Locations

Vietnam – Profile for Birders

February 26, 2026 by Editor No Comments

Highlights

Endemic-rich, welcoming, and one of the world’s most biodiverse countries, Vietnam is home to over 900 bird species, including more than 40 species/subspecies endemics, with discoveries and taxonomic updates emerging each year.

Several highly localized endemics, spectacular pheasants, laughingthrushes, pittas and forest specialists occur here that can’t be seen anywhere else. Dramatic mountains, lowland rainforest, limestone karst, wetlands, and coastal mudflats packed into a narrow north–south strip lead to a huge habitat diversity within short travel distances. For birders, this means you can go from montane endemics in cool pine forest to tropical hornbills and pittas within the same week.

The infrastructure is also very birding-friendly: good roads, easy domestic flights, plenty of local guides, and a growing bird photography scene. Vietnam is straightforward and affordable to travel in, with excellent food and generally welcoming locals.

Key Bird Species and Families

  • Pheasants: Vietnam is renowned for its diverse and spectacular array of pheasantidae. Typical highlights and specialists include Germain’s Peacock Pheasant, Siamese Fireback, Silver Pheasant, Tonkin Partridge, Orange-necked Partridge and Green Peafowl. Seeing several species in one trip is realistic, particularly in several of the key national parks.
  • Laughingthrushes: If you like skulky, charismatic birds, Vietnam delivers (and is possibly best known for) an exceedingly epic collection of Laughingthrushes. Species like Orange-breasted, White-cheeked, Collared, Black-hooded, and Grey-crowned Crocias (near-endemic) are classic targets. Most prefer mid-elevation forest, bamboo tangles and very patient birders!
  • Pittas: Vietnam is excellent for pittas, with Blue-rumped, Bar-bellied, Blue, Rusty-naped, and Fairy Pitta possible depending on season and location. Always a crowd-pleaser.
  • The Other Epics: Hornbills / Broadbills / Trogons / Etc: Classic families with much global love, much of the lowland forest habitats support Great, Oriental Pied, and Wreathed Hornbills, plus colourful broadbills like Long-tailed, Silver-breasted, Dusky, Black-and-red and more.
  • Endemic/near-endemic specials – A few birds alone justify the trip:
    • Vietnamese Greenfinch
    • Dalat Shrike Babbler
    • Annam Minivet
    • Tonkin Partridge
    • Black-crowned Barwing
    • Grey-crowned Crocias
    • Collared Laughingthrush
    • Langbian Sunbird
    • Indochinese Green Magpie
    • Sooty Babbler
    • Vietnamese Cutia
    • Yellow-billed Nuthatch
  • Wintering Migrants & Waterbirds: Many visiting birders only think of Vietnam’s classic and iconic forest and high elevation mountainous species, forgetting that Vietnam also has vast coastal habitats, mudflats, wetlands, mangroves and scrubland. High-value shorebird megas such as Nordmann’s Greenshank and Spoon-billed Sandpiper are reliable at certain key sites in both the northern and southern ends of the country, as well as 50+ species of shorebird and hundreds of freshwater wetland/lake species, including an impressive collection of migrant winter ducks.

Germain’s Peacock-Pheasant

Best Regions for Birding

This is a section that undoubtedly deserves a more detailed breakdown, but for a general overview, Vietnam is best understood as the following:

Northern Vietnam:
This is the place for Sino-Himalayan specialties and cool-climate species, but also for general high-elevation forest and limestone karst species. Throw in expansive coastal shoreline and scrubland from the Red River Delta, and you have one of Vietnam’s most species-dense regions.
Key Regions & Parks:

  • Sapa
  • Ba Be National Park
  • Tam Dao National Park
  • Xuan Thuy National Park
  • Ba Vi National Park
  • Cuc Phuong National Park

Central Vietnam:
The region is dominated by the spectacular Annamite Ranges, meeting lowland scrub, forest, wetland and coastal habitats. Best accessed from Da Nang city, this is a region that is very accessible and has high yield for those willing to design a careful itinerary alongside local guides and tour operators.
Key Regions & Parks:

  • Phong Nha Ke Bang National Park
  • Sa Mu Pass
  • Bach Ma National Park
  • Hoi An / Da Nang
  • Lo Xo Pass
  • Ngoc Linh
  • Mang Den

Southern Vietnam
Vietnam’s most famous and visited region, often tipped as one of Asia’s most rewarding and spectacular birding locations. Home to the vast Mekong Delta, endless mangroves and coastal habitats, the endemic-rich Da Lat plateau and the world-famous Cat Tien National Park.
Key Regions & Parks:

  • Mekong Delta / Tram Chim National Park
  • Can Gio
  • Ma Da Forest
  • Cat Tien National Park
  • Di Linh
  • Da Lat Plateau

Ms. Gould’s Sunbird

Best Birding Season

Vietnam has good birding year-round somewhere, but generally most birding and wildlife tours take place from December through to May, which peak tour season from February-April. As a more specific breakdown:

  • North: March–May
  • Central Highlands & Regions: Jan–April
  • South: Dec–April
  • Migration & shorebirds: Sept–Nov and March–April
  • Avoid the peak rainy season if possible, especially in central Vietnam (heavy storms can limit access), occurring from September to November.

Practical Tips

  • Vietnam is generally safe and easy to travel in
  • Food is excellent (arguably the best in Southeast Asia for travellers)
  • Roads and domestic flights make moving between regions straightforward
  • English is common in tourist areas, less so in rural parks
  • Vietnam has a growing array of local bird guides and a few very professional tour operators that focus on specialist and expert birding tours.
  • Many parks have simple but comfortable guesthouses
  • Early starts are essential, activity drops fast after mid-morning heat
  • Leeches exist in wet forests; bring leech socks in the rainy season
  • We love Vietnam (and we’re biased), but we’re pretty sure you’re going to love it too. It combines serious endemics, fantastic forest birding, easy logistics, huge species yield on well-planned trips, not too mention great food (a nice bonus!).

Golden-winged Laughingthrush

Books:

Links:


By Khai Minh

Khai Minh is part of the logistics and guiding team at Next Continent, a Vietnam-based ecotourism tour company, which runs specialist birding, mammalwatching, herping and other wildlife tours in Vietnam and across Southeast Asia. Next Continent can be reached by visiting their website at https://nextcontinenttours.com 

“Vietnam-map” by Srml is licensed under CC BY-SA 1.0.