic Biology graduate (Aberystwyth) and worked in fisheries consultancy for a year after graduation before travelling to south-east Peru to work as a guide in the Amazon rainforest. During his year there he balanced guiding with his fisheries research and, after a brief spell back in England, returned to a full-time guiding post at Sacha Lodge in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Andy has travelled widely in Central and South America and his fluent Spanish is a huge advantage during our tours both across the Atlantic and in Spain. Andy has birdwatched for as long as he can remember and counts himself lucky to have seen so many fantastic bird and wildlife spectacles around the globe. He joined the Naturetrek team in 1998 and, while now kept busy as General Manager, is involved in the operations of a wide variety of tours in Latin America, Western Europe and North Africa.
Outline Itinerary
Day 1
Depart UK
Day 2
Arrive Santa Cruz, transfer Cochabamba
Day 3/5
Birding from Cochabamba
Day 6
Birding drive to Oruro
Day 7
Birding drive to La Paz
Day 8/10
Birding from La Paz
Day 11
Depart La Paz
Day 12
Arrive UK
This was a combined holiday, Bolivia lowlands and Bolivia Highlands. This gave us an insight on how life changes with altitude. It also demonstrated the effort the government is putting in to create better road infrastructure and housing opportunities. The birding was as promised, lived up to expectations because the tour guides had excellent bird call recognition, a must when operating in dense habitats and low cloud conditions. very good pre-departure information from England and a determination to see as much as possible in the field. All tour members were birders and the guides bent over backwards to ensure, as far as possible, that all sightings were enjoyed by all members. Detailed explanation of why such a bird was named was always available when requested. Naturetrek had obviously researched the guides credentials and given them high grades before employing them.
A.W. Nottinghamshire, Nov 18
Food & Accommodation
All food included in the price.
All accommodation included in the price.
Tour leaders
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Jose Antonio Padilla Tour leader
Jose Antonio Padilla
Jose Antonio Padilla was born in Lima, Peru, three decades ago. After school he got a Licensed Degree in Nature Tourism at the Centro de Formacion en Turismo – Cenfotur, Lima. He first began working in ecotourism when he was 21 years old in the Tambopata National Reserve in south-eastern Peru in the pristine region of Madre de Dios. Since then, he has worked as a naturalist and bird guide for more than 9 years. In 2003 he took the invitation to go to Glasgow, Scotland, where he lived for over a year, studying English and working in the hospitality business. Jose Antonio then returned to Peru, and has spent most of this time travelling around Venezuela, Ecuador, Bolivia, Brazil and guiding birding trips in the Southeastern Peruvian rainforest, specifically in Manu national Park, a paradise for birders, learning from some of the most renowned ornithologists that have visited the area in the last few years (Barry Walker, Steve Hilty, Lelis Navarrete, Tomas Valqui, Jose Ignacio – Pepe – Rojas, Renzo Zepilli, etc). He also has an intimate knowledge of the rainforest and of course of the flora and fauna that live in these complex ecosystems. He has led tours in the Tambopata – National Reserve and the Bahuaja Sonene National Park as well; both protected areas situated in the Peruvian rainforest. Portuguese was added to his fluent English and Spanish; the languages Jose Antonio speaks and writes. Nowadays Jose Antonio lives in Cusco, spending his time leading bird tours between Manu Biosphere reserve, Cusco and other interesting and remote high Andean and Central Peruvian and Bolivian localities.
Andy Tucker
Andy is an Aquatic Biology graduate (Aberystwyth) and worked in fisheries consultancy for a year after graduation before travelling to south-east Peru to work as a guide in the Amazon rainforest. During his year there he balanced guiding with his fisheries research and, after a brief spell back in England, returned to a full-time guiding post at Sacha Lodge in the Ecuadorian Amazon. Andy has travelled widely in Central and South America and his fluent Spanish is a huge advantage during our tours both across the Atlantic and in Spain. Andy has birdwatched for as long as he can remember and counts himself lucky to have seen so many fantastic bird and wildlife spectacles around the globe. He joined the Naturetrek team in 1998 and, while now kept busy as General Manager, is involved in the operations of a wide variety of tours in Latin America, Western Europe and North Africa.
