The Best Places To Photograph Birds In Ecuador

With 1,620 species of birds, Ecuador is an excellent place not just for birdwatchers but for bird photographers. If you prefer to see your birds through a camera lens rather than a set of binoculars, check out this list of great places to easily photograph birds.

1. Near Quito

Hotel, Lodge, Eco-Lodge

San Jorge de Quito
The San Jorge de Quito Eco-Lodge is located just outside the capital city. Birds of all kinds flock to the beautifully manicured gardens. Seed feeders and sugar feeders, as well as an excellent variety of flowering plants, attract birds to easily photographed locations.
San Jorge de Quito, Km4, Cotocollao Nono-Mindo Rd, Quito, Ecuador, +593 2 224 7549

Shining Sunbeam Hummingbird | © Lip Kee / Wikimedia Commons

Between Quito and pacific coast

Alambi Cloud Forest Reserve
Where the Quito-Mindo highway crosses the Rio Nanegalito lies a tiny property called Alambi. The garden is a collection of brightly flowering plants, tall shade trees, and well-placed perches near dozens of sugar feeders, making for excellent photo opportunities.
Alambi Cloud Forest Reserve, E28, Quito, Ecuador, +593 99 596 7039

Mindo Cloudforest Foundation
Mindo Cloudforest Foundation lies just off the highway before San Miguel de los Bancos. The small garden attracts many birds—including rufous motmot, choco toucan, and several species of tanagers—while sugar feeders buzz with dozens of hummingbirds, including the striking green-crowned woodnymph.
Mindo Cloudforest Foundation, San Jose de Milpe, Ecuador, +593 99 355 1949

Green Crowned Woodnymph Hummingbird, Milpe, Ecuador

Between Quito and Amazon Basin

Guango Lodge
Guango Lodge provides a well-designed garden perfect for framing excellent photos of hummingbirds. While there are several sugar feeders, flowering plants also attract several species, making natural shots of these stunning birds easier to obtain.
Guango Lodge, 28C, Guango, Ecuador, +593 2 289 1880

Cabañas San Isidro
The hummingbird garden at Cabañas San Isidro includes a comfortable patio where photographers can set up tripods and protect extra equipment from late afternoon rains. Great photography can also take place from the roof of the community room near the cabins; the patio there looks directly into the trees, where species like the russet-backed oropendola, green jay, and mountain cacique are commonly seen.
Cabañas San Isidro, Via Cosanga Caucheras K3, Cosanga, Ecuador, +593 99 358 1250

Amazon Basin

Laguna Paikawe
The Amazon Basin is known for wildlife lodges in the middle of the jungle, but it is possible to photograph birds in easier to reach destinations. While there are no feeders at Laguna Paikawe, the boat ride on the waters of Lake Paikawe provides excellent opportunities to photograph wild birds in fairly close conditions. Especially exciting in this location are the prehistoric-looking hoatzins.
Laguna Paikawe, Via St Victor, Napo, Ecuador, +593 99 817 3065

Wildsumaco Lodge
Wildsumaco Lodge has several locations that make for great bird photography. Its patio has views directly into the trees where tanagers regularly perch (and tamarin monkeys regularly visit), and its hummingbird garden has feeders and native plants to attract multiple species. Along the trail, guides regularly find seasonal hidden spots with sleeping owls or nesting parrots.
Wildsumaco Lodge, Napo, Ecuador, +593 6 301 8343

2. Southern Ecuador

Lodge, Eco-Lodge

Jocotoco Reserves
The Jocotoco Foundation runs three different reserves in southern Ecuador, each with great locations for bird photography: Umbrella Bird Lodge (also known as Buenaventura); Urraca Lodge near the Peru border; and Casa Simpson in the Reserva Tapichalaca, one of the few east slope lodges in southern Ecuador.

White-breasted Parakeet | © Gary L. Clark / Wikimedia Commons

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.