Travel

Best flights are with Wizz Air between London Luton and Cluj. Therefore, the tour meeting & transfer times will match them.

5th June

08:15 LTN – 13:10 CLJ

12th June

19:55 CLJ – 21:05 LTN

Day 1 – Arrival in Cluj & Turda Gorge → Rimetea

Arrive at Cluj Airport and transfer by minibus to Rimetea.

If time permits, we will stop at Turda Gorge, the second-largest gorge in Romania. Carved into Jurassic limestone, the canyon stretches nearly 3 km, with sheer walls rising up to 300 m. Covering 324 ha, it is a true botanical mecca, hosting over 1,000 plant species—around one third of Romania’s entire flora—including six endemics.

This is one of the most spectacular karst landscapes in the country and supports a small but important population of Danube Clouded Yellow (DCY), alongside Lesser Clouded Yellow and Eastern Pale Clouded Yellow. We will also search for Scarce Fritillary.

A short drive brings us to Rimetea village, nestled in the eastern foothills of the Apuseni Mountains beneath the striking Szekler Rock. The steep, south-facing slopes create a unique microclimate where typically high-mountain species occur at unusually low altitudes.

We end the day enjoying generous and delicious traditional local cuisine.

Overnight: Rimetea

Days 2–3 – Apuseni Mountains & Steppe Landscapes

These two days are dedicated to exploring the surroundings of Rimetea and the northern and eastern Apuseni Mountains, including Colțești Fortress Hill, Cheile Runcului, Vălișoara, and several northern Apuseni sites. We will also visit extensive steppe habitats east of Aiud, home to rare species such as Orsini’s Viper and the endemic Mehely’s Blind Mole Rat.

Our prime target is the Danube Clouded Yellow, once widespread but now in dramatic decline. It is extinct in Slovenia and Hungary, likely gone from Slovakia and Poland, and Transylvania may represent its last major stronghold, with one of the two remaining larger colonies located in our study area.

The species thrives in vast mesophilous to meso-xerophilous meadows with shrubs and scattered trees—habitats reminiscent of sylvicol steppe. Optimal sites are moderately grazed, rich in Cytisus food plants, and form a mosaic of open slopes and varying shrub density.

We will also dedicate time to Lesser Clouded Yellow and Eastern Pale Clouded Yellow, while Clouded, Pale Clouded, and Berger’s Clouded Yellow are generally common.

This is among the best butterfly regions in Transylvania, with species such as Spinose Skipper, Zephyr Blue, Fenton’s Wood White, Clouded Apollo, and Poplar Admiral. Additional targets include Woodland Brown, Marsh Fritillary, Lesser Marbled Fritillary, Osiris Blue, all Short-tailed Blues, a full array of Coppers, Hairstreaks, Fritillaries, and Blues, plus Yellow-legged Tortoiseshell, Yellow-banded Skipper, and Marbled Skipper.
In previous years, up to 84 species in a single day have been recorded here.

Birding opportunities include Grey Partridge, Rock Thrush, Alpine Swift, Red-rumped Swallow, Crag Martin, Rock and Ortolan Bunting, Sombre Tit, and the charming Scops Owl. We will also see the impressive 60-year-old Golden Eagle nest, with birds often soaring overhead.

Overnights: Rimetea

Day 4 – Rimetea → Baile Herculane

A longer drive today takes us south to the legendary but now remote Baile Herculane, set along the Danube. En route, we will break the journey with stops at scenic habitats and historic landmarks, including the imposing Deva Fortress.

Overnight: Baile Herculane

Days 5–7 – Baile Herculane & Iron Gates National Park

Baile Herculane—known historically as Herkulesfürdő—was the undisputed Mecca of Victorian and Edwardian entomology. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, it attracted collectors and naturalists from across Europe, many arriving by boat along the Danube from Vienna and Budapest.

Renowned entomologists such as Margaret Fountaine, Sheldon, Rose, Gurney, Nicholson, Cooke, Lang, and Jones vividly documented the area in The Entomologist. Situated at the eastern frontier of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the town was known as the “Porta Orientalis” – the Gate to the East, offering access to Balkan fauna otherwise unreachable.

Today, the town remains a living time capsule, dramatically set in the Cerna River Valley beneath the Domogled Mountains. Historic collecting sites include the White Cross trail, once famed for Lesser Lattice Brown (now extinct) and Lattice Brown.

Over three full days, we will explore:

• Domogled Mountains

• Cerna Valley

• Orșova region

• Remote Danube villages within Iron Gates National Park, Romania’s second-largest national park

The area hosts over 150 butterfly species in exceptionally well-preserved habitats. Target species include Iolas Blue, Amanda’s Blue, Freyer’s Purple Emperor, Lesser Purple Emperor, Cardinal, Southern White Admiral, Twin-spot Fritillary, Balkan Green-veined White, Tufted Marbled Skipper, Russian Heath, and Lattice Brown.
Country rarities such as Southern Marbled White, Great Sooty Satyr, False Comma, and Yellow-legged Tortoiseshell also occur here.

We will also visit Armeniș village, where a major European Bison rewilding project is underway. After their extinction in the late 18th century, bison were bred in captivity from Polish stock. Thanks to WWF and Rewilding Europe, around 190 free-roaming bison now live in the nearby Țarcu Mountains.

Birdlife is equally rich, with species such as Cirl Bunting, Levant Sparrowhawk, Spanish Sparrow, Sombre Tit, Bee-eaters, and Hoopoes.

Overnights: Baile Herculane

Day 8 – Return to Cluj

Depart Baile Herculane and transfer to Cluj Airport for departure flights. Depending on timing, we may make one or two final butterfly stops en route.

New tour – reviews to follow

to follow later