Multi-day bird watching & specialist bird photography tours

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Tour Overview:

This Birding tour  is a comprehensive week-long bird watching itinerary of the Catalonian region which aims to showcase the very best sites that  this fantastic zone has to offer. We will be visiting well researched locations in order to maximise the variety of species encountered  and  concentrating on the 3 key habitats of wetlands, mountains and plains.

Wetlands - we will be birding in some amazing wetland locations, starting of course at the famous Ebro Delta which we will be exploring by car and boat, looking for rare birds like  Collared Pratincole, Little Bittern and Savi's Warbler. As the week  progresses we will visit some other fantastic wetland birding zones, including Sebes  Nature reserve at Flix.

Mountains - The second key habitat that this birding tour incorporates will be mountainous areas in the Els Ports natural park.  During our mountain bird watching excursion we will look for some of the  tiny residents of the pine forest (Crested Tit, Firecrest, Bonelli's  Warbler etc.) and also drive through some rugged mountainous zones which  are suitable for the likes of  Rock Thrush, Black-eared Wheatear  and many more. We will also make a visit to the northern canyons of Monegros - a true raptor hotspot where we can encounter Golden Eagle, Spanish Imperial Eagle, Booted Eagle, Short-toed Eagle, Goshawk & more!
 

Steppe lands / Plains - The third terrain we will explore during the week will be the dry  lands close to the city of Lleida, which offer a completely different  mix of species in expansive open agricultural zones. Here we can find  some of the most sought after species of Spanish birding,  with highlights such as Little Bustard, European Roller, Lesser  Kestrel, Iberian Grey Shrike, Great-spotted Cuckoo, Montagu's Harrier  and both Pin-tailed & Black-bellied Sandgrouse.
 

This tour is fully inclusive of return airport transfers to Barcelona  International Airport and features five nights accommodation at our  private Guest House close to the Ebro Delta, with the other two nights of the  tour being at Ibis Hotel in Lleida.

Birding Catalonia Tour - 5 highlights

• Bee-eater breeding colonies at a dis-used sand quarry and on Illa de Vinallop. Fantastic close up views and photographic opportunities.
• Boat tour of the Ebro River, observe spectacular species like Little Bittern & Purple, Squacco & Black-crowned Night Heron close up!
• Nocturnal birding session in the Ebro Delta - we will go for a triumvirate of owls (Barn owl, Long-eared Owl & Scops Owl), and also search for the Red-necked Nightjar
• The colorful European Roller is a highlight of birding the plains around Lleida - we will observe them close to their nest sites.
• Dramatic vistas throughout the tour, ranging from the flat lowlands of the delta to the rugged limestone mountains of Els Ports.

Itinerary:

• Day 1 - We will collect you from the arrival airport and transfer you to your accommodation, our private villa close to L'Ampolla. Remainder of the day at leisure.
• Day 2 - Ebro Delta southern section guided bird watching tour, full day with break for lunch.
• Day 3 - Ebro river boat tour, full day guided bird watching itinerary with break for lunch.
• Day 4 - Mountain birding in the southern area of the Els Ports mountain range.
• Day 5 - Ebro Delta northern section, full day tour with lunch break.
• Day 6 - Sebes nature reserve (Flix) in the morning. Check in at Hotel around Lleida after lunch. Late afternoon / evening birding the plains south of Lleida and Mas de Melons nature reserve.
• Day 7 - Plains north of Lleida, morning and evening birding sessions with break during hottest part of the day.
• Day 8 - We will return you to the airport for your return journey home.

South Catalonia Showcase bird watching tours, species list: Notable birds we will be aiming to see.

Red Crested Pochard, Little Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Black Kite, Marsh Harrier, Booted Eagle, Osprey, Kestrel, Black-winged Stilt, Common Sandpiper, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Black Tern, Audouin’s Gull, Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, Bee-eater, Hoopoe, Golden Oriole, Penduline Tit, Sand Martin, Cetti’s Warbler, Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Zitting Cristicola, Nightingale, Spotted Flycatcher, Pied Flycatcher, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Serin, Reed Bunting, Shelduck, Gadwall, Garganey, Shoveler, Little Grebe, Great-crested grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Bittern, Greater Flamingo, White Stork, Spoonbill, Short-toed Eagle, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Bonelli’s Eagle, Lesser Kestrel, Kestrel, Merlin, Hobby, Peregrine, Red-footed Falcon, Water Rail, Avocet, Oystercatcher, Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Lapwing, Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Turnstone, Sanderling, Temminck’s Stint, Dunlin, Little Stint, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Greenshank, Snipe, Jack Snipe, Collared Pratincole, Little Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Sandwich tern, Common Tern, Roseate Tern, Mediterranean Gull, Slender-billed Gull, Cuckoo, Little Owl, Scops Owl, Nightjar, Roller, Woodchat Shrike, Crested Lark, Lesser Short-toed Lark, Short-toed Lark, Calandra Lark, Wood Warbler, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Dartford Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Savi’s Warbler, Melodious Warbler, Moustached Warbler, Mistle Thrush, Bluethroat, Black Redstart, Redstart, Whinchat, Stonechat, Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Grey Wagtail, Red-throated Pipit, Water Pipit, Linnet, Purple Swamp-hen, Glossy Ibis, Red-legged Partridge, Griffon Vulture, Black Vulture, Egyptian Vulture, Black Vulture, Goshawk, Golden Eagle, Alpine Swift, Iberian Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Wryneck, Raven, Chough, Jay, Crested Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Bearded Reedling, Thekla’s Lark, Woodlark, Skylark, Crag Martin, Western Bonelli’s Warbler, Western Subalpine Warbler, Goldcrest, Firecrest, Short-toed Treecreeper, Wren, Rock Thrush, Blue Rock Thrush, Black Wheatear, Alpine Accentor, Rock Sparrow, Cirl Bunting, Rock Bunting, Ortolan Bunting, Corn Bunting, Pin-tailed Sandgrouse, Little Bustard, Iberian Grey Shrike, Black-shouldered Kite, Montagu's Harrier, Great Spotted Cuckoo, Stone Curlew

Tour Overview:

The Ebro Delta Experience bird watching tour is our mid-length multi-day option and is currently our most popular birding holiday.  During your 4 day visit we will be taking a comprehensive look at the  birds of the Ebro Delta natural park and also embarking on a day trip to the dry lands south of Lleida in search of typical Iberian plains species.

This tour features private airport transfers to and from Barcelona,  Valencia or Reus International Airports and 5 nights accommodation in  our private villa, situated right on the doorstep of the Ebro Delta in a  tranquil countryside location. The villa will be your 'home from home'  for the duration of your bird watching holiday and will comfortably  accommodate parties of up to 6 people. There are also great  opportunities for birding at the villa, the big raptors patrol the area  regularly and species such as Hoopoe, Bee-eater & Golden Oriole are  frequent too around the garden.

The Ebro Delta Experience bird watching tour offers a completely different birding day trip for each of the 4 days of your visit, starting out with a visit to the  southern section of the Ebro Delta. The second day we will be heading  out onto the Ebro river by private boat to see the most unspoiled areas  of the delta and get close up to many varieties of birds of the river  bank. On day 3 we will head to the plains south of Lleida to check out specialities of this arid zone such as Roller, Montagu's Harrier, Lesser Kestrel and Little Bustard. The tour culminates with a day trip of the varied habitats of  the northern section of the delta, completing a comprehensive overview  of the bird-life and environments contained within with remarkable  birding paradise!

Ebro Delta Experience bird watching tour - 5 highlights:

• Vast flocks of Greater Flamingos viewed close up on the saline lagoons of the Ebro Delta
• Wonderful waders, a diverse selection of Europe's wading birds throughout the 4 seasons
• Discovering the Ebro delta by boat with close up views of birds like Little Bittern & Purple Heron
• Experience the steppe lands around Lleida and get great views of Roller close to their breeding sites.
• Unforgettable scenery of the unique Ebro Delta, along with fantastic seafood paellas at rustic local restaurants

Itinerary:

• Day 1 - We will collect you from the airport and transfer you to your accommodation, our private villa close to L'Ampolla. Remainder of the day at leisure.
• Day 2 - Ebro Delta southern section guided bird watching tours, full day with break for lunch
• Day 3 - Ebro river boat tour, full day guided bird watching itinerary with break for lunch
• Day 4 - Lleida steppes day trip, lunchtime to late evening itinerary.
• Day 5 - Ebro Delta northern section full day guided birding itinerary with break for lunch.
• Day 6 - We will return you to the airport in time for your journey home.

Ebro Delta Experience birding holidays, species list: Notable birds we will be aiming to see.

Red Crested Pochard, Little Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Black Kite, Marsh Harrier, Booted Eagle, Osprey, Kestrel, Black-winged Stilt, Common Sandpiper, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Black Tern, Audouin’s Gull, Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, Bee-eater, Hoopoe, Golden Oriole, Penduline Tit, Sand Martin, Cetti’s Warbler, Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Zitting Cisticola, Nightingale, Spotted Flycatcher, Pied Flycatcher, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Serin, Reed Bunting, Shelduck, Gadwall, Garganey, Shoveler, Little Grebe, Great-crested grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Bittern, Greater Flamingo, White Stork, Spoonbill, Short-toed Eagle, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Bonelli’s Eagle, Lesser Kestrel, Kestrel, Merlin, Hobby, Peregrine, Water Rail, Avocet, Oystercatcher, Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Lapwing, Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Turnstone, Sanderling, Temminck’s Stint, Dunlin, Little Stint, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Greenshank, Snipe, Jack Snipe, Collared Pratincole, Little Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Sandwich tern, Common Tern, Roseate Tern, Mediterranean Gull, Slender-billed Gull, Cuckoo, Little Owl, Scops Owl, Nightjar, Roller, Woodchat Shrike, Crested Lark, Lesser Short-toed Lark, Short-toed Lark, Wood Warbler, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Dartford Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Savi’s Warbler, Melodious Warbler, Moustached Warbler, Mistle Thrush, Bluethroat, Black Redstart, Redstart, Whinchat, Stonechat, Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Grey Wagtail, Red-throated Pipit, Water Pipit, Linnet, Purple Swamp-hen, Glossy Ibis, Red-legged Partridge, Griffon Vulture, Black Vulture, Egyptian Vulture, Goshawk, Golden Eagle, Alpine Swift, Iberian Green Woodpecker, Great Spotted Woodpecker, Raven, Chough, Jay, Crested Tit, Coal Tit, Long-tailed Tit, Thekla’s Lark, Woodlark, Skylark, Crag Martin, Western Bonelli’s Warbler, Western Subalpine Warbler, Goldcrest, Firecrest, Short-toed Treecreeper, Wren, Rock Thrush, Blue Rock Thrush, Black Wheatear, Alpine Accentor, Rock Sparrow, Cirl Bunting, Rock Bunting, Ortolan Bunting, Corn Bunting