Ecuador Birds Tour-Mindo Cloud Forest - by Richard Hernandez

Richard was very personable, with excellent knowledge, teaching, and attitude. We saw 37 different hummingbird species among many others. You can't miss this tour!

A wonderful day seeing all sorts of birds and wildlife in different locations with such an experienced and knowledgeable guide. It seems that there is nothing that Richard doesn’t know about the country, the area, ornithology and bird photography. You have to pay to visit the private locations (usually $10 per place) and for lunch but otherwise everything is included in the amount paid in advance. An unforgettable day with an early (5 am) start but so worthwhile for what you see, also you miss the rush hour traffic out of Quito. Highly recommended.

I highly recommend Richard Hernández to any birder visiting Quito, Ecuador! I hired Richard for a full-day birding excursion in August 2026, and he exceeded every expectation from start to finish. Richard provided: Expertise: Deeply knowledgeable, professional, and excellent at finding birds. Logistics: Seamless hotel pickup and drop-off in Quito with safe, reliable transportation. Communication: Fluent English and wonderful, highly instructive conversation. Value: Very reasonable pricing. Thanks to his sharp eye, I saw and photographed nearly 100 new bird species in a single day. If you want a fun, professional, and world-class bird-watching experience, do not hesitate to book with Richard!

+1

Worst experience ever. DO NOT BOOK with this person. We cut down our trip by half as it became impossible to spend any time with this person. He is self obsessed and speaks bad of everyone, specially if you have booked hotels which he has not suggested. He is very difficult person and also spends more time photographing birds himself and not tell the clients about birds like any other guide. He also came late for pick up telling us a lie that there were roadwork! DO NOT BOOK WITH THIS OPERATOR

Ximena the guide was GREAT !! Very knowledgeable. Friendly and patient. We enjoyed her !!

Best day birding in my life. Richard is passionate, selfess, patient and taught me photography at the same time. He took the time to make sure I saw each bird and diagnostics for identifying them plus habitats and distribution. 68 amazing birds in 5 hours, a once in a lifetime experience.

I’m rating this with 5-stars because we did have a good time, but we spent a decent amount of $ with what we felt was not a huge ROI. We had 4 people and our guide did pick us up from Quito. We visited 2 areas in Mindo, both I believe were owned by the family of our guide. In addition to the $460 we paid for the trip, we had to pay per person for each reserve. Again, this was listed in the details, but we also felt like we were going to get to visit a lot more during our experience. Fully willing to admit that maybe we had wrong expectations, but just wanted to share that we had bigger expectations for all that we would be doing on this tour for what we paid.

Richard is a great guide and bird watcher. He allows you customize the your to your liking. He gives you lots of ideas. He took me to look at several species of hummingbirds and explained the various types of them. He also knows everyone’s. 10/10 experience

12 hours from pick-up to drop-off. Hit 4 spots plus saw a Toucan at lunch. In total 70 species, 13 Hummingbirds, 16 Tanagers 4 Toucans, Masked Trogon, Cock of the Rock and a Motmot. Quite a haul. Richard is knowledgeable both in where to go and in identifying birds. He has relationships with local landowners that provided access to great spots with blinds set up. He is friendly and eager to share what he knows. Highly recommend this tour for birders whether they are just starting or are veterans. He brought both a laser pointer to help us locate a bird and a scope to provide great looks- got a great look at a Yellow-throated Toucan through the scope. Best birding experience I’ve ever had.

Booked a day with Richard for bird photography and visiting the Mindo Cloud forest. Wonderful experience with him sharing prime locations to view a variety of bird species. His knowledge and ability to point out birds in the areas was excellent. Highly recommend Richard to guide anyone interested in viewing the wide variety of bird species the Mindo Cloud forest has to offer.