West Papua


1 - 19 October 2023

The island of New Guinea, north of Australia, is arguably an island-continent, where evolution has gone mad with birds, notably the extraordinary architects, landscape gardeners and collectors known as Bowerbirds, and especially the aptly-named Birds-of-paradise, the males of which are among the most amazing birds on Earth. Not just colorful and special, but unique and several of them with extraordinary courtship or leking behaviors. A dream to experience for any bird watcher with an international interest. They come in all shapes and sizes, from the tiny 'blood and snow' King Bird-of-paradise to the huge heron-sized dark and sinister looking Black Sicklebill, with everything imaginable in between. As many as 400 bird species of New Guinea are endemic.

This trip is an adventure and a challenge with hikes on muddy trails in undulated terrain, basic or even simple accommodation (some nights), biting insects, hot, sticky days and cold nights. The bird watching here is known to be among the most challenging in the world, there may be days when most birds seem to have disappeared but these should be more than compensated for by others with spectacular rewards. We will visit legendary areas like the Arfak mountains, Nimbokrang and the archipelago of Raja Ampat.

This time we are also going to a recently opened site/area called Malagufuk. It involves a two-hour drive and an hour walk to reach this small village surrounded by some pristine lowland forests. The site has recently built up a reputation for offering views of a good bunch of normally very hard to see-specialities among the Papuan avifauna. The stay here is basic with shared toilets. We will stay here for 2 nights to look for Magnificent Riflebird, King Bop, Common- & Red-breasted Paradise Kingfisher, Yellow-billed- & Hook-billed Kingfishers, New Guinea Dwarf Kingfisher, Papuan- & Hooded Pitta, Western Crowned Pigeon and if we are lucky maybe even the Northern Cassowary.

Birdwatching in the West Papua (Irian Jaya) is on many people’s dream wish list. It is also some of the best birding in Indonesia. From steamy lowland swamp forest, to lush mountain forests, to remote islands, Papua has a great variety of habitats and a great variety of birds to match. Birding in Papua is also not as hard as you might imagine. If you’d rather not try birding independently, we are offering you a trip to West Papua, to see the Birds-of-Paradise.

For those who want to see all Birds-of-Paradise, it requires journeys to both east (Papua Nya Guinea) and west Papua (Irian Jaya). West is less developed in terms of infrastructure, about half as expensive and the best area for Red Bird-of-paradise & Wilson's Bird-of-paradise (both endemic here). Western Parotia and Magnificent Bird-of-paradise are only likely to see dancing and displaying in West Papua. MacGregor's Honeyeater (a former bird-of-paradise) is usually on the beaten track in West Papua but a long way off it in Papua New Guinea.

Day 1
We arrive at Jakarta. Your tour leader will receive you at the airport. We will then check into a city hotel near the airport.


Day 2
We have the day free, we can spend the morning at Ragunan Zoo (at shared costs). Later in the evening after dinner we will take a flight to Jayapura/ Sentani.


Day 3-5
We arrive here in the morning. We will then drive for an hour and a half to the village of Nimbokrang. We stay at out guides home for 3 nights looking for the various gems on offer, King BoP, 12-Wired BoP, Pale-billed Sicklebill, Eclectus Parrots, Palm Cockatoos, Triton Cockatoos, Manucodes, Butcherbirds, Fawn-breasted Bowerbirds, Papuan Frogmouth and much more. Here we have to start early morning before the birds wake up and reach the lekking areas and wait for the birds to come and display. Some of the walking is on wooden planks and wet soft grounds. And in some places we will be walking uphill for short distances to reach the lekking grounds. If we don't encounter rain, the day heats up by 10 am and birds disappear in the deep forests. We will retire too. We will be birding in the afternoon again til sundown.

Day 6
Today after morning birdwatching we will take a short flight to Manokwari. We will go straight for shopping for rations and then drive for 2 hours to Siyubri Village in a 4X4 pickup. We will reach the village in the dark.


Day 7-10
Next few days we will spend mornings sitting in hides and then trekking to the upper campus camps looking for various species of birds like Black Sicklebill, Long-tailed Paradigala, Magnificent BoP, Arfak Astrapia, Western Parotias, Vogelkop Bowerbirds, various Cuckoo-doves and Imperial Pigeons.


Day 11
Today after morning birding we return to Manokwari for the night. Night halt in a City Hotel and some well-deserved rest & laundry.


Day 12
Today early morning we fly to Sorong. From there we will shop for ration and drive 2 hrs to the road head for Malagufuk. We will walk for an hour through the swamp forest to reach the village. Stay is basic.. but the rewards are fantastic. Here we will look for Magnificent Riflebird, King BoP, Red-breasted- & Common Paradise Kingfisher, Papuan Pitta, Black Lory, Northern Cassowary, Western Crowned Pigeon etc.


Day 13
We spend the whole day here birding.


Day 14
After morning birding we will head for Sorong to catch the afternoon ferry to Waisai. We will stay in a dive resort. This emerald island also provides some great snorkelling opportunities. Snorkelling gear is available at the dive resort for free.


Day 15-16
Next two days we will spend looking for the target species Red BoP & Wilson BoP here. The other birds here are the Brown-necked Crow, Western Crowned Pigeons, Glossy-mantled Manucodes, Red-cheeked Parrots, Lesser Frigatebirds, Claret-breasted Fruit Dove, Pinon Imperial Pigeons, Black-capped Lories.


Day 17
We will take the morning ferry and return to Sorong. And then fly to Jakarta.


Day 18
Today you connect international flights.



Birds of paradise-video! (Youtube, opens in new window)


More details about the trip (pdf)



The journey is a collaboration between BirdSafarisweden and Karlmark Travel. (Karlmark Travels holds the travel warranty insurance that covers this trip)


Dates: 1 - 19 October 2023


Price: 66.300 SEK, (flight excluded) We offer to book your tickets. It´s important for us and our ground operator that we arrive together or around the same time.

Max number of participants : 8 persons + tour leader:

Included:
Full board accommodation in double room, camping some of the days in Nimbokrang, English spoken tour leader and local bird guide the whole trip, all transports, all entrance fees to national parks and reserves.

Not included:
Air ticket, transfer to your airport, insurance (Note that EU-insurance card does not apply here), alcohol, souvenirs or other personal expenses, tips, etc.

Vaccinations: Hepatit A&B (Twinrix), Malaria tablets to bring.

Tour leader: Zsombor Karolyi + Local guides

Application fee: When you´ve applied we send you an invoice on 3.500 SEK when that is paid you are guaranteed a seat on the tour.

Other: This is a "mixed group" trip where Swedish- and English-speaking travelers are welcome.