Birding Break: Vultures and Geese in WINTER, Private 3d/2n
A Private 3-Day Adventure Across Two Wild Lands
Winter transforms the landscapes of Romania and Bulgaria into a spectacular stage for some of Europe’s most iconic birding experiences. From the frozen steppes of Dobrogea, where thousands of Red-breasted Geese paint the sky, to the rugged Balkan Mountains, where Cinereous and Griffon Vultures rule the cliffs, this short but intense journey is packed with unforgettable wildlife encounters.
This private 3-day/2-night tour is designed for those who seek quality over quantity, combining two of the best winter birding hotspots in the region. With a professional birding guide and an itinerary flexible to your interests, this experience will bring you face to face with rare birds in breathtaking landscapes, all in just a long weekend getaway.
Target species
Griffon and Cinereous Vultures, Red-breasted Goose, White-fronted Goose, Lesser White-fronted Goose, Greylag Goose, Whooper Swan, Bewick’s Swan, Red-crested Pochard, Tufted Duck & other ducks, Mergus (3 sp), Slavonian Grebe, Dalmatian Pelican, Pygmy Cormorant, Eurasian Bittern, White-tailed Eagle, Marsh & Hen Harriers, Common, Long-legged, Rough-legged Buzzards, Merlin,Peregrine & Saker (if you are very lucky) Falcons, Yellow-legged, Caspian and Pallas’s Gulls, Long-eared & Short-eared Owls, all Woodpeckers, all larks and many other.
⇓Download
WINTER check list of birds in Dobrudja and the Danube Delta
*It will help us a lot in tour design if you send us a target species list.
Why Choose This Tour?
🦅 Best of Both Worlds: Experience two completely different landscapes—Dobrogea’s frozen steppes & the Balkan’s rugged cliffs.
🚗 Short but Intense: A 3-day trip packed with high-quality birding, perfect for a long weekend.
🎯 Targeted Winter Birding: See vultures, eagles, and geese at their peak season.
📷 Great for Photographers: Excellent opportunities for both birdwatching & photography.
🔍 Private & Flexible: A tour designed around your pace and interests.
Tour Summary
📅 Duration: 3 days / 2 nights
👥 Private Group: Just you, your guide, and the wild
🏡 Accommodation: 1 night in Dobrogea, 1 night in the Balkan Mountains
🚗 Starting & Ending Point: Bucharest
🦢 Target Species: Red-breasted Geese, Cinereous & Griffon Vultures, Rough-legged Buzzards, Golden Eagles
📷 Photography Opportunities: Vulture hide, steppe landscapes, frozen wetlands
A Winter Birding Adventure Like No Other
In just three days, this tour takes you across borders, through time, and into the heart of winter’s wild beauty. Whether it’s the mystical sight of thousands of geese rising over the steppe or the majestic flight of vultures over the Balkan cliffs, this is a journey for those who seek the raw, untamed spirit of nature.
The price of this tour is:
| Nr persoane | Price |
| 1 | 1700 |
| 2 | 900 |
| 3 | 750 |
| 4 | 600 |
| 5 | 550 |
| 6 | 500 |
* For 1, 3 or 5 pers, a single room is included in price.
Price is in Euro (EUR), per person and include VAT.
For groups larger then 6 persons, please request an offer.
Click on BOOKING REQUEST button and fill up the form. Our agents will process the request and answer to you (usually in less then 24h).
Included in price
- Guide, ENGLISH language
- Pick-up from / drop-off to Tulcea.
- Accommodation for 4 night in 3 star hotels or guesthouses
- Full board
- Bottled water
- Binocular (borrowed) if needed
Excluded from price
- Soda and Alcohol Drinks.
- International Medical, Travel or Goods Insurance Coverage
- Services of personal nature (telephone calls, laundry etc.)
Booking
- Bookings are based on a 30% deposit from the full payment of the program.
Cancellation Policy
- More then 90 days before the program you can postpone the trip ( you will receive a voucher available 2 years).
- Less then 90 days before the trip, the deposit is non refundable.
Itinerary overview
🦢 Day 1 – The Great Goose Spectacle in Romanian Dobrogea
Your adventure begins with a morning transfer from Bucharest, heading east into Romanian Dobrogea, a land of frozen lakes, golden steppes, and ancient hills. This region is a vital wintering ground for the world’s largest flocks of Red-breasted Geese, which migrate from the Arctic tundra to escape the brutal northern winter.
🎯 Highlights of the Day:
✔ Red-breasted and Greater White-fronted Geese in massive numbers
✔ Rough-legged Buzzards and Hen Harriers hunting over open fields
✔ White-tailed Eagles scanning from lakeside perches
✔ A chance to spot shore larks, snow buntings, and twite among the dunes
As the sun sets, we settle into a cozy guesthouse in Dobrogea, where a warm, traditional dinner awaits, featuring local specialties that blend Balkan and Black Sea flavors.
🦅 Day 2 – South Dobrogea & Transfer to the Balkan Mountains
After an early breakfast, we set out for southern Dobrogea, a more rugged and wild landscape. Here, we explore steppe ridges, wetlands, and rocky outcrops, where we may encounter:
- ✔ Long-eared and Short-eared Owls hidden in tree lines
- ✔ Whooper & Bewick’s Swans, on fields
- ✔ Ducks and Gulls on lagoons
In the afternoon, we cross the border into Bulgaria, where the landscape begins to shift dramatically. By evening, we reach the Balkan Mountains, a land of dramatic cliffs, deep gorges, and ancient forests. After checking into our guesthouse near a vulture feeding station, we enjoy a traditional Bulgarian dinner before preparing for the next day’s raptor spectacle.
🦤 Day 3 – Vulture Kingdom of the Balkan Mountains
The final day of the tour is dedicated to the vulture stronghold of the Balkans. Here, cinereous vultures, griffon vultures, and golden eagles rule the sky. We spend the morning around the feeding station, where we have the best chance to see:
✔ Griffon Vultures gliding over the cliffs
✔ Cinereous Vultures, the largest raptors in Europe
✔ Golden Eagles patrolling the ridges
✔ A chance for raven interactions and other scavengers
After an unforgettable morning with the kings of the sky, we start our afternoon transfer back to Bucharest, bringing this intense winter adventure to a close.
Personal Equipment
Being an outdoor tour, which involves traveling by land, you need a good personal equipment. It should contain:
- Waterproof clothes
- Clothes according to the season
- Hiking boots / shoes
- Color of the clothes is also very important. Please bring your clothes in colors more natural, as close to the colors of nature surrounding. Camouflage pattern on brown are best. If clothes come in red, yellow or other colors of the city you will certainly not go too close to wildlife.
- Binocular (if you don’t have, we can borrow you one)
👉 Join us and experience the wild side of winter, where the skies are ruled by raptors, and the landscapes echo with the calls of migrating geese.
*Extreme conditions:
In case of extreme weather conditions (snow, roads closed) occurred before the start of the tour, the deposit will be returned in full.
If these extreme conditions occur during the tour, the price will be lowered only for the remaining part of the program not made.
If customers come from another country / region and appear extreme weather conditions, our agency has no obligation to compensate customers in any way for expenses related to flights or other transportation. Also, if extreme weather conditions occurring during the program and the clients can’t go back home, our agency has no obligation to pay accommodation and other additional expenses.
Contact
Email: contact@discoverdanubedelta.com
Phone: (Voice, SMS, WatsApp):
+40 757 894 456 | +40 749 120 009
* For bookings or requests, we always prefer to communicate by email. Thank you!
