Dates & Prices |
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Dates: 10th – 24th November 2024 Confirmed departure
Price: £5,795 Places available
Single Room Supplement: none
Deposit: £600 per person
Price Includes: Accommodation, all meals, ground transport, 8 domestic flights, entry fees, services of guides
Not Included: International travel, travel insurance, drinks & other personal items
Conservation Donation: Butterfly Conservation Europe
Leader(s): Antonio Giudici
Group Size: Minimum 4 & maximum 7 guests
Holiday Highlights
- A unique tour to West Papua for a simply stunning array of butterflies!
- Enjoy a great variety butterfly species, including massive Ornithoptera, incredibly coloured Delias, elusive Taenaris and flying jewels Hypochrysops!
- Visit four amazing and different locations to increase species & habitat diversity
- A small group tour to make sure you get the best wildlife sightings and photography opportunities
- Led by butterfly expert Antonio Giudici
- Relaxed pace tour and ideally suited to photography
- Contribute to Butterfly Conservation
A chance to enjoy an exclusive ‘trip of a lifetime’ for the butterflies of West Papua!
An adventurous, once in a lifetime dream trip for butterfly fans!
We’re excited to launch this brand new and exclusive 15 day butterfly tour to West Papua, where will we take you to four of the most famous and different butterfly locations.
Our guide has already run an impressive 5 butterfly tours here, which means he has the invaluable experience and knowledge to make your holiday a thrilling and rewarding, but safe experience. And with the added help of the best local guides, we should find massive Ornithoptera and incredibly coloured Delias, elusive Taenaris and flying jewels Hypochrysops.
This will be a small group to make sure you get the best wildlife sightings and photography opportunities. For most of the tour we will be staying in simple but comfortable hotels (mostly with AC and WIFI), which will allow us to fully enjoy one of the last butterfly havens on Earth, in all its beauty, with comfort and safety.
At Wamena, Manokwari, Jayapura, Fakfak accommodation will be in 3 stars hotels. In the Arfak mountains accommodation will be in a basic guest house with Indonesia style mandi toilet. This is a remote area where accommodation will be basic, with few amenities.
We will travel in Toyota Hilux 4×4 (or similar) vehicles for Arfak and Wamena. A regular, large people carrier type vehicle, will be used for Fakfak and Jayapura. Please be aware that the roads will be rough once we get up into the mountains, so be prepared for some discomfort. Walking should only be for fairly short distances, as the mud-puddling areas will be near bridges and fords. Forest trails will consist of infrequently used dirt tracks and walking trails that run between the various villages.
Book your places soon on what promises to be a very special experience!
Please note that the following is only intended as a guide. The actual itinerary may be changed if necessary due to local conditions, road closures, domestic flight delays etc.
Day 0 Arrive and meet at Makassar Airport (Sulawesi Indonesia) and check in for few hours if needed at the simple but modern and clean Ibis Budget Makassar Airport for rest and refresh.
2.10am flight to Manokwari (3 hours flight).
Day 1 6am arrive at Manokwari Airport, where the local driver will be there to meet us.
A quick stop at the only supermarket to make some personal food shopping and then straight to Arfak mountains (1 hour via a good road plus 1h 30m on a dirt road). We will stop on the way to see some butterflies at about 1.500 mt, then we should arrive at our guest house in the heart of the rainforest at 5pm. Check in, dinner, and then a possible moth trap session.
Day 2 Early start, breakfast and then we’ll get out to hunt for the many Ornitopthera in the beautiful flower garden in the vicinity. We’ll spend all day here, where the butterfly sightings and photo opportunities come easy and fruitful. Lunch and dinner will be at the guest house. Possible night moth trap session.
Day 3 Exploration deep along the main Arfak mountain road, visiting villages and riverbeds. We’ll try to reach, if weather and road conditions allow, the Danau Anggi area. The location is famous for the presence of the uncommon Ornithoptera rotschildi. Dinner wll be at the guest house. Possible night moth trap session.
Day 4 Early morning check out, followed by a 3 hour transfer, back to lowland forest South of Manokwari, to hunt some good Papilionidae and Nymphalidae species. In the afternoon we’ll drive back to Manokwari, to check in at the Swiss Belhotel.
Day 5 We’ll take a 7.00am flight to Jayapura (90 mins), where the local guide will bring us to the hotel and then out to explore the slopes of Cyclops mountains. Interesting species can be found in the forest and along the creeks. Afternoon back to the Hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 6 Another full day at Jayapura, where we’ll explore short valleys on the slopes of Cyclops mountains, the surroundings of Danau Sentani or, on request, a lowland forest at Nimbokrang, where is possible to see some interesting butterflies, also few species of Birds of Paradise. Afternoon back to the hotel, dinner in town.
Day 7 We will take an 8.35am flight to Wamena (1 hour). Check in at Pilamo hotel and quickly out into the field. If there’s enough time we’ll head to Bailem directly, otherwise we’ll explore closer locations. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in Town.
Day 8 7.00am breakfast and visit to Pass Valley, about 40 km from Wamena. It is a wonderful place for Delias. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 9 7.00am breakfast and then a visit to few locations around Wamena, looking again for Delias and other species. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 10 Transfer day: 7.30 am flight to Jayapura (60’). 12.45am flight to Sorong. We’ll arrive in two hours, then transfer to the Hotel Reddoorz because at the moment there isn’t a same day connection to Fakfak. We’ll use the free time to roam in town and find a good spot for dinner.
Day 11 7.30am flight to Fakfak (1 hour). Our local guide in Fakfak will pick us up, quickly transfer us to the Hotel Gran Papua to leave our baggage and then quickly out into the field (30 min distance). We’ll check a couple of forest and road edge locations. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 12 7am breakfast in town and transfer to Ngre Dibian mountain (1h 30m). Lunch will be out in the field. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 13 7am breakfast in town and transfer to lowland forest, different location (2 hours). Lunch out in the field. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 14 7am breakfast in town and transfer to national park forest (45 mins). Lunch out in the field. Afternoon back to the hotel. Dinner in town.
Day 15 8.50am flight Fakfak-Sorong and 16.35 flight to Sulawesi. Arrive in Makassar at 5.50pm
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