Avian Naturescapes

Photo Safari (#TM-4/3FB) - 4 Days / 3 Nights : Taman Negara Explorer

Tuesday, 26, April 2011

Taman Negara (@ Kuala Tahan) 4 days / 3 nights - ex Kuala Lumpur

(Full board (F/B), guiding fees, all transportation, accommodation inclusive all meals B/L/D and boat ride up Sungai Tahan)

Taman Negara or National Park is Malaysia's oldest national park having been gazetted in 1938 and is the largest by area in Peninsula Malaysia. It is the home to the world's oldest tropical rainforest believed to have been in existence for over 130 million years, it older than both the Amazon and the Congo and is richly filled with both animal and birdlife.

Kuala Tahan is a staging point for tours into the national park and is located at the confluence of the 2 great rivers of Taman Negara - the Tahan River and the Tembeling River. Although there are numerous trails into the jungle, the variety of bird life right within the Mutiara Resort area will already be quite plentiful.

You can expect to see birds such as banded kingfishers, rufous collared kingfishers, stork billed kingfishers, blue eared kingfishers, common kingfishers (migrant season only), blue banded kingfishers, barred eagle owl, brown shrikes, migrant flycatchers (asian brown, mugimaki, dark sided, yellow rumped, green backed flycatchers), several species of bulbuls (striped throated, hairy backed, buff vented, olive winged, red eyed, straw headed), several species of hanging parrots including blue rumped and blue crowned hanging parrots, chestnut breasted malkohas, black bellied malkohas, raffle's malkohas, lesser fish eagle, crested firebacks, banded pittas, black & red broadbills, black & yellow broadbills, bar bellied cuckooshrike, lesser green leafbird, white rumped shama, oriental magpie robins, oriental pied hornbills, black hornbills, great hornbills, maroon woodpeckers, banded woodpeckers, greater flameback woodpeckers, scarlet rumped trogons, red naped trogons, diard's trogons and cinnamon rumped trogons.

Please note that the bird listing here is only representative and is far from being comprehensive. If there are species you are specifically searching for, please tell us and we can see what we can do.

Guided Instructional Photo Safaris by Choo Tse Chien

A regal looking Barred Eagle-Owl (Bubo sumatranus) stands guard at night in the forests surrounding the Mutiara Taman Negara

Itinerary :

DAY 1

(Only lunch & dinner is included)

Pick up Kuala Lumpur / KLIA

(note - if you are flying in, please aim to arrive ar KLIA by noon, 1200hrs if possible)

Drive to Kuala Tahan (approximately 4 to 5 hours drive), lunch en route at Karak or Jerantut. Check in to the Mutiara Taman Negara at Kuala Tahan.

DAY 2

(Breakfast, lunch & dinner included)

Full day birding at Kuala Tahan and in the various jungle trails leading out from the resort

DAY 3

(Breakfast, lunch & dinner included)

Full day birding at Kuala Tahan

Boat ride up Tahan River in the afternoon at about 1500hrs (about 3-4 hours) - this is included in the tour

The boat ride upriver the Tahan River is an experience not to be missed as the very skilled boatman navigates you through winding stretches of rapids under dense rainforest cover. You can expect to see many bird species along the way by the pebble strewn riverbank along with a variety of animal life (monkeys, reptilians / lizards and even large mammals such as sambar deers and tapirs). This boat ride trip is expected to last about 3-4 hours and only 2 photographers are allocated per boat to allow for photography along the ride.

The chalets of the Mutiara Taman Negara at Kuala Tahan is set in the wilderness of the world’s oldest rainforest

DAY 4

(Only breakfast & lunch is included)

Half day birding until about 1200hrs

Check out from Mutiara Taman Negara at about 1200hrs followed by lunch

1300 to 1400hrs - Drive back to Kuala Lumpur, estimated to arrive at 1900 to 2000hrs. Drop off anywhere in KL or at KLIA

(please advice if you require a post night's stay in Kuala Lumpur so that we can try to arrange a booking for you OR your departure flight times so that we can time your arrival at KLIA Departures appropriately)

Inclusions : the following are included :

-Private birding / nature guide throughout the entire trip with all transportation costs (fuel & toll) included ex Kuala Lumpur.
-3 nights accommodation at the Mutiara Taman Negara chalets. All chalets are air conditioned and have en suite hot/cold showers and toilets.
-Includes a 3 to 4 hour boat ride up Tahan River to explore the heartland of the tropical rainforest.
-Includes all meals (B/L/D) daily at the Mutiara Taman Negara.
-Inclusive of camera licenses, park entry permits and all boat transfers from jetty to resort.

Exclusions : the following are not included :

-Any orders on alcohol

- Additional meals and snacks

- Additional activities not specifically listed in above itinerary

- Other incidentals - telephone calls, laundry, paid wifi internet access, room minibar charges.

Prices :

A riveting boat ride up Sungai Tahan goes through stretches of rapids and takes you deeper into the wilderness of Taman Negara. This ride offers loads of great photographic opportunities along the way

-Validity from immediate to 31st October 2011 only
-Prices are based on twin sharing of rooms
-Single supplement charges will apply if you wish for a single room.
-Prices are valid for a fixed validity period and subject to revision whenever possible to allow for savings from off-peak periods and new promotions by the hotel.
-Trip is subject to a minimum of only 1 confirmed place.

Our track record speaks for itself!

Read our Customer Testimonials & Feedback here

Notes

This is only a sample itinerary, and the routes and timing may change according to local weather & environmental conditions, but the content of the trip will remain essentially the same as stated above.

The guiding for all my Guided Nature Photo Safaris are not outsourced. Be assured that I, myself will be personally leading each and every one of the tours offered on this website.

This is a Instructional Guided Photo Safari.

Have no concerns if you are a beginner bird photographer as there will be full on-hand instructions & tips on site on actual shooting techniques so that you can learn to take great pictures on the fly. I will be there to guide you on proper camera metering, WB and exposure settings, proper handling techniques for your setup and also advice on the compositional and creative aspects of bird photography. Tips on techniques & tools used in post capture image editing will also be available after hours.

The peak hours for bird activity at Taman Negara is from 0700hrs to 1100hrs and again from 1530hrs to 1700hrs.

All trips are available all year round, but prices may be adjusted for peak periods (school & public holidays).

Advance booking is required for adequate forward planning. Kindly allow minimum two months prior to departure date.

Personal Travel Insurance

We strongly recommend that you purchase relevant & adequate travel insurance to cover your entire stay in Malaysia that includes this trip. Be assured that there is no high risk activity offered in this itinerary that is not covered by a standard travel insurance policy.

We can purchase travel insurance for you if you are not covered at an additional charge of MYR 70.00 per person.

Payment & Deposit

- Payment of 50% is required upon confirmation of booking (confirmation is subject to availability of rooms)

- The balance of the payment must be made 14 days prior to the date of commencement of trip.

- We reserve the right to cancel the booking should the payment not received by the deadline given.

Payment can be made by fund transfer to any of the following bank accounts :

- Maybank (MBB) Account Number : 107152135075

- CIMB Bank Account Number : 07140006886059

(note - all under account holder name ”CHOO TSE CHIEN”)

For convenience, payments and booking deposits can also be accepted in your local home currency using Paypal. Please request for conversion to your local currency for this.

Contact

Please contact me at tsechien@me.com or by calling +60124748354 (if in Malaysia, just dial 0124748354) if you are interested in getting a place on this this trip.

As a gauge, MYR 3.00 is equivalent to roughly USD 1.00