Tour information
TOP TARGETS:
1) False Comma – Nymphalis vaualbum
2) Poplar Admiral – Limentis populi
3) Balkan Copper – Lycaena candens
4) Violet Copper – Lycaena helle
5) Bog Fritillary – Proclossiana eunomia
6) Freyer’s Fritillary – Melitaea arduinna
7) Eastern Large Heath – Coenonympha rhodopensis
8) Russian Heath – Coenonympha leander
9) Bulgarian Ringlet – Erebia orientalis
10) Yellow-banded Skipper – Pyrgus sidae
Tour starting and ending time: It is important to book your flight according to the official starting and ending times of the tour! Our bus and guide will be waiting all participants in the Nikola Tesla airport of Belgrade. Please make sure you can reach the starting point in time at 13:00 on the tour starting date! If you wish to arrive earlier to Belgrade 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 13:00 on the last day so please do not book flights out of Belgrade earlier than 15:30 on the last day!
The tour: This 7 day tour was designed to visit some prime butterfly areas in eastern Serbia. Our tour’s timing coincide with the prime time for the rare False Comma and we will be searching for this beauty. This amazing butterfly is very rare in Europe and the best place to look for them is in the Balkan Mountains of Serbia and Bulgaria. It cannot be guaranteed that we can find one but will try our best!
Locations to be visited: Babin Zub (5 nts) and Jagodina (1 nt).
Group Size: The tour is guaranteed departure from 3 participants upwards with a maximum group size of 6 participants plus Sakertours leader.
Accommodation: Comfortable local accommodation / hotels. All rooms en suite.
Meals: All included in the price. Breakfast and dinner are mostly taken at the hotels. Lunches will either be on the field or some local restaurants.
Walking: Mostly easy walks throughout the tour – our walks are typically shorter, mostly along forest trails with some slopes but all taken at a gentle pace. There could be one or two moderate hikes (optional). Sturdy waterproof walking shoes advised.
Travel: Belgrade to Belgrade. Ground transport is depending on the number of participants. Car up to three persons and coach/minibus for four person and above.
Expected butterfly list: 80 – 100 species
Price and Date
| Tour date: | June 11 ‒ June 17, 2025 |
Guaranteed departure | |
| Price from: | 1550 €/person |
| Deposit: | 400 €/person |
| Single room suplement: | 180 €/person |
| Availability: | Places available |
|
BookingGuaranteed departure
|
|
Booking deposit: As soon as you fill out a booking form we will send you a deposit invoice and information of the final payment.
Group size:
The minimum group size is 3 person
The maximum group size is 7 person
Cost includes:
- Belgrade-to-Belgrade all-inclusive
- All transportation throughout the tour
- All meals
- All accommodation
- All entrance fees
- Guides
Cost excludes:
- International flight to Belgrade
- Personal Travel Insurance
- Alcoholic drinks
- Services of personal nature (telephone calls, laundry etc.)
- Tips to guides
Detailed Itinerary
Day 1. After arrival in Belgrade we will need about five hours to reach our first hotel at Babin Zub in the Balkan Mountains. If the flights and the traffic allows we do some butterfly watching on the way where we could see Glanville and Twin-spot Fritillaries, Large and Purple-shot Copper and Amanda’s Blue. We will have six nights in a comfortable Spa Hotel in Babin Zub.
Day 2-5. We will have 5 full days to explore this fantastic butterfly area! We will spend considerable time the higher parts of the Babin Zub area but will also have several day-excursions to other nearby desitnations with various targets. False Comma has been recorded from mid June to early July in recent years. Hard to tell when is the best time for it as it changes yearly. It is highly weather dependent and flying time can really stertch out from the ‘very best period’ to both directions. All we can do is hope and keep looking! Our tour will dedicate several days to look for this beauty, especially the first and last full days to increase our chances. Naturally our daily and weekly program can change according to weather conditions as it can change quickly in the mountains.
Exploring the various elevations and various sites we will be looking for the following main tartegs on this tour: False Comma, Poplar Admiral, Large Tortoiseshell, Hungarian Glider, Lesser Purple and Purple Emperor, Bog, Freyer’s, Marsh and False Heath Fritillaries, Violet, Balkan and Purple-shot Coppers, Bulgarian, Almond-eyed and Bright-eyed Ringlets, Amanda’s, False Eros, Meleager’s and Turquoise Blues, Yellow-banded and Large Chequered, Blue Argus, Apollo, Eastern Large and Russian Heath, Delattin’s Grayling and Lattice Brown in amongst many butterflies. If we are really fortunate we could even come across the rare Lesser Lattice Brown and Spinose Skipper.
Day 6. Most of the day will be spent in the Babin Zub area and gradually making our way down and back towards Belgrade. This is our last chance to pick up some new butterflies and still a chance for the False Comma if we have not seen it before. Night near Jagodina.
Day 7. We will travel back to Belgrade airport where the tour will end.
