Kenya - Mega Birding Tour 2025

01 Nov 2025 - 23 Nov 2025 (23 days)

USD11,495 - 2 Spaces Available

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Tour Leader: Stephan Lorenz

Tour price (Per person): USD11,495 * GBP9,167 * EUR11,061 * AUD18,456

Single Supplement: USD1,840 * GBP1,467 * EUR1,771 * AUD2,954

Flight costs: USD130 * GBP104 * EUR125 * AUD209

Kenya - Mega Birding Tour 2026

14 Oct 2026 - 05 Nov 2026 (23 days)

USD11,595 - Spaces Available

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Tour Leader: James Wade Lee

Tour price (Per person): USD11,595 * GBP9,247 * EUR11,158 * AUD18,617

Single Supplement: USD1,950 * GBP1,555 * EUR1,876 * AUD3,131

Flight costs: USD140 * GBP112 * EUR135 * AUD225

This tour is the ultimate African birding and wildlife adventure. Over three weeks of non-stop birding, we hope to see more than 700 bird species, plus an incredible diversity of wildlife, superb scenery, wonderful lodges and tented camps, and super-friendly Kenyans.

Our tour begins with an exploration of the lush Shimba Hills and Arabuko-Sokoke Forest. Here we will endeavor to find some of the rarest birds in Africa, including the diminutive Sokoke Scops Owl, Sokoke Pipit, Green-headed Oriole, Amani Sunbird and Clarke’s Weaver. We then travel through both Tsavo West and East Parks, offering excellent game viewing and a huge bird list. The isolated Taita Hills, with its critically endangered species, will no doubt be memorable, and we’ll search all elevations of the Aberdare’s and Mount Kenya’s slopes for avian gems such as Jackson’s Francolin, Bar-tailed Trogon, Eastern Bronze-naped Pigeon, localized Hinde’s Babbler and Abyssinian Ground Thrush. We then enter the true arid zone at Samburu-Shaba, where highlights should include Golden-breasted Starling, Vulturine Guineafowl, Williams’s Lark, Somali Bee-eater and Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse. The dry woodlands of Lake Baringo are home to Jackson’s Hornbill, Northern Masked Weaver, and Somali Sparrow, while the famous Kakamega forest adds a plethora of forest specials with Blue-headed Bee-eater. Turner’s Eremomela, Chapin’s Flycatcher, Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat and Yellow-bellied Wattle-eye being notable targets. Our tour concludes after exploring the papyrus swamps and moist woodlands along Lake Victoria!

**The tour logistics for 2025 have changed. We are no longer visiting the Masai Mara NR due to unmitigated price increases & rule changes.**

Top Birds

Sharpe's Longclaw; Sokoke Scops & Cape Eagle Owls; Sokoke & Malindi Pipits; Clarke's, Compact & Taveta Weavers; Hinde's & Scaly Babblers; East Coast Akalat; Green Barbet; Green Tinkerbird; Fischer's, White-crested and Ross's Turacos; Amani, Plain-backed, Tsavo, Violet-breasted & Golden-winged Sunbirds; Green-headed Oriole; Taita & Abyssinian Ground Thrushes; Taita Apalis; Taita & Kikuyu White-eyes; Jackson's & Elgon Francolins; Aberdare Cisticola; Abbott's, Golden-breasted, Magpie & Fischer's Starlings; Abyssinian Crimsonwing; Somali & Three-banded Coursers; Rock Pratincole; William's & Friedmann's Lark; Jackson's Hornbill; Red-naped Bushshrike; Somali Sparrow; Donaldson-Smith's Sparrow-Weaver; Somali & Blue-headed Bee-eaters; White-headed Mousebird; Turner's & Yellow-vented Eremomelas; Yellow-bellied & Jameson's Wattle-eyes; Vulturine Guineafowl; White-spotted Flufftail; Bar-tailed Trogon; Hartlaub's Bustard; Sooty Gull; Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse; Eastern Black-headed & Forest Batis; Donaldson-Smith's Nightjar; Forbe's-Watson's Swift; White-headed Wood Hoopoe; Pallid Honeyguide; Mombasa & Speckle-breasted Woodpeckers; African Broadbill; Grey-crested Helmetshrike; Papyrus Gonolek; Red-throated Tit; Uganda Woodland, Black-faced Rufous & Basra Reed Warblers; Somali Crombec; Southern & Yellow-bellied Hyliotas; Brown-chested Alethe; Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat; Easy Coast Akalat; White-throated Robin; Chapin's & Gambaga Flycatchers; Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher; Fire-fronted & Zanzibar Red Bishops; Jackson's Widowbird; Red-throated & Brown Twinspots; Grey-headed Silverbill; Steel-blue Whydah; Papyrus Canary; Southern Grosbeak-Canary; Oriole Finch.

Top Mammals

Lion; Leopard; Black & White Rhinoceros; Cheetah; Striped & Spotted Hyenas; Reticulated & Maasai Giraffes; Grevy’s Zebra; Gerenuk; Serval; Golden-rumped Elephant-Shrew; Crested Porcupine; Small-spotted & Blotched Genets; African Civet; African Buffalo; African Elephant; Southern Tree Hyrax; Giant Forest Hog; Lesser & Greater Kudu; Harvey's Duiker; Suni; Sable Antelope.

Habitats Covered

lowland & montane forests, Acacia savanna, papyrus swamps, rivers and wetlands, rocky gorges, grassland, semi-desert, coastal estuaries

Expected Climate

warm to hot, dry conditions, but cool at higher elevations and occasional rain can be expected. One morning at high altitude (3 650m) in very cold conditions (freezing).

Max Group Size

6 with 1 Rockjumer leader

Tour Pace & Walking

DIFFICULT: This is a high-intensity “mega” tour designed for passionate listers and serious birders who enjoy a fast-paced schedule. Due to its demanding nature, it’s not recommended for avid photographers, inexperienced birders, or anyone with mobility or health limitations.

Our Mega tours are very fast-paced birding adventures designed for the dedicated lister and serious birder. The focus of the tour is to see as many of the endemics and area specials as possible in our given time. In order to cover the necessary route to maximise the species list we tend to spend a single night at most sites and travel large distances. There is very little down time aside from that spent driving from one site to the next. These tours are not suitable for dedicated or avid photographers; inexperienced or new birders; as well as anyone with serious mobility or health challenges.

Accommodation

Moderate to comfortable, some safari tented camps, a few basic lodges

Ease of Birding

Demanding. Some species density is low, forest birding present typical challenges. Several difficult target species.

Number of Species Expected

700+

Other Attractions

Mt Kenya, Aberdare Mountains, Shimba Hills, Lakes Elementeita & Baringo, Masaai people, African curios

Photographic Opportunities

Worthwhile to good but limited by time constraints.

What our clients say about us

Gregory de Klerk
AW - Kenya 2024

This trip far exceeded my expectations. Our guide, Greg de Klerk, was excellent in every way. He took the time to actually teach us about bird and animal behavior. When other tour vehicles were speeding away, we got to sit and really learn. Also our driver, Martin, was superb -- an excellent driver who navigated the rutted roads with great skill, but also proved himself to be an excellent spotter and birder. Greg and Martin made a wonderful team. The selection of game reserves that we visited on this trip was perfect, especially for me as a first-timer. I felt I got an excellent overview of the Kenyan countryside. Our accommodations were all comfortable, but some were better than others. I loved the Wildebeest Eco-Lodge in Nairobi -- a wonderful introduction to the country. Castle Forest felt magical, and even the annoyance of having only one plug per room did not dampen my enthusiasm. The Sopa Lodge at Sambura was comfortable and the staff were very accommodating; I just wish the doors and windows had been a bit tighter to keep out a startling array of large critters (crickets, spiders, and something very large with lots of legs), none of which appeared at any other location. The Lodge at Lake Nakuru was a treat and very unexpected. But I loved the low-key atmosphere of the Pride Inn at Masai Mara -- a lovely location, and again the staff were wonderful. I thought the food offered at the buffets in all our lodges was excellent overall. Thank you for a wonderful experience. I can't wait to go back.

David Hoddinott
Anon, Kenya - Mega

David Hoddinott and indeed the drivers and Alison were all amazing - making this a life-changing experience. Everything went far better than expected throughout the tour in my opinion. I do not see how it could have been improved. Well done to all!

Gregory de Klerk
SK - Kenya 2024

Greg de Klerk was a wonderful leader. He knew exactly how to lead this relaxed tour. He always made sure that the needs of everyone in group were being met. He also demonstrated incredible knowledge of both the birds and the animals. I would go anywhere with him on another related tour.

Stuart Elsom
IS, Kenya 2022

Stuart took my "hit list" and ensured that I saw as many as possible. Driver/guide Jack and local guides also helpful. Accommodation and food generally good. One negative was that Landcruiser was cramped and difficult to enter and exit, but apparently a 4X4 is necessary for this tour. Overall very happy with the tour and total list. Other participants also enjoyed it.

Gregory de Klerk
LW, Kenya 2023

We thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of our trip with Greg. He is the ultimate Bird Whisperer. His birding skills are outstanding! He has a great sense of humor and wonderful stories. He shared his extensive knowledge about all the animals and their behavior, which made every part of the trip so much more interesting. This was certainly one of our best trips with Rockjumper. In addition, we sincerely appreciate Rockjumpers flexibility in working with us to reschedule this trip, since we were originally planning to go in March 2020.

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