What is Custom tour?
Custom tours include all kinds of private birdwatching tours of singles, couples or small groups of friends who plan to visit birding destinations on their own. In contrast to scheduled birdwatching tours of tour operators with set dates and itineraries, our custom tours are tailor-made and designed with or without the help of local ground operators. There is a wide range of tailor-made customized tours from fully local expert-escorted to almost entirely independent, self-guided tours.
Why choose a Custom tour?
Many birdwatchers’ dream is to join one of the fully organized tours with set dates and itinerary. Book our Partner Tours offered by Worldwide Tour Operators to meet your requirements. However, there is an increasing number of motivations for private custom tours:
- to save money
- to enjoy nature during intimate, self-guided birding tours
- to explore easy destinations with your friends
- to book local expert guides only for rare and hard-to-find birds
- to find target bird specialities at a limited number of destinations
Design Your tour
Our destinations parameters help you to list your target birds, select among birding destinations and plan the season and duration of your tour to see your target birds with substantial savings. We offer and book standard and budget accommodation as well and offer transport services when required. Save money and book guiding for a minimum number of days to find the rare and hard-to-find Eastern European bird specialities.
List your target birds
Examine the lists of bird specialities or the complete bird checklists at each of the destinations to list your target birds.
Select destination
Select from destinations offered by us according to your target birds or wish-list.
Select birding season
Examine the best watching season for your target birds at our destinations.
Minimal number of guided days
The cost of our local guide is 175 euro per day including permits and entrance fees of up to 4 clients; for over 4 clients there is an extra 20 euro per each extra person per day. If you have more time available for self-guiding you need to book less guided days, and our guides will also ready to help you plan your self-guiding days. However, there may be certain bird specialities that are difficult to find on your own, then it is more economical to book one of our guides. The suggested number of days to book Sakertour guides to see all of Eastern European bird specialities (in brackets are the numbers of self-guided days): 2 full days (+3) for Hortobágy National Park, 1 full day (+1) for Zemplén Forest Reserve, 1 full day (+0) for Rejdova Pine Forest and 2 full days (+2) for Transylvania. In case you have less target birds you may need less guided days.
Select accommodation
- Nature Lodge accommodation (available only in the Hortobágy and Hargita in Transylvania at the moment) with en suite facilities and breakfast 125 euro/room for a double/twin room and 90 euro/room for a single room. Dinner is 20 euro/person.
- Standard accommodation at any birding location with breakfast 90 euro/room for a double/twin room and 70 euro/room for a single room.
Select transportation
- SAKERTOURS offers airport transfers both in Hungary (from Budapest) and in Romania (Bucharest) to the Nature Lodges upon request for 150 euro one way including petrol and road tolls if required, which is economical if you are minimum two or three. Above three clients we would use a mini van in which case airport transfers are 280 euro one way.
- We can also organize daily transport if we have any of our cars available. We have normal cars, 4×4 cars as well as mini vans. Normally cars and 4×4 cars we supply to your tour with our guide as drivers. In such case the price is 120 euro/day including petrol. Our mini van is also available with our guide as driver for 240 euro/day including petrol.
Recommended tour combinations
The cost of these tour combinations can be calculated with the guide, accommodation and transportation expenses given above.
- Visit our destinations to see bird specialities!
- List your target birds by destinations and select among the suggested tour combinations accordingly!
- Book our guides, choose from accommodations and transport alternatives!
- Email us if you need our help!
SPRING: Hortobágy-Zemplén Tour (Hungary)
Our most preferred tour, comfortable, cheap and easy with high bird diversity You will see all the Eastern European birds except birds of pine forests and limestone gorges.
Suggested duration: 6-8 days
SPRING: Hortobágy-Zemplén-Ore Mountains Tour (Hungary-Slovakia)
This is a comfortable and easy tour with high bird diversity. You will see all the Eastern European bird specialities including a good number of pine forest birds.
Suggested duration: 8-10 days
SPRING: Hortobágy-Zemplén-Transylvania Tour (Hungary-Slovakia-Transylvania)
Simply, this is the most diverse Eastern European tour. You will see all the Eastern European bird specialities. In this tour you can combine birdwatching with Brown Bear watching.
Suggested duration: 11-13 days
SPRING: Danube Delta and Dobrudja (Romania)
This is a comfortable and easy tour with high bird diversity. You will see a wide range of birds and fantastic migration.
Suggested duration: 7-8 days
JUNE: Transylvania (Romania)
An amazing tour to see high altitude alpine species, brown bears and butterflies.
Suggested duration: 8-9 days
AUGUST: Hortobágy – Zemplén Tour (Hungary)
Raptor and migratory shorebird tour
Suggested duration: 7-8 days
AUGUST: Danube Delta and Dobrudja (Romania)
The Black Sea cost migration route! Amazing for raptor and migratory shorebirds.
Suggested duration: 7-8 days
SEPTEMBER: Hortobágy-Zemplén-Transylvania Tour (Hungary-Romania)
Similarly diverse to the Spring tour but the focus is on the autumn migration. You will see all the Eastern European bird specialities with Brown Bear watching
Suggested duration: 11 days
NOVEMBER: Hortobágy tour
Relaxed, comfortable and spectacular tour with migration of Common Cranes. This is the only tour to see Red-breasted Goose and Lesser White-fronted Goose together!
Suggested duration: 5-7 days