Check here for tour availability for 2026 and beyond, plus any changes made to the printed calendar.
Tours with limited or no availability are as follows, including ‘guaranteed departure’ status where applicable. Any tours not listed currently have more availability, but we always recommend checking with the office before booking as things can change very quickly.
***BESPOKE NORFOLK & UK DAY TOURS AVAILABLE – PLEASE CONTACT THE OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION***
We’ve just returned from three fantastic tours to the Scottish Highlands in April 2026 based out of the Grant Arms Hotel in Grantown-on-Spey. The weather was largely kind to us and we had three happy groups coming away with a nice list of Scottish specials!
Black Grouse by Paul Griffiths
The Black Grouse lek was a clear highlight for our second tour, with most of the group voting the spectacle as their moment of the week. It’s not hard to see why – the bubbling and cooing of the males was carrying across the moor on a beautiful calm morning, and the birds amphitheatre on the top of a grassy knoll was bathed in perfect early morning light. As ever we watched cautiously from the road at a distance, using the vehicles as a screen, but tour participant Paul Griffths still managed to get this amazing shot!
Check here for tour availability for 2026 and beyond, plus any changes made to the printed calendar.
Tours with limited or no availability are as follows, including ‘guaranteed departure’ status where applicable. Any tours not listed currently have more availability, but we always recommend checking with the office before booking as things can change very quickly.
***BESPOKE NORFOLK & UK DAY TOURS AVAILABLE – PLEASE CONTACT THE OFFICE FOR MORE INFORMATION***
FRIDAY 30TH JANUARY – Overcast day with light drizzle
Our final day of the tour saw us venture south into the Brecks to have a look for some woodland birds, the main genre that we were missing for the list so far. It was forecast to be a grey day but basically dry – what we actually got was pretty much continuous light drizzle all day so this did hamper our chances with some species somewhat. We start at Lynford, where the main target was Hawfinch. We’d seen them on a recent visit perching up in the tops of the trees in the arboretum viewed distantly from the roost area, so wondered if they might be feeding in there at the moment and hence a better bet than the traditional location of the paddocks. We wandered slowly in to that area and almost right away heard the distinctive sharp, penetrating call of a Hawfinch and saw a small group fly through the canopy. They perched and we were able to get some binocular views and a quick glimpse in the scope before they melted away. Thankfully they were favouring this area as suspected and with patience we soon found them again, this time enjoying long scope views of this most spectacular of British finches.
Down at the paddocks, the ‘chip-chip’ calls of Crossbills were predictably a constant backdrop – after several very poor years they are everywhere at the moment. Perched views were harder to come by but we did have a pair stripping bark in the paddocks and another male perched briefly in the conifers, plus lots of flight views. The drizzle hampered us from seeing much else but elsewhere around the arboretum we did have excellent views of Marsh Tits and Nuthatches.
Yellowhammer by David Carlsson
SATURDAY 10TH JANUARY – A calm day with sunny spells, 1C
Our final day turned out to be really productive, starting off with a Cattle Egret pottering about on the lawn outside the hotel during breakfast and 21 Russian White-fronted Geese which flew in calling and dropped into the field next to the car park. We made the short journey along the road to Titchwell reserve where we wanted to bird around the Meadow Trail for a few missing bits for our last, starting with Water Rail which showed well in the usual ditch by the west bank path. We couldn’t find the Firecrest with either of the small tit flocks though we did see Goldcrest and Treecreeper. Negotiating the icy boardwalk around to the Tawny Owl, we observed bits of the bird in its usual ivy-clad roost by the path – it made the fenland Long-eareds look showy by comparison! A Woodcock flushed out of the undergrowth and flew past us, with two others seen briefly in flight near the Visitor Centre, obviously still trying to find soft ground to feed on now things were starting to gradually thaw out.
Heading inland, we wanted to check a spot where some Bramblings had been feeding recently in a cover crop. On the way we saw a massive flock of Pink-footed Geese in the air, perhaps as many as 10,000 birds. They splintered into three groups with one large flock dropping into a field of beet tops though sadly they were in dead ground two fields back from the nearest road. Another Woodcock flushed from the verge and this time we got a great flight view as it crossed the road in front of us and off across an open field to our left. The finch flock was still present and numbered about 100 birds, mostly Chaffinch but with some Greenfinch, Goldfinch, Linnet and at least 6 Brambling. We had good scope views of them perched up in some birch trees in excellent light. Dropping back to the hotel we collected the cars before driving down to Swaffham and into the north Brecks. A faithful Goshawk spot was checked, as they are often already active on fine days early in the year. 14 Whooper Swans flew west in the distance and despite no Goshawks, we did have a surprise flock of 11 Woodlarks fly past. We managed to follow them until they dropped in a distant field, and so decided to drive down the lane to try and re-find them. The grass was longer than it looked and it was hard to even spot the many Redwings feeding in the same field. Eventually we found the Woodlarks though, and everyone got a clear view. Not an easy bird to find in winter.
Hawfinch (left) and Crossbill at Lynford
Lynford was our next stop and after a late lunch here, we went in search of some woodland birds. Three Nuthatch chased around and we soon started hearing the distinctive calls of Crossbills, which are going through a boom after several drought years. A female-type perched up for a long scope view but we went on to see about 20 more, including a lovely red male perched in the last golden rays of afternoon sunshine at the top of a spruce. We hoped for views of Hawfinch too, and eventually after very distant views of two, a female popped up in the paddock trees. Just as the light was starting to fade, a male also appeared and gave superb views to round off the day.
As the year draws to an end, we’ve been taking a moment to reflect on some of the incredible rare and scarce birds we’ve come across during out UK tours in 2025. Picking a top ten hasn’t been easy but here are some of our favourites!
Green-winged Teal – Holkham, Norfolk on 7th of January
An early highlight came in the form of a drake Green-winged Teal which our Norfolk Winter Wildfowl group located from Lady Anne’s Drive, Holkham on the 7th of January. A scarce winter visitor to the UK, this was possibly a returning bird seen in the area the previous winter but still a really nice surprise!
SUNDAY 12TH OCTOBER – Calm and sunny day after early fog, 17C
Our final morning saw us return to the Spurn area. We drove through fog patches and it was actually pretty cold when we first arrived at Kilnsea, though before long we were all roasting once the sun got through! Our first port of call was to walk down Beacon Lane and along the beach to view Beacon Ponds, to try and find a Pectoral Sandpiper that had been around. We opted to go along the beach side so we had the light and this proved a good move as there were lots of small waders roosting on the islands over the high tide. Mostly Dunlin and Ringed Plover, there were a few Sanderling, Knot and Turnstone too and we picked out a single juv Curlew Sandpiper. A Sparrowhawk trying to nab a Dunlin was quite a sight – it managed to grab the bird before inexplicably dropping it and flying off, maybe somewhat mesmerised by all the waders swirling around it! There was no sign of the ‘Pec’ though so we walked further north along the beach (picking up a flock of Common Scoter heading south offshore) until we could view the northernmost section of the lagoon. Here we found the Pectoral Sandpiper roosting with a few Ringed Plovers and it gave really nice views – a smart, fresh juvenile bird.
Caspian Gull, Beacon Ponds
We were almost back at the Bluebell car park when news came through that a Little Bunting initially found yesterday was now showing well by the Warren gate. We drove down there to find a small crowd already assembled but the bird had flown into long grass towards the clifftop and several efforts to flush it were unsuccessful. We abandoned it and went over to the screen as lots of waders were now dropping in as the tide began to recede. Mostly Golden Plover and Grey Plover, we also saw our first Bar-tailed Godwits of the trip and the same or another Curlew Sandpiper. A single Redwing fly past and perched beautifully on an elder for us, and several Redpoll were to be heard moving south. Walking up to the seawatch hide, we wanted now to try again for the bunting and we could see a small group assembled further south along the clifftop so we walked to join them. As we approached the Little Bunting flew out of the grass and landed on a fence just long enough for most to see it, before dropping out of view. Thankfully it wasn’t long before it repeated this manoeuvre and this time we all had good scope views – a smart bird and even right at the end of the trip we were managing to add some quality! This was our last action though as, after lunch at the Discovery Centre, we made our way back to Norfolk.
Little Bunting at Spurn
SATURDAY 31ST MAY – Sunny spells and fresh South-westerly winds, 11C
Today was our final day exploring the Orkney Mainland before heading back south on the ferry. With light rain forecast to move in from the west, we decided to head to Marwick Head first on the west coast, to view the bustling seabird colony before the weather deteriorated. It actually remained fine for the hike up the cliffs and back and the wind wasn’t too strong, so the viewing conditions were pretty nice. We could see two huge flocks of Kittiwakes feeding just offshore from the clifftop, with both Arctic and Great Skua harassing them! The skua numbers have thankfully improved a lot this year compared to last, with both species being seen on every day of the trip and definitely more Bonxies around, hopefully a sign they are already starting to bounce back. There were some large rafts of Common Guillemots on the water too, but from the top, we would see many more, as this species is the most common nesting seabird on the ledges here. The sight and sound of any seabird colony is a real spectacle and again we were pleased to see that, while there were still lots of unoccupied ledges here, there were more birds than in the Birdflu-ravaged 2024. Razorbill, Fulmar and of course Puffin were here too, and we probably saw just into double figures of the latter.
Heading back down to the bay, we then drove all the way back across the islands to the East Mainland, and Deerness. With a South-east wind we figured it must be worth checking some migrant spots, not least because birds had arrived further north on Shetland. We drew a complete blank though at both Sandside and East Denwick, with very little to report from either location. In the afternoon we headed over to the Ring of Brodgar, so folk could have a walk around the standing stones. We were lucky here with an Osprey which flew in and started hovering over Loch of Harray next to the car park, providing a nice end to the trip. From here it was back to the Stromness ferry terminal for the ninety minute run down to Scrabster harbour, and then a 3hr drive all the way down to Boat of Garten for our final overnight.
FRIDAY 30TH MAY – Fine and sunny in light westerly winds, 15C
A beautiful, balmy day awaited for our final day on North Ronaldsay. With slack weather after the recent strong winds, we were hopeful that some migrants would drop but the day didn’t really pan out that way! We spent the morning checking a number of crofts with cover in the hope of unearthing something, centred around the south-east corner of the island. It was really lovely out and while the first couple of spots yielded nothing, we were enjoying the blue sky and turquoise seas. At Kirbest, we unexpectedly flushed a Snow Bunting along the road and up a driveway! The bird sadly didn’t seem that well – a young male bird different to yesterdays female on The Links. We watched it at close range feeding on the driveway and then left it be. After checking the Old Mill and another couple of spots down towards Bride’s Ness, we went through the gate in the sheep dyke and scanned the bay. Two Whimbrel flew off calling and there were sightings of Little Grebe and Reed Bunting among various other common waders and wildfowl noted. We then drove up to the surgery, and checked the garden there before heading down the track to Gravity. The small plantation held two Sedge Warblers which were no doubt breeding, but again no migrants could be found. After a quick look at Burray, we checked Ancum willows and with nothing much to show for the mornings efforts, we returned to the Obs for lunch.
For the afternoon we decided to sack off checking crofts and instead head up to the lighthouse and look for waders and seabirds. At Trolla Vatn 23 Bar-tailed Godwits were resting along with a few Turnstones and a single Dunlin. Walking up onto the top of the beach to view the bay, we saw several Black Guillemots and Eiders and by now were just happy to enjoy the beautiful t-shirt weather! We followed the stone dyke back to the communications mast and then walked out to the seawatch hide. Unlike in previous visits, there was no need to shelter inside the hide today and instead we scanned the sea from outside the hide. The view of Fair Isle was spectacular and offshore we watched a feeding frenzy of Arctic Terns and Kittiwakes. Eight Manx Shearwaters glided in and joined the throng and three Great Northern Divers included one really close full summer bird eating a crab. One of the Kittiwakes flew in and landed next to an adult Common Gull allowing for a rare and useful comparison of these two adult plumages side by side.
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