Birding the Ebro Delta in Catalonia Over a Long Weekend

This 4-day Ebro Delta Weekend Birding Tour is a relaxed-paced trip available on request and designed for people who would like to experience the magic of the Delta on a long weekend break. We generally look to run this weekend birdwatching trip of the Ebro Delta starting on a Friday, followed by two full days of guided birding and a departure on Monday.

Ebro Delta weekend birding includes private airport transfers from Barcelona, Valencia or Reus International Airports, and three nights private accommodation at our villa, which is located in the tranquil countryside on the doorstep of the Delta.

"Al took me on a customised combined tour into the Ebro Delta (northern and southern) one day and Els Ports Natural Park the next. Photography is my passion. Al's great knowledge of birds and their habitats lead me to many fantastic opportunities, and "between sightings" he's a very pleasant companion; we had many nice chats on the way, not least about photography. Very warmly recommended!" - Lars Thorelius

The first day of the weekend will be a guided birdwatching trip around the southern section of the Ebro Delta. We will be birding a number of different habitats and can expect to see many of the special birds of the region. Highlights of the day will include vast flocks of Greater Flamingos at La Tancada, the bird hide at Riet Vell where we can observe the likes of Purple Swamp-hen close up, and the vast marshes of L'Encanyissada, which is home to an abundance of wildfowl, herons, warblers, and raptors.

The second day of this Ebro Delta weekend's birding will begin with a look at some of the spectacular locations in the northern section of the Delta, including a search for birds such as Bee-eater and Hoopoe in the scrubland on the periphery of the wetlands. We will progress into more typical delta habitat and check out the shallow water bay of Fangar, with an array of waders, gulls, terns and seasonal Osprey.

We will also be birding the Lo Golero marshes which are adjacent to the bay and are continuously patrolled by Marsh Harriers. After some lunch, we will be heading out onto the Ebro river by boat, where we can get great close-up views of species such as Little Bittern and Purple Heron.

Ebro Delta Weekend Birding Tour highlights includes:

Hundreds of Greater Flamingos feeding in the saline lagoons at La Tancada
Close up views of Purple Swamp-hens and Kingfishers at the Riet Vell bird observatory
Beautiful Bee-eaters and Hoopoe viewed at the villa during your stay
Fishing Osprey and Caspian Terns in Fangar bay during migration winter season
Remote areas of the Delta explored by boat with close up views of rare herons and bitterns.

If you don't want to confine yourself to just one wildlife trip this holiday, have a look at the one-day Catalonia Mountain Birding Trip, Spain experience on offer that can be combined.

Alternative Tour Name: Ebro Delta Express Tour

Day 1

Day 1 - Arrival day

You will be collected from the airport by one of our team and transferred to your accommodation, our private self-catering Villa situated in the countryside just outside L'Ampolla on the edge of the Ebro Delta.

Day 2

Day 2 - Ebro Delta southern section guided birding tour

Following breakfast you will head out on a fully guided bird watching day trip of the southern section of the Ebro Delta with Al Henderson. We will be visiting all of the best areas of the delta to the south of the river including a huge variety of different habitats in order to see the maximum amount of bird varieties.

Lunch will be either a Packed Lunch, or alternatively a stop off in a local Restaurant, according to the clients preference.

Day 3

Day 3 - Morning Ebro Delta northern section, afternoon Ebro river boat tour

After breakfast you will be heading out with Al to discover the best birding sites of the northern section of the Ebro Delta.

Following lunch we embark on the Ebro river boat tour for the afternoon & evening, witnessing a memorable sunset on the river and getting close to the fantastic and varied bird-life alongside the river bank.

Day 4

Day 4 - Departure day

One of the team will return you to the airport in time for your return flight.

Wildlife species expect to see:

Notable species we are likely to encounter on the Ebro Delta weekend birding Tour: Red Crested Pochard, Little Bittern, Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Cattle Egret, Little Egret, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Purple Heron, Black Kite, Marsh Harrier, Booted Eagle, Osprey, Kestrel, Black-winged Stilt, Common Sandpiper, Caspian Tern, Whiskered Tern, Black Tern, Audouin’s Gull, Turtle Dove, Kingfisher, Bee-eater, Hoopoe, Golden Oriole, Penduline Tit, Sand Martin, Cetti’s Warbler, Reed Warbler, Great Reed Warbler, Zitting Cristicola, Nightingale, Spotted Flycatcher, Pied Flycatcher, Yellow Wagtail, White Wagtail, Serin, Reed Bunting, Shelduck, Gadwall, Garganey, Shoveler, Little Grebe, Great-crested grebe, Black-necked Grebe, Bittern, Greater Flamingo, White Stork, Spoonbill, Short-toed Eagle, Sparrowhawk, Buzzard, Bonelli’s Eagle, Kestrel, Merlin, Hobby, Peregrine, Water Rail, Avocet, Oystercatcher, Golden Plover, Grey Plover, Lapwing, Little Ringed Plover, Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Curlew, Bar-tailed Godwit, Turnstone, Sanderling, Temminck’s Stint, Dunlin, Little Stint, Green Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Redshank, Spotted Redshank, Greenshank, Snipe, Jack Snipe, Collared Pratincole, Little Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Sandwich tern, Common Tern, Roseate Tern, Mediterranean Gull, Slender-billed Gull, Cuckoo, Little Owl, Scops Owl, Nightjar, Roller, Woodchat Shrike, Red-backed Shrike, Crested Lark, Lesser Short-toed Lark, Short-toed Lark, Wood Warbler, Willow Warbler, Blackcap, Whitethroat, Dartford Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Savi’s Warbler, Melodious Warbler, Moustached Warbler, Mistle Thrush, Bluethroat, Black Redstart, Redstart, Whinchat, Stonechat, Wheatear, Black-eared Wheatear, Grey Wagtail, Red-throated Pipit, Water Pipit, Linnet, Purple Swamp-hen, Glossy Ibis, Red-legged Partridge, Alpine Swift, Woodlark, Crag Martin, Western Subalpine Warbler, Short-toed Treecreeper, Cirl Bunting.

Wildlife Reviews

5 stars

- based on 4 reviews

Very Helpful Guide
Yealand24 Nov 2021
5
Overall

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Wildlife
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Conservation
Location
Value

We spent a week in the Ebro Delta in late November 2021 and booked two days of birding with Al Henderson. We stayed in his accommodation. This was our first visit to this area. We are keen walkers and reasonably keen cyclists and wanted to explore the delta and the surrounding area both on foot and by bike. I am a novice birder but keen photographer and wanted some practice at obtaining images of birds, particularly in flight. Al was an excellent communicator in the long run-up to our trip. Because of COVID-related travel problems we ended up having a number of conversations by email over many months. Al was a most attentive guide and host. He suggested some good walks and lent us the relevant Cicerone guidebook. He assisted us with our cycle hire. There are several possibilities in the area. We used a cycle shop just a few km away in Camarles (DTS Cycle Hire, on Carrer Trenta-tres). The owner was very helpful. On our first birding trip Al showed us the delta. His 20 year + experience of this area was very evident. He has an in-depth knowledge of where particular species would be found and even where particular individual birds might be seen. He is adept at approaching the birds in a way that optimises the photographic opportunities. Even a quick look at his website confirms that he is himself a highly skilled bird photographer (both still and video). On our second day he took us first to a couple of hides inland on the Ebro river where we watched a number of species including Water Rails and Kingfishers. Later the same day he drove further inland to a large landfill sight which was attracting significant numbers of White Storks, Red Kites and Griffon Vultures. This gave me an extended chance to practice photographing these large and impressive species in flight. It was a good trip and I will certainly come back.
Excellent Birding on the Elbro Delta
Robin de Alicante12 Sep 2021
5
Overall

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Value

We spent two days birding with Al. One on the Elbro River and the other in the delta. Both days were great! On the river we saw more herons than ever before; especially night herons. We also got extremely close to a little bittern and observed it catching a fish. The delta itself was packed with birds and we saw everything from hoopoes and wagtails to marsh harriers Audouin’s gulls. Not to mention a large number of shore birds. Al has an exceptional knowledge of birds and is definitely in the know of the best areas to see birds in different environs. He was great to spend time with and is also a very good photographer. Highly recommended. We will definitely do another tour when we return to Spain. Thanks Al!
Splendid experience
Lars Thorelius03 May 2019
5
Overall

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Wildlife
Guides
Conservation
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Value

Al took me on a customised combined tour into the Ebro Delta (northern and southern) one day and Els Ports Natural Park the next. Photography is my passion. Al's great knowledge of birds and their habitats lead me to many fantastic opportunities, and "between sightings" he's a very pleasant companion; we had many nice chats on the way, not least about photography. An included visit to "Vulture Man's" place and hundreds of wild vultures was the icing on the cake. Very warmly recommended!
Great Bird Tour!
Jay F. Penniman03 Dec 2018
5
Overall

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Wildlife
Guides
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Location
Value

Al knew right where to take us for great viewing of the birds of the Ebro River Delta. We visited in the winter and though species diversity was not high he still took us to where we would see many quality birds we would never have found on our own. The purple gallinule, king fisher, booted eagle and spotted red-shanks are delightful memories. Lodging in the villa, breakfast of local favorite foods, meeting the Henderson family and scheduling travel to town for a meal all contributed to a perfect visit to the Ebro River Delta.

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Why book with Ebro Delta Birding?

The Ebro delta in North East Spain is one of Europe’s premier wetland bird watching destinations. A wide variety of watery habitats can be found within > 320 square kilometres of the natural park, with diverse environments ranging from salt marshes and sand dunes to river bank and woodland. This range of habitats attracts a bewildering selection of birdlife with a species list exceeding 300 varieties!

What are the options for lunch & evening meals?

At lunch time we will either stop at a local restaurant and grab some lunch, or alternatively we can arrange to take a packed lunch. Evening meals can be taken in L'Ampolla ( a short & inexpensive 5 minute taxi ride away), or you can self cater at the Villa which has full cooking facilities including a barbecue. We can arrange a super market visit if you prefer the self catering option.

Number of Travelers	Cost Per Traveler (€)	Total Cost (€)
1	900	900
2	550	1100
3	450	1350
4	450	1800

Ebro Delta Weekend Birding Tour, Catalonia, Spain - 4 Days