The best way to see LOTS of birds (and a few crocs) with no effort at all is to book a Sunset Cruise with Yellow Waters at Cooinda.  It’s a short drive from the Kakadu Lodge Cooinda and they have a shuttle bus between the lodge and the boat dock.  Not only do you see more birds but you avoid the crowds at the mid-day cruise who are day-tripping from Darwin!

When you book, do it online and be sure to scroll all the way down to where you can add a Sunrise Cruise the next morning (incl bkft) for $36!

The boats are open but try to sit in the front if you are into photography.

Crocs before even leaving the dock.

Darter

Darter

“I will eat you!”

Plumed Whistling Duck

Black-necked Stork

Rainbow Bee-eater

White-bellied Sea Eagle

Darter

Little Corellas

Comb-crested Jacana

Nankeen Night Heron

Azure Kingfisher

Whistling Kite

Towards the end of the cruise, they parked the boats at a nice vantage spot to watch the sunset.

I actually saw more birds than I got photos of.  Here is my full eBird list.