Signature Tours › Wildlife & Birdwatching
Target all 28 island endemics in a private party. Dedicated 4x4 transport, ethical local trackers who know the calls, and zero crowded tour minibuses.
Lying 250 kilometres off the coast of West Africa, São Tomé and Príncipe have evolved in complete isolation for millions of years. The result is one of the densest concentrations of endemic avian life on Earth: 28 recognized endemic species across two small islands, alongside a dozen distinctive subspecies that represent future potential splits.
Most international birders visit on rigid, fixed-date group tours organized by overseas agencies, sharing a single minibus and competing for views on narrow forest trails. We operate differently. We provide a completely private, flexible birding holiday with your own dedicated 4x4 vehicle, experienced on-island trackers, and private boat charters, allowing you to work through the endemics at your own pace while significantly undercutting European agency group prices.
The archipelago's birdlife divides cleanly between accessible secondary-forest endemics and four critically endangered primary-forest specialists in the southern interior.
Found exclusively in the dense, undisturbed montane rainforest of southern São Tomé:
São Tomé Grosbeak
Crithagra concolor
The world's largest seedeater. Lost for over a century and rediscovered in 1991, this heavy-billed giant remains one of Africa's rarest birds.
Dwarf Olive Ibis
Bostrychia bocagei
A critically endangered dwarf ibis that quietly stalks damp forest stream beds.
São Tomé Fiscal
Lanius newtoni
The only fiscal in Africa that lives inside deep rainforest tangles, striking in black, white, and yellow.
São Tomé Short-tail
Amaurocichla bocagii
A strange, long-legged terrestrial bird now classified as an aberrant wagtail or pipit, found creeping along rocky riverbanks.
Regularly recorded along plantation edges, secondary forest, and highland trails:
Giant Sunbird (Dreptes thomensis)
An enormous sunbird with a decurved bill, feeding on banana flowers and wild hibiscus.
Giant Weaver (Ploceus grandis)
Nearly twice the size of mainland weavers, building football-sized woven nests.
São Tomé Scops Owl (Otus hartlaubi)
A tiny forest owl tracked by evening call or at daytime roosts with our local guides.
Newton's Sunbird, São Tomé Speirops, São Tomé Oriole, São Tomé Thrush, São Tomé Prinia, and São Tomé Weaver.
Príncipe holds eight strict island endemics and three shared species:
Príncipe Scops Owl (Otus bikokoo)
Formally described as a new species to science in 2022, living in the southern primary forest.
Príncipe Thrush (Turdus xanthorhynchus)
Critically endangered forest thrush restricted to undisturbed ridge forests.
Dohrn's Warbler (Sylvia dohrni)
An active songbird with a loud, ringing call found throughout secondary growth and forest borders.
Príncipe Speirops (Speirops leucophoeus)
A white-eye relative with grey-brown upperparts and pale underparts, working through the canopy and mid-storey of forest and old secondary growth.
Príncipe White-eye (Zosterops ficedulinus)
Small, quick and greenish with a bright white eye-ring, common in woodland, plantation shade and gardens, often moving in loose feeding flocks.
Príncipe Sunbird (Anabathmis hartlaubii)
A small sunbird with a fine curved bill, taken on nectar at flowering trees and shrubs along forest edges and in the roças.
Príncipe Starling (Lamprotornis ornatus)
A glossy, iridescent starling of the forest canopy and clearings, best found at fruiting trees where it feeds in noisy groups.
Príncipe Weaver (Ploceus princeps)
A colonial weaver of forest edge, villages and plantations, its woven nests hanging from thin branches over paths and clearings.
Not sure which species are realistic for your dates?
The field guide reads the season and the weather with you before you book. Our wider guide covers the islands' birdlife, habitats and the species list in more depth.
Read the São Tomé and Príncipe birding guideThree bases, each chosen to cut driving time and put you in the right habitat at first light.
Coastal Soft Landing
3 Nights (2 on arrival, 1 on departure) · Premier Room
Located five minutes from the airport on Ana Chaves Bay, Omali provides a comfortable, air-conditioned coastal base on arrival and before your international flight home. It offers quiet garden birding on arrival and direct access to the dry northern savanna scrub for the localized Golden-backed Bishop. Breakfast and three-course dinners included.
Southern Primary Forest Hub
4 Nights · Standard Room
A restored plantation manor in the southeast, positioned directly below the southern mountains. Staying here eliminates the punishing 2.5-hour drive from the capital, putting you at the Monte Carmo trailheads at dawn to track the São Tomé Big Four. Full breakfast, field lunches, and evening dinners included.
Plantation Canopy Base
4 Nights · Garden View Room
Perched on the high bluffs of northeast Príncipe, Belo Monte is surrounded by mature forest canopy where you can step outside at dawn and immediately start birding for Dohrn's Warbler and Príncipe Sunbirds. It also serves as our departure point for private boat charters down to the roadless southern primary forest. Full breakfast and three-course dinners included.
Field ethics
The endemic birds of São Tomé and Príncipe include some of the rarest species on the planet, with wild populations numbering only a few hundred individuals.
We follow strict field ethics on every private outing:
We do not use recorded calls or mobile apps to lure birds. Repeated playback stresses breeding pairs and disrupts territorial behavior. Our trackers locate species by sight, feeding behavior, and natural calls.
We never use food lures or feeding stations.
We restrict trips to solo birders, couples, or small private parties of friends. We do not run minibuses or large groups through sensitive primary forest.
We keep strictly to forest paths to avoid trampling sensitive feeding grounds used by ground-foragers like the Dwarf Olive Ibis.
A workable day-by-day plan across both islands. Every date is checked against tracker availability and the domestic flight schedule before we confirm.
Airport pickup, transfer to Omali. Relax after your flight with introductory birding in hotel gardens (São Tomé Prinia, Newton's Sunbird). Welcome dinner included.
Early morning drive to the dry northern acacia scrub for Golden-backed Bishop, Red-headed Quelea, and Pin-tailed Whydah. In the afternoon, a private boat charter heads into the Gulf of Guinea targeting the undescribed Gulf of Guinea storm petrel, White-tailed Tropicbirds, and Brown Boobies. Dinner at Omali.
Morning domestic flight to Príncipe. Transfer to Roça Belo Monte. Afternoon birding through plantation edges and forest trails for Dohrn's Warbler, Príncipe Weaver, and Príncipe Sunbird. Dinner at Belo Monte.
Early private boat charter down the wild western coastline to the roadless southern primary forest. Hike inland with your local tracker to find the Critically Endangered Príncipe Thrush, Príncipe Speirops, and Príncipe White-eye. Evening search for the newly described Príncipe Scops Owl. Dinner at Belo Monte.
Two full days exploring the forest trails of northern and central Príncipe, including the Oque Pipi area and coastal forest, targeting any remaining Príncipe endemics and seabirds off the northern bluffs. Dinners at Belo Monte.
Morning flight back to São Tomé. Drive south in your private 4x4 along the eastern coast to Roça São João dos Angolares. Afternoon birding in old cocoa canopy for Giant Weaver and endemic subspecies. Dinner at the roça.
Three dedicated field days based out of Angolares, using your 4x4 to reach the high rainforest trailheads of Monte Carmo. Full days of quiet, focused tracking with your local specialist for the São Tomé Grosbeak, Dwarf Olive Ibis, São Tomé Fiscal, and São Tomé Short-tail. Dinners at the roça.
Drive up into the central highlands to Bom Sucesso at 1,100 metres. Hike the cloud-forest trail towards Lagoa Amélia in Ôbo National Park for Giant Sunbird, São Tomé White-eye, and São Tomé Oriole. Night walk for São Tomé Scops Owl. Return to Omali for your final night and farewell dinner.
Morning wrap-up, check-out, and private airport transfer for your flight home.
Prices are land-only, based on two birders travelling privately together, with all lodging, meals, 4x4 transport, boat charters, and certified local guides included.
Low Season
€6,700
total for two adults
€3,350 per person
Included: 11 nights lodging, all meals, private 4x4, certified local trackers, southern boat charter, pelagic boat trip, all transfers, Príncipe conservation levies
High Season
€7,100
total for two adults
€3,550 per person
Included: 11 nights lodging, all meals, private 4x4, certified local trackers, southern boat charter, pelagic boat trip, all transfers, Príncipe conservation levies
Season dates
Low season
High season
Land only, two birders sharing, international and domestic flights excluded. Upgrades and exclusions are set out below.
Major European and UK birding operators charge between €4,500 and €6,400+ per person (up to €12,800 for two) for scheduled group tours. Our private, bespoke holidays sit 25% below their prices while eliminating the compromises of group travel.
Here is why our pricing is significantly lower:
We live and operate directly in São Tomé. We do not have expensive overseas offices in London or Europe, and we do not pass marketing overheads on to your trip.
We work directly with the island's best local bird trackers, drivers, and boat captains. We know who understands the calls, who follows ethical field practices, and who knows where the birds roost. By cutting out third-party international brokers, your money goes directly to the people guiding you on the trail.
Big agency tours fly Western tour leaders out from the UK or US, paying their international flights, hotels, and daily allowances out of your ticket price. You travel with top-tier local experts who spend every day in these forests.
We hold direct trade agreements with Omali, Roça São João, and the Príncipe Collection, passing verified on-island accommodation rates directly into your package.
The base package includes comfortable standard roça rooms and boutique lodging. If you prefer higher room categories or beachfront seclusion on Príncipe, we offer transparent upgrades:
Príncipe
Upgrade from Garden View to an expansive plantation Suite.
Add €240 total for the 4 nights
Príncipe
Swap your 4 nights at Belo Monte for a standalone beachfront bungalow directly on the sand at Bom Bom.
Add €1,440 (low season) or €1,400 (high season) total for the couple
Príncipe
Swap to five-star tented luxury in the rainforest at Sundy Praia.
Add €1,000 (low season) or €1,320 (high season) total for the couple
Domestic Príncipe flights are quoted at cost once your dates are fixed. We check the STP Airways schedule before confirming the itinerary.
The domestic flight across to Príncipe operates on a small twin-engine aircraft (under 20 seats) with strict weight and space limits.
The allowance is 15 kg (33 lbs) per passenger. Any excess is charged locally at €20 per kilo, and can only travel if the aircraft's weight limits allow it on the day.
Travel light to Príncipe. We can arrange secure luggage storage for you in São Tomé, which is advised, allowing you to leave larger suitcases behind on the main island and take just your binoculars, optics, and field clothes across for your stay on Príncipe.
Space inside the cabin is compact. There are no overhead luggage lockers and no room under the seats for bags, other than a very small purse. A cabin bag is allowed, but when you board it must be handed to the crew and placed in a forward cupboard, keeping the cabin comfortable and clear during the flight.
We build every itinerary around your specific target list, fitness level, and dates.
Enquiry details
An enquiry does not commit you to a booking. We verify tracker availability and route feasibility before confirming dates.
Prefer to write directly? Email hello@thechocolateislands.com or send a WhatsApp to +239 9862552.
Part of the Signature Tours collection. International flights are booked separately.