Trogon Photo Tours

HUNGARY AND SLOVENIA WINTER BIRDS

January 19-30, 2023

Photo Workshop: This workshop focuses on photographing spectacular winter raptors, owls and other birds in Eastern Europe.  The focus is on quality of species and images rather than quantity of species.  The featured subjects are White-tailed Eagles which winter in large numbers in Hungary, Ural and Long-eared Owls, Great Bittern, Great Grey Shrike and various songbirds including Tits, Woodpeckers etc.  It's mostly blind photography (with the exception of the owls).  We also have a pretty good chance to photograph rarities such as Saker Falcon and Eastern Imperial Eagle.   

Tour Leaders: Nate Chappell and Jure Novak.  Nate is an award-winning photographer who has led our Slovenia tours before.  Jure Novak is a well published photographer and birder from Slovenia, he has constructed many of the hides we use in Slovenia and works with these species on a regular basis.  He has also photographed extensively in Hungary and we will be working with local guides in Hungary also.  Nate and Jure will help make sure you get amazing images on this workshop. 

What to Expect: A lot of great bird photography opportunities.  For this lens you would want both your longest bird photography lens and a zoom lens for subjects that are close to the blinds.  It's winter so it can be cold but it's usually not extremely cold.  Average temperatures will generally be in the 30's.  The lodges are warm and comfortable and the food is very nice.   Activity level is fairly easy.  Most of the birds are photographed from blinds which are usually a short walk from the cars.  You can fly into either Ljubjana, Slovenia or Zagreb, Croatia, they are both about 1.5 hours from Maribor, Slovenia where the workshop will begin.  We will pick you up at either location.  You can arrive by noon on the 19th or arrive the night before (18th) and we will arrange a hotel at a small extra cost for you.  On the way out you want to fly out in the afternoon on the 30th or again we can arrange a hotel and you can fly out the 31st.    

Maximum participants - 6 photographers plus their companions.

Cost: $5,950 per photographer, $5,450 per nonphotographer spouse/companion.  Single supplement $500.  The deposit to reserve your spot is $1,600.   Cost includes all lodging, meals, transportation within Slovenia and Hungary, blind fees, guiding and instruction.  It includes all activities within the itinerary.  It does not include drinks, tips, airfare from your home to reach Europe or items of a personal nature such as laundry and phone calls.  Balance is due 90 days before the tour starts.

Itinerary:

January 19th - Arrival to Ljubjana or Zagreb airport, transfer to Maribor, Slovenia.  This afternoon we will have our first session in the Great Bittern hide.  This is a rare chance to photograph this species up close and out in the open, usually while it's fishing.  We will spend the night at a nice hotel in nearby Maribor, the Maribor Inn Hotel.  

January 20th-22nd - We will have three full days of photography near Maribor.  Each day we will spend some time photographing the beautiful resident Ural Owls.  There are several pairs in the area.  We will also have hide sessions in the Great Bittern hide.  Water Rail is also regular here and Kingfisher is possible.  We will also spend some time in the Great Grey Shrike hide and spend some time photographing Tits, Woodpeckers, Jays and other small birds in the songbird drinking hide. Maribor Inn Hotel. 

January 23rd - We will check out early this morning and have a 5.5 hour drive to the Hortabagy region of Hungary where we will be staying at the superb Bibic Nature Lodge.  This afternoon we will photograph from songbird hides which attract a wide variety of birds as the Hungarian steppe is pretty dry.  Tits, Woodpeckers, winter finches such as Hawfinch and Bullfinch are regular visitors to these hides.  Bibic Nature Lodge.

January 24th to 28th - 5 full days of photography at the hides in the Hortobagy National Park and surrounding area.  This area attracts large numbers of wintering raptors including up to 300 White-tailed Eagles and 200 Long-eared Owls as well as lots of Common Buzzards, Magpies, Jackdaws, Hooded Crows and a few Imperial Eagles, Rough-legged Hawks and Saker Falcons.  Most of our time will be spent photographing in the various raptor hides but we will also visit the Long-eared Owl roost and you have the option of doing some small bird photography of Woodpeckers, Hawfinches, Bullfinches, Jays and more.  Photographing in the raptor hides requires a full day in the hides but they are heated and have small toilets so they are reasonably comfortable.  Photographing in the small bird hides can be done for a few hours at a time rather than the whole day.  Doing a bit of stalking photography is also an optional activity.  The lodge has small bird drinking hides just a short walk away.  Bibic Nature Lodge. 

January 29th - We will have one more morning of Long-eared Owl photography and/or songbird photography near the lodge then check out and drive back to Maribor, Slovenia (5.5 hour transfer).  Then stay in a nice hotel in Maribor.  

January 30th - Depending on the time of your flight we can have one more morning photographing Ural Owls then we will transport you to either the Ljubjana or Zagreb airports for your return flight home.  If you would like us to book you another night in Slovenia, that is easily done.  Or you could make it a longer Europe trip by combining with our Bulgaria/Greece workshop from January 31-February 10.  That trip features amazing photography of breeding plumage Dalmatian Pelicans on Lake Kerkini in Greece as well as blind photography of Golden Eagles and other raptors sometimes interacting with mammals such as European Wolf and Golden Jackal!