Domestic Travel
Birds, Brews, and Boricua Flavor: Puerto Rico with Alabama Audubon
Thursday, December 10 – Friday, December 18, 2026
Alabama Audubon Birding Guides & Hosts: Dr. Scot Duncan and Andrew Lydeard
Cultural Guide: Dr. Patricia Cordero Irizarry
Capacity: 6 - 9 guests, 1 cultural guide, 2 ALAU birding guides
Birds, Brews, & Boricua Flavor combines exceptional birding, locally grown coffee, and authentic Puerto Rican (“Boricua”) culture into parts of Puerto Rico that most visitors never have the opportunity to experience. This trip offers comfortable accommodations, beautiful landscapes, local cuisine, cultural experiences, and world-class birding at a relaxed pace for birders and photographers of all experience levels. This tour is designed for birders and photographers who enjoy slow birding rather than rushing from one location to the next. Our pace will be relaxed, with plenty of opportunities to stop, scan, and appreciate Puerto Rico’s remarkable birds and incredible landscapes. In addition to birding each day, we will also be taking time to enjoy Caribbean beaches to lush mountains, experience the rich blend of African, Taino, and Spanish culture, explore sustainable coffee and cacao farms, and partake in Puerto Rico's legendary holiday season, considered the longest Christmas celebration in the world.
We’ll be exploring Puerto Rico’s premier birding destinations in search of the 19 endemic species found on the island, including the Puerto Rican Tody, Puerto Rican Bullfinch, Adelaide’s Warbler, and Puerto Rican Emeralds and Mangos. With help from local guides, we’ll even have chances to see the Puerto Rican Amazon and Yellow-shouldered Blackbird, two critically endangered bird species found nowhere else in the world.
Led by Alabama Audubon Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard, Executive Director Dr. Scot Duncan, and Dr. Patricia Marie Cordero-Irizarry, social soil scientist and a native Puerto Rican with expertise in soil conservation, sustainability, coffee farming, and educational travel, this trip combines exceptional birding with authentic cultural experiences, local cuisine, and an insider’s perspective on one of the Caribbean’s most fascinating islands. Your participation will also support conservation and outreach efforts in both Alabama and Puerto Rico, strengthening connections between the ecosystems shared by many of our migratory birds.
The Essentials
$4,825 per person in single room
$4,250 per person in double room*
Deadline to Register: November 8, 2026 at 6:00PM CST
Deposit: $1,500/passenger ($500 non-refundable)
Final Payment Due: November 8, 2026
Capacity: Minimum: 6 passengers; Maximum: 9 passengers
Past Trips
Mississippi River Flyway / Reelfoot Lake (TN) and Missouri's Bootheel (EVENT FULL WAITLIST ONLY)
February 16th - 20th, 2026
Join Alabama Audubon for a self-driven tour of northwestern Tennessee and southeastern Missouri in exploration along one of North America’s most important migratory flyways: the Mississippi River! Executive Director Dr. Scot Duncan and Program Coordinator Andrew Lydeard will guide participants around parts of Reelfoot Lake National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) and adjacent wildlife management areas (WMA’s) in Tennessee and Conservation Areas (CA’s) in nearby Missouri. Andrew spent nearly three years exploring this area while in graduate school at Murray State University (KY) and will lead us to some of the birdiest locations in the region.
Birding the Arizona Sky Islands with Alabama Audubon
May 23rd-30th, 2025
Join Alabama Audubon and American Birding Guides for a May 2025 adventure in southeastern Arizona -- one of the top birding destinations in the United States! Witness the bold colors and incredible wildlife of the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Deserts and the unique montane sky islands that rise from these deserts. In one of the most biodiverse regions in North America, your expert guide will show you birds, plants, and other wildlife found nowhere else on Earth.
We’ll begin in Tucson, first traveling to Mt. Lemmon and Box Canyons north of Tucson, before traveling south and east across the desert to famous birding destinations such as Madera and Ramsey Canyons, Patagonia, and the Huachuca Mountains before returning to Tucson. This small-group adventure is designed to be immersive and relaxing, with abundant opportunities to watch and photograph birds and explore Arizona at an enjoyable pace.