Day 1: Arrivals into Perth International Airport (PER), overnight nearby. 

Day 2: Full morning birding around Perth, where we should already be able to see many of the south-western endemics. Carnaby's Black Cockatoo we will study carefully, preparing ourselves for identifying their rarer cousin later in the week. Delightful Western Spinebill are always a favourite as they feed on flowers in the understorey, while Gilbert's Honeyeater tends to prefer the treetops. After lunch, we'll head to Narrogin for overnight, doing a drive through Boyagin in the late afternoon for an initial attempt at Numbat. 

Day 3: The protected forest of Dryandra Woodland is one of the only remaining examples of extensive wandoo woodlands which once covered the entire inland portion of Australia's south-west.  It is the site to find Western Shriketit, though even so time is required to pin one down. Those chasing families will be pleased to know that Varied Sittella is common here, while others will appreciate two of the most stunning endemics to be seen in this part of Australia: Red-capped Parrot and Western Rosella. Other south-west specialties in the woodland include Rufous Treecreeper, Western Yellow Robin, Blue-breasted Fairywren, and Western Thornbill. Some of the more widespread birds we will come across include Purple-crowned Lorikeet, Yellow-plumed Honeyeater, Grey Currawong, Scarlet Robin, and Red-capped Robin, while the tricky Painted Buttonqail is also a possibility. Night in Narrogin. 

With plenty of time at Dryandra, we will also be making sure to search carefully for Numbat, this unique marsupial certainly one of the strangest little mammals in the world! It is also perhaps the best place in Australia to reliably see Short-beaked Echidna, while those who wish to come out at night might be able to see Western Quoll, Red-tailed Phascogale, and Wyolie (AKA Burrowing Bettong). The woodland here is really wonderful for wildlife. 

Day 4: After another morning drive through Dryanda we'll head south, watching roadsides for the beautiful Regent Parrot. We should already arrive at Cheynes Beach near Albany in time for some initial exploration this afternoon. 

Day 5-6-7: We have three full days to explore the wonderful heathland and coastal vegetation, where the secretive Noisy Scrubbird is always the top of our wishlist. Getting good views of this special bird for the whole group will be our primary focus, along with enjoying species like Western Bristlebird and Black-throated Whipbird. Other endemics to be seen are Red-winged Fairywren, White-breasted Robin, and the superb Red-eared Firetail. The endearing Honey Possum is quite common in the heath, and we should be able to spot one or two feasting on nectar in the late afternoons. 

More widespread birds include Brown Quail, Brush Bronzewing, Sooty Oystercatcher, Pacific Gull, Southern Emuwren, Tawny-crowned Honeyeater, New Holland Honeyeater, and White-cheeked Honeyeater. We can go out at night in search of Tawny Frogmouth and Australian Owlet-nightjar, the latter nearly abundant in the right places! 

One one morning during our stay, we'll drive an hour north to explore the Stirling Range, keeping watch for Emu and Elegant Parrot on the side of the road as we go. Black-throated Whipbird is sometimes easier to see here than on the coast, while the endemic Western Fieldwren is an important bird to find. We will also be able to enjoy some iconic Australian birds like Wedge-tailed Eagle, Galah, Australian Magpie, and Splendid Fairywren.

Day 8: Driving to far south-west tip of the continent, we'll be making dedicated stops around Pemberton for Western Corella, while we'll also have more chances for Western Shriketit if needed. Once these are in the bag, our focus will be on finding (and identifying) the Critically Endangered endemic Baudin's Black Cockatoo. Overnight at Augusta. 

Day 9: We'll check the lighthouse for Rock Parrot early in the morning (they are either there or they are not, but this is the most reliable spot in the state!) before heading back to Perth. We will search for Baudin's Black Cockatoo again, and stop at a few stakeouts for Western Wattlebird (which will usually be our final south-west endemic). Overnight in Perth. 

Day 10: This morning we take a flight to Christmas Island for our three night stay at this isolated outpost, which is not biogeographically part of Oceania and instead has almost entirely Asian avifauna. It is only 300km south of Java after all!

Day 11-12: Christmas Island is covered in a dense rainforest, which is the breeding site for two endemic seabirds: Abbott’s Booby and Christmas Frigatebird. The former was historically breeding ony islands all across the Indian Ocean to Madagascar, but is now only found here with less than 3000 pairs remaining. A truly prehistoric species with their Pterodactyl-like appearance and flight style! Another special seabird here the stunning golden yellow endemic subspecies of White-tailed Tropicbird, which we will see performing display flights on a regular basis across the island. 

There are also five endemic landbirds (though taxonomy is constantly shifting here). Currently recognised are Christmas Swiftlet, Christmas Boobook, Christmas Imperial Pigeon, Christmas Island Thrush, and Christmas White-eye, though the distinctive "Christmas" Brown Goshawk is often considered an endemic species too. A popular locality for Australian twitchers, there are usually a few interesting vagrants from Asia hanging around which we might be able to find. We might be lucky enough to see some of the famous Red Crab migration, but the exact timing of this event changes each year.

Day 13: Return to Perth, where the tour ends this afternoon. 

NOTE: We can also provide advice to anybody who wishes to drive a few days inland in search of either Nullarbor Quail-thrush or Western Quail-thrush (though they are in completely opposite directions). Alternatively one of Australia's smallest hopping marsupials, the endearing Quokka, is easy to see with a day trip out to Rottnest Island either before or after the tour in Perth.