2018-2019 feedbacks

Thanks or both - I’ve had a quick look through and nothing seems amiss - thanks for organising (and guiding) for them, really great logistics as usual - you do exceptionally well to make so many pieces come together, I appreciate its a really difficult logistic to do, East China.

Hi Tang Jun
All of us exceeded expectations in terms of seeing our targets. We would like to thank China Bird Yours and especially Mr Young plus Jason for their hard work. We were very demanding clients, but both Jason and Mr Young did their best to meet our needs.
Not certain if I’ll be at the Bird Fair this year, but if I’m there I’ll come by and say hello. Cheers Nick

Dear Tang Jun,Please find Dave's comments as follows:
1,guide Robbi Zhu;
Excellent throughout, ran and managed the tour very well. He has a very professional attitude and is clearly effective as an organiser as everything ran without any trouble. He wan't very familiar with a couple of the places, perhaps because our itinerary visited some less well-known places due to the itinerary changes following the Jiuzhaigou earthquake. He claimed it was his best ever tour around Sichuan, we even got him a a lifer!
2,driver Mr Shen
A first class driver who deserves special credit for his skills and professional attitude. He would be an asset on any tour, perhaps even becoming a birder!
3,vehicle
Excellent. Interior was most adequate for our number, and it managed some rough roads without difficulty. We had no puncture or mechanical issues.
4,meals
An omnivorous group, so Sichuan food was enjoyed. We ate very well throughout.
5,hotels
Mostly good, Lijiang hotel on the extension wasn't too good, and the Ruorgai hotel had some faults (plumbing etc) that required room changes for two people. I think it was understood that there wasn't anywhere better in town, but an upgrade is needed."

We have received the questionnaires from the participants. I have tried to summarize the feedback:
Accommodation: Good
Meals: Sufficient/Good
Local guide Jay Wu: excellent in Bird knowledge and did a lot of effort to show and let the participants hear the species. For next time it would be nice to help the participants with recognizing the sound of previously observed species, just repeat it more often. Jay good improve his organisational skills a bit. But summarizing there are all very satisfied with Jay, he is an excellent birder.
The participants are satisfied with the itinerary from low altitude to high altitude. The comment we received was that there was no private time, because the program was quite full.

Dear Tang Jun
Thank you for your photos and for giving us such an amazing trip to Sichuan. You are a great guide, you spotted amazing wildlife and gave us wonderful food! The scenery was beautiful and I enjoyed seeing life in China generally. Anne
Tang Jun,
Many thanks for the pictures and I promise not say they are mine! Extra thanks for the hard work during the tour. I already miss the breakfast “buns”. I look forward to Birdfair and to support your work in promoting what is a stunning region of China.All the best wishes for the future.Stephen Douglas

2016/2017 clients feedback

Thanks or both - I’ve had a quick look through and nothing seems amiss - thanks for organising (and guiding) for them, really great logistics as usual - you do exceptionally well to make so many pieces come together, I appreciate its a really difficult logistic to do, East China.
Hi Tang Jun
All of us exceeded expectations in terms of seeing our targets. We would like to thank China Bird Yours and especially Mr Young plus Jason for their hard work. We were very demanding clients, but both Jason and Mr Young did their best to meet our needs.
Not certain if I’ll be at the Bird Fair this year, but if I’m there I’ll come by and say hello.Cheers Nick

Thanks for these Tang Jun and thank you for a wonderful trip.
We really appreciated all of your hard work and are looking forward to travelling with you again.Please let us know if you are ever able to arrange a giant panda trip and I will contact you as soon as I have guests for a mammal tour.
Thanks again and best wishes to you and your family. Jason

Hi Tang, firstly many thanks for organizing a very successful tour. I had never visited China before and I was so impressed with the beauty of the mountains and the Tibetan plateau.
Can we ask that you pencil us in for the same tour in May 2019? If you can give us some dates soon that would be great. I think it ran so well we would not change the itinerary. Many thanks. Regards, Nigel

Thank you very much for your email Tang Jun. It is great to hear that the tour was a success. Thank you for all the hard work which you put into the tour, we really appreciate it. Kind regards, Nisha

Hey Tang Jun! Thanks for the photos and the awesome bird trip. I made it to Xishuangbanna with only one hour delay. I will be departing for the US on the 4th of august. Cheers and thanks again, Sam

Thanks for the great pictures, Tang Jun! I just arrived back at my apartment in England. Thanks for a great trip! Daniel

Hi Tang and Jay
I have now updated my life list with the birds seen on our trip and I saw 260 species of which 140 were lifers! I am delighted with this number.
Thank you both so much for everything you did to make our stay so productive and such fun. I loved every moment of it (apart from the flight home!) and I will definitely be coming as a customer when Phil does his trip in 2019.
Tang, could you let me have contact details for the company who supplied our culture guide in Lhasa, Tsering, as he was absolutely wonderful and I would like to write to them how good he was? Not only did he know all the cultural matters completely, he also knew where the best places to stop for the birds were as he had taken other birding groups. Phil did his usual trick of disappearing off taking photos so I spent a lot of time chatting to Tsering and found him great company.
Jay, I will order the Viking scopac you liked and will bring it to Tang at the Bird Fair. Looking forward to seeing you again, Tang.
Kind regards to you both and to Phoebe. Pauline

Ni hao Steven!
Shaun sent me your e-mail address so I can forward you my e-mail to everyone.
THANK YOU again for the best trip ever! You were the best guide we could have imagined!Since our trip I am a fan of China and really happy after the beautiful landscapes, all our experiences and most of all the wonderful species we could see because of you!
Will send some pictures of our SE China trip soon!
Best regards from Austria to China and all the best for you! Ingrid

Hi Tang Jun,
Just wanted to say thanks for a great Sichuan tour – 325 species seen was the best so far. Can we arrange dates for the SE China tour again for 2018 please. Maybe it can start a little later if Steven An is available…?Nick Upton was full of praise for Steven An and said he was the best thing about the tour this year!All the best, Nick

Hi Tang Jun,
I trust that you and the family are well. Just a quick note to say many thanks for all your arranging of our trip which went very well. I’ll send more over later. If there is any information you want regarding the trip, let me know. Tony

It had been my intention to contact you when I returned home to say thank you for a great tour, because with the traffic problems on our return to Shanghai, it was rather a hurried departure. Anyway thanks for a good trip, I know my eating habits are a pain, but thanks for your efforts in that area, must have worked because I have since cooked Sweet & Sour Chicken and enjoyed it. Hope you are now at home with your family and hope you had a good tour with Zoothera.
Have a good Christmas and hopefully see you at next year's Birdfair. Stuart

Dear Tang Jun
Thank you for sending the photographs, and thank you also for a wonderful tour. I really enjoyed it so much, and finding the Spoon-billed Sandpiper at the end was just fantastic. I am sorry that our farewell was so rushed, and I did not have time to tell you how much I appreciated your help getting the birds I had not seen before and getting better views of ones I had seen before, I was very happy with our results.
I hope that your current tour is going well, and that you do not have many fussy eaters in the group! See you at the Birdfair next year, I hope.
Best wishes, Sonia

Hi, Tang Jun and Robbi Zhu! The Balangshan tour in this July was a great experience for all of us. Our first visit to China was totally satisfied including wonderful meal. Most impressive dish was needless to say, extremely hot Chinjao Rosu “Fire-throat” for Koh, haha.
Mr. Liu was an excellent driver and Robbi the perfect guide gave us very memorable and exciting days in Sichuan. We were very lucky with the weather, meaning we were able to get good looks at many of the wanted species.
For us, Japanese nature-lover, there’s special feeling for Himalayas. Japan archipelago was connected with Eurasian continent by land in the past, so plenty of species are related to China. When it comes to birds, many rare species recorded in Japan breeds in Sichuan. For example, Blue-fronted Redstart, Rosy Pipit, Greenish Warbler and Yellow-streaked Warbler. Balangshan is surely the best and nearest site for watching these birds from Japan!
In addition, there is such an interesting place for flower-lover. July is not always good for birding, but it is best for various kinds of alpine flowers. Most impressive scene in this trip was male Grandala hopping in splendid flower garden. It was arguably bird of the trip.
I look forward to using China Bird Tour again when I go birding in China, and will recommend it to others planning trips to China.
Many thanks again and best wishes, Yutaka, Koh and Satoshi

Dear Tang Jun,
Very many thanks for all your help with our trip. We had a great time in Fujian and saw many good birds. Even though the Chinese Crested Terns failed to show up, our morning on the estuary was fine with many crested terns and good waders. Everything worked very well and Steven An is an excellent guide - very friendly and caring as well as knowledgable. He gave us a very happy and memorable week in Fujian.
Many thanks also for arranging Foping permits for us. The Blackthroats behaved and we all enjoyed our visit there as well as to Sichuan. I will happily recommend China Bird Tour for their excellent service to anyone wishing to visit and hope that it is not too long before I am birding in China with you again.Many thanks again and Best wishes Richard

2015 some clients' feedback:

Hi Tang Jun,Wow that's a great photo! Yes I reach home safely at 0500. I also realised that Dark-breasted Rosefinch is a new bird for me, so I got 7 new birds for this trip. Thanks for hosting me. Plain-backed Thrush would be new also, for next year! Let me know if you photograph that Mountain Finch in July. Have a good tour and best wishes to the family.Cheers,Albert

Hi Tang!Hope everything is just fine!Many thanks for good Company, good guiding and good arranging on ourtour. We are all very pleased.Many fine memories to sort out now - and pictures to look at.
We'll keep in contact!Wish you all the best,Curre

Hi Tang Jun,Back in the UK now after another good China trip.It was great to meet you again after so long and I am very pleased that you have become a keen birder. Also thank you for help with up to date info.Please keep me informed of any news on your proposed Snow Leopard trip next year.Kind regards,Dave  

Dear Tang Jun, Thanks, once again, for all the work you did on making the Sichuan trip  a wonderful birding experience!    I think it was one of the best trips  I've every been on---  good birds, delicious food, interesting places  and beautiful scenery.I think we will have to plan a Tibet trip, perhaps in late June/July of  2017. I think I could get a group of 8 people together.Sincerely, Dana

Tang,The trip was really successful. We managed to get good views of most of our targets. Mr. Liu was an excellent driver, and your company did an excellent job organizing the trip. We did not have any problems during the trip.I look forward to using your company again when I go birding in China, and I will recommend it to others planning trips to China.Thank you,Nick

Dear Tang Jun,Very many thanks for all your help with our trip. We had a great time in Fujian and saw many good birds. Even though the Chinese Crested Terns failed to show up, our morning on the estuary was fine with many crested terns and good waders. Everything worked very well and Steven An is an excellent guide - very friendly and caring as well as knowledgable. He gave us a very happy and memorable week in Fujian.Many thanks also for arranging Foping permits for us. The Blackthroats behaved and we all enjoyed our visit there as well as to Sichuan. I will happily recommend China Bird Tour for their excellent service to anyone wishing to visit and hope that it is not too long before I am birding in China with you again.Many thanks again and Best wishes Richard

Hi Tang Jun,Sorry it's taken a while to get round to writing this, but we would like to thank you for organizing a thoroughly enjoyable and successful trip. We were extremely lucky with the weather, especially on our first day at Balangshan, and only suffered light rain on our final morning, meaning we were able to get good looks at many of the major species. In total, we rattled up 10 pheasant/partridge species, including 3 Chinese Monals above the tunnel, a male Temminck's Tragopan that walked across the road and excellent views of Snow Partridge and Tibetan Snowcock near the pass. We did pretty well with the warblers too, with species of 10 Phylloscopus, 2 each of Seicercus, Cettia and Bradypterus, whilst an amazing male Firethroat on Erlangshan was arguably bird of the trip - it kept Oscar & I entertained for over an hour as it sang in a tree above our heads. In all, we managed a total of more than 160 species. 
Please pass on our thanks to Mr Liu who was an excellent host and driver, and very accommodating to our wishes. He looked after us very well and was extremely patient with our numerous requests to stop to look at things, even during the very long drive to Rilong.
Many thanks once again and I (Mark, at least) hope to return to China soon and will be in touch when we do.With our very best regards,Mark, Oscar & Steve

2014 some clients' feedback:

Dear Tang Jun,Thank you for giving us so many variations of meals and introducing us to the local cuisine. Also, we shall never forget the magnificent scenery, as well as those fantastic birds! We arrived home safely and even managed to make the connection in Hong Kong after the flight delay in Chengdu.  Graham is now working on his life list in order to add all the new birds! We want to thank you for organising the tour and for looking after us so well. We shall have many happy memories of our time in China. We enjoyed your company as well as that of our great driver, Mr Ching. (Is that his correct name?!)  Thank you for giving us so many variations of meals and introducing us to the local cuisine.  Also, we shall never forget the magnificent scenery, as well as those fantastic birds! All Good Wishes Mary and Graham

All in all, we were very happy with the trip, one of the best we have done!Annika

Dear Tang Jun,   The trip went very well and was exactly what I wanted. Roby /Lei Zhu was very knowledgeable and a very pleasant guide as were also the driver/s and driver’s wife.   Yes, it would be great to go to Sichuan in the future and of course if I go there I certainly contact you for that. For the time being though, the only possibility for China may be a another very short trip to Shanghai (as the one this year) next October but still nothing is definite yet, as it depends on work & time availability.   So let’s keep in contact!   All the best,   David

2013 some clients' feedback:

Dear Tang Jun,  Thanks for all your help on my trip these paste few weeks. It was really fantastic and I hope to get back to China again next year. I hope you managed to escape Tibet, I'll buy you some beers if you tell me the whole story one of these days. All the best, Rob

TangJun: Thanks for the photos! I have returned to Texas From Mongolia and California. The Mongolian trip w/ Nomadic Journeys was very poor. We were riding in the car or stuck in camp most of the time. Did not take any extensive hikes (ie. to search for my targer Altai Snowcock). Consequently very few birds were seen, and only two of my 6 target spp. Also, no Mongolian food! Oh well. However China was wonderful. We all thank you for a great trip. Jennefer and I (possibly a 3rd person) would like to come to SE China in January 2015. Cranes and waterfowl primarily. Early in the month would be preferable, but we are flexible. At some point I will work up a list of birds, similar to what I did for the recent trip. Anyway, just wanted to touch base, confirm that this still fits your plans, and begin to set a date (although there is no real rush on this). Best, Craig

Hi Tangjun, I trust that you are well. I have just been away with James (to Sumatra and Java) and I gather that rather belated congratulations are in order. Have fun Tony and Celia PS Some nice photos on Surfbirds as well I see. Hello Summer, I enjoyed my trip to Sichuan very much. The tour was a great success and that was due in a large part because of your efforts - you worked extremely hard to make sure we were comfortable and well fed.  We also appreciated your skill at identifying birds for us. With good luck for the future, Bob Jones