Tour information at a glance

It is a unique mammal tour, where all our main targets are living underground! You will require patience, but you have the chance to see some of Europe’s most localised and hard-to-see mammals! Come and join us for this adventure in 2027!

Tour starting and ending time: It is important to book your flight according to the official starting and ending times of this tour! Our bus and guide will be waiting all participants in the Otopeni Airport at Bucharest. Please make sure you can reach the starting point in time at 14:00 on the tour starting date! If you wish to arrive earlier to Bucharest our office can help you to book accommodation and logistics. However if you arrive early you need to make your way to the airport for the meeting time. In some cases we can pick up clients from the nearby airport hotels (please check with our office). Also very important that the tour only ends at 15:00 on the last day so please do not book flights out of Bucharest earlier than 17:00 on the last day!

Logistics: This is a special tour targetting mole-rats. As it is not a well-established tour and in fact a first of its kind where all four target species is living underground the logistics will be changing. We will also keep options as open as possible and move on to our next target once we have seen one. However no doubt we will be out looking for mammals on several nights as well!

The tour: A 12 days long special mammal watching tour to Romania, focusing on seeing four species of Mole-rats. We will be visiting the coastal Dobrudja area but spending most of our time in Transylvania. On this tour we hope to connect with Lesser Blind Mole-rat – Nannospalax leucodon, Hungarian Blind Mole-rat – Nannospalax hungaricus, Bukovina Blind Mole-rat – Spalax graecus and Mehely’s Blind Mole-rat – Spalax antiquus. Mammal watching is never easy and requires much dedication and also luck, but we will try our best to locate all four species of these very special mammals. Local mammal expert will help us all the way through. We will need to sit by Mole-rat holes for up to 3-4 hours a day to maximize our chances.

Locations to be visited: Lagoon system south of the Danube Delta (2nts), Moldavia region of Romania (3 nts) and Transylvania (6 nts). We will have a set tour itinerary but will play by ear according to weather and our success with the prime targets!

Group Size: Maximum group size of 10 participants plus several Sakertour’s leader(s).

Accommodation: Comfortable rural accommodation with perfect location for our mammal searching sessions (11 nts). All rooms are en suite.

Meals: All included in the price. Substantial breakfast and dinner at the hotels. We will only have sandwiches and snacks for lunch as the tour logistics best work this way.

Walking: There will only be limited walking on the tour. Sturdy waterproof walking shoes advised as usual. In early April the weather can be still cold. Pack waterproof, windproof and warm gear as well!

Travel: Bucharest to Bucharest. Ground Transport is depending on the number of participants. We plan to use 2 mini vans.

Detailed Itinerary

Although we have a set itinerary, this could change according to weather and success with our targets! We may stay shorter or longer at some of the locations.

Day 1. The journey time from Bucharest airport to our hotel near Constanta is around three hours. If time allows we will be looking for mole-rat mounds. Also a night-excursion is possible to look for mammals. Amongst the goodies Golden Jackal and Steppe Polecat is possible. Night near Constanta.

Day 2. All day looking for Lesser Blind Mole-rat – Nannospalax leucodon. Night excursion is possible after dinner. Night near Constanta.

Day 3. After a morning mammaling session we will travel to North-East Romania. Night in Iasi (Jászvásár).

Days 4-5. We will have two full days to look for the Bukovina Blind Mole-rat. Night in Iasi (Jászvásár).

Day 6. This is a travel day! Today we will our way to the Bihar Mountains (Island Mountain) in Central Transylvania. This is a scenic drive and we will stop in Bicaz Gorge. We will be based in a picturesque valley. Night in Rimetea (Torockó).

Days 7-8. We will have two full days to look for the endemic Mehely’s Blind Mole-rat. Nights in Rimetea (Torockó).

Day 9-10. We will have two full days to look for the Hungarian Blind Mole-rat. Nights in Rimetea (Torockó).

Day 11. As soon as we can we will leave for Hargita where we will have an optional bear watching in the late afternoon followed by our farewell dinner.

Day 12. We will make our way back to Bucharest through the Carpathians where the tour ends.