CTG BIRDING TOURS
Central & Western Cuba
12 DAYS / 11 NIGHTS
PRICES FROM: $4.720 USD Per Person
DAY 1
US – Havana
- Flight from US Int’l airport to Jose Marti Int’l Airport
- Visit the home of Orlando Garrido, Cuba’s premier ornithologist. Orlando will discuss the status, distribution, and taxonomy of all of Cuba’s endemics and show specimens of most of them.
- Visit Old Havana, touring the old colonial portion adjacent to the harbor and having lunch in La Mina restaurant.  While we won’t do much birding we should see the endemic Cuban Blackbird and perhaps Tawny-shouldered Blackbird. Cuban Martin, an endemic breeding species, nests around the harbor and we’ll look carefully for it. Antillean Palm Swifts and Red-legged Thrushes should be much in evidence, as should a number of North American wintering warblers, notably Palm. We’ll check the harbor for water birds: Sandwich Tern is likely, and we’ve recorded Lesser Black-backed Gull on several occasions in the past, once even a rare (for Cuba) Bonaparte’s Gull.
- Night stay in the Sevilla Hotel (Night in Havana)
DAY 2
Havana - San Diego de los Baños
- Early morning breakfast at the Sevilla Hotel
- Depart to San Diego de los Baños to the west in Pinar del RÃo province. We’ll make a few stops where we hope to pick out the endemic and strikingly patterned Cuban Grassquit among the more numerous Yellow-faced Grassquits (olivaceasubspecies). Gray Kingbirds and Black-whiskered Vireos, having recently arrived from South America to breed, should be present as well. Close by is Hacienda Cortina, a large old estate and now a public park with excellent birding. We should see Smooth-billed Ani, Cuban Trogon (the national bird), Cuban Green and West Indian Woodpeckers, the distinctively polymorphic sparveroides subspecies of American Kestrel that acts more like a Merlin then a kestrel, Cuban Pewee, La Sagra’s Flycatcher, Loggerhead Kingbird, Cuban Tody, Olive-capped Warbler (a species restricted to parts of Cuba and the northern Bahamas), and Tawny-shouldered Blackbird. We stand a decent chance of finding two other highly sought-after Cuban endemics: Fernandina’s Flicker and Giant Kingbird. Least Grebe and Purple Gallinule are possible, as are a variety of North American wintering species, including a late Louisiana Waterthrush.
- Night stay at San Diego de Los Baños Hotel (Dinner included)
DAY 3
San Diego de los Baños – Playa Larga (Bay of Pigs)
- Early morning breakfast at San Diego de Los Baños Hotel
- Depart San Diego de Los Baños visiting La Cueva de las Portales in La Guira National Park. In the trees at La Guira National Park, among the limestone karst formations, we’ll be looking carefully for the endemic Cuban Solitaire, a somewhat somberly colored bird. Its dull appearance is more than made up by its beautiful and complex song.  We should see both White-winged and Zenaida Doves and with luck Scaly-naped Pigeon. Cuba has almost as many endemic Anolis lizards as it does birds. Some of them are large and colorful, and here we might see Western Giant, Water, and Cliff Anoles. Later we’ll retrace our steps past Havana and then turn south for the Zapata Peninsula.  We’ll make a few stops at two inland reservoirs where we should see some lingering wintering ducks and perhaps a Snail Kite. Late in the afternoon we’ll arrive at Playa Larga near the Zapata Swamp and the site of the infamous Bay of Pigs invasion in April 1961. On our hotel grounds before sunset we might see Cuban Parrot and Cuban Crow, the latter possessed of a remarkable vocabulary that is almost comical.
- Night stay at Playa Larga Hotel (Dinner included)
DAYS 4 and 5
Playa Larga (Bay of Pigs)
- Breakfast at Playa Larga Hotel
- We’ll explore birds in vast Zapata Swamp for the next two days.
- On one morning we’ll visit Bermejas, where we have a chance of seeing three species of quail-dove, including two striking endemics, Gray-fronted and Blue-headed. Key West Quail-Dove is usually present, and there is at least a chance of seeing Ruddy Quail-Dove. Other endemic species here include Cuban Parakeet, Cuban Pygmy and Bare-legged Owls, Cuban Vireo, Yellow-headed Warbler, Cuban Oriole, and the diminutive Bee Hummingbird, the smallest bird in the world. We often find Great Lizard Cuckoo, Western Spindalis (endemic Cuban pretreisubspecies), and Shiny Cowbird along with a fine variety of North American wintering wood warblers. On some occasions a roosting Stygian Owl (endemic siguapa subspecies) can be located, and elsewhere in the area we should find Limpkin and perhaps the endemic chrysocaulosus subspecies of Northern Flicker.
- Rising before dawn one morning we’ll aatempt to locate the Cuban Nightjar near Playa Larga. Once it gets light, we’ll search for what will probably be our most difficult endemic, the distinctive (especially on vocalizations) Zapata Wren. We have a good chance of seeing the endemic Zapata Sparrow (inexpectata subspecies) and with good fortune might see a Spotted Rail. The endemic Zapata Rail is or was found here too, but it has reached near mythical status with essentially no confirmed records for many years, if not decades. Later we’ll visit Salinas de Bides, noted for its many American Flamingoes along with numerous other waterbirds. Here “Golden†Yellow Warblers are resident, and we should also see Clapper Rail and the endemic and distinctive-sounding Cuban Black Hawk. If we missed Cuban Nightjar at dawn, we’ll try for it again at dusk.
- Night stay at Playa Larga Hotel (Dinner included).
DAY 6
Playa Larga (Bay of Pigs) – Camag֤üey
- Breakfast at Playa Larga Hotel
- If we’ve missed Zapata Wren, we’ll try for it again first thing in the morning, but today will be mostly devoted to our long drive to Camagüey, an old city with beautiful colonial architecture. As we leave Playa Larga, we’ll stop at a marsh where the endemic Red-shouldered Blackbird occurs.
- Night stay at Gran Hotel Camagüey (Dinner included)
DAY 7
Camag֤üey
- Breakfast at Gran Hotel Camagüey
- Morning venture east to La Belen, stopping along the way in agricultural country to listen to the endemic hippocrepis Eastern Meadowlarks. Their song and even their appearance are more suggestive of Western Meadowlark, and they should probably be considered their own species. In the open country we might also see Crested Caracara and our only Palm Crows, and around the ponds we might find Northern Jacana. At La Belen we’ll walk the trails in the preserve. The threatened Giant Kingbird is found regularly here, and we should get good comparisons with the more numerous Loggerhead Kingbird. We have as well a good chance here or nearby of seeing Plain Pigeon, a scarce West Indian species. We’ll return in the late afternoon and have a bit of time to take a bicycle trip (not self-driven!) along the streets of the old colonial city.
- Night stay at Gran Hotel Camagüey (Dinner included)
DAY 7
Camagüey-Cayo Coco
- Breakfast at Gran Hotel Camagüey.
- Visit the old church for Cave Swallow and Cuban Martin before heading to Cayo Coco, off the north coast. On the long causeway we should see large numbers of American Flamingoes feeding in the shallow water.
- We’ll be staying at an all-inclusive lodge that caters to Europeans and Canadians. The birding is excellent adjacent to the grounds, and we have a good chance of seeing the endangered West Indian Whistling-Duck. We’ll do some late afternoon birding on nearby trails searching for Key West Quail-Dove, the endemic Oriente Warbler, Cuban Bullfinch, and various wintering North American wood warblers; Greater Antillean Grackles will be numerous.
- Night stay at Cayo Coco Hotel Colonial (all included)
DAY 9
Cayo Coco
- Breakfast at Cayo Coco Hotel Colonial
- Morning visit to Cayo Perodon Grande, where we’ll search for the endemic Cuban Gnatcatcher, distinctive in its black outline to the auriculars, and the endangered (for Cuba) Thick-billed Vireo. While looking for these two species we’ll have a chance to see Bahama Mockingbird along with a scattering of La Sagra’s Flycatchers, Oriente Warblers, and a number of wintering North American warblers. In the flowering agaves Cuban Emeralds can be almost abundant. The endemic Zapata Sparrow occurs locally on Cayo Coco but represents a different subspecies (varoni) than the Zapata Swamp birds, and the Ospreys here (ridgwayi subspecies) have nearly white heads.  We’ll spend some time in the afternoon looking for shorebirds and other water birds, including “Great White Heronâ€.
- Night stay at Cayo Coco Hotel Colonial (all included)
DAY 10
Cayo Coco - Santa Clara
- Breakfast at Cayo Coco Hotel Colonial
- For some years, nests of the rare Gundlach’s Hawk, another endemic, have been located in the Cayo Coco area, and if one has been found we’ll search for it. This bird’s appearance and vocalizations are strongly suggestive of the North American Cooper’s Hawk, as is apparently its genetic composition. Not long after breakfast we’ll begin our two-day journey back to Havana, broken by a night in Santa Clara. On our way to Santa Clara we’ll likely stop to search for Mangrove Cuckoo.
- Night stay at Santa Clara, La Granjita Hotel (dinner included)
DAY 11
Santa Clara - Havana
- Breakfast at Santa Clara, La Granjita Hotel.
- Before breakfast we’ll bird the grounds of our Santa Clara resort, firming up our memories of some of the species we’ve seen and perhaps looking again for Gundlach’s Hawk, a pair of which have been present in recent years. After breakfast we’ll head back to Havana. After some time off in the afternoon we’ll gather for a final grand dinner at a nice restaurant along the waterfront.
- Night stay at Sevilla Hotel in Havana (dinner included).
DAY 12
Havana - US
- Breakfast at Sevilla Hotel in Havana (dinner included).
- Transfer to José Martà International Airport for flight to US.
What’s included
- Accommodations as detailed in itinerary
- Exclusive-guided programming, including; unique activities, access to Cuba’s famous places and private interaction with Cuba’s renowned experts
- Full-time experienced tour leader
- Full-time expert Cuban guide
- Meals while in Cuba, as delineated in itinerary
- Certification of travel to Cuba under the U.S. Department of the Treasury general license
- Small friendly groups of an average size of 15 pax
- All entrance fees to scheduled activities and events
- Flight package including; round-trip charter air from Miami to Havana, or other city in Cuba, Cuban visa, priority check-in at Miami International Airport, Cuban airport departure tax, and baggage fee for first checked bag
- All in-country ground transportation and airport transfers via luxury motor coach
- Private Cuban Driver
- Cuban health insurance
- 24 hour emergency customer service hotline
- Gratuities for luggage handling, restaurant service, and programmed activities throughout tour*
*Customary end-of-tour gratuities for the Cuban guide, driver, and tour leader are left to the guest’s discretion and should be based on your satisfaction with the level of service received.
What’s not included
- Pre-departure flights to and from Miami Florida US
- Pre-departure hotel in Miami Florida US
- Gratuity for tour guides and tour leaders
- Travel insurance