Eastern Australia
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Overview
Highlights
- Visit a diversity of habitats from mangroves to savannas to mature rainforest to discover amazing wildlife, extraordinary birds and unique mammals!
- Great Barrier Reef cruise to a coral cay and bird sanctuary
- Daintree River cruise and optional pelagic trip to view a plethora of seabirds
- Spectucular Lamington NP in attempt to find Albert's Lyrebird
- Mission Beach which has the largest population of Southern Cassawary
- A superb country of excellent infrastructure and hospitable people
What's this trip about?
Details
Travel Themes
Destinations
Attractions
Activities
Trip includes
- All accommodations
- All meals
- Ground transportation
- Pelagic boat trip included
- Guides
Itinerary
Arrival in Cairns. We spend the day at local birding locations including Cairns Esplanade and adjacent mangroves, Centenary Lakes and Botanic Gardens. The Esplanade is a hotspot for waders on their southerly migration and often includes unusual species such as Asian D...
Today we take a Great Barrier Reef cruise. From Cairns we board our comfortable vessel, the Ocean Spirit, for a relaxing two hour cruise out to Michaelmas Cay, a true coral cay and bird sanctuary located 40km north-east of Cairns, part of the 2000 km long Great Barrie...
Our destination today is the Daintree River, where we take a pleasant cruise through farmland and rainforest on the look-out for Great-billed Heron, Little Kingfisher, White-rumped Swiftlet, Cicadabird, Spectacled Monarch, Pied Imperial-Pigeon, Black-necked Stork and ...
Kingfisher Park Birdwatchers’ Lodge, on the northern edge of the Tableland, caters exclusively to birders. Within the grounds are Wompoo Fruit-Dove, Emerald Dove, Noisy Pitta, Red-necked Crake, Buff-banded Rail, Lesser Sooty Owl, Black-faced Monarch and an array of ho...
The Atherton Tableland is a region of beautiful scenery with lakes and waterfalls, green pastures, savanna, open woodlands and scattered wetlands nestled in national parks and state forests, as well as Queensland’s highest mountains rising to over 1600m. Birding can b...
We head back to Cairns, stopping occasionally to look for specialties such as Rufous Owl and White-browed Robin. Time permitting, we will check the Esplanade and other locations for any species we might have missed on the first day and any new arrivals. Overnight Cairns.
We catch an early morning flight to Brisbane and drive to the Green Mountains in Lamington National Park. This park covers most of the spectacular Lamington Plateau, a geologically fascinating plateau with deep gorges and caves that drops into the caldera of an extinc...
We have another full day of birding in the area surrounding O’Reilly’s in Lamington National Park. Overnight O’Reilly’s.
We spend the day transferring to Brisbane airport for an evening flight to Sydney. On arrival we transfer to Wollongong for the night. Overnight Wollongong area.
Today we have an all-day optional pelagic trip out of Wollongong to the edge of the continental shelf. Beyond the shelf, the ocean floor drops abruptly to depths of more than 4000 m. We could encounter a plethora of seabirds – shearwaters including Flesh-footed, Flutt...
We visit coastal heathlands of Barren Grounds Nature Reserve for a chance at the critically endangered Eastern Bristlebird, as well as Powerful Owl, Superb Lyrebird, Fan-tailed Cuckoo, Southern Emu-wren, Brush Wattlebird, Rockwarbler, Pilotbird and Ground Parrot. We then head inland to the Blue Mountains. Overnight in the Blue Mountains.
Wetlands in this area support White-faced Heron, Straw-necked Ibis, Pink-eared & Blue-billed Ducks, Australasian Shoveler, Gray Teal, Hardhead, Hoary-headed & Australasian Grebes, Masked Lapwing, Sacred Kingfisher and Australian Reed Warbler. Dry sandstone hil...
Today we spend time looking for species missed up to now, perhaps Black Duck, Chestnut Teal, Swamphen, Wandering and Plumed Whistling-Ducks, or Fuscous, White-plumed and White-naped Honeyeaters. Overnight Sydney.
Transfer to the airport for flights home.
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Dates & Availability
Check Current Availability, prices, specials with Eagle-Eye Tours.
The total tour cost includes the tour price (regular or promotional) and the compulsory local payment. The promotional price is subject to change. Check directly with the operator for the latest price offer. The tour operator requires you to pay only the tour price to purchase your travel. The compulsory local payment will be paid when you join the trip. All prices are based on double, twin or triple share occupancy. Solo passengers will be accommodated in a double, twin or triple room according to availability with a passenger(s) of the same gender. Single supplement only needs to be paid if the passenger does not want to share and requests their own room. Discounts can only be applied at the time of booking and cannot be added at a later date, regardless of any changes made to the original booking.
Prices may vary due to local taxes and trip seasonality. Click "Request Info" to inquire directly with the tour operator for the final trip price.
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Tour Operator
Our tours are diverse! We span the globe offering tours that range from being very focused on birds to those of a more general nature that also include lots of local cultural interests. All our guides are not only expert birders but also are appreciative of all nature. Many of our tours spend considerable time looking closely at mammals, plants or butterflies. It is not necessary for you to be an experienced birder; all you need is enthusiasm and our guides will be happy to help you along!
A typical day with Eagle-Eye Tours
Our land tours typically start early, after breakfast at our hotel, to be out when birding is best. Sometimes we are out before breakfast for a quick search for a target bird or mammal. We head out by foot, car or boat to a choice area, maybe forest or maybe a wetland, taking in the sights and sounds of the morning. We move along as a small group, making every effort to ensure that the everyone gets to see the beautiful tanager, or majestic grizzly bear through the spotting scope. We might stop for that important cup of locally grown coffee before heading further down the road to where we saw that great bird building a nest last year. Lunches are most often in the field, usually at a very good birding spot, with a cold drink or a cup of coffee. We have a chance to share stories and reflect on the morning adventure. After lunch we carry on in an area, maybe returning to the hotel in mid-afternoon for a rest, then a shorter excursion to explore another area. Over our evening meal, we meet as a group to record and discuss what we saw and review the plans for the coming day. Some evenings we may head back out for a night tour to experience the nocturnal world of owls, potoos, frogs and much more.
Expedition Cruises
Our expedition cruises are an intimate and wonderful way to learn about and experience remote parts of the world. These small ships have the ability to land virtually anywhere using zodiacs, providing excellent opportunities for exploration. Staff onboard typically cover birds and other wildlife, geology, history, local culture, photography, archaeology, and more. We usually have one or two shore landings per day that may visit a wildlife highlight, a local community, a historical site, or just an interesting looking area that we think deserves some exploration. Add in a couple of lectures, fine dining, and some live music in the evening and you have a full day on an unforgettable voyage of discovery. Voyage with us to these seldom visited and remarkable places!
About our featured birds and mammals
These are the great and often very unique species that we will be looking for. We cannot guarantee that we will see them, only that there is a good chance of seeing them. Beyond these exciting species, we are always on the look out for other surprises-you just never know what we may see!
Tour group size
We believe that small groups are essential for a high quality and enjoyable experience. Unless otherwise noted, our land tour groups have a single leader with 4 to 8 people and two leaders with 9 to 12 people.
About our accommodation and transportation
Typically, our land tours stay in modern, comfortable hotels, but this varies somewhat depending on the tour. On most tours, we stay in beautiful lodges in the forest with trails out the back door. These amazing settings are often a highlight of the tour. In other cases, in order to get to the best locations for birding or wildlife viewing, we may be far away from a modern hotel and the ‘best room in town’ may be more basic. In a few cases, we even stay in tents for the full wilderness experience! For each tour, we have identified the level of accommodation in the tour summary and on the detailed itinerary. If you have any questions about accommodation on a tour, please feel free to ask and we can give you more specifics.
When traveling between birding locations, typically we travel in comfortable vans or buses, often with local drivers who are familiar with the roads and destinations. Usually, there is only one vehicle, as the sizes of our groups are typically small, but occasionally there will be two vehicles that keep in contact with each other by radio. In some tours, we use airplane flights to cover large distances and in a few cases we travel by boat, often with fantastic scenery and wildlife watching along the way!
About our prices
We will make every effort to charge the prices quoted in our catalog or detailed itineraries, but fluctuations in major currencies may force us to change tour prices at any time before departure. Current prices are listed on our website and reflect payment by cash/cheque. Prices for payment by credit card are higher, please contact us for these prices. Nearly all fees are quoted in US and Canadian dollars and can be paid in either currency. Contact us for payment in other currencies. Single rooms, as available, will be provided upon request for an additional fee. For participants traveling alone but wishing to share a room, Eagle-Eye Tours will arrange for a roommate, if possible. If a roommate is not available, the single supplement will be charged.
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Logistics
What's excluded
- Two internal flights additional ($333)
- Travel to and from start/end location
- Travel Insurance
- Items of a personal nature
Notification of cancellation must be received in writing. Unless otherwise noted, the following policy applies: if cancellation is received up to 120 days prior to departure, full deposit and any payment, less a $100 (USD and CAD) will be refunded. If cancellation is received between 60 and 119 days prior to departure, 50% of the tour fee is not refundable. Thereafter, all deposits and payments are not refunded. Refunds cannot be made to participants who do not complete the tour for any reason.
Our daily travel schedule varies. Most days involve a full day of birding, usually with a picnic lunch in a prime birding spot. Driving distances vary from short to moderate, with long drives on a few days. We make frequent stops during each day’s travel. You can expect some early morning walks. This tour involves easy to moderate walking and hiking, with frequent short forays away from the van. Most days we return in late afternoon to our accommodation. After-dinner activities are optional.
Climate of these regions changes from seasonably warm to mild as we head further south. October is normally settled, with temperatures in Cairns averaging 75°F (24C) with a humidity of 54%, very pleasant for birding. In Cairns a light jacket is recommended for our trip to the reef in case onshore winds are cool. Most days are warm or hot, dry and sunny, but overcast conditions are frequent with possible rain and high humidity in coastal areas. The sun can be intense, so sunscreen and a brimmed hat are advised. Wet weather protection is recommended with light waterproof pants and jacket ideal.
Our itinerary includes two internal flights, not included in the price of the tour, and one open ocean optional pelagic trip, which might be cool. At Kingfisher Park some rooms have shared bathroom facilities. The list of birds and other wildlife seen will be reviewed each evening, and plans for the next day discussed. Plans could change slightly if reports of vagrant or accidental species, within reasonable driving distance, are received. Spotting scopes will be useful on this trip, especially at coastal locations; the leader will have a scope for the group to share.
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