Butterflies of the Dolomites

Tour Code: ITA01

An 8-day holiday in search of the butterflies of the spectacular Dolomites Mountains in north-eastern Italy.

8 days from
£2,095
Land only price from
£1,895
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Highlights

Summary

Summary

The Italian Dolomites lie within one of Europe's butterfly hotspots, making this an excellent base for finding unfamiliar butterfly species amongst dramatic mountain scenery. We stay in a wonderfully friendly, family-run hotel, blessed with exceptional mountain views. From this delightful base at 1500m, we are well placed to visit diverse habitats from 900m in the valleys below to 2200m on the Sella Pass. We will spend each day on foot, enjoying gentle walks as we pursue butterflies amongst rich meadows and high pastures. This is a very popular single-centre holiday, packed with wonderful walks, as we enjoy the butterflies amongst some of the most spectacular scenery in Europe!

  • A week of butterflies from an idyllic family-run mountain hotel
  • Find Alpine Blue, Mountain Clouded Yellow & Common Brassy Ringlet
  • Amanda’s Blues dance in the meadows around our hotel
  • We will search for Apollos floating in their mountain habitat
  • Discover Titania's and Thor's Fritillaries
  • Spectacular scenery in the Italian Dolomites
  • Learn from our expert lepidopterist tour leaders
  • Encounter a wealth of Alpine flora and birds, as well as dozens of moth and butterfly species

Grading

Day walks only.

The dramatic peaks of the Italian Dolomites are renowned for their magnificent walks and alpine flora, but it is less well known that they are also one of Europe’s top butterfly hotspots.  The sheltered valleys provide a warm microclimate at a southern latitude, whilst the range of altitudes accessible provides a diversity unimaginable in Britain. ‘The Distribution Atlas of European Butterflies’ (Kudrna, 2002) shows over 150 species that are to be found within 50 kilometres of our base in the Val di Fassa. Indeed the valley is something of a secret refuge, for not only does it hold its own endemic flora but it is also home to the Ladin people, their traditions and their unique language with its Latin roots, quite different from Italian.

This relaxing week is set amongst the mountains but does not involve any strenuous mountaineering. Strolling gently through the alpine meadows, we will see waves of fritillaries, not only the familiar Silver-washed, Dark Green and Pearlbordered but also Titania’s and Mountain Fritillaries. Amongst the tall meadow grasses the Mazarine Blue flies in good numbers, and a flash of gold will lead us to Scarce Coppers, a reminder of what Britain has lost with the extinction of the Large Copper. Clouds of day-flying moths will be stirred up at our feet — another sign of the sheer diversity of nature all around us. The Val di San Nicolo is the first of several side valleys we will visit, its open meadows separated by a gushing river, and with wooded sides and the steep slopes that bring such varied habitats into one delightful area.

Our hotel is situated on a shoulder above the main Val di Fassa, nicely off the beaten track, and with a wonderful view in all directions. A friendly, family-run establishment with a Tyrolean atmosphere, it provides a superb breakfast buffet as an excellent starting point for our day trips.  The early evening is a good time to find roosting butterflies whilst strolling near the hotel, and in this way both Amanda’s Blue and an unusual form of the Marsh Fritillary (E. aurinia debilis) were found by recent groups. It is certainly a necessity to return to the hotel at the end of each day with a hearty appetite, for the evening meal is always a treat! Most evenings, weather permitting, we will run a moth-trap in the woods behind the hotel for those who are interested, then inspect the contents before breakfast the following morning.

There may be some patches of white amongst the distant peaks but the snow will be long gone from the ski slopes above Canazei, which by early summer have become the Bindelweg along which Farrer found such a variety of alpine flora.  We will drive up to the Pordoi Pass (at 2,239 metres) to walk a stretch of that path; home to a number of mountain ringlets of the genus Erebia, the Alpine Heath and the Mountain Clouded Yellow.

The domain of ‘King Lauren’s Rose Garden’ sits on a terrace high above our hotel, and is accessible by cable car or by shuttle bus. It is like a natural rock garden, stretching up to a mountain refuge lunchstop with an impressive view back to the sheltered high alpine pasture where we will spend the afternoon looking for butterflies, amongst them Shepherd’s Fritillaries, Silky Ringlets and a multitude of more familiar skippers and marbled whites.

A short drive south will bring us into the extensive Panevéggio Natural Park, with its own range of mountains, rivers, forests and pastures. We can expect to find the Arran Brown, the Sooty Ringlet and the Common Brassy Ringlet, as well as the more easily identified Large Chequered Skippers, Alpine Blues and Warren’s Skippers. With luck, we will experience Apollos drifting around us in sheltered glades — a truly memorable encounter.  There will be plenty of opportunities for photography; the longer we stay, the longer our species list will grow, and digital images will certainly help us to keep track of our sightings.

We may choose to descend to lower levels to extend the range of species on the wing. Swallowtails, Scarce Swallowtails and Camberwell Beauties are all to be found, and have a habit of popping up at unexpected moments. On a previous trip, the only Purple Emperor we saw settled at our feet at lunchtime!

If you enjoy entrancing scenery, fresh mountain air, and a rich diversity of wildlife, all coupled with Italian wine and cooking, this is the trip for you. If you are also a butterfly enthusiast, prepare to be impressed!

 

DETAILED INFORMATION
Itinerary

Outline Itinerary

Day 1
Fly to Venice and transfer to the Fassa Valley
Day 2/7
A daily programme of alpine walks in search of butterflies from our base in the Fassa Valley
Day 8
Fly London
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What's Included

What's Included?

  • Flights
  • Accommodation: A friendly and comfortable family-run hotel (with private facilities), with fine views over the Fassa Valley.
  • Food:

    All food included in the price.

Reviews
Dates & Prices

Dates & Prices

2027

Departures Availability Cost
Tue 6th Jul – Tue 13th Jul SPACES £2,095
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,895
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£345
Tour Leaders:
Please note that, whilst we assign leaders to particular tours well in advance, we reserve the right to make changes if necessary
Luca Boscain, Simone Giachello
Luca Boscain.jpg

Tour Leader: Luca Boscain

Luca is an Italian naturalist from Treviso. He began birding in childhood and gradually developed a broader interest in all aspects of nature, especially butterflies, dragonflies and plants. After graduating with an honors degree in Natural Sciences, he became a nature guide in 2012. He has been guiding natural history groups for Naturetrek since 2015 in various European countries, including Italy, Slovenia, Croatia and Poland, among others. Driven by boundless curiosity, he continues to explore the diverse habitats of the Adriatic basin and travels extensively around the world, observing wildlife, collecting vast amounts of data and photographs, and honing his identification skills across the different fields.

Simone Giachello

Tour Leader: Simone Giachello

Simone Giachello is a naturalist and passionate photographer from northern Italy, with a soft spot for herpetofauna and montane habitats. Born in Milan, his love for nature has been strong since childhood but truly blossomed during his university years when he approached nature photography and began traveling around Italy, discovering a, for him, unexpected biodiversity. After completing his master’s degree in Natural Sciences, he couldn’t resist the call of the mountains and moved from the city to a village in the heart of the Bergamasque Alps.

Nature conservation has played a key role in shaping his career and life. Simone works as an ecologist at the University of Milan, where he studies how high-altitude ecosystems and amphibian populations are impacted by anthropogenic threats such as climate change, habitat degradation, and invasive species, with the aim of developing effective conservation strategies. He loves merging scientific research with hands-on field experience to raise awareness in the general public by showcasing the beauty of nature through photography and guided excursions and trips.

His work and passion have taken him around Italy and the world, from the cave systems of Sardinia to the Sahel of Mauritania, from the snowy peaks of the Alps to the Danube Delta in Romania, from the cloud forests of Costa Rica to the desert of southern Morocco. Whether it's a brief one-day excursion or a three-week expedition, he thrives on exploring remote areas in search of rare and elusive species but also loves to rediscover and appreciate the beauty of the most common ones we have right outside our door. Yet, what he cherishes most is not just finding the target species, but experiencing the immense variety of habitats that blanket our planet.

Tue 13th Jul – Tue 20th Jul SPACES £2,095
Book Tour Show Details
Flights:
Most Naturetrek tours include flight costs ex-UK. If flights are not included, we indicate that here.
Flights are included in the tour cost
Regional Departures:
On certain tours it is possible to depart from a regional airport (rather than London). If a regional departure is possible, we indicate that here.
Regional Departures are available. Call 01962733051
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,895
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£345

Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?

For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.

Enquire
Why Naturetrek?

Why Naturetrek?

At Naturetrek we craft expertly-guided group and tailor-made wildlife holidays and cruises to all seven continents. On one of our holidays, you can be assured that our passionate team will enable you to experience and enjoy the best of the world's wildlife and natural spectacles in as comfortable and rewarding a manner as possible, caring as best we can for the environment in the process. We are proud to provide:

  • The widest choice of wildlife holidays worldwide
  • Tours managed and led by naturalists, for naturalists
  • Outstanding value and exceptional customer service

Furthermore, as a Naturetrek client, our office team are always to on hand to help you – so if you have any queries about your holiday, whether before or after you have booked, we will be delighted to answer them on the phone. Please just give our team a call!

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