Guatemala Photography Tour: Tikal and Petén Rainforest Birds

Touching down at La Aurora International Airport, travellers are met and transferred to Hotel Barceló, the comfortable Guatemala City base used before and after the highland birding circuit. Most international flights land late in the evening, so the arrival transfer leads straight to the hotel; those arriving earlier may need to wait until check-in opens. This first stop eases you into Guatemala before the journey continues.

From Flores, travel toward Paso Caballos and the remote forests of El Tigre National Park, crossing wetlands, savannas, and rural communities alive with birds such as Snail Kite, Northern Jacana, and Fork-tailed Flycatcher. A boat along the San Pedro River reaches Las Guacamayas Biological Station in Laguna del Tigre National Park, where herons, Anhinga, and Keel-billed Toucan appear riverside. Visit the hummingbird feeders, then take an evening tributary boat ride seeking Agami Heron, Boat-billed Heron, and possibly Scarlet Macaw, with owls around dusk. Breakfast and station lodging are included.

From Las Guacamayas, the Waka Peru Trail winds through mature rainforest surrounding an ancient Maya site in Laguna del Tigre. A flexible morning walk targets forest specialists including Ruddy Woodcreeper, Tody Motmot, Rufous-tailed Jacamar, Scarlet Macaw and Great Curassow, with Geoffroy's Spider Monkey a possible encounter. After a market lunch, an afternoon boat cruise along the Sarluc River and adjacent forest looks for Yucatan Woodpecker, Sungrebe and the secretive Ruddy Crake near Las Guacamayas. The Guacamayas Biological Station, a sanctuary in Laguna Del Tigre National Park, anchors the day.

Start at the Las Guacamayas canopy platform to scan for Golden-olive Woodpecker, Bright-rumped Attila, King Vulture, Black-and-white Hawk-Eagle, White-necked Puffbird, Scaled Pigeon, Brown Jay, Masked Tityra, Trilling Gnatwren, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher, Red-lored Amazon, Scarlet Macaw, Squirrel Cuckoo and possibly Lovely Cotinga. After a market lunch, bird the quieter trails and riverine edges around Guacamaya Biological Station, a sanctuary in Laguna Del Tigre National Park, watching for Central American Agouti, Morelet's Crocodile, Common Green Iguana and Geoffroy's Spider Monkey.

After breakfast, a boat transfer from Guacamayas Biological Station reaches Paso Caballos, followed by a 4x4 ride retracing the route through the Petén lowlands back to Flores. A market lunch precedes the transfer to Yaxha. The afternoon is spent birding at Yaxha National Park, where Maya ruins and forest may reveal species such as Slaty-tailed Trogon, Yucatan Flycatcher, Pheasant Cuckoo, Collared Aracari and Swallow-tailed Kite. Dinner follows before settling in at Ecolodge El Sombrero, on the shores of Laguna Yaxhá near El Remate.

A quiet morning at Yaxhá National Park offers a focused chance to look for the localized Grey-throated Chat amid forest and Maya ruins, though sightings are not guaranteed. From there, travel to Tikal National Park and continue to Jungle Lodge, exchanging lakeside ruins for rainforest. Afternoon birding around the lodge grounds, outside the archaeological site, may reveal Yucatan and Ochre-bellied Flycatchers, Montezuma Oropendola, Sulphur-rumped Myiobius, Short-billed Pigeon, Plain Antvireo, Plain Xenops, Stripe-throated Hermit, Black-headed Saltator, and Yellow-winged Tanager, alongside possible North American migrants.

Breakfast is included before exploring Tikal National Park's temples, pyramids, and rainforest, home to Ocellated Turkey, Scaly-throated Leaftosser, Tawny-crowned Greenlet, Dusky Antbird, Green Honeycreeper, Rufous Piha, Ruddy Quail-Dove, Northern Royal Flycatcher, Barred Forest Falcon, Brown-hooded Parrot, Red-lored Amazon, Slaty-tailed Trogon, Pheasant Cuckoo, Mayan Antthrush, Rufous Mourner, White-bellied Wren, Ruddy Woodcreeper, Northern Barred Woodcreeper, Rose-throated Becard, Plumbeous Kite, and Pale-billed Woodpecker. A generic lunch in a local market costs 15 Usd. In the afternoon, a vigil from Temple IV, Tikal's highest structure, offers a classic stakeout for Orange-breasted Falcon, with soaring raptors, swifts, and panoramic forest views. A generic dinner costs 35 Usd, followed by a stay at Hotel Jungle Lodge Tikal.

Before first light, search around Tikal National Park for the localized Yucatan Poorwill, then continue forest birding as morning arrives. A focused session at Tikal's old airstrip and surrounding scrub targets regional specialties including Gray-throated Chat, Yucatán Flycatcher, and Rose-throated Tanager. Breakfast is included in the package. After the final morning around Tikal, transfer from the park and Jungle Lodge to Mundo Maya International Airport in Flores for the afternoon flight to Guatemala City Airport.