Description

Surprisingly overlooked by many UK wildlife enthusiasts, Montenegro offers some of the most pristine and biodiverse habitats in Europe. We are thrilled to introduce you to this hidden gem and can’t wait to help you discover its rich natural treasures! Our main focus will be on the butterflies and birds, but like all our tours we won’t overlook anything else of interest and beauty!

It is one of the hidden pearls of the Adriatic, the smallest state of former Yugoslavia which gained its independence in 2006. In the words of the Lonely Planet guide to Eastern Europe: “Imagine a place with sapphire beaches as spectacular as Croatia’s, rugged peaks as dramatic as Switzerland’s, canyons nearly as deep as Colorado’s, palazzo as elegant as Venice’s and towns as old as Greece’s and then wrap it up in a Mediterranean climate and squish it into an area 2/3 the size of Wales and you start to get a picture of Montenegro”.

Montenegro is a land of spectacular contrasts, where grand, pristine peaks rise sharply above the Adriatic Sea. Home to just 600,000 people, its vast, untouched wilderness remains one of Europe’s best-kept secrets. This unique blend of dramatic geography and preserved habitats creates an idyllic, sun-drenched haven – perfect for a rewarding exploration for butterflies and lots of other wildlife.

Montenegro has an incredibly diverse geography and climate (including the wettest location of Europe with 4,600 mm rainfall in a year) which accommodates lush vegetation (2,880 species with 22 endemics) and a very diverse and largely unknown butterfly fauna.  Very little butterfly research has been undertaken in Montenegro, which makes our tour not only fun, but also important from a scientific and conservation viewpoint.  The fact that Montenegro declared itself an “ecological state” in 1991 should be emphasized because it made the protection of natural resources one of the priorities of the state.

The plan for our tour is to split most of our time between two national parks. Durmitor National Park is huge covering 39,000 ha and includes Tara Canyon which is the deepest in Europe (2^nd largest Canyon after Grand Canyon/USA).  The whole area is a world heritage site with 48 mountain peaks over 2000m and a rich flora and fauna.  It boasts of one of the greatest variety of butterflies in all of Europe with over 140 species so far recorded.

We shall spend several days here exploring some of the alpine meadows and limestone valleys before moving on midweek to Lake Skadar National Park in the east. The largest lake on the Balkan Peninsula and which is renowned for its birdlife with 264 species recorded, including one of the largest concentrations of Dalmatian Pelicans in all of Europe.

The surrounding hills and forests bordering Albania are teeming with wildlife, all protected within a national park established in 1983. We will base ourselves at a comfortable hotel in the Virpazar area at the head of the lake, spending a few unforgettable days exploring the region before returning here at the end of the tour for our homeward journey.

We will also enjoy some time on the lake by boat, experiencing beautiful places such as the gorgeous Rijeka Crnejovica Gorge, before driving up to Mount Lovćen, and going to see Kotor Bay, the largest fjord of Southern Europe with breathtaking scenery.

If you love breathtaking Balkan scenery, lush mountain meadows, and capturing stunning photography of diverse wildlife, this tour is for you. Montenegro is a place to slow down and savour the moment, renowned for its rich culinary heritage, excellent wines, local cheeses, and prosciutto. We invite all true nature connoisseurs to join us!