Arizona's premier local guiding service for birders and bird photographers

More Birds. Better Photos. Your List.

Our Services

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Rufous-capped Warbler © Felipe Guerrero
Birding

A popular choice for birders seeking to discover Arizona's spectacularly diverse birdlife.

Starting at $250.

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Five-striped Sparrow © Felipe Guerrero
Bird Photography

A birding experience designed to get you the best possible photos of Arizona birds.

Starting at $300.

The BEST OF ARIZONA North AND South

We guide in all regions of the state, from the birder mecca of Southeastern Arizona to the world-famous canyon country of Northern Arizona. We want to get you the best of Arizona birds north and south – Elegant Trogons and hummingbirds to Pinyon Jays and California Condors.

Our REVIEWS

Arizona Birding Tours
Excellent
5.0
Based on 368 reviews
review us on
I went on a one day birding trip with a very knowledgeable guide and we saw over 50 species. It was a very hot day in Yuma, and temperatures reached 117 degrees, but the guide brought a cooler full of water on ice. He also brought a spotting scope which provided great views of several of the birds we identified. This was my second birding experience with this group as I had another day trip a couple of years ago and had an equally satisfactory time. I would very highly recommend this organization for an excellent guided birding experience.
Jake Thompson guided our tour recently in Patagonia along Harshaw Creek. He’s an amazing guide, expert birder, very knowledgeable of local ecology and wildlife, and a delightful person. Highly recommend them.
Tommy took my friend and I owling at night. It was wonderful. He was professional and knowledgeable. He carried water and food for us. He made sure we took great photos!
This was our second time with AZ birding guides and we had an awesome 3 day birding adventure with Jake. Jake was incredibly knowledgeable about the area, bird songs/calls, habitat for particular species and where to find the birds on our wish list. We had a fantastic time birding and owling. Looking forward to scheduling another trip. T
Jake was very knowledgeable about all the birds, the trees/flowers that attract specific birds, and the different sounds each bird makes. I saw 11 species of hummingbirds with him, (which was my main goal) and close to 100 different bird species overall. And he took time after the final day to text me pins where to find other birds on my own. Was able to find a Costa’s Hummingbird and an Elegant Trogon from the pins. I’ll be back next August, and I’ll certainly request Jake again.
We had an amazing time on our all day birding trip with Eric. He took us to different habitats and planned the day well so we were high up in the cooler mountain air during the heat of the day. He was friendly and very knowledgeable not only on birds but also plants, insects and the area in general.We would highly recommend using Arizona birding guides for your next birding adventure.
We had a full day of birding with Kadynn Hatfield in Box Canyon and Madera Canyon. The day was educational and fun; Kadynn was a fantastic guide. He is very knowledgeable about Arizona birds and has an incredible ability to identify them both by sight and sound. His bird sound identification skill is extremely impressive. Kadynn found many birds for us that we would never have seen on our own. He brought a cooler full of water along for the day and carried extra water for us as we hiked up the mountain. I highly recommend Kadynn Hatfield and Arizona Birding Guides. We will definitely hire him again on our next trip to Arizona.
Wonderful day of birding! Jake was knowledgeable about birds and habitats, flexible as to our wants and limitations, and very personable. The booking was easy. I would highly recommend Arizona Birding Tours!
I had a fantastic 3 day guided experience with Jake Thompson. He found dozens of new species for my life list, knows the habitats and local hot spots very well, and worked to meet my interests and pace. I can't imagine birding in Southeast Arizona without taking advantage of this expertise.
Really well ran, fantastic company, from initial contact and booking to getting out in the field. John took me out in the Sedona and Flagstaff areas. He was very well versed and extremely knowledgeable on the birds as well as everything in between. He’s a true naturalist and loves what he does. Couldn’t recommend John or Arizona Birding Tours more!
Had a wonderful experience with AZ Birding Tours. My guide, Kadynn was an expert birder with in-depth knowledge of all the hotspots and bird species, resulting in 17 lifers! Everyone I had contact with was helpful and professional. I highly recommend!
On my first trip to Arizona for Birding, I wanted to make the most of the time I had. Jake from Amazon Birding Tours made sure I did just that. He amazed us with his depth of knowledge of the area and really packed in as many birds as he could. Great experience. Highly recommend him and the tour company for providing a unique, personal experience.
Arizona Birding Tours was recommended to me by a friend who was impressed with them in the past. Jake was my assigned guide and is an incredible birder and naturalist. He brought me to some places I might not have gone to on my own, helped me to see and/or hear (owls) all the targets I gave to him, and was a pleasure to converse with along that way. Highly recommend.
John Wilson guided us through an evening of owling and a morning of birding in Greer, Arizona. What a pleasure to walk and talk with a young man so interested in all elements of nature, and so well versed in birds! John was sensitive to our interests, and especially to my 93-year-old mother's comfort on the trails. We were able to see and photograph a number of species that we would not even have noticed without his guidance. A splendid experience.
Birding tour of Arizona 7-21-2024 to 7-31-2024. Visited Grand Canyon National Park, Phoenix area, Tucson area and Sierra Vista. Guides Nolan Walker and John Wilson were superb. Extremely knowledgeable and helpful. Both were most considerate of my mobility issues. Hotels at Grand Canyon, Phoenix, Tucson and Sierra Vista were very nice. Hotel in Flagstaff was just OK, at best. I thought that Arizona Birding Tours could have done better at arranging lodging. Each night we were left on our own to arrange our hotel, which worked out OK, but I would have much preferred to have the hotels reserved in advance. I know that this would have made the tour cost more but it would have made for a less stressful experience.
Excellent experience for us. Making our reservation was easy and fees are reasonable. Our guide, John, was very professional, knowledgeable and friendly. We haven’t counted up total birds/lifers yet but it was a lot. He worked hard to find what we were looking. He walked our butts off but made sure we went at our pace. When we return to Arizona, we will definitely request him. Highly recommend this service.
They provided exactly what I asked for. My guide, Kadynn, was knowledgeable, personable, energetic, and very well organized. We found nearly everything on my list including some very long shots and 1 mega rarity that was not on it. I would gladly use them again.
I did a half day birding and an owling night with Eric Hough, and it was excellent! The knowledge he has not only of birds but of plants and other wildlife is truly remarkable. And I saw a ton of lifers! I would highly recommend Arizona Birding Guides, and Eric, if you get the chance to bird with them.
I'm a new, but enthusiastic birder and this was my first time hiring a guide. I especially enjoyed my two outings with Kadynn - a half day and owling that evening. Kadynn is knowledgable, pleasant, and professional. I would book another trip with him as well as recommend him to others.
This was our second time working with Arizona Birding Guides. Our first trip was in March 2023 with Nolan and our second was during monsoon season at the end of June 2024 with Kadynn. We cannot recommend this guiding service more. Our guides were knowledgeable, approachable, and fun. We started with a target list of species and on both trips we were amazed how well we did. It was a great way for us to maximize our trip and experience.
We can enthusiastically recommend Arizona Birding Tours as an excellent guide service in southeast Arizona. Felipe did a great job of providing, ahead of time, a reasonable target list for 2 half-days in mid-February 2022. As beginning birders, we really appreciated having his list of eBird Arizona hot-spots to use in planning our own further week's birding spots. Felipe also was able to accomodate our 2-nights stay at his super airbnb in Patagonia. The backyard feeders, extensive birding bookshelves, bird-themed decor, and insider's local restaurant recommendations made our visit delightful.Nolan was our guide, and he exceeded our hopes by locating over 50 new species for our life list at Patagonia Lake State Park, along the Santa Cruz River, and up in Montosa Canyon. His excellent ear provided us with so many more opportunities to see birds than we would have had on our own! The great success we had because of his guiding abilities, knowledge, and advice inspired us to continue afterwards up to Madera Canyon where we were able to nab a Bewick's Wren, Yellow-eyed Junco, Rivoli's Hummingbird, Bridled Titmouse, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Acorn Woodpecker, and a Hepatic Tanager pair.Looking forward to another visit back to Arizona -and definitely bird guiding again from Felipe and Nolan!
Our time with JakeThompson was fantastic. We saw an Elegant Trogan and lotsa others. It was a huge day with over 60 species, and I added 15 to my life list, with my daughter adding even more! Jake was an expert guide about the geography, and all the flora as well. I appreciated his persistence when we were owling !! When we heard them in the night sky I really thought it was grand but he actually found a spot and called them to us!!!That was a spectacular moment that we will always remember. On top of it all, Jake was personable and down to earth. It was a remarkable day seeing remarkable birds with remarkable people!⭐️ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🦉🦉😊
Nolan was a very knowledgeable guide and we saw a lot of great birds. Looking forward to working with him again!
Such a rewarding day of birding with Nen W. He was super knowledgeable about many nature topics. The best day birding in a very long time.
I only had a few days in Sierra vista. I decided to get a guide, Mike Sadat. I am so glad that I did get a guide. I saw many more birds than I would have seen on my own. Mike was great and pointing out the birds and showing me how to listen for them and look for them. He made sure we went places that I would see the birds that I wanted to see.
I booked 7 days of birding SE Arizona with guide Nolan Walker and the trip exceeded all my expectations. Nolan was an exceptional guide and his ID skills (especially by ear) and knowledge of the area were impressive. My goal was to see as many species as possible and pick up potentially 50 life birds including the AZ specialities. By the end of the week, we found 193 species, 94 of which were lifers! It was an incredible experience and I can’t say enough about my guide and Arizona Birding Tours. The booking and planning of this trip was easy and hassle free. If you’re interested in birding the SW United States, I highly recommend this organization. I look forward to working with them again in south Texas and Mexico.
Recently had a successful trip with Arizona Birding Tours. We were able to see all of our target birds plus a few other lifers that were not on our list through our guide Nolan Walker.
I spent two days with Kadynn Hatfield. It was an incredible experience. Kadynn is the most skillful birder I've ever had the pleasure of being with. His ability to identify birds by sound and sight is remarkable. He also knows Arizona. When I said I wanted to see a Harris's Hawk, he knew exactly where to take me. I recommend Kadynn without reservation. The man knows birds and he knows Arizona!!!
I spent the first two full days of my trip with my guide, Kadynn, and was able to photograph all my target species and 19 lifers. His ability to ID all birds by sound was instrumental in getting me in position to photograph my target species, and a number of bonus species. In addition to having seemingly endless knowledge on birds, he also had an incredible amount of knowledge on all other aspects of Arizona's wildlife environment. Throughout our two days together, I peppered Kadynn with random questions on birds, bugs, shrubs, snakes, etc. and he was able to answer most of them. Kadynn was professional, responsive, and a genuinely nice person. If you're ever looking for a guide in AZ, I recommend checking out Arizona Birding Guides.
I need to acknowledge the amazing work of Arizona Birding guides and in particular, Alex Patia. This man knows his birds! I asked for fast paced birding and Alex gave it his full effort. I added 41 new species to my life list including Spotted Owl and a very close encounter with Elegant Trogon. Wow! Alex recognized birds and led me to the best position to spot them. He educated me on all local flora and fauna and kept me interested and entertained even when traveling from site to site. I would recommend Arizona Birding Guides for birders of all levels. Five stars +!
We had been birding in south Arizona a couple of times. We were looking for a guide to help us locate some of the more difficult birds to find, like the Montezuma Quail. Kadynn was very knowledgeable about the birds and the areas where they might be found. He found two birds that I doubt we would have found on our own, including the quail. On top of that, at the end of the day, he gave advice on how we might find 3 other life birds we were looking for, and we found them all! We would no doubt ask for Kadynn again if we take another trip to that part of the state.
Jake Thompson was a terrific guide...racked up 60 life birds in 3-4 days, along with over 120 species...he was knowledgeable on plants as well and pointed me to an area where I got to see a Pronghorn antelope! We hit all the Tucson hot spots between there and on over east towards Sierra Vista. Hiked up to 6 miles a day but it's your pace as want. Strongly suggest staying at Casa de San Pedro!
5 plus stars!! David was so knowledgeable about the area, wildlife and of course the birds! Being from the Midwest and wanting to be sure to capture certain birds, we booked with Arizona Birding tours and BAM! They delivered with David!
We had a great experience with our young and enthusiastic birding guide in Tucson, Bobby! Over two full days, his interest and knowledge of the local birdlife made each outing amazing. From spotting rare species to sharing insights about the region's natural history, his dedication was evident. Highly recommend for anyone looking to explore Tucson's avian wonders!
Jake was amazing. Can't say enough good things about him. His hearing and sound recognition are unbelievable . His mimicry is uncanny. Those elf owls thought he was the real thing. I highly recommend him.
A.Petio was a great guide who kindly met the needs of his clients
Alex Patia was an absolutely perfect guide. He not only knew birds (by song, call and appearance) but also plants, trees, reptiles etc. A true naturalist. I found AZ Birding Tours to be a highly professional organization. From my first contact with Felipe, and through my subsequent arrangements with Alex as to our birding interests, plans for meeting , etc.,communications were promptly responded to and clear. I would highly recommend this guide service.
We had the best day with Alex. He was so knowledgeable and passionate and he got our whole group excited about the birds we were seeing. He asked about our hopes for birds for the day, and he created an itinerary that gave us the best shot to see them. 2 life birds that day- Elegant Trogon and Northern Pygmy Owl. Incredible. Highly recommend!
My husband and I went on a half-day birding outing with Alex Patia of Arizona Birding Tours on May 9, 2024. We went to the Burrowing Owl colony in Marana, El Rio, and Sweetwater Wetlands. It was a FANTASTIC experience! Alex is extremely knowledgeable and we learned a lot from him. He is like an encyclopedia and I know we only got the "tip of the iceberg" of all his knowledge. Alex recorded 63 species with us on ebird! My favorites were the Burrowing Owls, the Green Heron, the Black-chinned Hummingbird, the active raptor nests and the Summer Tanagers. We could feel Alex's passion for the birds and their habitats it was contagious. If we go birding again in southeast Arizona, we will ask for Alex! We had such a rich experience with him! Sincerely, Betsy Keyack, Highlands Ranch, Colorado
Another outstanding experience with Felipe’s company. This time we were staying in Ramsey Canyon and spent a day with Eric and a day with Kadynn for bird photography. Both guides were excellent. Went further afield with Kadynn to find red-faced warbler - ended up seeing 21 ! Lots of migratory warblers etc., over 70 species in all. Highly recommended.
We had a great time birding with Kadynn from Arizona Birding Tours. We spent 2 days and 2 nights with him, birding a variety of habitats from the riparian areas of Tubac, the saguaro of Sabino Canyon, up Madera Canyon, and to the top of Mt Lemmon. Kadynn has both a great attitude about birding, as well as an excellent technical knowledge of both the birds we were seeking and their habitats. He put us in great position to get excellent views and photos of a number of bird species we have never seen before. We would highly recommend Kadynn and Arizona Birding Tours.
I spent the day birding with Kadynn and it was a fantastic experience. We birded Madera Canyon and number of other spots in the broader area. We saw many birds, including 30+ lifers. Definitely more than I expected to get coming into the day.Kadynn had a great plan that got us into a lot of different habitats. He was super knowledgeable, always calling out what he heard and helping me to learn them as best I could. Kadynn even stayed after dusk to help get me on the owls and nightjars in the canyon. Such an awesome day
I spent two half days birding with two different guides that I booked through Arizona Birding Tours. Both Eric and Michael were excellent guides and took me to some wonderful birding sites, including Madera Canyon and Patagonia Lake. It was a pleasure birding with them and I got to see some species I'd never seen before. Well worth it.
This is the second time I’ve hired Arizona Birding Guides to help me find specific lifers. Kadyn was our guide for a single day of birding culminating in an evening of owling. We had some difficult targets but Kadyn got us on our birds, he himself was very enthusiastic about getting Five-striped Sparrow and Ferruginous Pygmy Owl. He also helped us with intel on LeConte’s Thrasher and Ridgway’s Rail. He has an excellent ear and knows his hotspots and habitats well. He really made effective use of the time we had to strategically get us on birds.
The day with Alex was so full of birds and bird knowledge. He suggested going up Mount Lemmon and my husband saw so many lifers, which were largely migrants. Alex has lots of knowledge and tools to use to bring the birds in. Excellent morning!
The whole experience was great! I submitted a request/message on their website and heard back from Felipe quickly. We discussed dates and locations and he connected us with one of their guides, Jake. Three of us did a night of owling and a full day of birding with him south of Tucson. We saw so many lifers and enjoyed seeing a wide variety of habitats. Jake was extremely knowledgeable on all of the birds and their different calls/songs, as well as the plants and trees in the region. We highly recommend booking with Arizona Birding Tours!
We Had a half day birding trip in Flagstaff organized by Arizona Birding Tours and it was great! Felipe put us with an awesome guide, John Wilson. He was knowledgeable, professional, friendly, and patient! The three of us felt that John tailored our trip to match our experience and meet our wants. We will be back!
I have birded with many guides in many places and I highly recommend Arizona Birding Tours. I had outstanding days with Felipe and with Bobby. Expert knowledge of birds and much more, most capable in the field, thorough, organized, fun to be with. It doesn’t get any better!
I recently spent a day with Kadynn Hatfield birding around the Tucson area. I had previously birded with Kadynn and already knew that he is a fantastic birder and guide. Kadynn went out of his way to take me to multiple locations, making sure that I saw as many lifers as possible, and making sure I had time to enjoy previously seen birds as well. Kadynn's ability to ID birds through quick looks and birdsong (calls) is phenomenal. A bonus is that Kadynn is a really fun person to spend the day with, and just a fantastic person overall.
We spent a wonderful day at Lake Patagonia State Park with David Griffith. He was very knowledgeable, and made sure everyone got to see the birds we found. He also made appropriate allowances for our various physical capabilities.A week later we spent a couple of hours owling with Alex Patia at Madera Canyon. Also very knowledgeable and enthusiastic. We didn’t see any owls, but heard several species. At that point I was feeling the effects of the elevation (total flatlander here) and couldn’t do the hiking I would have liked.
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Arizona Birding Tours

Arizona Birding Tours is about following passions – passion for being in nature, for exploring beautiful places and amazing birds, for getting the best possible photo, and for having new experiences that create lasting memories. We are honored to be able to share our passion for Arizona birds with you!

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Answers to your questions!

What time of year is best for birding in Arizona? Where should I go birding when I visit? What species of birds will I see while I’m there? Find answers to all your questions and more on our FAQ page.

Pro Tips For Birding IN Arizona

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