New Guinea Birding Tours

The words ‘New Guinea’ immediately conjure up evocative thoughts of the most magical of all birds on the planet, birds that as birdwatchers we’ve known about, and wanted to see for ourselves forever. The other-worldly birds-of-paradise. These are some of the most incredible, bizarre, and prettiest birds on the planet, seeing them will be something never forgotten, but the amazing birds in this region go far beyond ‘just’ the birds-of-paradise, with staggeringly beautiful paradise kingfishers, (‘normal’) kingfishers, fruit doves, jewel babblers, pittas, and more parrots than you can handle. Be prepared for a colour overload.

The island of New Guinea, situated north of Australia, and southeast of Asia, is comprised of two countries; Papua New Guinea in the east and Indonesia in the west (made up of two provinces: Papua and West Papua/Irian Jaya). The island is covered with lush, largely untouched and expansive rainforests and has several mountain ranges offering much in the way of species diversity. The western half of New Guinea (Papua and West Papua) have 322 endemic species (94 % of those on the island), and the eastern half of New Guinea (Papua New Guinea) have 294 endemic species (86 % of those on the island), so a ‘must visit’ location for any world bird species or family listers. Papua New Guinea is a mind-boggling destination for birds, wildlife, and culture, because it is one of the world’s last great unexplored frontiers, in fact some of the fascinating highland societies only made contact with the outside world in 1930!