Guatemala Highland Birding Photography Tour: Horned Guan Quest

Landing in Guatemala City, you collect your luggage and find your guide Tristan waiting just beyond baggage claim. A private transfer then brings you to Hotel Barceló, a comfortable base for the start of the highland birding circuit. Later, the tour orientation offers a first chance to get acquainted, as Tristan walks through the itinerary's key points and shares initial tips for making the most of the trip, followed by dinner.

A morning flight reaches Huehuetenango, followed by a road transfer to La Alfalfa and Unicornio Azul Lodge. Breakfast precedes a full day birding the lodge grounds and approach route, the first major montane-forest session in the Sierra de Cuchumatanes. Targets include Pink-headed Warbler, Buff-breasted Flycatcher, Crescent-faced Warbler, Rock Wren, Brown-backed Solitaire, Great Silky-flycatcher, Blue-throated Motmot, Hermit Warbler, and Black-throated Jay. Lunch and dinner follow. After dark, the group listens for Mexican Whip-poor-will and hopes for Unspotted Saw-whet Owl.

Set out from Todos los Santos on an excursion into the Cuchumatanes, searching for the localized Goldman's Warbler found only in this Guatemalan region. The alpine and pine-oak habitat also holds Black-capped Siskin, Yellow-eyed Junco, Red Crossbill, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Singing Quail, and Bushy-crested Jay. Breakfast is included in the package, with lunch and dinner available at a generic price, and Unicornio Azul among the stops. The day centers on highland birding and the distinctive mountain landscapes around Todos los Santos.

Breakfast is included before a road transfer from La Alfalfa west to Sibinal, the base of Tacaná Volcano. In the afternoon, birding takes place at Unión Reforma, a remote humid montane forest site, with targets including Highland Guan, Amethyst-throated Hummingbird, Mountain Trogon and the shy Blue-and-white Mockingbird. Lunch and dinner are arranged separately, and the night is spent at Sibinal Lodge.

An included breakfast precedes a pre-dawn 4x4 convoy up the Tacaná Volcano road, chasing the Horned Guan, described as the holy grail of Central American birds. High-elevation forest companions may include Broad-tailed Hummingbird, Steller's Jay, Townsend's Warbler, and Garnet-throated Hummingbird. A generic lunch and generic dinner follow, with an overnight at Sibinal Lodge (TBD).

Leaving Sibinal after breakfast, the route heads toward San Rafael de la Cuesta, arriving in the afternoon. This is largely a transfer day, though stops are made when time allows for Collared Trogon, Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush, Brown-capped Vireo, and Bushy-crested Jay. Lunch and dinner are taken along the way, and the night is spent at Victorias Hotel, a simple roadside base positioned between the volcano highlands and quetzal country.

A morning at Refugio El Quetzal offers a chance to seek the Resplendent Quetzal amid cloud-forest birds such as Azure-rumped Tanager, Blue-crowned Chlorophonia, Emerald-chinned Hummingbird, Northern Emerald Toucanet and Slate-throated Whitestart. From San Rafael de la Cuesta, a road transfer continues to Los Tarrales Natural Reserve, a verdant birdwatching haven in Patulul with coffee tours and volcanic-slope ecosystems. After lunch and dinner, night birding at Los Tarrales targets the Northern Potoo and Mottled Owl.

A full day in the Pacific-slope forest of Los Tarrales Natural Reserve unfolds with breakfast before birding turns up targets such as Long-tailed Manakin, Tody Motmot, White-bellied Chachalaca, Lesson's Motmot, Crested Guan, Turquoise-browed Motmot and Collared Aracari. Lunch and dinner punctuate the hours. Later, a second night session at Los Tarrales returns to the dark for the Black-and-white Owl, closing a day shaped by the reserve's volcanic-slope ecosystems, coffee landscapes and Patulul setting.

A demanding hike climbs the dry, steep slopes above Lake Atitlán, targeting the range-restricted Belted Flycatcher, with Blue-and-white Mockingbird also possible. After breakfast and the transfer from Los Tarrales, a ferry crossing of the lake rejoins the vehicle, passing water once home to the extinct Atitlán Grebe, before continuing toward Antigua. If time allows, hummingbird feeders at El Pilar offer Rufous Sabrewing, Beryline Hummingbird, and Green-throated Mountaingem. Lunch and dinner are included, with an overnight stay at a hotel in Antigua Guatemala.

Breakfast is followed by a pre-dawn search for the Fulvous Owl at Finca del Pilar Reserve near Antigua, where White-eared Ground Sparrow, Blue-throated Motmot, Mountain Trogon, Northern Emerald Toucanet and Bushtit also feature. Lunch comes next, then an afternoon transfer from Finca del Pilar to Guatemala City. The final night is spent at Hotel Barceló, with a farewell dinner and an evening of backup and image review.

A final breakfast is included in the package before a transfer from the Guatemala City hotel to the airport. The ride serves travellers catching an international flight home or connecting to the operator's Tikal extension. The operator then drops guests at the airport for departure, closing the adventure.