Tour Dates 2025: Tuesday 10th – Thursday 19th March 2026 (Salalah to Salalah)
Tour Price: £2,899pp plus flight
Estimated Flight Price: London – Salalah approx. £650 return
Deposit: £500 per per person
Conservation Donation from Wise Birding: £150 – £200
Minimum Number: 4 people
Maximum Group Size: 6 people

Target Birds:
Jouanin’s Petrel, Persian Shearwater, Desert Owl, Arabian Scops Owl, Arabian Eagle Owl, Arabian Partridge, Sand Partridge, Chenut-bellied Sandgrouse, Crowned Sandgrouse, a possibility of Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse, Arabian Warbler, Graceful Prinia, Grey Hypocolius, Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeak, Verreaux’s Eagle, Yemen Serin, Arabian Sunbird, Nile Valley Sunbird, Arabian Wheatear. Plus numerous waders, terns & surprises!
Around 150 species are expected on this tour.

Tour Summary
Oman is a must visit destination for birdwatchers, and for good reason, as it is located in a key location at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula, on a migration flyway and also hosts an excellent range of resident and wintering species. This one base birding holiday in the south of the country focuses on some of the best birding in the country with a real mix of habitats and birds all within an hour of our small friendly hotel overlooking the Arabian sea.

March is an interesting time to be birding in Oman as many of the overwintering species can still be found, along with a number of key Arabian endemics and the first push of Spring migration too. We will be based in the coastal town of Salalah for a total of nine nights, with most sites less than an hour away. Targets here include Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeak, Yemen Serin, Verraux’s Eagle, Desert Owl, Arabian Eagle Owl and Arabian Scops Owl. Common species in this area include Tristram’s Starling, Cinnamon-breasted Bunting and Abyssinian White-eye. Several nearby coastal sites are excellent for waders, gulls and terns. We will also head out for a short pelagic trip from Mirbat where the target species will include the range restricted Persian Shearwater and Jouanin’s Petrel. We may bump into some cetaceans too with Sperm Whale and Spinner Dolphins both possible. The more desert habitat near Mudday is only 90 minutes away and so on one day, we will make an early morning trip to try for one of our top targets, the enigmatic Grey Hypocolius, along with Nile Valley Sunbid and the spectacle of Sandgrouse, where we could see three different species. Come and join us!

Jouanin’s Petrel, Oman by Chris Townend

Accommodation: 9 nights in Salalah, Southern Oman
Inclusive meals: All meals

Day 1: Arrival Salalah
Most flights arrive into Salalah during the morning and so we will quickly transfer to our hotel which just a 20 minute drive. We will then get checked in and head straight out for some easy birding at the nearby East Khor wetlands where there should be a good mix of waders, terns, wildfowl and the odd surprise too! Common species should include Whiskered, White-winged and Greater Crested Terns, Purple Heron, Indian Pond Heron and a good selection of waders. We will then return to the hotel for lunch and a rest before checking out some of the other nearby wetland sites during the late afternoon, before a good rest ready for a fuller itinerary for the rest of the week. Overnight Salalah

Spotted Thick-knee, Oman by Chris Townend

Days 2 – 8: Salalah and nearby sites
Over the next seven days we will birding the mecca that is the Dhofar region of southern Oman, centred around Salalah and this will give us plenty of time to hit all the hotspots and to be able to focus on the Arabian endemics. There is a great mix of habitats within a short distance from our hotel as we spend the week exploring numerous wetlands, coastal bays and lagoons, lush parks, shady tree-lined wadis, dramatic coastal and inland cliffs and of course desert too. This great diversity is all within a short 60 – 90 minute drive of our base.

Key targets during the week will include Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeak, Arabian Partridge, Arabian Scops Owl, Arabian Eagle Owl, Desert Owl, Verreaux’s Eagle, Yemen Serin, Arabian Wheatear, Arabian Green Bee-eater,Brown Booby and Socotra Cormorant. Plus all the commoner Dhofar specialities including Cinnamon-breasted Bunting, Ruppell’s Weaver, Arabian Sunbird, Palestine Sunbird and more! The other great attraction of this tour, is the amazing variety of European and African species that may not immediately spring to mind when you first consider a birding trip to Oman. Species such as Bruce’s Green Pigeon, African Silverbill, Black-crowned Tchagra, African Paradise Flycatcher, Abdim’s Stork, African Openbill, Cotton Pygmy-Goose, Bonelli’s Eagle, Verreaux’s Eagle, Spotted Thick-knee, flocks of Rosy Starlings and Blue-cheeked Bee-Eaters are just some of the great birds that can be expected on a regular basis.

On one day we will take a morning pelagic trip from Mirbat where the key targets are Persian Shearwater and Jouanin’s Petrel, but where other exciting species may include Flesh-footed Shearwater, Masked Booby, Bridled Tern and Red-necked Phalarope. We may also get lucky with cetaceans such as Spinner Dolphins and maybe Sperm Whale. On another day we will have a very early start and travel 90 minutes north to Mudayy, where we will search for Grey Hypocolius, a unique bird and the only regular wintering site for this species in Oman. Sandgrouse should also be a big attraction here with the possibility of three different species in this area.

Finally, although we won’t be focused on mammals on this particular tour, we have a reasonable chance of coming across something special whilst birding some sites like Rock Hyrax, Common Genet or even an Arabian Wolf or an Arabian Gazelle.  Overnight Salalah

Arabian Warbler by Chris Townend

Grey Hypocolius by Dave Astins

Arabian Green Bee-eater by Dave Astins

Day 9 Salalah Airport
After breakfast we will transfer to Salalah airport where the tour concludes. Flight to Muscat and then on to UK.

Please note this is a flexible itinerary which may need to be adjusted slightly dependent on arrival / departure times, weather conditions and the most recent information from our local guides

Leaders: Dave Astins & other WB leader
Included in cost: Accommodation in twin en-suite rooms, all meals, water, pelagic trip from Mirbat, ground transport and services of leaders.
Not included in cost: International airfare, travel insurance, Visa (if required) and any alcoholic drinks (rarely available in Oman).
Single Supplement: £150 
Transport: 4×4 vehicle 
Difficulty: Easy Most of the birdwatching is done from or short walks from the vehicles.
Climate: Can be very warm, generally late 20s or early 30s, humid on the coast (Salalah area). Cooler in the mountains but still in the 20s, warm at night
Tour Start Point: Salalah, Airport, Oman
Tour End Point: Salalah, Airport, Oman
Suggested Airlines: Oman Air