Description

Our adventure starts in Rhodes, where we’ll take you on a unique journey through one of Greece’s most fascinating islands. You’ll experience the magic of spring here, where rich Mediterranean and Asian influences create an extraordinary blend of flora, fauna, and natural beauty.

Although famous for its beaches and sunshine, Rhodes holds a world of hidden treasures waiting to be discovered. Our exclusive tour, first launched in 2013, has become one of our company’s flagship nature experiences. Designed and led by passionate local naturalists, this adventure offers a truly authentic encounter with the island’s landscapes, wildlife, and culture.

As locals — both Greek nationals and long-term residents — we know the island intimately. Our team has spent years exploring its diverse habitats and cataloguing its fascinating flora and fauna. We have added to scientific knowledge of the island’s orchids, for example, finding & recording 2 new species of Ophrys Samia and Ophrys chiosica.  We have a year round presence on the island,  as well as access to a network of naturalists who share their latest field observations with us, which helps keep our knowledge up to date & extremely accurate. This helps ensure that our tour adapts to seasonal changes and thus maximizes your chances of seeing the best available plants and blooms.

Rhodes boasts over 1,500 recorded plant species, including more than 50 species of orchids. For an island only 80 km long and 30 km wide, that is an impressive number! The island’s gently hilly terrain, dominated by Mount Attavyros at 1,215 meters, provides ideal habitats for orchids to flourish. You’ll encounter a wide variety of Ophrys species, such as Ophrys colossaea, O. saliarisii, O. halia, O. rhodia, O. oreas, O. lucis, O. regis-fernandii, O. candica, O. cretica ssp. beloniae, O. attaviria, and O. reinholdii. Hybrid orchids are also a thrilling possibility — nature often surprises us with unexpected finds!

In other genuses we can hope to find the first flowers of Limadorum abortivum, alongside others which are more certain to be in flower including Anacamptis laxiflora, Neotinea lactea, Neotinea maculata, Orchis provincialis, Orchis anatolica, Orchis italica,  Anacamptis morio, Anacamptis papilionacea, Anacamptis collina, Serapias carica, and more! Depending on the season we may also see Anacamptis sancta in flower, as well as A. fragrans and the hybrid between the two, A. x kallithea.

Our tour is about much more than orchids and celebrates all aspects of the island’s flora. You’ll see several endemic species unique to Rhodes, including the Rhodes Paeony (Paeonia clusii ssp. rhodia), whose sweet scent fills the forests, and the graceful Rhodes Fritillary (Fritillaria rhodia). Beneath tall cypress trees, carpets of Cyclamen (Cyclamen rhodium) add vibrant colour, while the cliffs of Mount Attavyros are home to the rare Star Thistle (Centaurea lactucifolia), found only on Rhodes and the nearby island of Halki. Plus some local Eastern Aegean species such as Large Rhodian Bellflower (Campanula hagielii), Rhodian Wallflower (Erysimum rhodium), and Rhodian Catchfly (Silene salamandra).

Your base for most of the week will be a family-run hotel in a charming traditional village. Each day, we’ll set off on new adventures to explore the island’s most beautiful and biodiverse sites. During our outings, you’ll enjoy fresh picnic lunches, featuring homemade dishes prepared by our founder’s family. Evenings are spent relaxing in welcoming tavernas, sampling local Rhodian cuisine and classic Greek flavours.

To conclude this unforgettable week, we’ll spend our final part of the trip in Rhodes itself, including a private tour of the medieval Old Town, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. In early spring, its cobbled streets and historic architecture set behind high walls & a deep dry moat, offer a peaceful & unique retreat. You’ll have time to explore, soak up the atmosphere, and enjoy a few final floral discoveries before bidding farewell to this enchanting island.

Our odyssey continues in Crete! Witness the majesty and beauty of the island in spring with orchids & other flowers providing carpets of colour, set against backdrops of dramatic scenery and historical sites!

Our home for the first part of the week on Crete is in the heart of Chania, the most beautiful city in Crete and for some in the whole of Greece.

The setting provides a perfect base for what will be a relaxing holiday filled with a feast of flowers for which the island is famous for, along with an interesting range of other wildlife. The Chania prefecture is the greenest part of the island, thanks to all the rainfall provided by the White Mountains (Lefka Ori). These limestone guardians of the landscape dominate the region, and we’ll be ideally located for exploring some of the best sites in the area, without having to venture too far, perfect for those that wish to maximise the time they can enjoy being amidst the nature they’ve come to see.

For the second part of the week we will relocate further south, to a relaxing coastal retreat. From this base we’ll be closer to some other wildlife rich locations and so we can have more time outside and spend less time spent travelling.

Upon our arrival it won’t be long before we’re amongst the rich tapestry of plants which cloth the mountainous scenery, which include between 30-40 species of orchid, various Tulips, Anemones, Fritillaries, Campanulas, Cyclamens and many more! During the week there will be many special and endemic plant species to enjoy, such as the impressive Cretan Arum, the rare and bright red coloured Tulipa doerfleri, the endemic Tulipa cretica & Crocus sieberi, soft pink Tulipa saxatilis, delightful Iris cretensis and what is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful flowers on Crete, the White Peony Paeonia clusii.

Orchids will be one of our main target groups and we’ll enjoy a wealth of species, including endemics such as Orchis prisca & Orchis sitiaca. Other highlights include Ophrys heldreichii, the colourful Rainbow Ophrys Ophrys iricolor, the Cretan Bee orchid Ophrys cretica and several forms of Ophyrs fusca such as the subspecies creberrima along with creticola and cressa.

We’ll also take breaks from looking down at the flora and spend some time observing the varied bird species on the island. These can include Griffon Vulture, Bearded Vulture, Golden Eagle, Peregrine, Buzzard, Cetti`s Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Blue Rock Thrush, Fan-tailed Warbler, Crested Lark and Italian Sparrow. In higher ground and at the gorges and plateaus we may also find Alpine & Red-billed Chough, Woodlark, Cirl Bunting and Black-eared Wheatear. On and close to water we’ll look out for Little Bittern, Little Crake, Purple Heron, Squacco Heron, Night Heron, Egrets and more. There will also butterflies to hold our interest, including the endemic Cretan Festoon Allancastria cretica.

Amongst the magnificent grandeur of the White Mountains, we’ll also zoom in on small treasures such as the Snow or Cretan Crocus Crocus sieberi and mats of the bright blue Anchusa caespitose. The Imbros and Aradena Gorges also provide dramatic landscapes, where we’ll walk in wonder of our surroundings, whilst finding plenty of flowers of interest, such as Paeonia clusii. On the high Omalos plateau we’ll look for the Lammergeiers that inhabit the area and try to see the Cretan Wild Goats too. Here we’ll also be dazzled by the swathes of Tulips, Anemones and Orchids.

It is also possible to do each tour separately, here are links to to the individual pages for Rhodes and Crete.