Wild Hoi An: 1-Day Birding Tour

One of our most popular birding tours, designed to maximise species diversity. Highlights include our signature dawn Birding Cruise, followed by birding in scrublands, lowland forests, coastal reserves, paddy fields, and wetlands. A year-round favourite offering a comprehensive overview of Central Vietnam’s bird life.

Details

Summary
— Full-Day Birding Tour
— Private Dawn Birding Cruise Included
— Optional Spotlighting Add-On
— Bookings Available Year-Round
— Departs from Da Nang or Hoi An
— Private tours for individuals or small groups with options for larger groups available upon request

Prices Starting From:
Single Person: $355 per person
Group of 2: $212 per person
Group of 3: $165 per person
Group of 4: $140 per person

Wild Hoi An: 1-Day Birding Tour

Code: DNSD01 | Categories: Birding, Boat & River Cruises | Locations: Da Nang / Hoi An

Bach Ma Nature Expedition

Summary:

Join us for a comprehensive full-day birding adventure in the Hoi An area, one of Central Vietnam’s most rewarding birding regions. This fixed itinerary has been carefully refined over the years to maximise species diversity, with concentrated field time across a wide range of habitats.

The tour begins with pick-up from your accommodation in either Da Nang or Hoi An, followed by an early arrival at the Thu Bon River. Here, you’ll board our signature Hoi An Birding Cruise, a private, 2-hour specialist birding cruise focused on riverine, migrant and wetland species. It’s an exceptional way to start the day, often yielding 40+ species before midmorning.

After the cruise, enjoy a traditional home-style Vietnamese breakfast with coffee before heading to nearby scrubland habitats. This area is a hotspot for specialties such as Freckle-breasted Woodpecker, Masked Laughingthrush, Lesser Coucal, Indian Cuckoo, Wire-tailed Swallow, and a variety of migrant flycatchers and other passerines.

Following a brief lunch break, we explore the surrounding paddy fields and wetlands, targeting any species we may have missed earlier. These habitats offer chances for cryptic and elusive species such as Greater Painted Snipe, Streaked Weaver, Pheasant-tailed Jacana, as well as wagtails, munias, crakes, and rails.

Our final stop is Cua Dai Bay, a rich coastal area home to significant numbers of shorebirds, tern colonies, and mangrove specialists like Stork-billed Kingfisher, Eastern Reef Egret, and the highly sought-after Oriental Skylark. Occasionally, we adjust the order of our locations to align with the best tidal conditions.

This all-inclusive tour is ideal for birders, photographers, and wildlife enthusiasts, with peak migration days delivering 100–120+ species and quieter seasons still producing 50–80 species regularly.

For those wanting to extend the experience, we offer an optional add-on: the Hoi An Spotlighting Tour at a discounted rate. This night excursion targets nocturnal species such as nightjars, Barn Owls, and Scops Owls, rounding out an unforgettable day of birding.

Featuring our top bird guides, private vehicle and driver, specialist spotting scope, access to our private birding cruise, eBird checklist, all meals, and exclusive birding locations, this is one of our most popular and productive tours: an all-inclusive mega day that brings together several of our signature experiences in one unforgettable outing.

This tour is conducted at an easy to moderate pace, suitable for both relaxed walkers, bird listers, and photographers. Most of our route follows flat, well-maintained tracks, though we also spend time walking on sandy beaches, occasionally muddy areas, and grassy fields in Cam Kim. The itinerary also includes time aboard a boat during our birding cruise.

The Hoi An region is a bird-rich area of Central Vietnam, offering a wide range of target species and exciting possibilities, especially during migration periods and the winter season. For a comprehensive list of potential species, we recommend visiting eBird or contacting our team directly. Below is a list of regularly encountered highlight and typical species:

Lesser Whistling Duck, Indian Spot-billed Duck, Red Collared Dove, Spotted Dove, Zebra Dove, Greater Coucal, Lessr Coucal, Green-billed Malkoha, Asian Koel, Plaintive Cuckoo, Indian Cuckoo, House Swift, Slaty-breasted Rail, Eurasian Moorhen, Grey-headed Swamphen, White-browed Crake, White-breasted Waterhen, Ruddy-breasted Crake, Eurasian Black-winged Stilt, Little Ringed Plover, Red-wattled Lapwing, Tibetan Sand Plover, Greater Sand Plover, Kentish Plover, White-faced Plover, Greater Painted Snipe, Pheasant-tailed Jacana, Whimbrel, Pin-tailed Snipe, Common Snipe, Common Sandpiper, Green Sandpiper, Marsh Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Common Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Common Greenshank, Ruddy Turnstone, Red-necked Stint, Barred Buttonquail, Oriental Pratincole, Little Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Whiskered Tern, White-winged Black Tern, Black-naped Tern, Little Grebe, Asian Openbill, Little Cormorant, Cinnamon Bittern, Yellow Bittern, Black-crowned Night Heron, Little Egret, Striated Heron, Chinese Pond Heron, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Osprey, Black-winged Kite, Asian Green Bee-eater, Blue-tailed Bee-eater, Common Kingfisher, White-throated Kingfisher, White-throated Kingfisher, Pied Kingfisher, Dollarbird, Coppersmith Barbet, Freckle-breasted Woodpecker, Peregrine Falcon, Common Iora, Black Drongo, Brown Shrike, Long-tailed Shrike, Racket-tailed Treepie, Asian Tit, Common Tailorbird, Yellow-bellied Prinia, Plain Prinia, Zitting Cisticola, Black-browed Reed Warbler, Oriental Reed Warbler, Barn Swallow, Wire-tailed Swallow, Eastern Red-rumped Swallow, Streak-eared Bulbul, Red-whiskered Bulbul, Sooty-headed Bulbul, Yellow-vented Bulbul, Yellow-browed Warbler, Dusky Warbler, Swinhoe’s White-eye, Pin-striped Tit-Babbler, Masked Laughingthrush, Lesser Necklaced Laughingthrush, Black-collared Starling, White-shouldered Starling, Vinous-breasted Myna, Great Myna, Crested Myna, Chinese Blackbird, Asian Brown Flycatcher, Oriental Magpie Robin, Bluethroat, Siberian Rubythroat, Taiga Flycatcher, Blue Rock Thrush, Amur Stonechat, Scarlet-backed Flowerpecker, Ornate Sunbird, Crimson Sunbird, Streaked Weaver, Scaly-breasted Munia, White-rumped Munia, Chestnut Munia, Grey Wagtail, Eastern Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Paddyfield Pipit, Richard’s Pipit, Red-throated Pipit, Oriental Greenfinch, Yellow-breasted Bunting. 

This is a private tour, available for individuals or small groups, with options for larger groups available upon request. Please note that the boat trip is also private and not shared with other guests or tour groups.

This tour offers excellent bird and wildlife photography opportunities, particularly during our Birding Cruise, as well as in the paddy fields and coastal reserves. The tour is led by our expert bird guide team, many of whom are highly experienced bird photographers themselves. If you’re seeking a photography-focused experience, please mention this in your booking form and we’ll match you with one of our photography specialists.

We recommend bringing a telephoto lens of at least 400mm (600mm+ is ideal) for bird photography. If you’re unsure what gear to bring or would like tailored advice based on your setup, feel free to contact our team, we’re happy to help you prepare for the best possible shots.

Bach Ma Nature Expedition
A visit to the Little Tern colony along the beaches is a true highlight of our day tour, especially during the breeding season when the birds are actively nesting and fishing

Discover More in Central Vietnam

If this tour caught your eye, you might also enjoy some of our other birding experiences in the region, each with its own unique focus and highlights. Below are some of our most popular and recommended options, perfect for discovering more of what Central Vietnam has to offer. Thinking of doing more than one? Let us know and we’ll be happy to create a customised package to suit your journey.

Discover Hoi An After Dark on our Nocturnal Spotlighting Tour. The perfect experience for birders, wildlife photographers and nature lovers to get up close and personal with some of Vietnam’s unique and rarely seen nocturnal creatures. Running year-round, this tour highlights species such as the Indian Nightjar, Savanna Nightjar, Collared Scops Owl, and Eastern Barn Owl — alongside an array of fascinating reptiles, amphibians, moths, and more!

Discover the rich birdlife of Da Nang on one of our expertly guided birding tours. From coastal forests and mountain slopes to wetlands, dunes, sandflats, and river systems, this region supports a remarkable diversity of resident and migratory bird species. Whether you’re a dedicated birder, a passionate wildlife photographer, or a curious nature enthusiast, our tours provide some of the best birding experiences in Vietnam. Half Day, Full Day, Spotlighting and Custom Tours available.

A comprehensive birding adventure through Indochina’s premier national parks, this tour focuses on the most sought-after endemic and specialist species of the Annamite Mountains. Designed around your pace, priorities, and target birds, it’s one of our most popular and rewarding wildlife experiences.

Tailor Your Experience

Looking to enhance your experience? Whether it’s adding an extra day, making an additional stop, arranging pick-up from a distant location, hiring a camera, or combining your tour with another one of our amazing experiences, we’ve got you covered. Get in touch today, and let our experts craft a private, customised itinerary with dates and prices tailored to your needs

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