Dates & Prices |
BOOK NOW |
Dates: 15th – 22nd May 2024
Price: £1,495 Places available
Single Room Supplement: £150
Deposit: £150 per person
Price Includes: Accommodation, all meals, ground transport, services of guides
Not Included: International & internal flights, travel insurance, drinks & any other personal items
Conservation Donation: 10% of profits donated to Butterfly Conservation
Leader(s): Experienced English speaking local guide + second GW guide for larger groups
Group Size: Minimum of 4 and a maximum of 8 guests plus 1-2 leaders
Holiday Highlights
- An exciting new butterfly tour to look for some special local species, plus many more!
- Two centre tour – one by the coast and another close to historic Ronda in the mountains
- Birds, flora, and other wildlife will also be enjoyed throughout the tour
- Led by an experienced & friendly English speaking local guide (second guide for larger groups)
- Contribute to butterfly conservation with a donation made from every place sold
Explore Andalusia in Spring, for some special endemic & local butterflies and other wildlife!
We’re very happy to be able to invite you to join us on this relaxing spring tour to Andalusia in Southern Spain, to look for some special local butterfly species and plenty of other wildlife during our visits to a wide range of habitats and locations in the area. This two-base tour combines a selection of magnificent butterfly spots in spring in Southern Spain. This time of year sees South Spain at its most flowery and with 50+ species of butterfly on the wing in the area. We’ll spend the first 3 nights near the coast, east of Málaga, and then the remaining 4 nights further inland near the historic town of Ronda. It is mainly known for its cliffside location and the deep canyon which carries the Guadalevín River and splits the town in two. There is a lot more to discover in Ronda, one of the oldest towns in Spain, and sitting within the Sierra de las Nieves Natural Park. We should find time to explore a little and learn more about the area, and fortunately our guide is not only a local resident but is also a qualified cultural guide too. During the week, we’ll be looking for both locally common butterfly species such as the Spanish Festoon, but also highly localised ones, such as Common Tiger Blue and Desert Orange Tip. May is the month in Andalusia when specimens of both earlier and later flying species can be found with luck and local knowledge. We aim to draw on this with the help of our excellent local guide. We will also take the time to enjoy the flowers, birds, and other wildlife of interest during our daily excursions. Book your places soon on what we expect to be a very popular tour! 
Day 1: Butterflying the Granada region
We will meet in Málaga airport and head East. On the way to our hotel on the coast, we will start our butterfly quest at the Sierra de Tejeda, Almijara y Alhama Natural Park. This protected area is always worth a visit and usually produces nice sightings.
Day 2: Almería’s coast
We’ll be at a couple of spots along Almería’s coast on the look out for highly localised species that only occur here within their European range. Two are the main targets today: Common Tiger Blue and Desert Orange Tip. Later on, a foray into a canyon may produce other desirable species, particularly African Grass Blue. Despite being a bit early in the calendar for Two-tailed Pasha, we’ll visit a location they’ve recently colonised and see if any are present.
Day 3: Sierra Nevada
Today we will visit a variety of spots at the lowest foothills of Sierra Nevada’s mountains. Although it will likely be too early to target the endemics of these mountains, we should find an interesting array of species at these lower altitudes.
Day 4: The Antequera region
We’ll pack our belongings and head northwest after breakfast. This is a transfer journey that will include a couple of relaxed butterfly stops. Our first butterfly quest of the day will take us to a high limestone valley near Antequera, known as the Sierra de Camarolos. This is one of the best butterfly hotspots in the Málaga province and should produce a nice array of species, including several Fritillaries and Blues.
Moving on we will make a second stop at a ravine in the Guadalteba region to look for Spanish Gatekeeper and the very scarce Aetherie Fritillary.
Day 5: Ronda area
Today we will visit a selection of nearby butterfly spots that Alvaro has been tracking over the years. We’ll try to get some species we may be still missing, but it will be a more relaxed journey with free time in the late afternoon for those who want to explore the charming town of Ronda.
Day 6: Grazalema mountains
Today we’ll explore the Sierra de Grazalema Natural Park, one of the greenest corners of Southern Spain. This protected area is a known biodiversity hotspot within Western Europe. Among the butterflies we’ll be looking for here are Aetherie and Spanish Fritillary, two very localised species. Another species to look out for today will be Lorquin’s Blue. We will also pass by some picturesque “White Villages” and enjoy stunning scenery throughout the day.
Day 7: Sierra de las Nieves
South of Ronda we can find Spain’s most recently declared National Park, the Sierra de las Nieves National Park. Here we hope to find an array of orchids and butterflies. We will have the chance to contribute with our observations here to the European Butterfly Monitoring Scheme too, as Álvaro created a transect here back in 2021. The statistics he has gathered since then indicate that we we should be able to find Black-veined White, Small Heath and Marsh Fritillary. We will also drive to a more remote area of the Park to look for False Baton Blue.
Day 8: Departure
After a relaxed breakfast we’ll head back to Málaga for departure. A last brief stop for butterflies on the way would be possible if flight times allow for that, with a good chance of adding Monarchs to our species list.
New holiday so testimonials will follow later
New holiday so reports will follow later
