New Jersey
Birding Cape May
Program No. 14349RJ
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Birding Cape May
Birding Cape May
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Participant Reviews
Based on 32 Reviews
SHOWING
Birding in Cape May, NJ was a great experience. I would recommend this program to anyone wanting an enjoyable trip to see the natural life of birds.
— Review left October 4, 2025
A great opportunity to learn about birds in the area, especially raptors and shorebirds. Well organized and varied prigram.Leader Adehl was enthusiastic and very knowledgeable, and pivoted gracefully in the face of challenging weather conditions so that we didn't miss out on snything.
— Review left September 20, 2025
Great trip from the viewpoint of people leading the group.
They were all enthusiastic, very knowledgeable about birds and birding, willing to share their knowledge, helpful and patient. I can’t say enough good things about them.
BUT, and it’s a big BUT: the hotel building has serious deficiencies especially for this age group.
1. The elevator can only be operated by hotel staff who are not always readily available. It’s a very very old elevator and small.
2. Consequently the old steep, long staircase must be used. In our age group that is dangerous due to knee problems etc.
3. Room heating systems are either not working or very loud.
4. Bathroom doors don’t fully close.
5. No place to spread out toiletries around the sink in bathroom.
I’ve got more to say but that’s enough for now.
John Novak
— Review left May 20, 2025
From beginning to end, the Cape May Birding program was a great educational experience. The group leaders were knowledgeable, patient, articulate and particularly attuned to teaching with a coaching style that allowed me to actually retain the new information I was acquiring.
— Review left May 3, 2025
Program leaders with exceptional birding knowledge, teaching skills and enthusiasm conduct a well paced tour of a variety of birding habitats that is sure to please beginners and experienced birders alike.
— Review left May 3, 2025
This was a very fun trip. I had never been on a birding trip so I did not know what to expect. We saw lots of interesting birds, learned about monarch butterflies and tracking them and learned about tracking birds. Cape May is a fun place to visit and is worth an extra day on your own to tour the victorian architecture. The staff and volunteers were a lot of fun. I am not a die hard birder but still had an enjoyable time with my husband and the other guests.
— Review left February 9, 2025
This was a wonderful trip. I learned so much! I'm particularly interested in raptors-- and we saw so many of them, as well as a multitude of songbirds. The leaders who took us on our birding adventures were incredibly well informed, great teachers, and committed to conservation. They taught not just about the birds we saw, but shared tips on identifying birds and helping us be better birders. I will probably do this trip again!
— Review left November 2, 2024
I've been on a number of Road Scholar trips at this point, and what I've learned is that each trip has its merits, some stronger than others. I've also learned that Road Scholar's trips can be uneven in the quality of any number of things, which one can only learn once one is on the trip, and that these factors are controlled largely by Road Scholar's contractors, rather than directly by Road Scholar . This sometimes makes it difficult to proactively assess a particular trip that one is considering, which can lead to disappointments.
This trip excelled in educational aspects, in my opinion, which is something Road Scholar, from my experience, has done well during every trip I've taken with it. And Road Scholar birders are no different than birders where most of us live and bird -- they are socially interactive, bright, and considerate folks. Great group.
— Review left October 24, 2024
Outstanding experience. For birds watching and other active events it more than met my expectations. My only minor disappointment was the food, mainly the breakfasts. No variety. The dinners and lunches varied as to there quality but we're generally fine. The two days we had lunch at local restaurants outside the hotel were excellent. But all of our leaders were knowledgeable and thoughtful, and the guest speakers were very informative. As a bird watcher who had never been to Cape May this was an excellent introduction to the variety of sites found there.
— Review left October 16, 2024
The professional birders who accompanied us on all field trips were as close to perfect as one can expect! Cape May birding during migration is a natural world gift that they shared with excellence and respect.
— Review left October 13, 2024
This was a wonderful trip! I did a fair amount of birding in my younger years but this was my first big bird trip as a senior ! The guides were very informative, very friendly and responsive to the participants. The logistics for the trip were great; we were well-cared for. Lovely hotel accommodations and staff. We were just across the street from the beach. Highlights for me were hundreds of Black Skimmers resting on the beach, an occasional Great Cormorant mixed in with the Double-cresteds, all the herons possible for the area (with the Little Blue in white winter plumage), many Sharp-shinned and Cooper's Hawks, Western and Eastern Willets, lots of different gulls at various plumage stages, and a surprise Wood Stork flying overhead. There were more birds, too many to name. For me, it was a fun challenge to see warblers and ducks in fall plumage. And of course my fellow participants were wonderful !!!
— Review left October 11, 2024
Wonderful trip to a unique birding place, with great guides and participants.
— Review left September 28, 2024
Cape May is wonderful any time of year but birding in spring is just glorious! Crabs, chicks and rookeries, oh my! Our RS guides Adehl, Dave, and Paul shared their knowledge and passion equally with new, novice and expert birders. (And Valerie kept us organized!) For me, a bucket list item was seeing threatened horseshoe crabs on the beach. This was enhanced by Adehl who went above and beyond by showing us the underbellies of male and female horseshoe crabs. This was my second Cape May RS trip and second stay at the Inn of Cape May, which I adore. It is a 100+ year old hotel with charming eccentricities (e.g. micro-elevator and quirky rooms), but I loved my 3rd floor aerie (with its inland view of Victorian rooftops), the delicious meals (and interesting companions), bar (when free time), wraparound porch, proximity to beach/boardwalk and pedestrian mall. I would only make 3 teeny tweaks to the program: add one free afternoon or evening to explore town; move Lobster House lunch from stuffy inside banquet room to scenic outside/dockside; and do box lunches (as per October 2023 trip) rather than return to hotel so we can BIRD MORE! Oh and another: buy the volunteer guides lunch so they can eat with us! I don't know if I'll be a 3-peater but tempted...
— Review left June 14, 2024
Absolutely amazing experience with extraordinarily knowledgeable birding instructors and guides. This was my first birding experience and I am now "hooked". THANK YOU
— Review left June 4, 2024
This was a great trip and a wonderful birding experience.
— Review left June 4, 2024
This program was a hard 10 and accommodations were a 9.
— Review left May 31, 2024
A great program for the serious birder or someone just starting out! Road Scholar ran everything soothly.
— Review left June 12, 2023
This is my third trip with Road Scholar and it was another home run.
— Review left October 25, 2022
The weekdays were were there included hawks and falcons passing through. It was late for the passerines (or too early) but a variety of shorebirds. Thus, the bird activity was not as robust as you would have in the spring. The lectures were outstanding and the guides very knowledgeable.
— Review left September 26, 2022
Road Scholar's Cape May Fall Birding program was an excellent trip. Experts from the Cape May birding community were presenters and guides for the program. These experts and the trip coordinator made this a terrific week of learning and birding. The accommodations were great and Cape May is an awesome place to spend time. I highly recommend this Road Scholar program.
— Review left September 23, 2022
Easy to use and forthright,
— Review left June 6, 2022
As someone with zero birding experience, this Road Scholar trip was a truly a wonderful introduction to birding. The group leaders and lecturers were all outstanding. Their expertise, coaching abilities and overall enthusiasm for the sport was infectious. Cape May is considered the epicenter of bird migration and the field trip venues allowed us to view numerous species at varied locales which included marshes, ponds, ocean, meadows and woods. For those interested in learning about birding, I highly recommend!
— Review left October 27, 2021
GEAT TRIP. GREAT BIRDING. COMFORTABLE AND ENJOYABLE.
— Review left October 23, 2021
This was such a wonderful opportunity to see migrating raptors, as well as ducks, shorebirds, and a few songbirds. Cape May is an amazing place and I intend to return.
— Review left October 23, 2021
Was very eager to repeat this wonderful program that I had done before in September 2018 and it was just as enjoyable as then with an excellent leader (Melissa R) , interesting locations and about 100 species observed. Grand Hotel was a terrific home base for our daily excursions
— Review left October 18, 2021
Highly recommended. Cape May is a bird watching paradise. Excellent birding guides & presentations. The hotel and its restaurant were both excellent. Wear good shoes as you will be on your feet for about 2 hours for each of 2 walks per day.
— Review left September 28, 2021
Excellent birding with terrific guides who knew their birds and the area.
— Review left October 29, 2019
BIRDS! BIRDS! Everywhere! And birding leaders everywhere! Do you think all Fall migration is to the south? HA! Come to experience Cape May's unique geography and find out about the "northern" migration.
— Review left October 27, 2019
This program makes birding around Cape May easy and interesting for experienced bird watchers. A variety of advice (eg. use of binoculars) helped everyone in the group. Guides with spotting scopes were better than I have experienced on less formal local bird walks.
— Review left May 24, 2019
Mark Garland did a superb job of leading this birding adventure. Our evening speakers were all fascinating and informative, and on the daytime bird walks we 28 participants were split into three groups so that we could all get a view of the birds and wildlife we encountered. Various personable and highly skilled birders joined us along the way. The trolley rides were ideal transportation, and the hotel provided comfortable accommodations and reasonable to excellent food. Valerie kept everyone organized and was very responsive to all creature-comfort-related issues. Well Done!
A couple of possible improvements:
1. The weather. (Just kidding, of course!)
2. The Lobster House did not impress me with either their service or food.
3. Harry's was very noisy and the menu limited, service was poor and our final meal together (scattered across isolated tables) did not provide the optimal experience. Find a place with a separate room for the whole group, or at least a much quieter venue. The Grand Hotel's Crystal room served very well for our group dinner Wed.
4. Consider offering an evening of bird-related games to help everyone get to know each other better. This would be fun, and especially helpful in poor weather!
5. Play a party game after dinner, or while everyone is still seated after dessert. Celebrate someone's birthday, anniversary, or another event. Act like a Social Director at a summer camp to help this group of almost exclusively couples interact more from the first day on.
I enjoyed this, my first trip ever to Cape May. The horseshoe crab and red knot and other prolific shorebird viewing was the highlight of the birding experience for me, truly a spectacular event in the spring on Delaware Bay's shores.
— Review left May 21, 2019
This program was very effective in explaining how and why Cape May is such a special birding area, particularly at migration times. Highly knowledgeable guides helped us explore many of the top birding sites in the area.
— Review left May 20, 2019
This is extremely well thought out and managed. Everyone will find some thing to love and much to learn about birds, habitat, and Cape May. You will be well fed too. The group is appreciative and not too demanding.
— Review left May 19, 2019