Trip Reports

Last week, Yanina and I were privileged to provide a day of bird watching for Dominic Mitchell, founder and managing editor of Birdwatch Magazine and BirdGuides.  He was in Valencia on a short break and wanted to include a day of birding.  Having spoken about his target species, we decided upon a day on the steppe with a brief diversion at the end of the day to a coastal lagoon close to Albufera where we would look for Audouin´s Gull. We made the journey from central Valencia into the uplands of the interior where we made a brief stop at…

I recently had the pleasure to provide a 2 day guided birding break from Valencia for a couple of returning clients from England. It was fantastic to welcome Saff and Andy back to Valencia and spend these days together with them.  They first came last autumn when they were guided by Dave to the wetlands of Albufera de Valencia. They became  good friends and decided to meet for a coffee the day before the trips. They were keen to see different species and habitats this time, so we decided to visit the steppe and the mountains to provide them with…

Last week, Yanina and I provided a 3 day birding holiday for returning clients and friends from the UK.  Rab and Jan have been on numerous trips with us over the past years and this time they were accompanied by their friend Pete from my home town of Sheffield. Our main objective was to provide as much diversity as possible in the three days that we had together.  So on day 1, I collected them from their holiday home in Javia and we drove south to visit the salt pans of Alicante.  Here we were focussing on gulls, and soon…

I recently provided a 2 day birding break in Valencia for a couple of returning clients from my home town of Sheffield.  It was fantastic to welcome Jonathan and Caroline back to Valencia and to spend these days together with them.  They first came last autumn when they visited the wetlands of Albufera de Valencia and the mountains with us.  They were keen to see Albufera again, but in winter and also wanted to visit the steppe, in particular to see Great Bustards.  This time they were visiting with friends and were combining a cultural city break with a couple of…

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure to design a special trip for a couple from Belgium. Both are enthusiastic birders and Anne also is a photographer, who wanted a day of birding and field photography. Albufera de Valencia was the best choice to combine birding with bird photography. At this time of the year most of the rice paddies are being ploughed which provides the perfect scenery with plenty of Glossy Ibis, Egrets, Herons, Gulls and Waders feeding in the fields. After I collected them from a meeting point in Valencia City, we made a short journey to…

I was recently delighted to provide a bird watching trip for two clients from Ireland. Eanna & John are experienced birders who were visiting Valencia and wanted a day out of the city to discover the birdlife of the mediterranean. After I collected them from their hotel in the city centre, we made the short journey to Albufera Natural Park where we stopped in the main pier of the Albufera lake to enjoy nice views of Sandwich Terns and Marsh Harriers. They were happy to see Sandwich Terns in their winter plumage. Our next stop was in the main reserve…