Birding Breaks & Tours>
7-Night Holiday Alicante & Valencia
Thanks to the diverse habitats of the Valencian region, we´re delighted to be able to offer a 7-day bird watching break. The itinerary has been carefully designed, focusing on:
Diversity of habitats and species.
Minimal travelling time.
Authentic Spanish accommodation.
The trip can easily be adapted depending on the clients´wishes and specific travel plans and is suitable for flights to and from both Valencia and Alicante airports.
Timing
The best time of year for this trip is either Spring (March to July) or Autumn/Winter (October to February). Depending upon timing, we can expect to see between 140 and 170 species throughout the week.
Accommodation
The above model is based upon 3 nights in an authentic rural guesthouse in the south of the region followed by 3 nights in a traditional hotel in the heart of the historic quarter of the city of Valencia. In all cases, the choice of accommodation and location can be amended to suit to wishes of the client. The evenings will provide time for you to relax with your partner or group (without your guide).
Plan
Likewise, when proposing specific itineraries, we can also consider any particular target species and other related activities. For example, some clients may opt to dedicate a day specifically to bird photography, so we can offer the use of professional photography hides.
As a guide, here is an example of our most popular version:
DAY 1
Arrival & bird watching at the local salt marshes.
We will collect you from the airport, where we can discuss the plan for the week over a relaxing coffee. We would then visit local salt lagoons where the species could include Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Black Winged Stilt, Greater Flamingo, Audouin´s Gull and Slender Billed Gull
DAY 2
Mountains & Forest.
Today, we´ll visit the high mountains and forests of the region. This trip involves very little travelling time and takes in some stunning scenery. We´ll focus on some of the area´s specialist mountain species including Blue Rock Thrush, Black Wheatear, Alpine Accentor, Crested Tit and Griffon Vulture.
DAY 3
Southern Wetlands.
On day 3 we´ll visit one of the region´s premium wetlands. Not only critical habitat, some of the area´s reserves have been very successful in protecting some rare species. We will be aiming to see birds such as Marbled Duck, Red Knobbed Coot, Red Crested Pochard, Purple Swamphen, Black Necked Grebe and Roller.
DAY 4
Steppe & Lagoons.
Today, we´ll head for the high steppe and lagoons of the interior. This unique vast highland habitat holds some extremely special birds including Great Bustard, Little Bustard, Black Bellied Sandgrouse, Stone Curlew, Calandra Lark, Crested Lark and Golden Eagle.
DAY 5
Coastal Wetlands of Valencia.
We´ll spend the day at one of the region´s best coastal wetland reserves. The habitat diversity is superb and includes beach, coastal lagoons, dunes, reed beds, pastureland and scrub. This is a very species-rich area, for shorebirds, wildfowl, passerines and raptors. Species could include Collared Pratincole, Little Tern, Whiskered Tern, White Headed Duck, Penduline Tit, Great Reed Warbler, Bee Eater, Booted Eagle and Marsh Harrier.
DAY 6
Albufera de Valencia & Beaches.
Our final day will be spent exploring the extensive rice paddies, wetlands, forest and beaches of Albufera de Valencia. This Natural Park provides habitat for residents, summer visitors, winter visitors and passage migrants, so there´s always something of interest to see. All of Europe´s egrets can be seen as well as Little Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Purple Heron, Glossy Ibis, Bluethroat plus an array of waders and shorebirds. An exploration of the beach, dunes and sea can reveal species such as Kentish Plover, Yelkouan Shearwater, Mediterranean Shearwater and Great Skua.
DAY 7
Return to airport.
The final day can be adapted, largely depending on the travel arrangements of the client. In all cases, we will provide transport back to either Alicante or Valencia airport.
Egyptian Vulture
Collared Pratincole
Great Bustard
Elegant Tern
Pricing
Depending on group size, indicative pricing is 800€ per person.
This includes 6 nights’ accommodation on bed and breakfast basis, all local transport and professional guiding services throughout the trip. Flights, lunches, dinners, drinks etc are not included. This is based on a minimum group size of 6 people. We can also offer this trip for smaller groups, and as stated the trip can be modified accordingly.
Indicative Price Per Person 800€ (for six people). Enquire for prices for larger groups.