Our comprehensive South-east Brazil itinerary visits all of the best sites in the states of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, and together with our optional extension to Espírito Santo, covers virtually all of the Atlantic forest endemics which regularly occur in the south-east. In addition to having one of the longest bird lists of any country in the world, Brazil hosts an extremely high number of endemic birds, with 251 country endemics according to BirdLife International. Approximately 900 species occur in the Atlantic forests of Brazil, of which 213 are endemic to the biome, with another 17 species which are nearly endemic to the biome. Our itinerary begins in the Serra do Mar south of São Paulo, where we visit Intervales State Park and Trilha dos Tucanos in one of the best remaining blocks of montane Atlantic rain forest in the country. A short visit to the coastal restinga to look for three extremely range-restricted endemics completes our visit to the southern part of São Paulo state before we return north to visit the highland resort town of Campos do Jordão and the lowland forests around the beach resort of Ubatuba. From there we cross into Rio de Janeiro state to visit Perequê for the Critically Endangered Black-hooded Antwren en route to Itatiaia National Park, the oldest park in Brazil and one of the finest sites in the region. We also suggest spending two nights at the welcoming Fazenda Bacury in the interior of São Paulo state, where we can visit the extensive Tanquã marshes and bird in one of the last remaining tracts of planalto Atlantic forest to look for Violaceous Quail-Dove and the impressive Southern Muriqui, one of South America's largest and most endangered primates.

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The Espírito Santo extension begins with three nights in the lowland tabuleiro forests of Linhares where we search for a host of rare and endangered endemics including such iconic species as Red-billed Curassow and the Atlantic forest race of White-winged Potoo. Our next stop is a lovely little pousada in the hills around the small town of Santa Teresa which boasts some of the best hummingbird feeders in all of Brazil. The remnant forests near the town are good for several rarely encountered endemics, and our two nights in Santa Teresa are bound to fly by. We finish the tour in the Pedra Azul area, where a visit to the fabulous Caetés forest will target the stunning Cherry-throated Tanager, one of Brazil's most threatened birds.