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Dates: 19th – 26th June 2025 Confirmed departure
Price: £1,495 3 places
Single Room Supplement: £150
Deposit: £150 per person
Price Includes: All meals, accommodation with private facilities, ground transport, services of guides, holiday report, donation to Butterfly Conservation
Not Included: Flights, travel insurance, drinks & any other personal items
Conservation Donation: Butterfly Conservation Europe
Leader: Terry Goble + second guide for larger group
Group Size: Minimum of 4 and a maximum of 12 guests plus 1-2 leaders
Grade: Gentle pace in a variety of terrains. Ideally suited to photography
Holiday Highlights
- 80-100+ butterfly species in a week are possible
- Visit two butterfly & flower rich mountains in southern Greece – Mt. Chelmos in the Peloponnese & Mt. Parnassos on the mainland
- Special target species include – Chelmos Blue, Zephyr Blue, Odd-spot Blue, Greek Clouded Yellow, Two-tailed Pasha, Grass Jewel, Clouded Apollo, Blue Argus & many more!
- Explore the centre of the classical Greek world at Delphi and visit the Temple of Apollo
- Optional cog Railway through Vouraikos Canyon – most beautiful train trip in the Balkans
- Contribute to Butterfly Conservation Europe
Explore the ancient world and wander upon some of the most celebrated butterfly mountains in southern Greece!
We will delight in showing you the best the region has to offer for summer flora and fauna, focusing largely on butterflies and flowers but also observing birds, reptiles, other invertebrates and any other wildlife of interest that may be discovered. Over fifty species of butterfly can be seen on a good a day on either mountain and we expect to enjoy a nice range of species with a total of somewhere between 80 – 100, depending on the season.
The habitats we’ll encounter during the week are wide ranging; meadow, alpine pasture & meadow, pine forest, Mediterranean scrub, mountain streams & rivers, deep gorges, archaeological sites and even spots in the town and surrounding villages, as numerous butterfly species can also be found there. As mentioned, our wildlife spotting won’t be restricted to butterflies, although that is our main focus. We’ll also be on the lookout for flowers of which there are some lovely endemic species; birds such as Alpine Chough, Crag Martin & Rock Nuthatch among others; dragonflies including Beautiful Demoiselle, Small Pincertail & Greek Goldenring and reptiles such as the endemic Peloponnese Wall Lizard or Marginated Tortoise.
Upon arrival in Athens we’ll head north of the Gulf of Corinth to Delphi village, nestled in the foothills of Mount Parnassos, a place legendary amongst lepidopterists for its treasure trove of butterflies. Delphi, at approx. 600m above sea level makes a convenient base from which to explore the mountain for the first two days of our holiday.
We’ll venture out at various altitudes of Mount Parnassos (which at its highest peak is approx. 2,250m) looking for both butterflies and numerous and interesting flower species. Some of the butterflies we will be looking out for include Southern Comma, Large Tortoiseshell, Grecian Copper, Blue Argus, Chapman’s Blue, Osiris Blue, Balkan Marbled White, Zephyr Blue and the Parnassos subspecies of Mazarine Blue. In alpine meadows of higher altitudes, we may find Greek Clouded Yellow, Clouded Apollo and Purple-shot Copper, amongst others. In accompaniment may be some interesting birds such as Red-backed Shrike and Blue Rock Thrush.
With the historic Delphi so close we’ll make a morning visit to wander amongst this magnificent archaeological site of international importance. Butterflies will still be on the menu and we may also enjoy some other interesting wildlife, such as reptiles amongst the ruins and birds such as Rock Nuthatch and Crag Martins. Later we’ll descend from the slopes and go on a quest to find Europe’s smallest butterfly – the Grass Jewel. We’ll need to fine tune our butterfly senses to find this tiny gem! But with our expert botanist on hand we should be at an advantage, by first seeking out Heliotrope, its local larval food plant.
For the second part of the week we will cross the Gulf of Corinth via the spectacular Rio Antirrio bridge and on into the Peloponnese region. We will stay at a comfortable and charming hotel in Kalavryta, on the north-west slopes of Mount Chelmos (pronounced Helmos), which is the Aroanian mountain range in the Peloponnese region of Greece. We’ll be spending several days exploring the mountain and some other interesting sites nearby.
During our stay we can expect to see a whole host of butterfly species on Chelmos; it is possible to see as many species in one day as there are in the whole of the UK! But that doesn’t mean rushing around or ticking a list. We want to give you every opportunity to indulge your passion for wildlife, by observing, photographing or sketching, and simply by being there to just take in the wonders before your eyes and ears! Not only is there a great diversity of species of butterfly to encounter, at times we will be able to watch large numbers of individual species. Who wouldn’t want to pause and take in a show of dozens of Balkan Marbled White, Clouded Yellow or Black-veined White!?
Whilst we’re on Chelmos we will of course be keen to seek out the famous Chelmos Blue. There are many other delights though; Southern White Admiral, Two-tailed Pasha, Clouded Apollo, Cleopatra, Lattice Brown, Large Wall Brown, Camberwell Beauty, Powdered Brimstone, Southern Swallowtail, Scarce Swallowtail, Queen of Spain Fritillary, Spotted Fritillary, Cardinal, Great Banded Grayling, Mountain Small White, Escher’s Blue, Anomalous Blue, Amanda’s Blue, Ilex Hairstreak, Greek Clouded Yellow, Olive Skipper, Oriental Marbled Skipper, Blue Argus, Osiris Blue, Odd-spot Blue, Pontic Blue, Greek Mazarine Blue, Adonis Blue, Ripart’s Anomalous Blue (pelopi, often considered a distinct species), Meleager’s Blue, Great Sooty Satyr and many more!
Along the way we’ll be able to sample other local treasures too, like freshly picked cherries from local orchards, wild strawberries from hidden forest glades and the delicious honey that the many local beekeepers produce; a taste of mountain flowers and the Mediterranean sun in a jar!
The warm Greek climate and hospitality, a wealth of wildlife, breathtaking natural scenery, a hint of history and a bonanza of butterflies make for a truly memorable wildlife holiday!
