Meals

Hotel Yagodina is renowned for its delicious traditional local cuisine, offering generous servings of hearty, healthy food, much of it made from home-produced or locally sourced products. Typical meals in the mountains will comprise of: Breakfast: Tea, coffee and milk, with bread, jam, honey and cheese, supplemented in Yagodina by fresh home-made yoghurt and traditional local specialities such as katmi (thick pancakes) and rodopski klin (a rice-based dish). Lunch: Picnic lunches in the mountains typically include bread, cheese, salami, salad, a chocolate bar and fruit. Many guests also like to bring an extra portion of the local speciality served at breakfast. Dinner: Will be in the hotel restaurant, and will normally include three courses comprising either a salad or vegetarian soup, followed by a main course, and a dessert of fruit, ice cream, or cake/pudding. The cuisine reflects a mixture of Bulgarian, Greek, Turkish and Slavonic influences. We sample many traditional local specialities including smilyanski fasul (a delicious bean soup) and patatnik (made with grated potatoes, onions and cheese, then seasoned with mint and other herbs). Jugs of tap water will be provided on the table with the evening meal. Bottled mineral water, soft drinks and alcohol are not included but can be purchased. There are several Bulgarian wines you may wish to try, including an excellent red Mavrud from vineyards on the northern slopes of the Rodopi Mountains. Vegetarians and vegan diets: Bulgaria produces excellent fresh vegetables and fruit, so vegetarians are usually well catered for, although in the mountains the variety may be limited to what is seasonally available. Eggs and dairy produce, especially cheese, form the staple part of the diet in the Rodopi region, and are included in most traditional meals, so vegans may find their daily menu more restricted and less varied. Gluten intolerance: Special gluten-free products are not available, so those with a wheat/gluten intolerance should, if needed, bring something to replace the local bread and pastries that make up the breakfasts and picnic lunches.

Transport

A private minibus with a dedicated driver will be at our disposal throughout the holiday for transfers to and from the mountains, and at the start or end of daily walks when needed. To access the bear hide in the evenings, we make use of locally provided Jeeps and off-road vehicles, the only vehicles capable of coping with the often rough and muddy forestry tracks.

Guide

The trip is scheduled to be led by Julian Perry, founder and research director of the NGO Wild Rodopi. Julian is a member of the International Association for Bear Research and Management and an expert on brown bear ecology and behaviour.

Accommodation

Our base for six nights is Yagodina, a traditional rural village known for its self-sufficiency and hospitable inhabitants. Home to around 500 people, it is secluded in the Trigrad Karst region, one of the most remote parts of the Rodopi Mountains. Here, we stay in the Yagodina Family Hotel, a small accommodation with comfortable twin and single rooms. It’s owned and run by a local family and most of the food (including milk, cheese, butter, jam and honey) is either home-produced or locally sourced. Our final night is at Boutique Hotel Crystal Palace, a conveniently located four-star hotel in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia. The 63-room accommodation is in the downtown area, close to city landmarks, including the Alexander Nevsky Cathedral. It also has a restaurant serving French, Italian and Spanish dishes, plus a lobby bar with cocktails, coffee and more.

Not included:

Others

— Travel insurance — Visas and vaccinations — Single supplement

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Day 1 Day 1: Start Sofia Airport; Transfer To The Village Of Yagodina In The Remote Rodopi Mountains (Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 1: Start Sofia Airport; Transfer To The Village Of Yagodina In The Remote Rodopi Mountains (Dinner)

Setting off from Sofia Airport, we begin an interesting four-hour transfer to the Rodopi Mountains. Our destination is the remote mountain village of Yagodina, our home for the next six nights. During dinner, our leader will give a welcome briefing about the week ahead and the work of Wild Rodopi, whose brown bear research and conservation project you will be assisting. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 2 Day 2: Introductory Bear Tracking Walk In The Forests Above Yagodina; Evening Visit To Bear Hide (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 2: Introductory Bear Tracking Walk In The Forests Above Yagodina; Evening Visit To Bear Hide (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Set off on our first bear-tracking walk in the meadows and forests surrounding Yagodina. During the day, you find out about the history of the village and the complex human-wildlife entanglements that exist here. In particular, learn about the necessary requirements for convivial human-bear coexistence, and how this adventure makes a direct contribution to local bear conservation. After dinner, there is the first opportunity (for a maximum of six people) to visit the bear hide. Visiting the hide usually necessitates having an early dinner so we can be in position before darkness falls. Depending on the amount of activity in the clearing, we may stay until around 10.30pm or, with the agreement of the group, slightly earlier or later. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 3 Day 3: Track Bears And Wolves In The ‘Zone Of Death’; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 3: Track Bears And Wolves In The ‘Zone Of Death’; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

After breakfast, we drive to a nearby village, where we set off on foot through the border zone. During the Cold War period, access to this region, the so-called ‘Zone of Death’, was tightly restricted, and the border itself closed off with a barbed wire fence that was impenetrable to wildlife. With the fencing now removed, this border area is now freely roamed by wolves and bears, allowing Greek and Bulgarian populations of these species to intermix, thereby enhancing gene flow and their long-term health and viability. During our walk, we see remnants of the former military installations, and learn about their impact both on the wildlife and local people. After dinner at the hotel, there will be a second opportunity (for a maximum of six people) to visit to the bear hide. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 4 Day 4: On Foot Through Core Bear Habitats; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 4: On Foot Through Core Bear Habitats; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Today we make an exciting exploration in a core region for brown bears. During our walk, we should see numerous signs of their activity, including several of their scent rubbing posts, and learn about the key role these trees play in bear society and reproduction. The bears share this region with a host of other carnivores, including wolves, red foxes, European badgers, pine martens, stone martens, least weasels and European wildcats. Recently, the tour leader Julian also discovered the presence of a golden jackal. On the trail of these animals, we pass through beautiful and remote landscapes, crossing streams, butterfly-filled meadows and peaceful forests, before finally plunging into the depths of a gorge. After returning to the hotel, and dinner, there is a third opportunity (for a maximum of six people) to visit to the bear hide. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 5 Day 5: On The Trail Of Balkan Chamois And Bears In Rugged And Rocky Karst Terrain (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 5: On The Trail Of Balkan Chamois And Bears In Rugged And Rocky Karst Terrain (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Setting off on foot from our hotel, we make a steep, steady climb up the stony flank of the mountain ridge above the village. Here in spring and early summer, there are several interesting species of orchid to be found, as well as numerous butterflies. On reaching the ridgeback, we follow an eroded track to a wonderful cliff-top viewpoint. The rocks here are home to several typical cliff-dwelling species of bird including the beautiful wallcreeper, peregrine falcon, rock thrush, crag martin and alpine swift. At certain times of year, it is also possible to spot other raptors gliding over, such as golden eagle, short-toed eagle, booted eagle, long-legged buzzard, Eurasian hobby and common kestrel. The wonderful views remain with us throughout the day as we continue our walk, zig-zagging steeply down into the depths of the Buynovsko Gorge on a rough and stony path that leads through a favoured feeding region for both brown bear and Balkan chamois. This evening, the second half of the group will have their second visit to the bear hide. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 6 Day 6: Circular Bear Tracking Walk Through Remote Carnivore Habitat (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 6: Circular Bear Tracking Walk Through Remote Carnivore Habitat (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

After breakfast we set off from the hotel on foot, beginning a long and strenuous, but highly rewarding bear tracking adventure. Having left the village pastures behind, we begin a long steep climb that sees us enter a forested region that is regularly patrolled by brown bears and grey wolf. Especially exciting is the fact that Balkan lynx, a species considered extinct in Bulgaria for almost a century, has very recently been recorded here again! The forests here also harbour many secretive birds such as hazel grouse, black woodpecker and crested tit. The midpoint of our trail leads us out onto a spectacular rocky crest, from where there are stunning views towards Greece, across waves of forested ridges that make a perfect trans-border corridor by which the large carnivore populations of Bulgaria and Greece can intermix. Having traversed the crest, our descent then leads us steeply down through more silent forest, and finally back out into the meadows and cultivations above Yagodina. Accommodation: Yagodina Family Hotel (or similar)
Day 7 Day 7: Forest And Riverside Walks In Search Of Orchids, Butterflies, Reptiles And Amphibians; Transfer To Sofia (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 7: Forest And Riverside Walks In Search Of Orchids, Butterflies, Reptiles And Amphibians; Transfer To Sofia (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Leaving Yagodina on foot, we start the day with a short walk along a beautiful forest path, which in spring and early summer sprouts an exceptional variety of orchids. An ancient Thracian packhorse route, this path is often used by bears feeding in the surrounding forests on beech mast and ants. After meeting our bus, a 45-minute drive brings us to the beautiful valley of the Devinska Reka, where we spend a couple of hours walking a delightful riverside trail. As well as being home to Eurasian otters and a variety of riverine birds, such as dipper and grey wagtails, the valley also forms the heart of a specially designated Prime Butterfly Area and provides the perfect habitat for many rare and beautiful butterfly species. Having enjoyed a picnic lunch beside the river, we then complete the transfer (3hr 30min) back to Sofia. Accommodation: Boutique Hotel Crystal Palace (or similar)
Day 8 Day 8: End Sofia (Breakfast)
12:00 am - 11:59 pm

Day 8: End Sofia (Breakfast)

This trip draws to a close after breakfast. If you want to spend a bit more time in the city after our wild adventures, speak to your sales representative about extending your stay.

8 days tour

Bulgaria: Realm Of The Brown Bear

This tour includes:

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Itinerary of your trip Bulgaria: Realm Of The Brown Bear

Day 1: Start Sofia Airport; Transfer To The Village Of Yagodina In The Remote Rodopi Mountains (Dinner)

Day 2: Introductory Bear Tracking Walk In The Forests Above Yagodina; Evening Visit To Bear Hide (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 3: Track Bears And Wolves In The ‘Zone Of Death’; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 4: On Foot Through Core Bear Habitats; Evening Bear Hide Visit (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 5: On The Trail Of Balkan Chamois And Bears In Rugged And Rocky Karst Terrain (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 6: Circular Bear Tracking Walk Through Remote Carnivore Habitat (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 7: Forest And Riverside Walks In Search Of Orchids, Butterflies, Reptiles And Amphibians; Transfer To Sofia (Breakfast,Lunch,Dinner)

Day 8: End Sofia (Breakfast)

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