Best Season: Nov – April (dry season for easier bird sightings)
Location: Siem Reap, Kampong Thom, and Preah Vihear Province.
Duration: 2 Days / 1 Nights
GIANT IBIS AT TMAT BOEY – 2 DAYS / 2 NIGHT
The high season for birdwatching in Cambodia starts from November to April (Peak: Jan-Feb-Mar), when water levels are low, Sarus Cranes return, and Bengal Florican displays are visible. That’s the best time slot for birding and bird photography in Cambodia. I would like to recommend tours starting from December to the end of April. This plan combines Cambodia’s most important birding sites with conservation-based tourism, maximizing your chances of seeing all your target species.
Cambodia birding tour highlights include: Giant Ibis, Greater Adjutant, Milky Stork, Rufous-bellied Woodpecker, White-shouldered Ibis, Spot-billed Pelican, Bengal Florican, Sarus Crane, White-rumped Falcon, Black-headed Woodpecker, and Yellow-crowed Woodpecker, Oriental Scops Owl, Spotted Wood Owl, Brown Wood Owl, Brown Fish Owl, Singing Bush lark, Oriental Skylark, Oriental Pratincole, Common buttonquail, Pied Harrier, Eastern Marsh-harrier, Bluethroat, Red Avadavat, Burmese Nuthatch, Burmese Shrike, Woolly-necked Stork, White-browed Fantail, Rufous Treepie, Rufous Treepie, Small Minivet, Common Woodshrike, Indochinese Cuckooshrike. Black-headed Woodpecker, Great Slaty Woodpecker, Yellow-crowned Woodpecker and Rufous-bellied Woodpecker, and White-rumped Falcon, Pale-capped Pigeon, Black-hooded and Black-naped Orioles, Golden-fronted Leafbird.
Itinerary
Tmatboey is a small and isolated Khmer village of more than five hundred families situated within the Khulen Promtep Wildlife Sanctuary. The Tmatboey Ibis Site is a conservation project established by the Wildlife Conservation Society as a partnership with the Cambodian Government and the villagers of Tmatboey. Tmatboey is a remote community ecotourism site in Cambodia’s Northern Plains, known for hosting the critically endangered Giant Ibis, Cambodia’s national bird, and the elusive White-shouldered Ibis. A Three-day and Two-night tour will offer a unique experience of staying in a local eco-lodge, supporting community-based conservation
Day 1: Bengal Florican Grassland
- 05.00 am pick up from hotel by English-speaking bird guide (with packed breakfast from Siem Reap).
- 06.30 am arrive Florican grassland and have breakfast while bird watching at the Grassland.
- 10.00 am have lunch at a restaurant in Beng Mealea
- 1:00 pm travel to Tmatboey community
- 3:00 pm arrive Tmatboey, relax time, and look at the Giant ibis and white-shouldered ibis at the roosting tree.
- 6:30 pm night walk for owl and dinner
Day 2: Full Day Bird Watching At Tmatboey
- 4:30 am, packed tea, coffee, and breakfast, moving to the Giant ibis roosting tree
- 6:00 am go bird watching till 11:00 am
- 11:30 am lunch time at the community restaurant
- 01:00 pm continue birding again in another way till 04:30 pm
- 06:30 pm dinner and overnight
Day 3: Full Day Birding At Tmatboey and Presh Vihear Temple
- 06:30 am tea and coffee time, and heading to Presh Vihear temple
- 08:00 am visit the temple and go bird watching at the temple
- 12:00 am lunch time at the local restaurant
- 01:00 pm turn back to the Siem Reap hotel to stop bird watchin
- 05:00 pm arrive Siem Reap hotel and drop off
Tour Details
Tour Cost: 1150$ for two people
Single Supplement: 80$ (Note: single accommodation) it will probably not be available at Tmat Boey,
Included in the tour cost: All transport including airport transfers, road tolls, national park and all reserve entry fees, accommodation in Tmatboey, all meals from Lunch, dinner, and breakfast on the day of departure, bottled drinking water, boat trips, services of English-speaking birding guide and Temple Tours guide.
Not included in the tour cost: International flights, travel insurance, entry visa, alcoholic and soft drinks, tips, laundry, hotel mini bar, phone calls, and any other items of a personal nature.
Accommodation: Our stay at Thmat Boey will be in a local eco lodge that has simple private shower/toilet facilities with fans in the rooms.
Physical effort: This trip does not require any great physical effort in terms of long uphill hikes, but does require that participants are fit enough to walk, sometimes for 3-4 kilometres in hot conditions. The walking is mostly on a flat landscape, but some walking on even ground is needed to search for some key species. The physical effort required is well within the capabilities of most healthy people with the ability to deal with tropical climates.
Weather: Hot and dry weather is expected throughout this tour. There is always the possibility of a shower or two, given the world’s changing climate, but it is likely to be dry most, if not all, of the time. Midday temperatures are likely to be very hot, but most of the woodland sites we visit have low humidity. Wetland sites, however, can be fairly humid by their very nature. The tour has been paced so that we have plenty of time and are not forced to be birding throughout the heat of the day to see most of the birds.
Note: Other things to bring: hat, sunglasses, sunscreen, insect repellent, and binoculars.
| Group size | 1 pax | 2pax | 3pax | 4pax |
| Price/pax | $ | $ | $ | $ |
Best Season: December–April (dry season, best for Giant Ibis sightings)
Tour Includes: Private birding guide, transport, park fees, accommodation, meals as per itinerary, community conservation fee.
Tour Excludes: Personal expenses, alcoholic drinks, and tips.
