Wild Portugal: Birds, Flora & Prehistoric Art

Naturetrek's pre-departure communication and customer care were top notch. Every question had been anticipated and knowledgeable staff were readily available if needed. Our local guide in Northern Portugal could not have been better and our itinerary, though busy, was excellent. The hotels were very well chosen: different in style but of equally high quality with outstanding local food and wine. Every day brought new experiences: fascinating contrasts in landscapes and wildlife along with cultural experiences we will long remember, eg, a night time visit to a UNESCO World Heritage site known for its Paleolithic rock carvings. We cannot fault any aspect of the tour, which was our first holiday abroad since COVID. All in all, an excellent and truly memorable holiday, as well as very good value for money. We have travelled with quite a few speciality tour operators and Naturetrek is far and away the best. From our first contact with them (a phone call to ask a few questions about the trip we were considering) to their post-holiday follow-up, they demonstrated truly exceptional customer service. Naturetrek's travel documents were outstanding and they kept us well informed about the ever-changing COVID requirements. We felt that our post-trip feedback was genuinely valued by the company - there is no doubt that they are very keen to keep their clients happy. In fact, most of the people on our small group tour were repeat customers. Although this was our first Naturetrek holiday, it certainly will not be our last. Total points for customer care: 12 out of 10! 

I.S. Wiltshire, May 22

This two-base week was Naturetrek's first venture into this underpopulated region of northern Portugal. It included Portugal's highest mountains, the Serra da Estrela, rising to 2000 metes. Led by one of Naturetrek's stalwarts, and seconded by a young Spanish botanist and birdlover, we were fully informed of the variety of birds, butterflies and flowers we encountered, first in the lowland, then on the flanks of the granite mountains. The great attraction for me was the range of kites, harriers, vultures and eagles, surely a bonus of the barren regions, regions however obviously carrying a rich vertebrate source of food for these predators and carrion-eaters. On the granite uplands, botanising was a matter of getting down on one's knees, so minute the flowers and their foliage. But as a geologist, I find interest in the diverse crystallography of granites. Another 'novelty' in this tour was a night-time expedition to view four palaeolithic engravings of horses and horned cattle,. Recently discovered and identified, they were cut onto open near-vertical rock faces. They are best viewed at night, illuminated by strong sideways light, which enables the shallow graffiti to be seen more clearly.

A.M. Cambridgeshire

The holiday embodied many interests of equal weighting. Birds, Botany, Butterflies, Amphibians, Reptiles, Prehistoric engravings and historical buildings.

J.J. Worcestershire