15-Day Trips
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Discover Gambia
15 DAYS PRO BIRDING GAMBIA / SENEGAL
Absolute birding and photography highlight with emphasis on Senegal, with number of hours of birding as you wish. Trip can be adjusted.
IMPORTANT: yellow fever vaccination is mandatory for Senegal, consult your travel clinic!
Indicative price all inclusive 3 to 6 persons: 2600 euros per person. Final price after any adjustments as you wish.
- incl. All meals
- incl. Transport
- incl. Accommodation
- incl. Boat trips
- incl. Park entrances
- incl. Water and soft drinks during trips
- excl. Flight
- excl. Alcohol
- excl. Drinks in restaurants
- excl. Security fee at Banjul airport on arrival and departure
- excl. Tips for the guides
As an example
What does a 15-day trip look like?
Day 1
Upon landing at Banjul International Airport, you will be welcomed by one of our guides and transferred to the Bamboo Garden Hotel, where you’ll spend the next three nights in comfort and style.
Day 2
After a leisurely breakfast at the hotel, we make the short journey to the famous Kotu Creek. Your day here begins with a one-hour boat trip that brings you up close to a variety of waterbirds, including several dazzling kingfishers. Later, you’ll enjoy guided walks along the creek’s edge, through the surrounding rice paddies and across the manicured fairways of Fajara Golf Course. As afternoon wanes, we return to the Bamboo Garden Hotel for dinner and a restful evening.
Day 3
Following breakfast, a twenty-minute drive brings us to the coastal Tanji Bird Reserve, where shorebirds abound against the endless vista of the Atlantic. Midday finds us in the bustling fishing village of Tanji, where you’ll dine at a local hotel and have time to wander through the lively fish market or stroll along the sandy beach. By early afternoon we head to Brufut Woods, taking in woodland species from our discreet hide before exploring the shady trails. An evening drive delivers you back to the hotel for dinner.
Day 4
An early packed breakfast readies us for departure. We cross the Banjul–Barra ferry, complete formalities at the Karang border post—including passport stamping and a yellow fever check—and continue through rural landscapes toward Toubacouta. After checking in and enjoying lunch at Hôtel Keur Saloum, we embark at 4:00 PM on a guided boat trip through the Saloum Delta. Here, watch for the stately White-crested Tiger Heron, the imposing Goliath Heron and large congregations of waders. Dinner and overnight follow at the hotel.
Day 5
We rise early for a second boat outing in the Delta, honing in on any Tiger Herons we might have missed. Mid-morning, the journey carries us south to Njaguta, where the Swallow-tailed Kite roost calls and species such as Savile’s and White-bellied Bustards, Lesser Kestrel and Chestnut-bellied Starling gather. At 6:30 PM we continue on to Kaolack’s elegant Hotel Le Relais, a four-star retreat where dinner is served at 8:15 PM.
Day 6
Breakfast at 7:30 AM precedes our full-day drive to Saint-Louis, the storied French colonial capital. En route, we pause at prime birding spots in search of Quail-Plover, Chestnut-bellied Starling, Lappet-faced Vulture and both White-headed and White-backed Vultures. Late afternoon brings us to Zebra Bar Lodge, where an evening stroll along the lagoon and scrublands often reveals Senegal Batis, Brubru and an array of waders.
Day 7
After breakfast we head north to Djoudj National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site famed for its salt-marsh birdlife. From Marsh and Curlew Sandpipers to Little Stint, Ruff and Kittlitz’s Plover, the wetlands teem with waders; keep an ear out for the tiny Yellow-bellied Eremomela. In the afternoon, a safari convoy threads the park’s hidden lanes, offering views of Lesser and Greater Flamingos, Egyptian Geese, Knob-billed Ducks, Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse, Black-crowned Cranes and the occasional Barn Owl.
Day 8
Our morning begins aboard a boat on the River Senegal, where Pink-backed and Great White Pelicans drift in loose flocks and Allen’s Gallinules scurry among the reeds. After lunch back at the lodge, we return at 4:15 PM for an evening drive in search of River Prinia, African Stonechat and the ghostly silhouettes of Standard-winged and Long-tailed Nightjars before heading in for the night.
Day 9
Following breakfast, we journey to the town of Richard Toll, pausing to track down Zebra Waxbills, Sudan Golden Sparrows, Blue-naped Mousebirds, Rufous-scrub Robins, Cricket Warblers, Sennar Penduline Tits and Water Thick-knees. Accommodations for the night are at the comfortable Gîte d’Étape Hotel in Richard Toll.
Day 10
A dawn visit to the nearby airfield often yields early risers, then we transfer to the village of Gamagui Sarr for a midday rest. At 4:30 PM we explore the open lands surrounding the village in pursuit of Arabian Bustard, Quail-Plover and, should fortune favor us, the elusive Golden Nightjar.
Day 11
Retracing our route southward, we revisit any locales where we may have narrowly missed target species before arriving back at Hotel Le Relais in Kaolack for the night.
Day 12
Today’s drive takes us deep into southeastern Senegal to Wassadou Camp, where an evening cruise on the Gambia River introduces Pel’s Fishing Owl, Egyptian Plover, Carmine Bee-eater, African Finfoot, Adamawa Turtle Dove, White-crowned Lapwing, African Pied Wagtail and Shining-blue Kingfisher.
Day 13
An early-morning boat trip ensures you see any species still unchecked. After breakfast, we cross back into The Gambia, retiring for the night at The Ngala Lodge Hotel.
Day 14
Spend today at your own pace—relax at the lodge or venture to the coast for one last morning of birding along The Gambia’s shoreline.
Day 15
Enjoy a final morning at leisure before our transfer carries you back to Banjul International Airport for your onward journey.