Spain

What to Expect

Overview

Spain offers fantastic birding and botanizing in spectacular landscapes scattered with historic towns. It also is a country with a rich historical and cultural heritage. In order to see as wide a variety of species as possible, and especially the specialties, during our Spain birding tour we visit different habitats over much of central and southern Spain. En route we also encounter sites of historic and cultural interest. To maximize time in the field there will be early morning starts and pre-breakfast journeys, though some of these will be optional.

Walking

In general the tour is not strenuous: pace will be slow allowing time for us to fully enjoy fauna and flora, and the places we visit, and there will be some gentle hiking occasionally over moderately rough or steep terrain.

Food

Most days we will have a box or picnic lunch in the field or call in at a local restaurant. In the evenings we will eat at the hotel or a nearby restaurant, where we will enjoy a fine meal, review the day’s bird list and discuss the itinerary for the next day.

Accommodation

The hotels in Spain are of very good quality.

Boat rides

We will take a 2 to 2.5 whale-watching tour in the Straits of Gibraltar (weather dependent). The boat has bathrooms onboard.

Climate

The weather should be warm and sunny but can be cool at night and early morning, and rain is possible. Some warm clothing for evening and a light waterproof jacket should be brought as should stout walking shoes or boots. Mosquitoes are present in some areas, therefore bring insect repellant.