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★★★★★ Top Tailor-made Birding, Wildlife and Photography Tours & Highly recommended in Trip Advisor!!

Amazon Birding Tours in Ecuador

Napo Wildlife Center: Amazon Birding and Yasuni's Parrot Clay Licks

Possible +500 Birds – including Rufous-headed Woodpecker, Blue and Yellow Macaws, Scarlet Macaws, Hoatzin, White-throated Toucan, Wire-tailed Manakin and others.
✅Parrot Clay Licks – Observe 8 Types of Parrots and Macaws in 2 different Clay Licks. 
Biodiversity Hotspot – Explore the incredibly diverse wildlife in Yasuni National Park like Giant Otters, Red-Howler Monkey, Golden-mantled Tamarin, Three-toed Sloth, Brown-headed Spider Monkey and others.
Paddle Canoe Excursions – Birding in Anangu river creeks and lagoon guided by top birding guides
✅Observation Towers – three observation towers located in different parts of the lodge
Eco-Lodging & Cultural ExperienceStay in sustainable accommodations run by the Kichwa Añangu community. 

Napo Wildlife Center Birding Tour

  1. Flight Quito-Coca Included. Transfer by motorboat to Napo Wildlife Center 
  2. Parrot Clay Licks & Paddle Canoe 
  3. Observation Towers & Paddle Canoe 
  4. Transfer to Coca. Flight to Quito Included. 
  5. Transfer Out to the Airport

Itinerary

Day 1

TRANSFER TO QUITO AIRPORT, FLIGHT TO COCA CITY, PADDLE CANOE ANANGU CREEK

  • After a rewarding 30-minute flight over the eastern Andean mountain range to reach the city of Puerto Francisco Orellana "El Coca," our transfer will take you to Coca Dock to start your journey to the amazon. Here, you will have the opportunity to take a break, use the restrooms, enjoy a refreshing drink, and receive a boxed lunch for the journey. Motorcanoe for 2-hours along Napo River towards the welcome area of the Napo WildlifeCenter. At this location, you will switch to a paddle canoe to go birding in the serene waters of Anangu Creek.
  • Upon arriving in the afternoon at the Napo Wildlife Center Lodge, we will be greeted with an impressive view of the Añangucocha lagoon. Welcome Drink and snacks, followed by a brief talk from your guide and plan the activities for the next days. Night walk and excursion for insects, amphibians and reptiles or Night Caiman Spotting from the canoe. 
  • Targets: Greater Ani, Smooth billed Ani, Limpkin, Hoatzin, Anhinga, Rufescent-Tiger Heron, Snowy Egret, Cocoi Heron, Snail Kite, Cream-coloured Woodpecker, Crested Owl, Speckled Chachalaca, Blue-throated Piping Guan, Squirrel Cuckoo, Green-backed Trogon, Amazonian Trogon, Green and Rufous Kingfisher, Gilded Barbet, Channel-billed Toucan, Cinnamon Attila, Wattled Jacana, Striated Heron, Common Potoo, Crested Oropendola and others.  
  • Meals: Box Lunch and Welcome Dinner 
  • Overnight Napo Wildlife Center, Standard or Panoramic Suite Cabins

Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Amazonian KingfisherNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours 8Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Lemon throated barbet

Birding Photos: American Pigmy Kingfisher, Paddle Canoe Group, and Lemon-throated Barbet by Neil Wiken and Craig Hedlund. 

Day 2

AMAZONIAN UMBRELLABIRD FOREST, PARROT AND MACAWS CLAY LICKS, PADDLE CANOE

  • Early morning, we’ll set off by paddle canoe along the Napo River, heading toward the Amazonian Umbrellabird Forest. From there, we’ll continue to the renowned Napo River Parrot Wall Lick, where up to five species of parrots and parakeets can be seen, including the Mealy Amazon and Blue-headed Parrot. Next, we’ll walk a short, well-maintained forest trail to reach the Scarlet Macaw Clay Lick, while observing the Red Howler Monkeys and the Brown-headed Spider Monkey along the way.
  • Lunch will be served at the Interpretation Center, followed by an afternoon of birding from Napo's Observation Towers, where mixed flocks of oropendolas, aracaris, tanagers, euphonias, and macaws are commonly seen. We’ll return to the lodge in the late afternoon by paddle canoe, with possible sightings of Giant River Otters, Green and Black Anacondas, and Black Caimans along the way.
  • Targets: Blue-headed Parrot, Mealy Amazon, Yellow-crowned Amazon, Dusky-headed Parakeet, White-eyed Parakeet, Blue and Yellow Macaw, Scarlet Macaw, Orange-cheeked Parrot, Maroon-tailed Parakeet, Chestnut-fronted Macaw, Red-bellied Macaw, Black-headed Parrot, Cobalt-winged Parakeet, Crimson-crested Woodpecker, Amazonian Umbrellabird, Lettered Aracari, Many-banded Aracari, Scarlet Tanager, Plum-throated Cotinga, Yellow-tufted Woodpecker, Rufous-headed Woodpecker, Spot-breasted Woodpecker, Giant Otters, Red-Howler Monkey, Brown-headed Spider Monkey, Squirrel Monkey and others.
  • Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner 
  • Overnight Napo Wildlife Center, Standard or Panoramic Suite Cabins

Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Scarlet MacawNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Scaly breasted woodpeckerNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Napo River clay lick

Birding Photos: Scarlet Macaws, Scaly-breasted Woodpecker, Napo River Wall Lick by Diego Cruz and Craig Hedlund.

Day 3

OBSERVATION TOWER, TERRA-FIRME FOREST AND PADDLE CANOE 

  • We begin the morning with birding at the Tree Observation Tower, where you’ll witness a breathtaking Amazon sunrise and spot wildlife high above the canopy. Early hours offer great opportunities to observe macaws, hawks, sloths, monkeys, and kites. 
  • Afterwards, continue exploring the main trails of the reserve, where the flooded river forest is home to manakins, antbirds, woodcreepers, and woodpeckers. In the afternoon, paddle through the creeks around Añangu Lagoon in search of shorebirds and other heron species. Night observation of Black Caimans, Agami Heron, Nocturnal Owls and others. 
  • Targets: King Vulture, Wire-tailed Manakin, Dward Tyrant-Manakin, Golden-headed Manakin, Blue-crowned Manakin, Purplish Jacamar, Great Jacamar, White-throated Toucan, Amazonian Motmot, Sooty Antbird, Moustached Antwren, Peruvian-warbling Antbird, Black-necked Red-Cotinga, Bare-necked Fruitcrow, Yellow-rumped Cacique and others. 
  • Meals: Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner 
  • Overnight Napo Wildlife Center, Standard or Panoramic Suite Cabins

Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Chestnut eared aracariNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours DonacobiusNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Wire tailed Manakin

Birding Photos: Chestnut-eared Acarari, Black-capped Donacobious and Wire-tailed Manakin by Craig Hedlund and Diego Cruz. 

Day 4

TRANSFER TO COCA AIRPORT, FLIGHT TO QUITO, FREE NIGHT JIMENITA LODGE

  • On your final day, enjoy one last scenic canoe ride along the Napo River with great opportunities to spot Giant Otters, Hoatzins, and other Amazon wildlife. You'll return to Coca City for your included flight back to Quito. Upon arrival, you'll be picked up at the airport and transferred privately to our Jimenita Lodge, just 15 minutes away. Leisure afternoon exploring the trails of our birding reserve, visiting the hummingbird feeders and observation deck, or simply unwinding in one of our comfortable chairs while observing the sunset in the Andes. 
  • Targets: Western Emerald, White-bellied Woodstar, Black-tailed trainbearer, Blue and Grey Tanager, Blue and Yellow Tanager, Crimson-mantled Woodpecker, Sword-billed Hummingbird, Giant Hummingbird, Golden Grossbeak and others.  
  • Meals: Breakfast and Lunch 
  • FREE  NIGHT: Overnight Jimenita Birding Lodge, King Room with Chimney

Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours Spotted WoodpeckerNapo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours 1Napo Wildlife Center Amazon lodge by Ecuador Birds Tours 17

Birding Photos: Spot-breasted Woodpecker, Paddle Canoe in Anangu Creek, Anangu Lagoon by Craig Hedlund and Diego Cruz. 

Day 5

TRANSFER OUT TO THE AIRPORT 

  • 24/7 Transfer Out to the Airport after having a delicious breakfast in our Jimenita Restaurant. In case you have an early flight we will arrange a Boxed Breakfast. Thanks for choosing Ecuador Birds Tours.  
  • Meals: Breakfast 

Napo Wildlife Center Lodge

Please choose between Standard Cabin and Panoramic Suite Cabins:

Standard Cabin 

Matrimonial Beds

Standard Cabin

Exterior Deck

Standard Cabin

Bathroom

Panoramic Suite

Matrimonial Suite

Panoramic Suite

Private Jacuzzi

Panoramic Suite

King Room Bed

    Dates & Prices

    Please request special pricing for your PRIVATE Birding Tour. 

    DeparturesAvailabilityPrice per Person

    All year round Private Tours

    Private Tour

    Request Price

    Tour Inclusions

    Included

    ✔ Welcome Drink
    ✔ 24/7 Private Airport Transfers Airport-Hotel-Airport
    ✔ Excellent Accommodations either Standard or Suite Cabin
    Entrance Fees to Reserves, Hides, Feeders, Observation Towers
    ✔ Delicious and Healthy Meals as described in itinerary
     Private English-speaking Birding Guide
    Private Canoe in all activities within the lodge
     Roundtrip Local Flights Quito-Coca-Quito
    ✔ Ebird Online Birding Report
     Quality Services 

    Not Included

    ✘ Personal Expenses
    ✘ Soft and Alcoholic Drinks 
    ✘ Other Entrance Fees or Services 
    ✘ Tips

    Activities

    • Paddle Canoe
    • Napo River Parrots Wall Lick 
    • Napo Wildlife Parrots and Macaws Clay Lick 
    • Terra-firme Manakin Trails 
    • Giant Otter Observation
    • 3 Observation Towers 
    • Night Excursions 

    Testimonials

    2024 – Birding Review Ecuador: Birding Tour

    ★★★★★

    Organization of our trip by Ecuador Bird Tours was excellent. Miguel, our bird guide, was a very perceptive and competent bird expert, and due to him we saw a lot of species which we couldn’t discern visually nor hear. And we experience great hospitality in Hacienda Jimenita, being the main base of our trip and belonging to the owners of Ecuador Birds Tours agency. - Tomasz, Poland

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Fantastic 15-Day Birding Adventure in Ecuador

    ★★★★★

    "My wife and I had a wonderful time on this 15-day bird private tour with Ecuador Birds Tours (EBT).  Diego was wonderful tailoring our trip to our desires, and answering all of our pre-trip questions. All the logistics during our trip were smooth as can be. The lodges were great and much nicer than what I had expected. The food provided by the lodges was wonderful and we felt very spoiled! The staffs at the lodges were very friendly and eager to please and help. We highly recommend Ecuador Birds Tours for folks who want to be immersed in discovering the wonderful bird life of Ecuador. Not having to worry about driving, safety, safe food/water, or the best spots to find birds made this a stressless adventure. This is a professional, well-run operation and we are super happy we went with Ecuador Birds Tours!" - Mike and Amedee Long from USA

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Excellent guide, amazing birds

    ★★★★★

    "I saw over 100 birds with Ecuador Birds Tours! They know all there is to know about birds and can identify them from a fleeting glance or a very far off call. Everywhere we went was full of birds and Ivan knows just where to look and how to call them out so you can see them. His knowledge of birds, and enthusiasm for finding them is unparalleled. Highly recommended! - Suzanne from Australia

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Worth more than five stars really

    ★★★★★

    "Did a 14 day trip with my own guide. Everything ran smoothly from being collected at the airport to being returned there. My guide had excellent skills and knowledge and worked really hard to maximise the number of birds we could find. 500 birds and eleven mammals including spectacled bear says it all. The company clearly has very good relationships with the lodges and local guide so we were treated well. If I can return in the future to go further down into the Amazon Basin I will use them again". - David Jones, United Kingdom

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Super Birding Company

    ★★★★★
    "Diego and Ecuador Birds Tour did an awesome job planning my 4 night birding and photography trip to Ecuador. I would highly recommend them for both photographers and those just looking to see a lot of birds. Diego helped me when one of my luggage was delayed over 24 hours requiring him to pick it up at the airport at almost midnight the night before I was scheduled to head to the Western cloud forests. I saw all the birds on my list and was able to get great photos with the help of my guide Roberto. It was a great start to my trip to Ecuador" Sabrina, USA

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Terrific Birding and Superb Trip Organization

    ★★★★★
    "Seeing birds, lots of them, and adding lifers is exactly what you want a birding trip to be. You get this and much more with Ecuador Bird Tours most capably managed by Diego Cruz. The exceptional guides provided by Ecuador Birds Tours: Miguel for six days and Oscar for three were often accompanied by a second, and sometimes even a third local guide.  I saw more than 300 species in 8 days of birding. This included a Harpy, 26 other birds of prey, 28 Hummingbirds, and well over 100 lifers. Also, within an hour of arrival we saw a spectacled bear and a giant anteater and anaconda at Sacha (and we saw 3 species of monkeys, 2 species of squirrels, agouti, and other animals).This was my second trip with Ecuador Birds Tours, and I really hope to go again." David Northrup, Canada

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: 10 day tailored tour with Ecuador Bird Tours

    ★★★★★
    "My wife and I cannot recommend this company enough. The lodges we stayed at on our tour included Hacienda Jimenita, Sachatamia Lodge, and San Isidro Lodge. They were all fantastic and the grounds of Jimenita were both gorgeous and fun to explore and there were some neat bird art pieces around the lodge. Food throughout the tour was exceptional.We will absolutely be doing business with this company again and highly recommend them for your future travel needs." Robert Qually, USA

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Fantastic tour with great guides and lodging

    ★★★★★
    "My wife and I had the pleasure of going on Ecuador Bird Tours excursion for our 40th anniversary. The trip vastly exceeded our expectations! From the welcome we received at La Jimeneta to our final day, Diego and his staff treated us like family. Our guides were amazing making sure that we got on the bird as well as finding the best angle for a photo. We managed to see all our target birds and many more. The guides on our first two days were Daniel and Roberto, great guides and extremely knowledgeable. The remaining days we had Marcelo. At the end of our 10 days we counted 330 birds, 238 lifers and took about 1300 photos. I highly recommend Ecuador Bird Tours, Diego and his staff will tailor a tour for your goals and interests. We are planning another tour to the Amazon region with them hopefully in the near future" Walt and Sharon, USA

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: Ecuador Birds Tours deserves all the stars!

    ★★★★★
    "You will be one of the family as soon as you start your conversations with Ecuador Birds Tours. We went for 10 days of birdwatching and 5 days in Galapagos. Ecuador Birds Tours was outstanding every minute of every day. The staff was attentive without being intimidating, the service was top-notch, the birder guides were well-informed and expert, always willing to go the extra mile to make sure you had a wonderful experience. We visited several of the family's reserves and birding lodges and they were all outstanding and dedicated to warm hospitality, great birding experiences and the preservation and conservation of the ecosystem of the Eastern and Western slopes of the Andes. Our only regret was that our time was so short. Would recommend Ecuador Birds Tours to anyone thinking about a birding trip to South America" Pari and Charles, USA

    2025 – Birding Report Ecuador: 400 Lifes in Southern Ecuador!

    ★★★★★

    "Jorge really knows his birds! He has a fantastic ear as well! The birds don’t seem to care if it is raining. We probably missed a few forest ground birds, but we did see almost 400 different species and a whole lot of them for the first time. The lodges were all wonderful, well equipped, friendly staff and great local food. We were over fed everywhere.We did miss one lodge due to road closure, but we felt lucky that we got to all the others! The last lodge ,at 11,500 feet, was spectacular!! With piles of wonderful food and postres and a room with an incredible view! We will highly recommend Ecuador Birds Tours if anyone asks!! - Sally Fellows, USA

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