Coorg Birding - Tariffs

The client will be provided with an experienced guide who knows the locations well and is able to communicate in excellent english.

The guide will do his best to ensure that the birding trip is a satisfying experience.

The daily guide fee will vary depending on which guide is available for your dates. Please contact us for more details.

Transport charges will be extra at Rs 14 per kilometer. Vehicle of choice will be an SUV equipped with large open windows which provide all round visibility for viewing and photographing birds and wildlife.

Depending on the species you would like to view, we will suggest locations and use the appropriate vehicle for the trip so that walking will be minimised.

Personal service, and getting to know each of our guests and their individual needs and interests is at the heart of what we do. We want to make sure you get the very most out of your experience.

Coorg Birding - Testimonials

In early September 2014, I and five other public health researchers, from three countries, were privileged to do a long weekend in the Western Ghats with Bopanna Pattada as our guide. Although a few of us had been to that region before, we had never been with a birding guide, and indeed some members of the group were novices unfamiliar with any of the local avifauna. Despite this challenge, Bopanna skillfully managed to find and show us nearly 90 wonderful species during our three day tour, including several local endemics, and a few real rarities, in the beautiful forests of Coorg, his homeland in the Western Ghats. We were able to see a group of more than twenty Wynaad Laughing Thrush, the Malabar Trogon and the Sri Lanka Frogmouth. Moreover, he was especially kind to the novices, helping them to get their "bins on the bird", even in dense undergrowth. And his skill with birdsong is exceptional - he is never stumped by any sound in the forest. Above and beyond his paramount skill as a bird guide, he is a fountain of knowledge about the complex cultural and historical context of the Coorg people's settlement in the region. The small inn at which we stayed both nights was run by a charming Coorg family, who showed us the utmost hospitality and gave us a real feel for life and culture there. I have used tropical forest bird guides on five continents, and Bopanna is the best I have met -- highly recommended.

Prof John Frank - University of Edinburgh

I had the opportunity after a business trip to escape the hustle of Bangalore and take 3 days in Bopanna's company in his beloved Coorg. It was a real pleasure to be guided around his local patch his knowledge of bird calls and sites was invaluable and he possesses an ability to seemingly predict the next bird species to appear. These skills allowed me to connect with all my target species and amass a species list of more than 140 species on the trip. Sri Lanka Frogmouth was a real highlight. However the success of the trip was also in allowing me to experience a different side to India, Bopanna has a great knowledge of his homeland and was adept at answering all my questions on Indian life, this is a true skill given that the traffic around Bangalore can necessitate a few hours of travelling time and this passed much easier with some lively conversation. Finally Bopanna also provides all the support needed in organising the trip,he is punctual, his vehicle was a pleasure to travel in, he can deal with any logistical or last minute changes in plan and he also provides through his photography an impressive set of images to remember the time. I look forward to another visit and more time with Bops.

Kit Britten, United Kingdom

 

I took another business trip to Bangalore in late Feb/early March 2011, and managed to get three days to go birding again with Bopanna in the Western Ghats foothills. We stayed at a wonderful birding lodge in a shade-grown coffee plantation. This was a fantastic location with a huge number of species, and variety of bird life. In two morning's walks, we picked up around 120 species, including a number of endemics, and treats such as Malabar Hornbill, Crimson-fronted Barbet, and many Malabar Parakeets. We also had staggering views of Sri-Lankan Frogmouth at a nearby location. The sound of Elephants at night crashing through the bamboo in the forest across the river, the sky at night, and the away-from-it-all feel were the perfect foil to busy Bangalore business! Bopanna was the perfect guide and host again, with tremendous knowledge and enthusiasm, and ensured that I had an excellent time, with many new birds also, on the trip to and from Bangalore. I can't wait to get back, and share some more wonderful wildlife and scenery with Bopanna, whom I cannot recommend strongly enough to make your Southern Indian birding time very productive and most enjoyable.

Simon Lane - Chatham, NJ, USA

We want to offer our enthusiastic endorsement of Bopanna (also known as “Bops”) as a birding and photography guide. We spent three days on a birding trip with Bops in December. We traveled with him from Bangalore to Nagarhole National Park and other prime birding areas in the Coorg region of Southwest. He was a superb bird guide and an outstanding photographer, and he took care of us in all ways. He arranged a stay for us at a very pleasant bed and breakfast on a coffee plantation. During the course of our trip, we saw over 120 species. Tom is an enthusiastic, although not particularly experienced, bird photographer and, with the help of Bops, he photographed about 70 species. Based on his extensive knowledge of the area, Bops guided us to locales that were known to be preferred sites for specific birds (plantations, lakes, etc.). In addition, he showed us a variety of other animals in the national park including giant tree squirrels, spotted deer, and the amazingly large water buffalo-like gaur. In all, we had a great time, both observing birds and learning about India.

Rosann & Pete Farber, USA

 

Thanks to you Bopanna for a great trip! It was the highlight of our India trip. The western ghats birding was very relaxing and Gillian and I really enjoyed seeing the elephants and the birds. Hope to see you again.

Björn & Gillian - Norway

 

Being an amateur photographer with interest in Birding, I was searching the web to find some guide who could take me around to show some birds in and around the Western Ghats. To my surprise, I met not a guide, but a Master. Bopanna is the Best when comes to wild life photography particularly birds. He knows birding sites like the back of his hand. With his thorough knowledge about birds, their different types of call and location and his skills in photography he has instilled me enthusiasm and motivation. Want to spend some quality time in leisure? Bops is the Best. Last but not the least; you will never miss his home-made chicken sandwiches when you are touring with him.

Sundaresan Sivabalan, Chennai