At the present time EcoQuest Travel does not have a trip to Trinidad and Tobago scheduled. The following itinerary is an example of trips we have conducted in the past and is similar to trips we intend to offer in the future. Please keep in mind that EcoQuest Travel offers many different itineraries to these diverse islands – the trip listed below is just one example. If you are interested in Trinidad and Tobago as a destination please contact us for further information.

Trinidad and Tobago

The Birds & Other Wildlife

13 Days from July 1 through July 13

Itinerary

Day 1 – Sunday, July 1: Home Cities to Miami and on to Port of Spain, Trinidad and the Giant Leatherback Sea Turtles of Grand Riviere

Our journey begins early this morning with our flights from our home cities to Miami, Florida. Please arrive at your home airport no later than two hours prior to your scheduled departure time. Once we arrive in Miami we will transfer to our departure gate for Port of Spain, Trinidad. We should arrive in Trinidad in the early afternoon and, after we clear customs and immigration, we will meet our driver and transfer into the Northern Mountain Range. Today we travel all the way to the secluded far northeast of the island and Grand Riviere. We will arrive in the late afternoon and, time permitting, could have some time to bird, or enjoy the beach, before dinner. We will stay at Le Grande Almandier, a cozy guesthouse located in the quiet seaside village of Grand Riviere. The rooms are comfortable and the restaurant serves fantastic seafood. After dinner we will go the beach directly in front of our guesthouse to await the evening arrival of the largest turtle in the world – the leatherback! Between March and August these ancient giants come ashore to excavate their nests and deposit their eggs, and Grand Riviere is one of the best beaches in the world to witness this spectacular event. Because we will be visiting late in the season we could also be fortunate enough to witness a nest hatch. Having the chance to watch baby turtles scuttle across the beach to the embrace of the ocean is magic! It will be truly a privilege to spend time with these gentle giants and when coupled with a moonlit night, bioluminescent surf and warm trade winds, this night can become an unforgettable experience. (D)

Day 2 – Monday, July 2: Grand Riviere and on to Asa Wright Nature Center

This morning we will be up early to search for one of Trinidad’s rarest birds – the Trinidad piping-guan. This spectacular bird is most often seen in this remote area of the island and the best time to see it is early morning as they feed among the nutmeg trees. After hopefully finding the piping-guan we will travel to Asa Wright Nature Center and Lodge, our accommodation for the remainder of our time on Trinidad. We will arrive at Asa Wright in the afternoon in time for lunch and will have a full afternoon to explore. Asa Wright is located at an elevation of 1,200 feet in the heart of Trinidad’s Northern Range. Overlooking a lush valley, the Center originated as a coffee, cocoa and citrus plantation and many of these plants are still maintained by the Center. Today the Center is a Sanctuary dedicated to preserving and studying tropical wildlife and is an important breeding area for the rare, fruit-eating, nocturnal oilbird. The Center is surrounded by an impressive rainforest that is ribboned with trails beckoning both amateur and professional naturalists to explore. Of course the diversity of birds is what Asa Wright is most famous for and some of the birds we could see this afternoon include: channel-billed toucan, violaceous trogon, great antshrike, tufted coquette, rufous-browed peppershrike, chestnut woodpecker and both turquoise and bay-headed tanagers. After a full day we will enjoy a great dinner before retiring for the night. (B,L,D)

Day 3 – Tuesday, July 3: Asa Wright

We will awaken this morning to the raucous noise of crested oropendolas displaying and a cacophony of other exotic sounds. We will meet on Asa Wright’s world-renowned veranda at dawn. The magic of the veranda is the birds that are drawn to the feeders and first-time visitors could see 20 – 30 life birds before breakfast. The hummingbird feeders are alive with activity as white-necked jacobin, blue-chinned sapphire, white-chested emerald and copper-rumped hummingbirds all compete for feeding space. The fruit feeders are also full of birds including blue-crowned motmot, bananaquits, bare-eyed thrush, white-lined and silver-beaked tanagers and all three spectacular species of honeycreeper – purple, green and red-legged. The surrounding canopy could produce lilac-tailed parrotlets, black-tailed tityra, orange-winged parrots and if we are really lucky an ornate hawk-eagle. After breakfast we will begin our exploration of Asa Wright’s trails. We should see leaf-cutter ants at work and we could spy tent-making bats sleeping inside their leafy roosts. Red-rumped agoutis and tegu lizards are also plentiful in the forests surrounding the Center. There is a white-bearded manakin lek along the main trail and seeing these little birds do their wing-snapping displays will be a highlight! After a full morning we will have lunch and a little down time. In the late afternoon we will continue our exploration of the Center’s trails and grounds in hopes of spying some of the more secretive forest birds like the bearded bellbird, black-faced antthrush, squirrel cuckoo, lineated woodpecker, gray-throated leaftosser and red-crowned ant-tanager. After a full day we will enjoy a sumptuous dinner and afterwards, if we have enough energy, we could go on a short night hike. (B,L,D)

Day 4 – Wednesday, July 4: Blanchisseuse

Today, after breakfast, we will meet our driver/guide – Dave Ramlal and depart the Center on an all-day excursion over the Northern Range to the seaside village of Blanchisseuse. En route we will stop frequently to look for wildlife. The road over the mountains is great for birds including some that are difficult to see at the center like rufous-tailed jacamar, blue-headed parrot, bat falcon, white-tailed trogon and speckled and swallow tanagers. If we are lucky we will locate an army ant swarm and have a chance to see the birds that are specialized to follow them. Once we reach Blanchisseuse we could see magnificent frigatebirds above the ocean and perhaps a green kingfisher along the many streams coming down from the mountains. We will have a picnic lunch on the beach and have a chance to cool off with a swim in the ocean. In the afternoon we will work our way back along the road to Asa Wright. (B,L,D)

Day 5, Thursday, July 5: Asa Wright

This morning we will once again have the opportunity to bird the many trails around the Center. In the late afternoon, if we did not witness the leatherback sea turtles at Grand Riviere, we will take a picnic supper to Matura Beach to await their arrival! Matura is a much larger beach and is host to incredible numbers of nesting leatherbacks, so if we missed them at Grand Riviere we will try again at Matura. If we were fortunate to see the leatherbacks at Grand Riviere then we will have another relaxing afternoon of birding at Asa Wright and a chance for a bit of downtime. (B,L,D)

Day 6 – Friday, July 6: Nariva Swamp and Bush Bush Forest

After breakfast we will wind our way out of the Northern Range to Trinidad’s East Coast and the Nariva Swamp. Nariva is the largest freshwater swamp in Trinidad with Moriche palms and mangroves dominating the plant community. On our way to Nariva will stop at an agricultural research station to look for lowland species like pearl kites, savannah hawk, white-headed marsh tyrant, ruddy-breasted seedeater and many more. After the station we will continue to Nariva and check the rice fields for azure gallinule, wattled jacana, pinnated bittern and red-breasted blackbirds. We will have a picnic lunch on a nice stretch of beach before continuing our explorations of Nariva. In the late afternoon we will board our boat for a three-hour cruise into the heart of Nariva – Bush Bush Forest. Bush Bush is a swamp forest and is home to both weeper capuchin and red howler monkeys. These primates live in Nariva and nowhere else on the island. This trip should also produce some great bird sightings and we hope to spy bat falcon, red-bellied macaw, yellow-crowned parrot, crimson-crested woodpecker, pygmy kingfisher, black-crested antshrike and silvered antbird. This part of Nariva is also the site of a blue-and-yellow macaw reintroduction program. At dusk, against the backdrop of a tropical sunset, we will hopefully see the red-bellied macaws as they return to their nighttime roosting areas. After a full day we will return to Asa Wright for dinner and overnight. (B,L,D)

Day 7 – Saturday, July 7: Aripo Savannah and Night Birding

Today we will journey into the lowlands again as we explore the Aripo Savannah. The Aripo Savannah is an area of extremely acidic soil with poor drainage, and is a remnant of what was once a major habitat type in lowland Trinidad. This area has some unique species and we will be on the lookout for plumbeous and gray-headed kites, yellow-rumped cacique, shiny and giant cowbirds, blue-black grassquit and ruddy-breasted seedeater. This is also our best chance to see both white-tailed goldenthroat and ruby-topaz hummingbirds. After a full morning of exploring and birding we will travel back to Asa Wright. In the late afternoon/early evening we will return to the Aripo Savannah area and seek out the moriche palm groves which provide roosting for red-bellied macaws and host some specialized and rare residents including moriche oriole, sulphury flycatcher and fork-tailed palm swift. Once it is dark we will also do some night birding in hopes of seeing white-tailed nightjar, common pauraque, common potoo, barn owl and tropical screech owl. (B,L,D)

Day 8 – Sunday, July 8: Dunston Cave and Caroni Marsh

After breakfast we will hike to Dunston Cave, a beautiful riparian grotto located on the Center grounds. The objective of the visit is to view the breeding colony of oilbirds. These large endangered birds are rare, nocturnal and use echolocation to find fruit. Viewing these unique birds will be one of the highlights of the trip! We will also look for nesting chestnut-collared swifts along the cave walls. After lunch we will travel from the highlands east to Caroni Marsh for our boat trip into the extensive mangrove forests. Caroni is a wondrous place full of wildlife – silky anteaters, tree boas, and an incredible variety of birds. We will be looking for waterbirds and mangrove specialties like anhinga, striated heron, gray-necked wood-rail, greater ani, green-throated mango, straight-billed woodcreeper, masked cardinal and bicolored conebill. Our day will end as we witness the spectacular flocks of the scarlet ibis returning to roost in the mangroves after a day of foraging – a very dramatic moment to be sure! (B,L,D)

Day 9 – Monday, July 9: Depart for Tobago and Bird Bon Accord and Buccoo Marsh

This morning we will depart for Trinidad’s sister island of Tobago. This island forms the final link in the chain of mountain ranges extending from the Venezuelan Coastal Range. Tobago’s climate and rainfall more closely resembles that of the Lesser Antilles than of Trinidad; being drier and windier. As such Tobago feels much more Caribbean while Trinidad feels much more South American. Upon arrival we will visit the Bon Accord ponds and lagoon and Buccoo marsh to look for least grebe, little blue and tricolored herons, black-bellied whistling-duck, white-cheeked pintail, gray kingbird and Caribbean martin. After our visit to the wetland areas we will travel east across the entire island to Speyside and our lovely beachfront accommodations while in Tobago, the Blue Waters Inn. The hotel grounds, and surrounding area, are great for birds including many of Tobago’s specialties such as rufous-vented chachalaca, barred antshrike, white-fringed antwren, brown-crested flycatcher, scrub greenlet and black-faced grassquit. Once we arrive, the rest of the afternoon is on our own to explore the grounds, snorkel, swim or just relax in the tropical atmosphere. The food at Blue Waters is outstanding – particularly the seafood, and the sounds of calypso and steel drums will provide a most authentic island experience while dining. After dinner a rum punch, the trade winds off the ocean and a sky full of stars makes for a most relaxing evening! (B,L,D)

Day 10 – Tuesday, July 10: Grafton Sanctuary and Adventure Farm

Today we will visit two excellent birding areas on Tobago. First, we will travel west to Grafton Sanctuary and hike some of the Sanctuary’s easy woodland trails in search of rufous-vented chachalaca, pale-vented pigeon, green-rumped parrotlet, ruby-topaz hummingbird, blue-crowned motmot, rufous-tailed jacamar, red-crowned woodpecker, olivaceous woodcreeper, white-fringed antwren and fuscous flycatcher. After our hiking and birding at Grafton we will travel to the Adventure Farm. We will look for birds here as well, but the main attraction is the Farm’s hummingbird feeders which should be busy with rufous-breasted hermit, white-necked jacobin, black-throated mango, ruby-topaz and copper-rumped hummingbirds. After a productive day we will return to Blue Waters Inn for dinner and overnight. (B,L,D)

Day 11 – Wednesday, July 11: The Rainforest Preserve and Gilpin Trace Trail

After breakfast we will travel to Tobago’s interior Rainforest Preserve to hike the Gilpin Trace Trail. Located at around 2,000 feet these forested mountains are home to many species found only on Tobago like the rare white-tailed sabrewing hummingbird and blue-backed manakin. The trail is also home to collared trogon, red-rumped and golden-olive woodpeckers, stripe-breasted spinetail, white-throated spadebill, Venezuelan flycatcher, yellow-legged thrush and many species of reptiles and amphibians. Our pace will be slow and deliberate as we search for wildlife. After a full day we will return to the Blue Waters Inn for dinner and overnight. (B,L,D)

Day 12 – Thursday, July 12: Little Tobago Island Wildlife Sanctuary and Snorkeling Goat Island

This morning we will depart by boat for Little Tobago Island, one of T & T’s most important wildlife sanctuaries. As we cross over to the island we will watch for sea turtles and enjoy fantastic views of the coral formations from the comfort of our glass-bottom boat. Once we land we will explore the nesting colonies of seabirds including red-billed tropicbirds, brown and red-footed boobies, sooty terns and brown noddy terns. Blue-crowned motmots are also common on the island as are other terrestrial species. After a full morning of exploring the island we will return to Blue Waters for lunch. After lunch we will take a boat out to snorkel the reefs off of Goat Island. The fauna found among this fringing reef is diverse and abundant, with numerous species of coral and over 65 species of fish including barracuda, angelfish, blue tangs, grunts and damselfish. Invertebrates are also abundant on the reef and spiny lobster, sea urchins, brittle starfish, reef squid and even an octopus may be seen. After a full day we will return to Blue Waters for our farewell dinner and some dancing to the sounds of a steel-drum band. (B,L,D)

Day 13 – Friday, July 13: Departure for the US

This morning we will depart early for our flight from Tobago back to Trinidad where we will connect to our flight to Miami. After clearing immigration and customs in Miami, you will transfer to your departure gates for your flights home. (B)

* Please note that EcoQuest Travel will make every effort to adhere to this itinerary, but dates, times, activities and prices are subject to change depending on scheduling and availability.