Venezuela - Llanos

...would like to say that it is the best Naturetrek trip I have been on. A really brilliant introduction to South American birding. The group as a whole recorded 349 species (339 seen, 10 heard) and my personal total was 326 seen and 12 heard. That the total was so much higher than the November tour could be because of a number of factors (not least luck in hitting flocks in Henri Pittier, and no rain), but the reversed itinerary with the internal flights worked very well indeed. One advantage was that we got to know the common birds on the llanos leg, so we could concentrate on the specialities in the forest, while having the night drives early on in the trip and the more relaxed evenings later (when we were getting tired) also seems to be the right way round. Cecilia Herrera is an excellent guide, particularly good on calls, and with plenty of stakeouts for more difficult species in both the llanos and the forest (which produced good views of the birds a surprisingly high percentage of the time). She likes to keep the odd surprise tucked up her sleeve, which only makes the wows the greater when the bird appears (Spectacled Owl was just one example of this). Her attractive, bubbly personality was a big added bonus. The accommodation and food were good throughout, and the al fresco breakfasts in the forest which Cecilia arranged were an excellent and unexpected touch which was appreciated by everyone. In short, brilliant, contrasting habitats, fantastic birding, an excellent guide, good food and accommodation - a great experience all-round.

J.T. Somerset

The accommodation was excellent, itinerary was good, the al fresco breakfasts were excellent - a real feature of the trip. The leader was excellent with fluent English and very good birding skills backed up by zesty personality and good sense of humour. Very good trip.

M.T. Suffolk

A brilliant trip overall, it really lived up to expectations. Our guide was excellent, knowledgeable, tireless, amusing and fun to be with.

S.S. Herefordshire

The trip was very good indeed, thoroughly enjoyable and a place and leader we would return to without hesitating.

D.R. Berkshire

Cecilia was the best tour leader...knowledgeable and enthusiastic, she kept the group happy and is very well like by all. This was a really good break for me, a much-needed recharge of rather flattened batteries.

D.M. Norfolk

I cannot praise our tour leader highly enough. The whole experience was magical for me. It was my first trip to South America and in two weeks I saw 402 species, of which 380 were new birds for me. Without Cecilia's skill and enthusiasm I would have seen far fewer...I have truly been bitten by the South American birding bug. Thank you Naturetrek!

R.N. Lancashire

In general, the holiday was very good value, such a huge variety of birds seen - how many times are you going to see 280 species in a week! 200 of these new to me. The trip leader was excellent.

S.R. Middlesex

Our guide, Cecilia Herrera was excellent, a very good birder who made a real effort to ensure everyone got to see the birds they wanted. One of the best that I have travelled with.

A.P. Oxfordshire

Cecilia was an excellent guide with an incredible ability to identify birds and their calls. We saw a great selection of birds and other mammals. The Jaguar and Ocelot sightings were particularly good.

Dr & Mrs T. Cambridgeshire

Cecilia the guide was excellent, both knowledgeable and enthusiastic. This enthusiasm filtered through the group and the camaraderie encountered was probably the best I have experienced on any tour. A good holiday, capped by the sighting of a Jaguar, something that will remain long in the memory.

R.P. West Sussex

The tour leader Alexandro was a good birder and knew all the calls. Our party liked him and got on well. He was very helpful and his all round natural history knowledge was great. His sense of humour was also appreciated.

J.M. Gloucestershire