The other day I sent out a loooooooong newsletter, and I can’t blame you if you did not have time to read it. I thought I’d split it up into more digestible chunks.

It contained in three parts. The first part was about our current alternative projects for birding infrastructure that can also be enjoyed non-birders. Within this topic is the Satipo road project and the Condor watching project. The second part was about an idea and feasibility to create a pelagic and whale watching operation near Nazca.  The third part about the fundraising for these projects was focused on the benefits for you in the short term, in case you are already considering taking a bird watching tour within the period of 2022-2024, when supposedly the COVID pandemic is over.  This blogpost deals with this last part of the newsletter. THE SPECIAL OFFER!

Where will you go birding in 2022-2024?

I am asking you where you will go birding in the coming years because, I have a unique offer for you to take a tour with us within the next three years.
Anywhere in the world!
It does not have to be Peru.
It does not have to be 2022.
If you wait until 2023 or 2024, the value of the offer will be worth even more!

You probably know by now that Kolibri Expeditions and 7 Wonders Birding provide focused tours to bucket list places and key birds worldwide, so there are many tours to choose from.

Make your bird tour deposit grow!

If you have money in the bank, how much interest do you get?
1%?
Less???

The interest rates in the developed countries are close to being negative when taking into account fees. On the other hand it is quite inexpensive to get a loan from the bank.

Kolibri Expeditions needs an injection of capital to ride out the negative effects of the pandemic and to invest in our infrastructure projects. If I were to ask the bank here in Peru to lend me the money needed, they would likely refuse, when considering the uncertain times we live in, and when looking at our recent sales. If they, by a miracle, agreed, I would probably have to pay a staggering 12-15% interest rate.

So instead, I have been pondering on an idea for some time that could be an option that combines both the low interest on capital in the developed world, and the difficult and expensive access to capital for investments in Peru.

The original idea was quite simple. I could ask the people who receive my newsletter, to lend me $1000 for three years, and in turn, I would give a guaranteed yearly interest rate of, say, 5%.

That could work, but looking at it more closely, it shows that it likely will become too awkward with the bank fees when sending the money back and forth. Although better than a bank loan, it seemed just too complicated.

I have come up with a much better variant.

The Special Offer

Coming back to the title of this email.

• Decide when and where you want to go birding with Kolibri Expeditions or 7 Wonders Birding between 2022 and 2024,
• Pay a deposit now of around US$1000 (or the equivalent in your currency if it is EUR, GBP, AUD, CAD, or ZAR).

Sounds reasonable, right?

Let’s make that even better:

On your down payment of $1000, money which currently gives you no interest in your bank, I offer you:

• 10% yearly interest compounded daily.
• A trip that would run three and a half years from now would earn you over US$400. Check this online calculator of compound interest if you don’t believe me!
• Guaranteed price. You’d be guaranteed your total price fixed at today’s value rather than the likely increased price in a year or two.

All tours listed on the Kolibri Expeditions or 7 Wonders Birding webpages are eligible. Just let me know your approximate dates and destination.

If your target destination is not on our websites yet, it may well be in production. Let me know, and we shall get the itinerary up on the page ASAP. Remember, we shall soon offer Madagascar, Papua New Guinea, West Papua, Namibia, Galapagos, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, South Africa, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Patagonia, Easter Island, New Caledonia, and many more.

If you can’t decide exactly where and when you want to go, that is fine. You can still participate. Deposit $1000 now, and just let me know a minimum of a year ahead when and where you want to go.

Suppose we can get 35 to 50 people taking this offer. It would give us the funding necessary for pelagic & whale-watching project. It would also secure several future tour departure dates that other people can join. Meanwhile, you get the best price, and you get to choose the dates for something you planned to do anyway.

Our list prices are from 5 people minimum, but we would run the tour with only two people with a surcharge. Having three years to get a minimum of 5 people for the best price seems very feasible.

There is only one offer per departure available (or two if you are traveling together with your spouse). It would give us the necessary profit margins when other people sign up for your tours. As the early bird, you will get the best price.

You could naturally sign up for three (or more) trips at once—one in 2022, one in 2023, and one in 2024 to maximize your savings.

The cheapest way to participate is to make a direct ACH bank transfer free of charge from your bank account via our current payment platform. This option is only applicable to those living in countries that use USD, EUR, GBP, AUD, CAD, or ZAR currencies.

Should you want to use this option, I will calculate the amount corresponding to $1000 in your currency. There’d be a 1.9% transfer charge on top, so the total to deposit would be equivalent to $1019.

If you live in countries with other currencies you should use the US$ option and pay $1019 with credit card.  There would be a credit card fee charge on top at check out (depending on country but around $30

It is best for you to make this deposit as soon as possible, since a $19-40 fee is negligible compared to the gains if you decide for a trip in 2023 or 2024.

The five quick steps for you to do now.

1. Send me an email at kolibriexp@gmail.com telling me you are in on a $1000 deposit for a trip
2. Decide destination.
3. Decide date.
4. I will send you a certified safe internet link for payment with a credit card
5. Enter your information on the encrypted credit card payment site.

I am looking forward to go birding with you!

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Gunnar Engblom is a birder from Sweden living in Peru since 1998 running the birdwatching tour operator Kolibri Expeditions.

In October 2018 Gunnar lead a trip in Peru recording 1006 species in a Big Month.

In spite of being a compulsive lister himself, he has long been convinced that birding of the future is more about esthetics than about a long life list and that there are too few services directed to this increasingly large segment of birders. He thus started an offshoot from the mainline of the business called 7 Wonders Birding Tours and coined the term Bucket List Birding.
In 2021 the Bucket List Birding podcast will be launched.

Gunnar is also a dedicated 3:04 marathon runner, still hoping for a sub 3h marathon in spite of having turned 60 in 2020.  Berlin Marathon September, 2021 may be when it happens.

In 2016, Gunnar re-launched his rock’n’roll singer career with his band Guran Guran, and in 2019 they released a new video – Feels Like Some Summer – also available on Spotify and other digital outlets.