Testimonials

One day birding ar Kok Ker area Excellent guide and birding. Brakk knows his birds!

Great Communication and Advice First off, let me be clear that we were unable to actually take the 14-day tour we were planning -- but it was because of flight logistics. The communications and planning we had with the Cambodian Bird Guide Association was outstanding, and I have every confidence that we would have had an amazing tour. They have a great standard itinerary, and when I asked about other locations I had seen mentioned, I was given very good explanations on why that spot may or may not be a good fit for us. I was very impressed by their professionalism and attention to detail. I hope we can figure out the logistical problems - it is too long a trip for my 6 ft tall husband to fly economy and the only other option is Business class -- which is out of our budget! I think this would be a great group to travel with, and I am beyond disappointed that I won't be visiting next year.

Great tour at the wrong time of year We went bird watching at a bad time of year (May), yet still managed to see over 40 species of birds. That was all due to our incredible guide Sokchan. He identified birds at a glance and saw things in the distance that we would have never seen. He spoke excellent English and was very informative. I wish we had been able to photograph more birds, but that was entirely due to the season and our lack of high end photography equipment.

Bird Watching in Siem Reap I had a wonderful morning in Siem Reap with Kunthea who made every effort to find as many birds as possible as well as helping me to get good photos. Kunthea was most knowledgeable and knew the local birds by the briefest glimpse as well as by their call. She also provided interesting information about the local history and culture and conservation programs. I highly recommend the services of the Cambodian Bird Guide Association and look forward to my next visit.

Bird sanctuary at Prek Toal on Tonle Sap lake is a must see! My husband and I booked the Tonle Sap bird sanctuary at Prek Toal tour while staying in Siem Reap. Our guide Sok Chan and driver Hong were fantastic! Sok Chan really made the trip, he is very knowledgeable about bird species and the surrounding region. It was nice to see waterbird colony preservation in action for this rich biodiversity area. It was an all day tour, and we enjoyed lunch on one of the floating houses on the river. We would highly recommend this tour!

A nice bird trip in Cambodia with CBGA It is a very nice trip with CBGA in Cambodia! Our guide Johnny is professional and pacient, helping us finding almost all our target birds, including Great Adjutant, Milky Stork, Coral-billed Ground Cuckoo, Giant Ibis, White-shouldered Ibis, etc. Food is delicious in Cambodia too. I must come back angin to find the other endemic species, such as Cambodian Laughingthrush and Cambodian Flowerpecker. Hoping these people and birds well.

Tremendous day of birding amidst remote Khmer temples with a great guide As an intermediate birder and, this being my first trip to Cambodia, I didn’t have a specific list of target species but instead a goal of seeing at least 50 new life birds on a one day trip to the dry forest around Siem Reap. Mission accomplished! My wife and I spent a very full day in March 2026 with KC Sokchan, expert bird guide with CBGA. Pick up at our Siem Reap hotel promptly at 5am with hot coffee, fresh croissants and local fruit breakfast provided, we got into our air conditioned vehicle with Sokchan and our driver for a 2 hour drive to Koh Ker, with a stop along the way to watch sunrise and do some preliminary side of the road birding. Once at Koh Ker we took a series of walks around different temples where we were often the only visitors. The birding was great, with 60 species recorded through early afternoon. Sokchan is locally born and raised and moves quietly through the along the wooded paths like the hunter his father taught him to be. Great ear and eyes and endlessly patient with us, he assured that my wife and I both got to see every bird along the way. (Highlights for us were the two Bee-eater species, 4 Drongo species, 4 Bulbul species, several Barbets and Minivets and a Crested Serpent Eagle). After lunch we then went to Beng Mealea, arriving at this jungle temple complex as the afternoon began to cool a bit. We then were treated to an extended walk through this pure “Indiana Jones” temple, pausing to see a few more new birds. We arrived back in Siem Reap tired but feeling very blessed, at 6pm. From what I gather, CBGA is a non profit collective and most of the money collected from us tourists goes to training and conservation purposes. PS If you go on this trip, and if you get Sokchan as your guide, ask him about his King Cobra encounter!

Angkor Wat and Prek Toal/Tonle Sap- Two fantastic and fulfilling days spent in Siem Reap This company is amazing!! During our time in Siem Reap my parents and I enjoyed the Angkor Wat and Prek Toal/Tonle Sap lake day tours and couldn't be happier. We were led by the amazing Sokchan, an experienced guide who helped us to identify over 100 species across the two days (50ish each day), considering any particular species I wanted to see and trying his best to spot them for me (I have him to thank in particular for the chance to see Spotted Owlet and Gray-headed Fish-eagle!!). The Angkor Wat day tour is a fantastic way to combine the temples at Angkor Wat with birding in the surrounding habitats, with us making multiple stops at a variety of different temples (including independent time to explore Angkor Wat). While this tour is a full-on day given the multiple temples visited and birding at each stop, Sokchan was very attentive to our needs, allowing for myself and my parents (both in their 60s) some time after lunch to get out the sun, rest and recharge before setting off again in the afternoon. We also didn't have temple passes prior to the tour but we were able to stop off at the ticket office on the way in the morning with Sokchan helping us to pick some up. The Prek Toal/Tonle Sap day tour is a less exerting day as you are mostly birding from a boat, and we found it provided a perfect accompaniment to the full-on day of the other tour. Prek Toal is a beautiful sanctuary that is fantastic for waterbirds and I would recommend anyone who has another day spare in Siem Reap after Angkor Wat goes to see it. Sokchan and the wider team at CBGA were amazing in helping us have a highly enjoyable and fulfilling couple of days at Siem Reap. I would highly recommend them to anyone looking to comprehensively explore the sights of Siem Reap and the birding sites surrounding.

Fantastic 6-Day Birding Trip with CBGA I had a wonderful and memorable 6-day birding trip in Cambodia with Johnny. The itinerary was well organized, and our bird list turned out to be excellent—we managed to see all the important target species. The guides and logistics team at CBGA were very enthusiastic and reliable, and everything during the trip ran smoothly. It was also great to see how much they contribute to bird conservation in Cambodia. Thank you for such a fantastic experience, and I’m already looking forward to my next birding trip to Cambodia!

A fabulous trip, seeing rare birds and helping conserve them. I just finished a two-week custom tour of Cambodia with CBGA, guided by Chea Seam. Overall, the trip was fantastic. Chea was an excellent guide, very knowledgeable about the birds, very friendly company, and very flexible to adjust to our needs. The birds, accommodations, and food were all super. As an experienced international bird lister, I had a short list of 13 birds that I needed to see, plus two other unlikely species. We got all 13 of my key targets, seen well, with some sort of photos of all. (I'm not a photographer, but I do like to document my sightings.) I began my trip with my brother, and when we were amazingly lucky finding his main targets, he decided to leave two days early. Chea was accommodating and rearranged things so my brother could leave early, and then re-jiggered my tour to fit in the two extra days. One note about the border problems with Thailand. Because one of the main destinations for the Giant Ibis was near the Thai border, the CBGA found new places to find this mega species. So, we had no concerns about the border. A wonderful part of the CBGA model is that the organization is a conservation NGO, and your tourist dollars are directly helping local communities preserve the birds and their habitats. It is a fabulous feeling to know that you are helping Cambodia and its wildlife. A cannot recommend CBGA enough. They are wonderful. And Cambodia is a very interesting destination.

Birding in Cambodia GoodI just spent 8 days birding in Cambodia with Cambodia Bird Guides Association CBGA. It wasn't my first time in the country, and I was looking for a limited number of species. The trip proved to be very successful thanks to CBGA and particularly Chea Seab, who was instrumental in leading me to all the target birds. In doing so, he showed not only deep ornithological knowledge but also organisational skills and flexibility, making the trip smooth and pleasant. I would strongly recommend Chea as a guide for any keen birder interested in Cambodia and hope to bird with him again in the future. MARCO

Great trip to Cambodia We had an excellent, well organised and productive trip with Sokchan. Logistics were impeccable, accommodation comfortable and friendly, and the birds performed magnificently.

A very rewarding Koh Ker day trip Took a Koh Ker day trip out of Siem Reap with Sokchan from birdguideasso. He was a great guide and did a fabulous job finding and identifying all birds we saw and heard. We visited a half dozen sites and saw 64 different species on the trip. I also did a half day trip to the Phnom Krom rice fields south of Siem Reap. I would highly recommend Sokchan as a guide for your next trip birding tour.

Best way to see birds in Cambodia! I spent a half day at Chaktomuk Marshland and a full day at Ang Trapaeng Thmor with Mr. Sokchan. Both were amazing. In the marsh I saw the Cambodian Tailorbird and at ATT I saw more species in one place than I thought possible, including Sarus Cranes and a Greater Adjutant. I highly recommend CBGA!

An excellent experience to see Cambodian avifauna Just returned from the 'Special 14-Day Tour Across Cambodia' with four other guests and we had a wonderful experience. There a 'guides' and 'GUIDES' and our GUIDE, Chhoum, was a wonderful ambassador for CBGA, knowledgeable, happy and courteous. He could not do enough for our group. Indeed when we appeared to have dipped on the Giant Ibis he should not take miss for an answer even when we had accepted our lot. We still missed this bird. We saw in excess of 270 species in our two weeks, finishing near Phnom Penh with the aptly named Cambodian Tailorbird. Accommodation was good to very good, noting that the most basic was comfortable tents at the vulture restaurant. Cost of the tour is comparable with other tours, but knowing a portion of our fee would go to community projects and educating the future generation of birds makes it very worthwhile outlay. Overall an excellent experience to see Cambodia's avifauna, though it was physically tough at times in the heat of dry season.

Lots of birds and supporting a community conservation success We went as a couple for the day trip to Prek Toal for birdwatching and to see the floating village, and had a fantastic time. We are not seasoned birdwatchers but had heard really good things about it and wanted to see the floating villages away from the really touristy one nearer Siem Reap. It was pricey but that’s on account of it being a fair way away from Siem Reap: we had a hotel pickup in a very comfortable car, to transfer onto a boat to the floating village. There we had a good breakfast, croissant, fresh bread with chilli jam, and fruit) and transferred to a smaller boat to go down the channels into the nature reserve. The sheer volume of bird life was really cool to see - massive amounts of different egrets, cormorants and storks, as well as kingfishers, bee-eaters, different herons and other birds. We went to an elevated platform where we could see hundreds of nesting birds, and another keen birdwatcher was up there on a trip with the same company: he and our two guides were really good at pointing out some of the rarer birds (we saw greater and lesser agitators, and a milky stork). It was really fun and out in the middle of nowhere with no one else around. On the way back we saw a fish eagle, and then had good lunch in the floating village. Mr Chea our guide was very friendly, with great English and a strong bird knowledge - would highly recommend as a way to get off the beaten track near Siem Reap after the hustle and bustle of Angkor Wat, and support a positive conservation story and community enterprise with the floating villages!

A special day out on Tonle Sap. We were pleased we added this day trip to our itinerary. Early December is a great time to visit. Chong was our driver and guide. We were thrilled with the one to one attention, especially when it came to observing the endemic birds. Chong has great knowledge, and he had great empathy with all the local people we met. As well, we learned a lot about Cambodian language and culture.... and about local NGO efforts to improve drinking water quality, to grow vegetables, and to create jobs. opportunities.

Best birding experience Our guide, Sokchan, was excellent. Very knowledgeable about birds in the area and a pleasure to be with. We saw about 60 species overall, many of them fairly rare.

Best of both worlds! Bird watching and Angkor temple Phenomenal tour and our guide was so knowledgeable. We did a one day tour of the Angkor temple company with bird watching mixed in to the tour. Great way to see the temples while also enjoying a bit of nature. Even if you aren't an avid birder this is a great way to gain an appreciation of it and still see the awesome temples. Perfect length and great guides!

Amazing We did a (somewhat customized) six-day trip through Cambodia. It wasn't cheap, but worth every cent. Our guide (Nara) is very skilled and knowledgeable, and he managed to find some amazing birds, about 250 in total, including some extremely rare ones, as well as quite a few 'special requests'. All the time we were well taken care of, and we had the opportunity to enjoy Cambodian nature. An truly unforgettable experience.

Superb birding trip We just finished a wonderful 14-day birding trip with our exceptional guide, Chhoum, and excellent driver, Poe. It was a pleasure to explore Cambodia with them, and Chhoum was a wizard at finding and getting us on the birds. It was also interesting to learn about and support community conservation projects. Absolutely a wonderful experience.

Brilliant visit to Prek Toal We did a tour of the bird sanctuary with Sokchan from the Cambodia Bird Guide Association and it was fantastic. He was so knowledgeable and enthusiastic. As well as seeing the floating villages (a bonus but not the focus of our tour) we saw 48 species of bird and heard a few more. Our tour was on a motorboat through the reserve, we stopped at a viewing tower as well where he used his scope to show us distant stork and adjutant nests with young birds. I am interested in birds and a newly enthusiastic birdwatcher but with little experience so all of the birds were new to me. My favourites were the lesser adjutants, painted storks, oriental darters, black-capped kingfishers and blue-tailed bee eaters but there were many more!

Excellent birding experience! We did a Full Day Prek Toal Core Reserve tour with our guide Sokchan (aka Monday). The whole tour was excellent. Sokchan was a great guide, spoke English very well, and was excellent at spotting and identifying so many birds. The Reserve was full of so many birds, it was magical. We saw so many species and Sokchan kept track of them all and gave us a list at the end. The day went smoothly and was well organized. I highly recommend this!

Changkran Roy Coral-billed Ground Cuckoo Tour… Coral-billed Ground Cuckoo overnight trip with Srun. Showers, flush toilet, mosquito netting, good food. Cold Beer $1..saw the bird!

A fantastic way to see Cambodia's birds We thoroughly enjoyed our four-day tour with Srun. We visited the Florican Grasslands, Tmatboey, Koh Ker, Beng Mealea and Prek Toal, all of which had amazing birds and scenery/cultural interest. Srun and his network of local guides could not have made more of an effort in helping us see our target species, which resulted in really special encounters with Bengal florican, giant ibis and white-shouldered ibis among others. Srun was extremely knowledgeable, friendly and clearly very passionate about Cambodia's wildlife and culture, and he was happy to meet our requests regarding certain species/locations. The accommodation and transport chosen for us by Srun was clean and comfortable, and it was great to experience local cuisine and communities. We have no major complaints and would love to join CBGA for another tour in future. However, a couple of points are worth bearing in mind if you're considering a tour with them: - If you have specific target species in mind (e.g., ibises, white-winged duck) it is worth talking to the CBGA team regarding the best time of year for seeing/photographing them, and asking about the likelihood of seeing a species at a given site. For example, the great views/photographic opportunities of ibises intimated on the website are clearly only possible at certain times of year - whilst we were treated to seeing them in forest at their breeding sites, which was really special, the experience wasn't quite what we expected based on the website. - No fault of CBGA, but during our email correspondence a scammer managed to infiltrate and impersonate CBGA, which nearly resulted in us booking a fraudulent tour. This was quickly resolved through a phone call to Srun but it was a stressful experience, so I would urge those thinking of booking a tour to ensure they are indeed talking to CBGA (i.e., checking email addresses/phone numbers remain consistent) and that payment is only requested to their official CBGA bank account rather than any seemingly unrelated private accounts. But that wasn't enough to tarnish our experience, and we would thoroughly recommend CBGA. Thanks Srun and the team!

 I had a great tour yesterday, July 2020. The guide was very knowledgeable and we saw a fantastic variety of birds in a few different locations transported by tuk tuk. The guide had a monocular to get a better view of the birds and a detailed reference book to show the names and variety of species. I found the tour reasonably priced compared to other tours and would highly recommend for any emerging birders. Thank you!

 A great association with the passion of kind sharing of knowledge and best practice on environmental protection to the bigger world. Staff are kind, friendly and willing to share. I really Thank them for sharing their knowledge to our group of students for free!

 Kunthea was an excellent birding guide with a sharp eye, quick with the scope and good knowledge of the birds and their habitat. It was a wonderful day trip!

 I took a half day evening tour with CBGA in January. It was a perfect tour. My guide, Sean, and our driver picked me up from my hotel and we drive out of town to the marshlands. We saw 56 different species and a beautiful sunset. Please don’t hesitate to use this tour company.

 Definitely a great joy to travel with the skillfull staff of CBGA. We were able to find all our target species thanks to the excellent guides.

 CBGA organized a 12 day birding tour for me from December 3-14, and it was a tremendous success, with all targets seen, excellent food throughout, and flawless logistics. Nara was a top notch guide and great company!

 Terrific experience with CBGA guides over a four day period. I had the pleasure to spend time with Kunthea Chhoun, Yeat, and Nara Duong. They we all so knowledgable and fantastic people to spend my days with.

 I spent 4 days with guides from CBGA. I had come to Cambodia to run the marathon and to do some bird watching while there. August is not a good month for bird watching in Southeast Asia (January-February is better) but they were able to show me 111 different species. They also were very informative about the different temple complexes where we spent time. So if you happen to be in Cambodia for a few days, look these people up, you won’t be disappointed!

We just got back from a last minute trip to Siem Reap, and CBGA did a great job organizing a temple/bird and marshland tour for us on very short notice. Our guide, Yeat, shared a vast amount of knowledge about the temples, bird/wildlife, and the culture of Cambodia. We learned so much, and loved our visit. I was really pleased with the number and types of places we visited with our time, the drivers were wonderful, and provided meals were excellent. Excellent value for the investment. We will reccomened CBGA to anyone we know headed to Siem Reap!

Altogether a nice trip. We were there end of March 2018 for a week. Hotel at Siem Reap was excellent. We travelled in a comfortable, air conditioned SUV. Guide was competent. Saw alot of birds and firsts. Food was great. Day at Angkor Wat was perfect accompaniment. Highly recommended.

My wife and I recently did a 16 day trip with CBGA. The first couple of days at the beginning were with guide Yeat at the temples around Siem Reap. We really enjoyed the experience and found Yeat to be a kind and knowledgeable guide. The next two weeks were with bird guide Nara and driver Da touring some of the best birding sites in Cambodia. The trip was flawlessly organized and well executed by their entire team. We had a great time and saw over 300 species of birds including several difficult to see species. Nara is an expert birder and guide, and a lot of fun to be with. Thank you CBGA team for the exceptional trip.

The guides were extremely knowledgeable and enthusiastic to have us all there and share the information. The Phnom Krom half day tour started early in the morning so that we could see as many birds as possible. The lunch they brought with was delicious and included in the price. I appreciate all that they’re doing in the name of conservation and would highly recommend them.

I took one of the Siem Reap tours with friends yesterday (Feb 28) led by Nop Pisey. and had a fabulous experience. It far exceeded my expectations. Our guide and his driver were professional and knowledgeable as was the local guide. Our breakfast box was great and the lunch prepared by a local woman at one of the birding sites was very good. We saw 49 bird species, almost all new to me and seeing 4 different species of owls in the afternoon was an unexpected thrill.Thanks for the great experience which is sure to be a highlight of my time in Siem Reap!

I cannot say enough good things about the fabulous 3 days that we spent with CBGA in the Siem Reap area earlier this month. The entire experience, from the flawless online booking process to the excellent birding and temple tours, was phenomenal! We booked a half day visit to the Phnom Kroam wetlands, a full day at the Angkor Complex, and a full day to Koh Ker and Beng Mealea. I consider us to be extraordinarily fortunate to have had Sanh Sophoan as our birding and temple guide. It's just not possible to overstate how wonderful she is! So's spotting and identification skills are outstanding, she is a knowledgable, and entertaining temple guide, and her personality is simply delightful. Her passion for her country's history and its natural wonders, and for ensuring that her clients have a wonderful experience, is very clear. I could go on and on, but I'll close by saying that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend CBGA, and Sanh Sophoan, to anyone considering a trip to Cambodia!

Hans and I, so excited!
41 different species in just a few hours.
AND 9 LIFERS !!
We were met at 5.30am our bird guide Nara Doung from CBGA (Cambodian Bird Guide Association) took us to Phnom Krom. Just a little to the south west of Siem Reap was a vast marshland area where lotus was farmed. Thousands of blossums swayed in the breeze but lurking on the wide lillypads were Chinese Pond-herons. Then suddenly a dark glossy bird with a chestnut coloured back flapped into view. It had the most ridiculously long toes. It was the Bronze-winged Jacana! A new bird.
Then a flock of White-shouldered Starlings flew in. Another new bird!

We moved around the fields and ponds picking up more common birds like all the Egrets and Doves but Bitterns were around too. A couple of resident Black Bitterns gave us great views as they flew close by. A Cinnamon and a Yellow Bittern afforded us just fleeting glimpses.

Playing a little bit of "call back" recording, we managed a good head view of the Chestnut-capped Babbler that continued to call and chirrip from the thick roadside brush. Another Lifer (new bird).

But what was truely stunning was to venture to Kuk Chreav Rd, south-west of Siem Reap and see +1000 Oriental Prantincoles. I have only seen the occassional one in Australia. Here, they were residing after their breeding season. Milling in between were both Common and Wood Sandpipers, a Pacific Golden Plover with fading breeding plumage, a Little-ringed Plover and a passage migrant Long-toed Stint.

And then there were several Pin-tailed Snipes feeding nearby. Wow what a delight! The list is too long for this review.