HUNGARY & SLOVAKIA - AUTUMN TOUR

The tour begins with a flight to Budapest, where our private coach/mini-bus with a guide will meet us for transfer over the border to Slovakia, where we will stay in the Volovské hills. We will be accommodated for 3 nights in an excellent hotel hidden in the deep forests of the Volovské Hills. Ural Owl will have nested close to the hotel, but may be tricky to locate at this time of the year.

The Volovské Hills are huge and very lowly populated mountains, covered by beech and coniferous forest, situated west of the town of Košice. This area, with magnificent views, is full of forgotten mediaeval iron mines, which are now a paradise for bats. We hope to see some of the resident birds here, which will include Pygmy Owl, Tengmalm´s and Ural Owls, Three-toed, White-backed and Black Woodpeckers and Imperial Eagle, Our target bird will however be Hazel Hen. We will explore the deep forest at the base of the mountains, where Nutcracker is also likely to be seen.

Just 30 kilometres from the Volovské Hills (and very easy to reach from our hotel) is another excellent bird area, The Slovak Karst National Park. The Slovak Karst, a plateau formed by limestone and dolomites, is famous for its hundreds of caves and rich alpine and thermophilic flora. Our target birds in these mountains will be Hazel Hen, Hawfinch, Eagle Owl, Imperial Eagle, Dipper, Black, Grey-headed, White-backed and Middle Spotted Woodpeckers. Our local guide is also a famous bat expert, and he will take us to a wintering colony in an old mine.

This morning we will enjoy birdwatching in the Latorica River valley and surrounding areas, the target bird being Saker Falcon, and before transfering to the Hortobagy National Park there will be an opportunity to enjoy a famous Tokai Wine tasting session.

In the afternoon we will transfer to Balmazujvaros in Hungary. We will use this small town as a base to explore a different part of the Hortobagy reserve each day.

The Hortobágy is one of Europe's best birding areas. It contains a fascinating diversity of habitats and offers some of the finest and yet most undisturbed birding in Europe today. In autumn most of the summer visitors are gone, but in their place come huge numbers of geese and Common Cranes on their way to winter in the Mediterranean and N. Africa. The Hortobágy turns into one of the great migration staging posts of Europe. We will check the flocks of Greater White-fronted, Bean and Greylag Geese for some early arriving Red Breasted and Lesser White-fronted Geese (there are usually a few of each species around at this time). Raptors such as Rough-legged Buzzards, Hen Harriers, Long-legged Buzzards, the magnificent Saker, and the huge White-tailed Eagle can be seen anywhere.

During our stay the passage of Common Cranes will be at a peak with up to 75,000 birds present. Other targets are Little Owl, Great Grey Shrike, Lapland Buntings, Crested Lark. On the muddy shores of empty fishponds we will search for Eurasian Curlews, Dunlins, Ruffs, Black-tailed Godwits and Spotted Redshanks.

This will be the final day in Hortobágy and we will explore several new places, especially searching for Great Bustard. Our targets will also include migrating waders and other water birds such as Great Bittern, Eurasian Wigeon, Common Snipe, Dotterel, Gadwall, Grey Plover, Northern Pintail, Pygmy Cormorants, Water Rail, Common Teal, Northern Lapwing, Eurasian Spoonbill, Common Kingfisher, Bearded Reedlings, Common Greenshank, Eurasian Penduline Tits etc.. Late afternoon is the best time to witness the fascinating flocks, comprising thousands of Common Cranes, returning to roost.

Today we will transfer to Budapest airport for our homeward flight.