Gambia Experience birdwatching tours take flight with TV presenter

Wildlife TV presenter and photographer Megan McCubbin will accompany birdwatching tours by The Gambia Experience in January 2024.

The new holidays will be based at the Bakotu Hotel which has a bird deck overlooking Kotu Creek.

The operator is offering the choice of three or four-night tours, departing on January 23 and and January 26, 2024.

McCubbin will be accompanied by highly acclaimed Gambian guide, Malick Suso, an expert in spotting and identifying local birdlife.

She learned about wildlife from her stepfather, TV presenter Chris Packham, and joined his previous tours in The Gambia.

After studying zoology at the University of Liverpool, her career has included co-hosting the BBC’s Springwatch and Autumnwatch programmes and presenting on Animal Park.

She said: “The Gambia is a home away from home for me. I have visited the country countless times since the age of five and am always left speechless by the diversity of its bird life – from giant kingfishers to long-tailed nightjars, and everything in between.

“It is always an adventure and I cannot wait to return, and catch up with some of my favourite species.”

The tours can be booked as part of a longer holiday, or both tours can be combined for a full week of birding with McCubbin.

The tours are from £425 per person, excluding flights and accommodation.

A package costs from £1,490, offering a tour and a week’s stay at Bakotu hotel on a B&B basis including flights and transfers. Other hotel options are available.