Danube Delta & Crimea holiday
| country: | Ukraine, Moldova |
| location: | Danube Delta |
| departures: | This tour is operated on a tailor made basis, May - Oct |
| price: | From €1365 - €3200 (15 days) excluding flights. Price depends on size of group. Optional single supplement €120.This tour can be modified to suit your interests and budget. We are happy to discuss this when you contact us. |
the amazing things you'll be doing
We are an Anglo-Ukrainian company specialising in high quality nature and heritage tours in southern Ukraine. This tour takes place in Crimea and the Lower Danube Region.
Highlights include:
Visit a seaside Botanic Garden Experience Ukrainian cuisine The famous “Potemkin Steps”, Lagoons and salt marshes of Sivash Nature Reserve "Mud volcanoes" and birdlife of Bagerova steppe See vultures, eagles and herds of semi-wild Antelope The largest natural freshwater lake in Ukraine Basilica in Bolgrad and historic town of Vilkovo Boat trip on the Danube Delta
The Crimean peninsula, bounded by the Black and Azov Seas, was the scene of an infamous war between Russia and other European powers (notably France and Britain) between 1854 and 1856. It was characterised by the Charge of the Light Brigade, and prompted the work of Florence Nightingale. The Crimean scenery is notable for soaring mountain ranges clothed with old growth forests, rolling steppes and sandy beaches. Among the birds breeding there are demoiselle cranes, great bustards, little bustards, and great black-headed gulls.
Still known locally by its medieval name of Bessarabia, the Lower Danube region bordering Ukraine, Romania and Moldova has hosted significant Greek, Roman, Ottoman and Slavic civilisations, forming an intricate tapestry of local culture. Furthermore, Bessarabia is recognised as a place of global ecological importance: truly "Europe's subtropical zone". It holds the largest complex of wetlands, riverine forests and steppes in Central Europe. There are over 1,000 species of flowers and more than 200 birds including pelicans, herons and eagles. The historic delta town of Vilkovo is one of the highlights. These sights are experienced by taking quiet boat tours on the Danube Lakes and in the Danube Delta.
Our guides have a deep knowledge of the local wildlife, history and culture, that ensures our guests have an enjoyable and stimulating excursion. We provide high-standard accommodation, emphasising the traditional cuisines of both Crimea and Bessarabia.
Highlights include:
The Crimean peninsula, bounded by the Black and Azov Seas, was the scene of an infamous war between Russia and other European powers (notably France and Britain) between 1854 and 1856. It was characterised by the Charge of the Light Brigade, and prompted the work of Florence Nightingale. The Crimean scenery is notable for soaring mountain ranges clothed with old growth forests, rolling steppes and sandy beaches. Among the birds breeding there are demoiselle cranes, great bustards, little bustards, and great black-headed gulls.
Still known locally by its medieval name of Bessarabia, the Lower Danube region bordering Ukraine, Romania and Moldova has hosted significant Greek, Roman, Ottoman and Slavic civilisations, forming an intricate tapestry of local culture. Furthermore, Bessarabia is recognised as a place of global ecological importance: truly "Europe's subtropical zone". It holds the largest complex of wetlands, riverine forests and steppes in Central Europe. There are over 1,000 species of flowers and more than 200 birds including pelicans, herons and eagles. The historic delta town of Vilkovo is one of the highlights. These sights are experienced by taking quiet boat tours on the Danube Lakes and in the Danube Delta.
Our guides have a deep knowledge of the local wildlife, history and culture, that ensures our guests have an enjoyable and stimulating excursion. We provide high-standard accommodation, emphasising the traditional cuisines of both Crimea and Bessarabia.
day-by-day itinerary
| Day 1: | The party assembles in Odessa. A late afternoon walk in the seaside Botanic Garden. See how the city fathers planted up the bare steppe to create the leafy boulevards that give Odessa such charm today. Dinner in a restaurant specialising in Ukrainian cuisine. |
| Day 2: | A day in Odessa, starting with a walk by the shore looking for seabirds. Then in to the city itself to see the sights, including the famous “Potemkin Steps”, wax museum, opera house and Vorontsov Palace. |
| Day 3: | We travel in the Eurasian steppe zone of southern Ukraine, where successive migrations of Scythians, Mongols and Huns headed for western Europe. We visit the unique sand-steppe habitats of the Dnipro River, and will stay in Kherson. |
| Day 4: | A tour of Askania Nova Biosphere Reserve, which supports the largest extent of protected virgin feather-grass steppe in Ukraine, as well as herds of semi-wild Saiga Antelope, Przewalski’s Horse and Wild Ass. We stay overnight in Askania itself. |
| Day 5: | A journey to southeast to Crimea, crossing the eastern isthmus to visit Sivash National Nature Reserve. This area of lagoons and salt marshes covers a vast area of 245,000 ha by the Sea of Azov. Overnight in the coastal resort of Feodosia. |
| Day 6: | The Kerch peninsula and Bagerova steppe (20,510 ha), a fabulous area of rolling steppe grasslands with “mud volcanoes”. Breeding birds include Demoiselle Crane, Great and Little Bustards, Saker and Black-headed Bunting. Feodosia overnight. |
| Day 7: | Karadag Nature Reserve (2,874 ha), near Feodosia, a massif of Jurassic era rock, which emerges dramatically from the sea. The reserve has an exceptionally high plant diversity (over 1,160 vascular species). Later, we visit the well-preserved Feodosia Fort. |
| Day 8: | We will visit the wonderful montane forests and alpine pastures of the south Crimean coast, where we may see vultures, eagles and falcons. We will stay in the beautiful and famous coastal botanic gardens and juniper forest reserve at Nikita. |
| Day 9: | We head back to Kherson, travelling northwest through the mountains to Simferopol and on to visit the spring-fed steppe wetlands of the western Crimean isthmus which support large numbers of waterbirds. |
| Day 10: | From Kherson, we will visit Tiligul Liman and other coastal sites rich in wildlife en route for Odessa, where we will spend the night. |
| Day 11: | We start for the Lower Danube , first crossing the River Dneister National Park and pausing for lunch at the 15th century Fort Akkerman. Then we call in at Aliaga steppe reserve, where there is an approachable Red Footed Falcon colony. We will stay throughout at a lodge in a lakeside village founded by Cossacks. |
| Day 12: | We explore the Lower Danube Lakes. One, Lake Yalpug, is the largest natural freshwater body in Ukraine the adjacent wetlands host a wide selection of waterbirds such as Spoonbill, Ferruginous Duck, Whiskered Tern and Penduline Tit. We shall also visit Ishmasl Fort at Izmail. |
| Day 13: | We will visit areas of natural “pontic” steppe on the banks and cliffs overlooking Lakes Yalpug and Kagul. We will see many Rollers, Hoopoes and Bee-eaters, as well as the fascinating Basilica in Bolgrad. |
| Day 14: | We shall spend an unforgettable day in the extraordinary Danube Delta, featuring the historic town of Vilkovo that was founded in the marshes, and a boat trip in our electric-powered launch to lunch on an island. We return to Odessa for the night. |
| Day 15: | Party disperses. More local visits and shopping can be arranged depending on departure schedules. |
how this holiday makes a difference
 Our company adheres to an ethic of environmental care which strives to ensure that our operations do not result in unsustainable use of natural resources, emission of environmental pollutants, wastage of materials, or lead to the destruction of the social fabric of local communities. The company employs only local staff in the region and uses local resources such as guides, boatmen and cooks (using mostly locally-produced food), and accommodation is only in locally-owned premises. We also continuously engage in a number of activities to improve local social and environmental conditions in the Lower Danube region. Recent examples include:
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Tourism can be good and bad for destinations & local people. We carefully screen every holiday against our criteria for responsible travel. 'Look behind the brochure' to find how each holiday makes a difference (see left). We don't claim to be perfect - there is no global accreditation - but we've led the way since 2001 and screened 1000's of holidays. We invite every traveller to write a review about their experiences and responsible tourism. This valuable feedback is sent to the people who run the holidays. We keep a very close eye on it and take off holidays that don't live up to our standards. |