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The town of Copan Ruinas in Honduras is known for two things – the Mayan city of Copan and scarlet macaws. There is no better place to see these brilliant birds than at Macaw Mountain.
This bird sanctuary just outside Copan Ruinas does important work rescuing, rehabilitating, reproducing and releasing a variety of bird species, including scarlet macaws.
I was cautious of visiting, as any experience where animals are in captivity can blur the lines of unethical. But we were very impressed with the mission and ethics of the park.
Getting a close look at these colourful and fascinating birds was a highlight of our time in Copan Ruinas, and we thoroughly enjoyed our morning exploring the park.
I’ll cover everything you need to know about visiting Macaw Mountain, including how to get there, costs and opening hours, the types of birds you can expect to see and a more detailed insight into why I thought this experience was ethical.
Don’t have time to read this whole post? Here’s the lowdown 👇🏼
- Macaw Mountain is a bird sanctuary in the town of Copan Ruinas in Honduras
- They house a variety of species of rescued and injured birds and participate in breeding and release programs for scarlet macaws
- The park is 2.4 km (1.5 mi) from the centre of Copan Ruinas, and you can walk or take a tuk-tuk there
- It’s open daily from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm and the entry costs 250 Lempira (~ $10 USD)
- Although there are birds in cages, the park is ethical and has a strong commitment to education and conservation, no touching or holding is allowed
- You can take a self-guided tour of the park, seeing the various species in different aviaries, the nursery, and pre-release cages as well as an open recreation area where the birds get time out of their cage
- In addition to macaws, the park has toucans, parrots, parakeets, owls, hawks and many other kinds of birds
About Macaw Mountain
Macaw Mountain is a bird park cum sanctuary, that aims to provide a home for unwanted or mistreated exotic birds, as well as rescue and rehabilitate injured or ill birds from the wild.
They are also heavily involved with reproduction programs, particularly for scarlet macaws, to repopulate the Copan Valley area.
Although they are not the only species of bird at the park, the name is clear – macaws are a big deal here. Scarlet macaws are the national bird of Honduras, and they have become an unofficial symbol of Copan Ruinas.
The birds have been present in the Copan Valley since Mayan times, and they were a revered symbol in the Maya religion and culture. You can see carvings of macaws all over the ancient city. The Mayas called them las guacamayas, and we actually visited a similar scarlet macaw sanctuary in Chiapas, Mexico called Las Guacamayas a few years earlier!
The park has been operating in Copan Ruinas since 2001 and has had a profound impact on the area.
Macaws are a huge part of Copan’s identity, and it’s clear that the community loves and respects the birds, after years of education work from Macaw Mountain. They have been a key stakeholder in breeding and release projects, to restore the population of the birds at the ruins and the entire Copan Valley more broadly.
The park gives travellers a great opportunity to get up close to a range of birds, learn more about these unique and fascinating species, and understand further the threats to their population, and why so many end up in sanctuaries such as this one.
Where is Macaw Mountain
The Macaw Mountain Bird Park is located approximately 2.4 km (1.5 mi) from the centre of Copan Ruinas.
Their property is in a lush and leafy section of forest, and elevated on a small mountain as the name suggests!
How to get there
If you’re in Copan Ruinas, you’ve got two main options to get to Macaw Mountain:
- 👣 Walk: we walked both ways to the park and enjoyed it. It should take 30 – 45 minutes. The way there is steep, but the road passes through the smaller neighbourhoods of Copan and we enjoyed it. Walking back is a lot easier!
- 🛺 Tuk-tuk: any tuk-tuk in town can take you up to Macaw Mountain, I would expect the trip to be around 50 Lempiras ($2 USD). Just be aware that there aren’t too many tuk-tuks around the area near the park, so if you want a ride back, it’d be best to pay your driver to wait or coordinate for them to come back later on. Walking back is downhill so you could at least get a tu-tuk one way and walk back.
Entrance fee
The entrance fee to Macaw Mountain is 250 Lempira (~ $10 USD). For children aged 4 – 10 years old, the fee is 125 Lempiras (~ $5 USD).
Your fee is used to run the park, look after the birds and contribute to their conservation projects, which we were very happy to pay.
Opening hours
Macaw Mountain is open 7 days a week from 8:00 am – 4:00 pm.
We visited on a weekday and it was very quiet. I’m sure it gets a little busier on the weekends.
I would recommend allowing 1.5 – 3 hours at the park to see it thoroughly and enjoy the birds.
Is Macaw Mountain ethical?
I was sceptical about visiting Macaw Mountain, as I am with any captive wildlife experience.
Our concerns were immediately addressed as we walked through the entry, with a sign informing visitors why they would be seeing birds in cages.
I applaud Macaw Mountain for addressing the elephant in the room, and not trying to sugarcoat the situation. The reality for many animal sanctuaries is that being behind a cage is the safest place for some animals to be, after suffering cruelty and trauma in their former lives.
A large population of the birds you will see at Macaw Mountain were either raised or have spent the majority of their life in captivity, and unfortunately don’t have the skills to survive in the wild.
Most have been donated by owners who no longer wanted or were able to care for the birds (and shouldn’t have kept exotic birds as pets in the first place!). Some of the birds were forcibly removed from cruel owners by the government.
These feathered friends now have a safe and caring home at the park for the rest of their days. It’s not as good as being in the wild, but it’s better than where they came from.
Other birds who come in injured or ill are treated with the aim of rehabilitation and release if they still possess the skills required for a normal life in the wild.
The park is also a major partner in efforts to restore macaw populations around Copan. They are heavily involved in breeding and release programs, that have allowed dozens of macaws to live freely around the Copan Valley.
This means that even birds that sadly cannot be released back into the wild for whatever reason can still serve a valuable role in the conservation of the species as breeding partners in the park. Their chicks will be raised for release, and pending their healthy development will fly free at the ruins to live in the wild around Copan.
Another thing that we were happy about was the changes to the rules about holding and taking photos with the birds. We had seen a lot of pictures of tourists holding birds, which I was not a fan of.
When we visited, this was no longer possible. Supposedly due to the pandemic, but it’s a positive change for the birds regardless. You can still see the birds hanging outside in the interactive area, and get quite close to take photos of them, you just can’t hold or touch them, which is much better for their well-being.
My understanding is that the birds in this area are individuals that will not be able to be released into the wild. Most are quite habituated to humans and I don’t think the close proximity stresses them at all. It probably provides them with some stimulation and entertainment, but I definitely felt more comfortable not seeing people touching or holding them.
This experience is far, far more ethical than the cruel and profit-orientated ‘sanctuaries’ in Roatan. If you want to see macaws or other exotic birds in Honduras, this is the place to do it ethically.
What to expect on your visit
The experience at Macaw Mountain is self-guided. After arriving at the park and buying your ticket, you’ll follow the clearly defined trail through the park, visiting the different aviaries.
There is great signage in Spanish and English, explaining more about the species you’re seeing, and providing broader information about their breeding and release programs.
We were able to identify which birds were lifelong residents, and which were at various stages of breeding and/or release programs.
There are different sections of the park for birds that are ill or being quarantined as new arrivals (this is off-limits to visitors), a nursery for new chicks, and various release cages that graduate in size, so the birds can practice their flying before they’re set free in the wild.
The final section of the park is the open interactive area, where the birds are given time outside their cage. You can thankfully no longer touch or hold them, but it’s a great opportunity to take some photos up close.
Staff are always watching the birds in this area, and they’re very familiar with their behaviour so they can see when they’ve had enough and need to go back to their private cage.
The birds in this area have a rest for lunch from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm, so time your visit around this.
The property has a river flowing through it, and there are further trails you can follow away from the birds, just to explore the forest and natural area.
The main trail finishes back at the beginning near the cafe, and I would highly recommend grabbing something to drink or snack on and sitting out on the elevated balcony to watch the wild birds that come to feed on the fruit tables.
Bird species at Macaw Mountain
This is by no means an exhaustive list, as there are over 30 different species of birds at Macaw Mountain, and the list is constantly changing as they rescue more birds and release others.
Some of our highlights included:
- Scarlet Macaw
- Blue and Yellow Macaw
- Great Green Macaw
- Black Mandible Toucan
- Keel-Billed Toucan
- Toucanet (multiple species)
- Collared Aracari
- Parrot (multiple species)
- Parakeets (multiple species)
- Owls (multiple species)
- Hawks (multiple species)
In addition to the birds inside the cages, there are many many wild birds that still live around the park. Often these are birds who have been released but still stay ‘with the family’.
At the cafe area, there is a large elevated deck, with a fruit table. The wild birds can come back for a feed anytime they like, and we saw (and heard) dozens of wild scarlet macaws hanging around the park, it was really special. They seemed to be communicating with the others in the cages.
🌈 If you’re hoping to see a Resplendent Quetzal in Honduras, you won’t find one in Copan Ruinas. You need to venture up into the clouds of the Santa Barbara Mountain near Lake Yojoa
Amenities at Macaw Mountain
- 🚽 Toilets: there are clean bathrooms on-site.
- ☕️ Restaurant: there is a cafe on-site with a big open deck looking out into the forest. They’ve got a fruit table where the wild birds can come down for a snack, it’s a great place to sit for a while and watch the birds.
- 🧢 Souvenir shop: we were on the hunt for a new hat, and bought a really cool cap with a scarlet macaw on it! I was glad to buy a souvenir from the park to further support their work.
Wild macaws at the Copan Ruins
Macaw Mountain is a guaranteed opportunity to see scarlet macaws in Copan Ruinas, but it’s not the only place you can encounter these brilliant birds.
There is a consistent population of birds at the Copan ruins. This was our favourite part of visiting the ancient city, and we saw a lot of them around the site.
We were told by staff at the ruins that food is put out for the wild macaws at 8:00 am and 1:00 pm. I’m not 100% sure if those times are still accurate, but I would aim to be at the city when it opens (8:00 am) for the best chance of seeing any wild birds that want to swing by for a snack.
Although the macaws are free-flying, they were released at Copan and many of them stay pretty close to take advantage of the food and the artificial nests all over the city. The breeding and release programs have been very effective, and there are lots of productive mating pairs around the valley.
Final thoughts on Macaw Mountain
As an animal lover, I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Macaw Mountain.
It’s never nice seeing animals behind cages, but you have to acknowledge the harsh reality that often it’s the best place for them to be.
This is a great opportunity to learn more about scarlet macaws, given their importance to Honduras, Copan Ruinas and the Maya.
There are plenty of other great things to do in Copan Ruinas besides Macaw Mountain and the ruins. Don’t miss the Tea and Chocolate Place for a delicious sweet treat, a soak at the Luna Jaguar Hot Springs or a coffee tour.
MORE HONDURAS MAINLAND POSTS
- Copan Ruinas, Honduras Travel Guide: Mayans and Macaws
- Complete Travel Guide to Lago de Yojoa, Honduras
- How to Visit Cataratas Pulhapanzak, Honduras
