10 BEST Birding Tour Companies for Worldwide Travel! (2025)
So you’re looking to go on a birding tour?
That’s incredible news. But unfortunately, deciding to go on a bird-watching trip is an easy decision.
The hardest part is trying to find where to go and a reputable company to travel with. There are dozens and dozens of tour operators operating all around the world!
Below, you will learn about 10 incredible birding tour companies.
Before reading, here are a few things to know about my list:
- All of the travel companies below provide trips to destinations around the world. I don’t know where you want to travel, but each provider offers excursions to multiple or all continents.
- Before picking a trip, make sure to pay attention to the itinerary. Some trips are for hardcore birders, and you can expect to be birding from sunrise to sunset. And some birding excursions integrate other wildlife and cultural experiences. And lastly, some experiences are designed specifically for bird photography.
- Each tour is unique, and none are better or worse. It just depends on what YOU want.
Lastly, please do your own independent research before selecting a birding tour. My list is designed to point you in the right direction and narrow your choices. Before booking a trip, contact the companies below directly to make sure they are a good fit for your travel needs.
#1. Birding Ecotours
Tell them Bird Watching HQ sent you and get $100 off your trip!
Birding Ecotours is one of the BEST birding tour companies at combining an incredible overall experience with a competitive price. Their typical birding tour focuses on small groups of between 6-8 people, along with staying at exceptional lodging and vehicles.
- To view a list of upcoming birding tours and destinations, click HERE.
And if you are passionate about photography, you will be happy to know that they run quite a few Birding Photo Tours. These trips have an emphasis on implementing different strategies to get incredible pictures. For example, you can expect to travel at a slightly slower pace to allow time for photos and more space in the vehicles for equipment. Your guide will even make sure you are positioned at the best angles for lighting (when possible).
Birding Ecotours travels to dozens and dozens of different countries. Click HERE to see an interactive map of all the locations.
In my opinion, here are a few of the things that make Birding Ecotours different:
- Their guides are some of the best in the business. Highly personable and fun, but also excellent birders.
- Everyone at Birding Ecotours is extremely passionate about conservation. And they put their money where their mouth is, as they donate a minimum of 10 % of net profit to local communities and bird conservation.
- Their CEO and founder (Chris) is an enthusiastic birder who has been in the birding tour business for a long time. He started Birding Ecotours in 2004 and has been running and growing the company ever since. You can read his story here.
And don’t hesitate to talk to them about creating a custom birding tour just for you or your group. Creating unique trips that mark off everything on your wish list gets Birding Ecotours very excited.
Many of these trips are incredibly popular, so if you are interested, please fill out the form below, and Birding Ecotours will contact you directly to answer questions, discuss pricing, etc.
You can also send Chris and his team a message HERE.
Make sure to use the link above to receive the Bird Watching HQ discount! 🙂
*Some exclusions apply*
#2. Nature Travel Birding Tours
Embarking on a birding tour with Nature Travel Birding Tours promises an unforgettable adventure, catering to both seasoned birders and enthusiastic novices alike.
First, Nature Travel Birding Tours boasts a team of expert guides who are not only passionate about birds but also possess an intimate knowledge of the local ecosystems. These guides are adept at identifying birds by sight and sound, ensuring participants have the best chances of spotting elusive species. Their expertise enhances the educational aspect of the tour, providing valuable insights into bird behavior, ecology, and conservation.
Secondly, the company offers a diverse range of destinations spanning the globe, from lush rainforests to rugged mountains and coastal habitats. Whether you dream of observing toucans in the Amazon rainforest or raptors in the African savanna, Nature Travel Birding Tours has a meticulously crafted itinerary to fulfill your birding aspirations. Each destination is chosen for its rich biodiversity and unique avian fauna, promising a thrilling array of species to discover.
The small group sizes foster a sense of camaraderie among participants, creating a supportive and enjoyable atmosphere for birding enthusiasts to connect and share their passion for birds. Whether you’re traveling solo or with a companion, you’ll find yourself surrounded by like-minded individuals who share your fascination for the feathered wonders of the world.
Additionally, Nature Travel Birding Tours provides comprehensive logistical support, including comfortable accommodations, delicious meals featuring local cuisine, and seamless transportation between birding sites. This allows participants to focus wholeheartedly on the joys of birdwatching without the hassle of planning and organizing logistics.
You can view their upcoming trips to HERE.
If you’re interested, please email Nadine (tours@naturetravelbirding.com), and let her know that Scott from Bird Watching HQ sent you.
Or you can fill out this form below, which gets sent directly to Nature Travel Birding:
#3. Rockjumper Birding Tours
Rockjumper is one of the best birding tour companies in the world.
Their stellar reputation comes from their commitment to quality trips led by incredible guides. The average ratio of tour leaders to guests is excellent, with most trips having a maximum of 8 participants.
What’s nice about Rockjumper is they offer bird-watching tours across the entire planet. Whether you want to see Emperor Penguins in Antarctica, Birds of Paradise in Papua New Guinea, or Praire Chickens in Colorado, they have a trip that meets your needs.
Rockjumper has birding tours for everyone. Some trips are designed to maximize the number of species observed, while others are more relaxed and allow time to enjoy other unique cultural aspects of a region. And if you can’t find anything that meets your needs, you can work with Rockjumper to design your own trip.
If you want to learn more about a specific bird watching tour, discuss pricing, or have other questions, it’s best to speak with Rockjumper Birding directly. They have a team of birding experts ready to help!
Lastly, I think it’s great that Rockjumper donates a minimum of $50 per scheduled tour to a conservation fund to support bird projects around the world.
#4. Victor Emanuel Nature Tours
Founded in 1976, Victor Emanuel Nature Tours (VENT) has been leading birding trips for almost 50 years. The company is not only one of the largest birding tour companies in the world, but also one of the most respected.
This year alone, they are offering over 150 trips to 100 different countries!
VENT is committed to making sure every part of your trip is a success. From quality, fun tour leaders to an efficient office staff that handles logistics, you are being held with experienced and helpful hands.
In addition to world-class birding tours, VENT also offers cruises that are specially designed for birders! Some favorites include Antarctica, the Amazon, and the Galapagos Islands.
One thing that sticks out to me with VENT is their willingness over the years to giving back. First, they have a strong commitment to eco-tourism, and they use local guides, drivers, and tour operators whenever possible. VENT has also been conducting youth birding camps in Arizona every year since 1986. To date, over 400 young birders have attended!
#5. WINGS Birding Tours
If you are a serious birder and want an unforgettable adventure, then going on a trip with Wings Birding Tours might be a perfect choice.
Many of the other companies on this list try to accommodate people with different interests and physical levels and include things to do on their trips that don’t involve birding.
Wings Birding Tours makes no such promises. They know their target market and try to appeal to them as best as possible.
Almost all of their trips are designed to see birds, regardless of where or when they are to appear. Prepare to be up early and spend your days having incredible adventures and doing a lot of walking. Your trip may take you onto uneven terrain, through lush vegetation, or up and down countless hills.
WINGS says most of their trip participants have been birding before and know the basics of watching birds and how to use their binoculars. If you have never been on a bird watching tour before, they recommend that you contact them first before booking to make sure it’s a good fit.
If you are ready for a hardcore birding adventure, then make sure to check out their trip list, which has destinations such as Central and South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and Australia, among others!
#6. Eagle-Eye Tours
With over 20 years of experience, Eagle-Eye Tours has traveled to amazing destinations worldwide. Many of their trips focus primarily on birding, but they also offer expedition cruises and wildlife photography tours.
Eagle-Eye prides itself on offering small group tours led by experienced and personal guides. People who travel with them are always impressed by how organized the trips are, which is especially important when traveling internationally.
From puffins in the Arctic to penguins in Antarctica and everything in between, you can find dozens of adventures by traveling with Eagle-Eye birding tours.
#7. Naturalist Journeys
Founded over 20 years ago, Naturalist Journeys has offered nature and birding tours across the globe. You can see a calendar of their upcoming trips on their website. You will notice that there are countless options, and I think everyone can find a vacation they will enjoy.
A typical trip led by Naturalist Journeys tries to incorporate many different aspects. The guides are not obsessed with seeing a bird just to check it off a list. The goal is to savor each experience by immersing yourself in the local culture while enjoying the camaraderie of your fellow travelers.
#8. Field Guides Birding Tours
I can almost guarantee you will find your dream trip with Field Guides Birding Tours. They have over 150 annual departures with 136 unique itineraries.
There are trips that cater to all interests, whether you are a hardcore birder who wants to list as many species as possible, or someone who wants to do more than just see birds while on their adventure.
For example, Field Guides has a popular “Birds and Wine” tour concept that combines looking for unique birds AND searching out incredible wine in that particular country. Some of these destinations include Portugal, France, South Africa, and Argentina.
#9. Road Scholar
Road Scholar dubs itself as the “world’s largest and most innovative creator of experiential learning opportunities.” This means that they focus on adventure travel that is designed to teach you something! The founders started the company in 1975 after wondering why there were not more opportunities for American adults to travel AND learn.
Currently, Road Scholar offers thousands of trips to about 150 different countries, which includes many kinds of adventures.
But as for a birding tour company, Road Scholar has plenty of incredible opportunities. There are dozens of trips offered every single year.
Road Scholar offers a few international destinations for watching birds, such as Costa Rica, Cuba, Africa, and New Zealand. But their birding trip specialty is excursions in the United States! I like that they have many tours that are shorter in duration and don’t cost that much.
Look for adventures from Montana to Texas to Florida to Maine and everything in between! To view their current offerings, please click here.
#10. Adventures by Disney
Even though YOU may love birds and are excited to go on a birding trip, your spouse, friends, kids, etc., may not want to look for birds from sunrise to sunset. 🙂
So that’s why I have included Adventures by Disney. They offer an incredible amount of FAMILY vacation packages that visit the entire world!
Using Adventures by Disney is perfect if you want an amazing adventure with your family that is safe and well-planned. You will definitely see a lot of birds and other animals, but the emphasis on the trip is not seeing as many species as possible, like many of the other birding tours on this list.
If you are interested in traveling with Disney, you should use an authorized travel agent.
First, you will get help from someone who has lots of experience planning these sorts of trips. Second, it doesn’t cost you anything. In fact, a Disney-authorized travel agent can usually find a better deal and save you hundreds of dollars!
- Are you looking to go to Disney World, Univeral Studios, or go on a Disney Cruise soon? If so, check out my list of AUTHORIZED Disney Vacation planners HERE.
Adventures by Disney is the best way to see birds AND take along kids or people that don’t want to go birding every day.
Final Thoughts About Birding Tour Companies:
My hope for today is that you found a few birding tour companies whose trips intrigue you. I did my best to find a variety of companies that offer many different birding experiences, including many trips that cater to bird photography.
The next step is to contact them directly and decide on the best option for you!
If you have gone on a birding trip before, I’d love your feedback below.
