The Ultimate In Birding Tours

Asia (and its islands)

ISRAEL – The Great Spring Migration Flyway & Desert Specialities

Monday 13th April – Thursday 23rd April 2026

Leader: Mike Watson

11 Days Group Size Limit 6

ISRAEL: OVERVIEW

Birdquest’s Israel birding tours concentrate on the avian specialities of this pocket-sized but extraordinarily bird-rich country at the eastern end of the Mediterranean Sea, visiting at the very best time of year to maximize our success. Our Israel birding tour encounters such great birds as Macqueen’s Bustard, White-eyed Gull, Desert Owl, Nubian Nightjar, Hooded Wheatear, Syrian Serin and Sinai Rosefinch.

Israel, that small, controversial land strategically situated right at the migration crossroads between Africa, Asia and Europe, is one of the top birding spots of the ‘Western Palearctic’, an avifaunal subregion that covers Europe, North Africa and parts of Southwest Asia. While late March is the traditional time for visiting Israel, turning up the greatest variety of species (most of which are widespread and easily seen elsewhere), that is not the best time to visit for maximising one’s chances of seeing the country’s prime specialities. For that, you need to be later in spring.

We were pioneers of Israel birding tours (way back in 1982), and this special itinerary and its timing are designed to concentrate on those key species that are currently (in particular with Egypt, Yemen and several other Arab countries effectively ‘off-line’ for birders) only realistically and safely to be found in Israel. These include Levant Sparrowhawk (easy to observe on migration through Israel by mid-April), White-eyed Gull, Nubian Nightjar (of the form tamaricus, a potential split), Egyptian Nightjar, Hooded Wheatear, Syrian (or Tristram’s) Serin and Sinai Rosefinch.

In addition, White-cheeked Tern is a possibility at Eilat. Some marvellous additional major specialities include Sand Partridge, Macqueen’s Bustard, Armenian Gull, Spotted, Crowned, Pin-tailed and Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse, Desert Owl (now split from Hume’s/Omani Owl), White-spectacled Bulbul, Mourning Wheatear, Arabian Warbler, Arabian Babbler, Tristram’s Starling, Palestine Sunbird, Dead Sea Sparrow and Cretzschmar’s Bunting.

Not only is the birding in Israel superb, but the scenery is diverse, the cultural contrasts are fascinating, distances are small (leaving plenty of time for watching birds) and the facilities for travellers are excellent. In total contrast to the state of affairs in surrounding countries, where environmental destruction proceeds apace, Israel has enlightened conservation policies and an extremely fine network of reserves covering every major habitat. Hunting is greatly restricted and many birds and mammals that have become rare or even extinct in surrounding areas still thrive here. Sandgrouse, birds of prey, ibexes and gazelles are still a commonplace sight and even the endangered Macqueen’s Bustard maintains a healthy population.

We start our Israel birding tour at Tel Aviv, but immediately head for the north of Israel, where we will visit the wetlands around Ma’agan Mikhael on the Mediterranean coast with their many Armenian Gulls and perhaps a lingering Pallas’s Gull or two, before continuing to the verdant Galilee.

Here we will explore the marshes and fishponds of the Hula Valley, the Golan Heights and snow-capped Mount Hermon, looking for a superb array of resident and migrant species that features Syrian Serin in particular, as well as Marbled Duck, Sombre Tit, Western Rock Nuthatch, Asian Crimson-winged Finch and Cretzschmar’s Bunting.

After our stay in the north, we head southwards to the cliff-girt Dead Sea, which lies well below sea level. Here we will find scurrying Sand Partridges, tame Blackstarts, the curious Tristram’s Starling, Fan-tailed Raven, Palestine Sunbird, Dead Sea Sparrow, Striolated Bunting and in particular the rare Nubian Nightjar, the recently-described, restricted-range Desert Owl and the attractive, restricted-range Sinai Rosefinch.

From the Dead Sea, we cross desert plains flanked by dramatic mountain ranges until we come to Eilat at the northernmost point on the Red Sea. Eilat is justly famous for its impressive bird migration that has, over the years, encompassed a huge range of species, including an astonishing selection of vagrants that has turned up from all points of the compass (including a number of new birds for the ‘Western Palearctic’ subregion).

Migrants and non-breeding visitors that we will be concentrating on in particular include Levant Sparrowhawk and White-eyed Gull, while White-cheeked Tern is a rare possibility. Not only does Eilat offer the visitor the opportunity to see a wide variety of migrants and non-breeding visitors, but also some superb resident specialities including Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse and (in the Arava Valley region between Eilat and the Dead Sea)  Hooded Wheatear, Mourning Wheatear and Arabian Warbler.

After our visit to this ‘migration hotspot’ we return northwards by way of the Negev with its exciting desert avifauna including the rare and endangered Macqueen’s Bustard and Spotted, Crowned, Black-bellied and Pin-tailed Sandgrouse.

Birdquest has operated Israel birding tours since 1982.

What is special about the Birdquest Israel birding tour? As well as having a splendid itinerary and the best timing for the key specialities, the Birdquest tour group size limit is much lower than for many Israel tours, making for a superior birding experience.

Accommodation & Road Transport: The hotels/guesthouses are of a good standard throughout. Road transport is by minibus and roads are mostly very good.

Walking: The walking effort during our Israel birding tours is mostly easy, occasionally moderate.

Climate: Rather variable. Most days are warm or hot, dry and sunny, but it can be cool and overcast in the north, especially at higher altitudes. Rain is unlikely but possible

Bird Photography: Opportunities during our Israel birding tours are good.

TOUR HIGHLIGHTS

  • Experience the thrill of what is one of the greatest bird migration areas on Earth!
  • Raptors, storks and pelicans form a northbound river of birds flowing out of Africa and up the Rift Valley into Israel
  • Keep watch for marauding of Levant Sparrowhawks panicking the local birds as they rush by and maybe something special like a Crested Honey Buzzard
  • Search for the unexpected in Eilat, where Palearctic migrants may come in the form of a Corncrake on a park lawn or a stunning male Collared Flycatcher on a palm
  • Accompany an expert local guide to see the delicate and severely threatened ‘Tamarisk’ form of the Nubian Nightjar in the Dead Sea region
  • Enjoy a nocturnal encounter with the elusive Desert Owl, ghost of the Judean Desert
  • Follow the strikingly plumaged Hooded Wheatear as it skips across a desert plain, perching on the tiniest sprigs of vegetation
  • Gorgeous Syrian Serins song-flighting over flowery rocky hillsides on Mount Hermon
  • Wait by a hidden spring at the foot of a towering escarpment by the Dead Sea for a gaudy Sinai Rosefinch to drink, as migrating Steppe Buzzards pass overhead
  • Unfeasibly long-billed White-eyed Gulls along Eilat’s famous North Beach at the head of the Red Sea
  • Search for the last remaining Arabian Warblers in the Arava Valley, their thorny acacia home watched over by migrating Masked Shrikes
  • Hilarious Macqueen’s Bustards turning themselves inside out during their ‘foam bath’ display and then running around while hardly able to see where they are going
  • Watch bubbling Spotted, Crowned and Pin-tailed Sandgrouse at close range at their morning drinking pools in the Negev Desert
  • Enjoy warm hospitality and good food while travelling in comfort on the great road network of this small but bird-filled country

OUTLINE ITINERARY

  • Day 1: Morning tour start at Tel Aviv airport. Drive via Ma'agan Mikhael to She'ar Yashuv.
  • Day 2: Exploring the Galilee, Mount Hermon and the Golan Heights.
  • Day 3: Galilee region, then drive to the Dead Sea.
  • Day 4: Dead Sea.
  • Day 5: Drive to Eilat.
  • Day 6-8: Eilat region.
  • Day 9: Eilat region, then drive to Mizpe Ramon.
  • Days 10: Exploring the Negev Deset. Overnights at Mizpe Ramon.
  • Day 11: Negev Desert, then drive to Tel Aviv airport for evening tour end.

To see a larger map, click on the square-like ‘enlarge’ icon in the upper right of the map box.

To see (or hide) the ‘map legend’, click on the icon with an arrow in the upper left of the map box.

To change to a satellite view, which is great for seeing the physical terrain (and for seeing really fine details by repetitive use of the + button), click on the square ‘map view’ icon in the lower left corner of the ‘map legend’.

PRICE INFORMATION

Birdquest Inclusions: Our tour prices include surface transportation, accommodations, meals and entrance fees.

We also include all tipping for local guides and accommodation/restaurant staff.

Deposit: 20% of the total tour price. Our office will let you know what deposit amount is due, in order to confirm your booking, following receipt of your online booking form.

TO BOOK THIS TOUR: Click here (you will need the tour dates)


2025: provisional £3160, $4190, €3770, AUD6200. Tel Aviv/Tel Aviv.

Single Supplement: 2025: £530, $710, €630, AUD1050.

The single supplement will not apply if you indicate on booking that you prefer to share a room and there is a room-mate of the same sex available.

This tour is priced in US Dollars. Amounts shown in other currencies are indicative.

Air Travel To & From The Tour: Our in-house IATA ticket agency will be pleased to arrange your air travel on request, or you may arrange this yourself if you prefer.

ISRAEL BIRDING TOUR: DETAILED ITINERARY

Israel: Day 1  Our Israel birding tour begins this morning at Tel Aviv airport, from where we will drive to She’ar Yashuv in the Hula valley of northernmost Israel for a two nights stay.

En route, we will pay a visit to the extensive fishponds and the sandy Mediterranean coast near Ma’agan Mikhael. The area is an important wintering area for the restricted-range Armenian Gull, the major speciality here, which is present until quite late in spring owing to the high altitude of its breeding sites in Asia Minor and the Transcaucasus. During winter there is also a major gathering of wintering Pallas’s (or Great Black-headed) Gulls, one or two of which could still be present if we are very lucky.

Although Armenian Gulls predominate, we should be able to compare them with a few Caspian Gulls from the steppes and Lesser Black-backed Gulls from northern Scandinavia. As well as the large gulls, we will encounter Black-headed Gull and perhaps a lingering Little Gull.

Many other species occur here and we can expect to see the restricted-range White-spectacled Bulbul as well as Black-crowned Night and Grey Herons, Great and Little Egrets, White and Black Storks, Eurasian Spoonbill, Mallard, Common Moorhen, Eurasian Coot, Black-winged Stilt, Spur-winged Lapwing, Little and Temminck’s Stints, Marsh and Wood Sandpipers, Eurasian Collared, European Turtle and Laughing Doves, White-throated and Pied Kingfishers, Eurasian Hoopoe, Crested Lark, Barn Swallow, Graceful Prinia, European Reed Warbler and Hooded Crow.

As we continue eastwards we will pause at a colony of Lesser Kestrels. In the late afternoon, we will start to explore the Hula Valley.

Israel: Day 2  The Galilee is quite unlike the popular image of Israel. Here the countryside is green and the desert seems as if it must be far, far away. Streams and rivers run through a beautiful landscape of orchards and fields flanked by high hills and dominated by the snow-capped dome of Mount Hermon (2814m or 9233ft).

Most of the mountain is rocky, with low scrub in places, and here we shall search in particular for the restricted-range Sombre Tit, Western Rock Nuthatch and Cretzschmar’s Bunting and in particular the very restricted-range Syrian (or Tristram’s) Serin. This latter species has a breeding distribution entirely restricted to a small area extending from Jordan and northern Israel into Lebanon and western Syria and is easy to find by mid-April when the birds have returned to the breeding grounds, whereas it can be very hard to find in March when in unpredictable transit from its desert winter quarters. Additional birds of the area include Black Redstart and Rock Bunting.

To the south lie the Golan Heights and the rocky hills surrounding the Sea of Galilee. These rolling grassy uplands are cut by deep, steep-sided ravines and at this season the whole area is a mass of wildflowers. In these habitats, we may see a few Eurasian Griffon Vultures sweeping along the cliff faces, as well as Chukar, Alpine and Little Swifts, Calandra Lark, Red-rumped Swallow, Eurasian Crag Martin, Long-billed Pipit, Black-eared Wheatear, Blue Rock Thrush and Sardinian Warbler.

Lower down are cultivated areas, fishponds and the famous Hula marshlands – the latter a peaceful wilderness of waving papyrus fronds, slow-moving channels and large areas of open water. Amongst the more interesting birds that we should see in these habitats are Pygmy Cormorant, Great White Pelican (often soaring over the wetlands in the warm midday hours), Glossy Ibis, the declining Marbled Duck, Black Francolin, Little Crake, European Scops Owl, Cetti’s and Clamorous Reed Warblers, and Eurasian Penduline Tit.

Other species we should encounter in the Galilee include Little Grebe, Great Cormorant, Squacco and Purple Herons, Western Cattle Egret, Common Shelduck, Eurasian Wigeon, Eurasian Teal, Garganey, Northern Shoveler, Osprey, Western Marsh Harrier, Common Kestrel, Common Quail, Little Ringed Plover, Ruff, Common Snipe, Green and Common Sandpipers, Common Kingfisher, Sand Martin (or Bank Swallow), Common House Martin, White Wagtail, Common Blackbird, Zitting Cisticola, Sedge Warbler, Common and Lesser Whitethroats, Blackcap, Common Chiffchaff, Great Tit, Eurasian Jay, Common Chaffinch, European Greenfinch, European Goldfinch, Common Linnet and Corn Bunting.

Israel: Day 3  After some final birding in northern Israel we will drive southwards through increasingly arid country to the Dead Sea, where we will stay for two nights (divided between two locations).

Israel: Day 4  Deep but verdant wadis cut through the dramatic, towering cliffs that form the western rim of the Great Rift Valley (the same rift valley that begins far to the south in eastern Africa) before reaching the shoreline of the Dead Sea, a great soda lake with a surface no less than 400m below sea-level! Here we are at the eastern edge of the Judean Hills, a wild but starkly beautiful land of deep gorges and rugged desert mountains. Birds we may are likely to find amongst the wadis, palm groves and rocky hillsides of the area include such restricted-range specialities as Sand Partridge, Blackstart, Arabian Babbler, the curious Tristram’s Starling (or Tristram’s Grackle), Palestine Sunbird, Dead Sea Sparrow, Striolated Bunting, as well as Long-legged Buzzard, Bonelli’s Eagle, Pallid Swift, Pale Crag Martin, Desert Lark and both Brown-necked and Fan-tailed Ravens.

The greatest star of the area is, however, the superb little Sinai Rosefinch, now restricted, following on from taxonomic changes, to a very limited range in Sinai, the Negev and Dead Sea region, southern Jordan and northwestern Saudi Arabia. While you can see this bird more widely in winter, including the Eilat area, by spring the birds are back in their remote breeding fastnesses, so you need to explore one or more remote and spectacular desert gorges in order to see this pretty endemic.

Nubian Ibex are frequently seen in the area and there are some very tame Large-toothed Rock Hyraxes. Looking at these overgrown guinea pigs it is very hard to believe that their nearest relatives are the elephants!

The Dead Sea area is excellent for migrating birds of prey and in particular Lesser Spotted Eagle, a species often observed here but scarce further south at Eilat. Other raptors typical here include European Honey Buzzard, Common Buzzard, Egyptian Vulture and Short-toed Snake Eagle. We will have our first opportunity to see migrating flocks of Levant Sparrowhawk here. On some days a steady stream of northbound migrants passes along the rim of the escarpment, from where there are spectacular views over the Dead Sea.

After dark, we will visit a reliable site for the rare Nubian Nightjar. The local form, tamaricus, has been flagged as a potential split under the name Tamarisk Nightjar. We will also visit a rugged desert cliff which is reliable for the uncommon Desert Owl. This has only relatively recently been described as a new species to science, following the unexpected discovery that the genetics of the supposedly new ‘Omani Owl’ were identical to those of the original type specimen of Hume’s Owl, taken in southwestern Pakistan! So, no more Hume’s Owls in Israel, but instead they are Desert Owls!

Israel: Day 5  Leaving the Dead Sea behind, we drive southwards through the Arava, encountering an almost African landscape of scattered acacia savanna and arid, rocky mountains.

As we approach the Eilat area, where we will stay for four nights, the mountains flanking the valley increase steadily in height, the multiple hues of the rocks a testimony to their turbulent geological past.

During the journey we shall stop to look for such characteristic species of the area as the perky little Streaked Scrub Warbler (nowadays a monotypic family) and three restricted-range specialities; the lovely Arabian Green Bee-eater, Arabian Warbler (in places with large, scattered acacias) and the attractive Hooded Wheatear (which favours the dry, eroded hills and open flats that look like something from the surface of the moon). Depending on how long we take to look for these species, we may have time for some initial birding around Eilat this afternoon.

Israel: Days 6-8  Eilat is situated at the head of the Gulf of Aqaba, an arm of the Red Sea, and the surrounding area is a favoured venue for enthusiasts of bird migration. Springtime birding here is exciting for, in addition to having one of the world’s largest migrations of birds of prey, the Eilat area seems to attract almost every other kind of migrant and over the years an astonishing selection of vagrants have also turned up. There is a wide variety of habitats within a relatively small area including the waters and beaches of the Gulf of Aqaba, saltpans, brackish lagoons, kibbutz fields and palm groves, sandy and stony desert with scattered acacias, rocky wadis and the jagged mountains that loom above the town and stretch away far to the north.

Migrant birds of prey are often numerous and spectacular, but the northbound movement takes place in large pulses interspersed with much quieter periods. The commonest species at this period in spring are Common Buzzard (here represented by the strongly migratory form vulpinus, known as ‘Steppe Buzzard’, Black Kite and Short-toed Snake Eagle. We should also see small numbers of European Honey Buzzards (which are just starting to migrate through Israel at this time of year), Egyptian Vultures, Western Marsh, Pallid and Montagu’s Harriers, Eurasian Sparrowhawks and Booted and Steppe Eagles. We could also see Crested Honey Buzzard at the western edge of its distribution. Best of all, this is a good time for Levant Sparrowhawk migration. This is a tricky bird to see as most breeding and wintering areas are outside the scope of birding tours (Bulgaria and Georgia are probably the best bets, but even there it is by no means certain), but at this time of year in the Eilat region it is quite usual, although numbers vary greatly.

Along the shoreline of the Gulf of Aqaba we shall look in particular for White-eyed Gull, a species that is effectively a Red Sea endemic and which is a very regular non-breeding visitor here. We will also be on the lookout for Western Reef and Striated Herons, and Caspian Tern. If we are really in luck we will encounter White-cheeked Tern, a species that breeds in the Red Sea and the Persian/Arabian Gulf which turns up regularly at Eilat in summer, with occasional records in April.

At the saltpans and brackish lagoons, we should find such species as Greater Flamingo, Kentish and perhaps Greater Sand Plovers, Slender-billed Gull and Gull-billed Tern, as well as many other species of waterbirds.

Passerine migration at Eilat fluctuates greatly but there is always something to see and on rare occasions, there are birds everywhere. Amongst the more interesting landbird migrants that are found regularly at this time of year in the kibbutz fields and date palm groves, or around the pools and lagoons, are European Bee-eater, European Roller, Eurasian Wryneck, Greater Short-toed Lark, Tawny and Red-throated Pipits, Bluethroat, Isabelline Wheatear, Savi’s, Eastern Olivaceous and Eastern Orphean Warblers, Eastern Bonelli’s (or Balkan) Warbler, Collared and Semi-collared Flycatchers, Woodchat and Masked Shrikes, Spanish Sparrow and Ortolan Bunting. There are almost always some rarer birds about as well, but these are unpredictable.

An exciting resident species of the immediate Eilat area is Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse and we may be able to see these diminutive and largely crepuscular sandgrouse coming in to drink at dusk at a favourite watering point. Other residents of the area include Barbary Falcon, Eurasian Stone-curlew, Bar-tailed and Greater Hoopoe Larks, White-crowned Wheatear, the fairly restricted-range Mourning Wheatear, House Crow (a ship-borne colonist from South Asia), and Trumpeter and Desert Finches. Furthermore, Namaqua Dove has colonized the area and Black Scrub Robin turns up fairly regularly.

Other species likely during our stay at Eilat include Pied Avocet, Common Ringed and Grey (or Black-bellied) Plovers, Curlew Sandpiper, Dunlin, Common Redshank, Common Greenshank, Common Tern, Western Yellow Wagtail, Tree Pipit, Common Redstart, Northern Wheatear and Willow Warbler.

Israel: Day 9  After spending part of the day around Eilat we will drive northwards through the stark and dramatic scenery of the eastern Negev Desert to Mitzpe Ramon for a two nights stay.

Israel: Day 10  The undulating desert lands of the northern Negev offer some fine birding. Army camps and training areas are scattered about the region, making a rather bizarre backdrop to one’s explorations at times, but there is free access to most areas. Grazing by goats and sheep, which has reduced the neighbouring Sinai Desert to a sorry state, has been largely halted in the Negev and the resulting recovery of the vegetation has permitted a great increase in the numbers of many desert birds. In spring, providing the winter rains have been good, the area can look positively verdant and the many colourful wildflowers are a positive treat for those used to the regimented, ‘weed-free’ farmlands of Western Europe.

This is the easiest place in its range in which to see the magnificent but endangered Macqueen’s Bustard (split from Houbara) and we may even see one displaying, seemingly almost turning itself inside out in the process. Here we shall also be looking for Cream-coloured Courser, Spotted and Black-bellied Sandgrouse, and Desert Wheatear. Another species to keep a lookout for is Lanner, although this spectacular falcon is now becoming increasingly rare. Other species in the area include Little Owl (of the form lilith, a potential split as Lilith’s Owl), Lesser Short-toed Lark and Spectacled Warbler. We should also see Mountain Gazelles.

We will also visit a sandgrouse drinking pool where Crowned and Pin-tailed Sandgrouse often drink, accompanied by Sand Partridges, Trumpeter Finches and other passerines.

Occasionally Arabian (or Asian Dunn’s) Lark and Temminck’s Lark occur in the Negev, but the chances of an encounter with either is very low.

Israel: Day 11  After some final birding in the Negev we will return to Tel Aviv airport, where our Israel birding tour ends this evening.

ISRAEL TOUR REPORT 2018

View Report

Other birding tours by Birdquest in the southeast of the 'Western Palearctic' include: