Itinerary

Day 1 - Arrival in Grenada
The trip begins at Grenada's Port Saline International Airport where you will be met and transferred to our hotel. We'll settle into our lodgings, and look around the grounds for widespread species such as Tropical Mockingbird, House Wren (a very rufous form!), Cocoa and Bare-eyed Thrushes, and Shiny Cowbird, and possibly a South American species reaching its northern limit here, such as Blue-black Grassquit. Night in Grenada, the southernmost island of the Lesser Antilles.

Day 2 - Grenada
Our target bird this morning is Grenada Dove, the only endemic on the island. It has become very scarce in recent years, and we will have to be alert to find this quiet and elusive bird. We will likely find Eared and Zenaida Dove, Yellow-bellied Elaenia and Grenada Flycatcher while searching for the dove, and maybe the local race of Hook-billed Kite and the rufous-headed race of Wilson’s Plover. Our itinerary for the rest of the day will depend upon our luck in locating the dove. Night in Grenada

Day 3 - Grenada - St. Vincent
We have the morning for searching out a species or two that we haven't already found, and then we board our plane for the small island of St. Vincent, famous for its black sand beaches and its rugged mountainous interior. Time permitting, we may visit the Kingstown Botanical Gardens for Grenada Flycatcher, Short-tailed Swift, and the St. Vincent races of House Wren (that looks more like a Carolina Wren) and Bananaquit, which is mostly black. Night in St. Vincent.

Day 4 - St. Vincent
There are two species endemic to St. Vincent, the smartly-plumaged Whistling Warbler and the gaudy St. Vincent Parrot. We visit a forest reserve in the interior of the island where both species can be found with some regularity. Reaching the spots where the parrot can be found involves a fair hike, but the trails are good and we can cover the trail at a leisurely pace. There are several other species that we would hope to find as well, including Common Black (Crab) Hawk, Ruddy Quail-Dove, Grenada Flycatcher, Lesser Antillean Tanager, Brown Trembler and the unique race of the Rufous-throated Solitaire. With luck on our side, we will have located our target birds by noon.

We leave St. Vincent in the late afternoon and fly to our next island, Dominica, one of the most delightful islands we visit on our tour. Night in Dominica

Day 5 - Dominica
Dominica is an absolute gem! A small, intensely green island with lush forested mountainsides that rise to almost 5000 feet to the cloud-topped summits. It is in these surroundings that we search for some exquisite and rare species.

There are two endemic species to Dominica, and both are Parrots. Both Red-necked Parrot and Imperial Parrot can be found in the Northern Forest Reserve, and we organize our day around locating both species. The best times to find parrots are usually early morning and late evening, and we make an early start this day to give ourselves the best chance of finding these threatened species.

Dominica is also home to several other choice birds. The Blue-headed Hummingbird is only found here and on Martinique, and we will endeavour to locate it on Dominica. Lesser Antillean Swift and Lesser Antillean Flycatcher also occur in the forest reserve, as does Forest Thrush, Red-legged Thrush, Rufous-throated Solitaire and the delightful Plumbeous Warbler. Night in Dominica.

Day 6 - Dominica – St. Lucia
Our itinerary this morning depends on how successful we were yesterday. If the parrots have eluded us so far, then we will make another effort to find them both.
After lunch, we board the plane for our next island, St. Lucia, one of the most attractive of tourist locations - sand beaches, clear waters sheltering reefs with a myriad tropical fish, interior rainforests, and a thriving culture. It also boasts several endemic and near-endemic species which we target during our stay on the island. Night in St. Lucia.

Day 7 - St. Lucia
We start early to reach the best localities for four St. Lucian endemics; the St. Lucia Black Finch, the St. Lucia Oriole, the St. Lucia Warbler and the superb St. Lucia Parrot. We have a good chance of finding all of these target species, as well as another possible endemic, the St. Lucia Pewee. Another species that we target, if we have not already found it elsewhere, is Gray Trembler – a unique and unusual species. Night in St. Lucia.

Day 8 - St. Lucia
We have the morning free before we catch our plane to the next island, the French island of Martinique. Night in Martinique.

Day 9 - Martinique
Martinique has become one of the most popular and populous tourist areas in the Caribbean. There are however two species of birds that the island is noted for, the endemic Martinique Oriole, which occurs in the higher forests of mountains in the interior of the island, and the near endemic White-breasted Thrasher, an inhabitant of dry lowland forest in coastal regions. The thrasher is one of the rarest birds in the Caribbean, and indeed in the world, and we devote much of the morning to finding this species. If we have not found the oriole whilst searching for the thrasher, then we visit the montane rain forest of the Pitons du Carbet. Our afternoon will be one of relaxation, either on the beach by our hotel or exploration of the historic attractions of the island. Night in Martinique.

Day 10 - Martinique - Antigua
We leave Martinique today and travel to the island of Antigua. Antigua is a low-lying fairly arid island famous for its beaches and cricketers! It hosts several Caribbean endemics, and we target these species during our leisurely stay on the island: Lesser Antillean Bullfinch, Green-throated Carib, Antillean Crested Hummingbird and Antillean Euphonia. We also look for White-crowned Pigeon and the Lesser Antillean race of the Yellow Warbler.

Antigua has a few ponds that can be excellent for waterbirds and migrating shorebirds. Herons, egrets, waterfowl including White-cheeked Pintail, and shorebirds of up to a dozen species might be present. There will be time in the afternoon for relaxing on a beach or at the hotel. Night in Antigua.

Day 11 - Montserrat
Today we visit the small island of Montserrat, which was partially devastated in 1997 when the volcano Chances Peak erupted. We catch the ferry across the strait dividing Antigua from Montserrat; possible pelagics include Audubon’s Shearwater, Brown and Red-footed Boobies, frigatebirds, jaegers, and Royal and Sandwich Terns. Once on the island, our main focus will be the single endemic here, the Montserrat Oriole. Forest untouched by the volcano still holds a reasonable population, and we will have a good chance of locating it. Other species prominent on Montserrat include Gray Kingbird, Yellow Warbler, Scaly-naped Pigeon and Common Ground-Dove. We catch the ferry back to Antigua for a leisurely late afternoon and evening. Night in Antigua.

Day 12 - Barbuda
We catch a morning flight to the island of Barbuda where we will be met by our guide at tiny Codrington airport. Our main quarry is the recently split Barbuda Warbler, and we should have little trouble in locating several of this attractive species. We also take a boat ride on Codrington Lagoon to observe a frigatebird colony. We may find White-cheeked Pintail on the island, and if we are lucky West Indian Whistling Duck. Other species include Lesser Antillean Bullfinch, Green-throated Carib and Mangrove Cuckoo. We return to Antigua in mid-afternoon for another leisurely evening. Night in Antigua.

Day 13 – Antigua - Guadeloupe
After a leisurely morning on Antigua, we catch our flight to Guadeloupe's Pole-Caraibes International Airport near Pointe-a-Pitre. Night near Point-a-Pitre.

Day 14 - Guadeloupe
Guadeloupe is the largest West Indian Island, and is comprised of two distinct halves, Grande-Terre which is low-lying, intensively-farmed and rural, and Basse-Terre which is dominated by mountain ranges including the highest peak in the Lesser Antilles, La Soufriere. There are still some extensive rainforests on Basse-Terre, especially in the Parc National de la Guadeloupe, and we spend much of our time exploring these forests for native landbirds. One species is endemic to Guadeloupe, the Guadeloupe Woodpecker, and we make a special effort to find this neat bird. There are several other species that are targets, such Lesser Antillean endemics as Purple-throated Carib, Brown Trembler, Scaly-breasted Thrasher, Plumbeous Warbler, and Forest Thrush, a bird that is probably easier to find on Guadeloupe than elsewhere. With a bit of luck, we could find Bridled Quail-Dove. Night near Pointe-a-Pitre.

Day 15 – Guadeloupe - home
Our tour ends after breakfast when we transfer to the airport and our flights home.

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What to Expect

On this tour the pace of birding on most days is leisurely and there should be plenty of time for relaxation. We spend two nights on most of the islands, in fine accommodations, sometimes right next to the beach and ocean. Some days we start early, to maximize our chances of finding our target species. Because bird activity declines considerably during the afternoon, we might spend much of the afternoon relaxing at our hotel, by the pool or on the beach. Most inter-island flights are in the early afternoon, such that our day will involve birding during the morning, a short flight after lunch, and a relaxed afternoon and evening around our hotel. The day that we spend on each of the islands involves an intensive search for the special endemics and target birds of that island. Usually just one location will reveal our targets.

Weather will be mostly pleasant and warm, becoming hot in the afternoon. Rain is frequent on some islands in mountainous areas.

Most trails are well-maintained and fairly easily traversed. Because most islands are mountainous, then most trails go up and down. Some trails will be demanding and we take our time walking along them. If we are particularly fortunate, we will have the afternoon to laze on a beach, go snorkelling or perhaps take in some of the cultural and historical attractions of these islands.

Lightweight clothes are recommended, with a light jacket or sweater for coolish nights. Bring a hat - it is sunny in the Caribbean! Long slacks are advisable, especially in the savanna areas where grass can be quite sharp-edged, but shorts are comfortable to wear in most localities. Bring swimwear if you wish. Running shoes are the footwear of choice; footwear is usually a personal decision, but ensure that whatever you wear is comfortable!