Flowers of Italy's Gargano Peninsula

Tour Code: ITA02

An 8-day holiday of gentle botanical walks in search of the unique flora – especially the profusion of orchid species – of the Gargano Peninsula.

8 days from
£2,195
Land only price from
£1,795
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Highlights

  • Visit the orchid capital of Europe
  • Enjoy breathtaking displays of orchids and other spring flowers
  • Expect to find around 40 of the Gargano’s 69 orchid species
  • Enjoy beautiful scenery and excellent local food and wine
  • Learn from our expert botanical tour leaders
Summary

Summary

On this 2-centre holiday, we’ll take gentle botanical walks in search of the rich flora, especially the wide variety of orchids, to be found on the Gargano Peninsula. First, we will explore from Monte Sant’Angelo, an attractive medieval town clinging to a limestone escarpment, its surrounding terraces awash with colourful displays of rockroses, asphodels and orchids. Then we’ll explore from Peschici, a charming old fishing village that spills down the cliffs into the sea. From our hotel that overlooks the harbour, we will focus on the interesting botany of the peninsula’s north coast.

Grading

Day walks only.

The Gargano Peninsula is a sparsely populated promontory jutting into the Adriatic Sea just above the ‘boot’ of Italy. It is an area of enormous botanical interest, yet, until recently, it has remained relatively unknown. A region of rolling limestone hills and tiny, arid fields, its landscape is punctuated by small medieval towns and scarred by the erosion that has created numerous caves, dolines, swallow holes, deep gorges and rock bridges. Along the northern side of the peninsula, Aleppo Pines and the elegant spires of Italian Cypress line the white cliffs which plunge to the wine-dark Adriatic Sea.

The fact that the peninsula was once an island, making it geographically isolated, and the lack of intensive farming must account for its exceptionally rich plant-life. Over 2,000 plant species have been recorded here, including 69 species of orchids (the greatest concentration of different orchid species in Europe). It was for this reason that the Gargano Peninsula, just 65 kilometres long and 45 kilometres wide, and reaching a maximum height of 1,065 metres at Mount Calvo, was declared a national park. It is also, of course, the reason behind this exciting Naturetrek tour, on which we hope to see over 40 of these orchids, together with a number of bulbous plants and a high proportion of the endemic plant species.

This will not be a strenuous tour. We will be far too busy looking at plants to walk fast! It is, however, a 2-centre holiday, starting at Monte Sant’Angelo, an attractive, clustered medieval town situated 800 metres up on a limestone escarpment overlooking the south coast. We will take some time to wander its winding streets and to visit its famous shrine of St. Michele Archangelo. Our hotel, situated on the edge of the town, enjoys wonderful views of the Gulf of Manfredonia, and only a short walk away is an ancient chapel surrounded by flowerladen terraces — a favourite pre-breakfast walk of many clients.

We will not move far on our first day, for we will spend the time exploring the rocky terraces close to our hotel, wandering amongst colourful rockroses, asphodels and large patches of pink Butterfly Orchids. We will also see the endemic pale Goldendrop (Onosma lucana) and encounter our first Bee Orchids, Ophrys promontorii, O. passionis var garganica, O. apulica, O. bertolonii, and possibly O. bertoloniformis, together with the more familiar Burnt-tip, Green-winged and Milky Orchids. On another day we will explore the Bosco Quarto, walking through an area of Oak and Hornbeam woods and small rocky fields. On the way, we will stop to see a mass of Iris pseudopumila, Narcissus poeticus, the Pheasant’s Eye Daffodil, and carpets of the lovely Anemone apennina, while during our walk we will see Dactylorhiza romana, the Roman Orchid, as well as large patches of the beautiful blue Iris lutescens, growing in the open fields.

Another expedition takes us to Monte Sacro. We picnic below the mountain in flower-filled fields, with yet more orchids: Orchis intacta, the Dense-flowered Orchid, and Ophrys biscutella among them. At the top of Monte Sacro there are interesting ruins of the old abbey of St. Maria. Walking up through Quercus ilex we come across Ornithogalum montanum and, in open places, Orchis quadripunctata and O. pauciflora.

We will spend the latter part of our holiday based at Peschici, on the Gargano’s north coast. During our drive across the peninsula we will enjoy a picnic in the Foresta Umbra. This is a good place to walk and see Narcissus poeticus, the Pheasant’s Eye Daffodil, and blue patches of the lovely Anemone apennina. We will spend some time exploring the forest, a vast woodland reserve of Beech, Holm and Turkey Oak, Hornbeam and Italian Maple set in the heart of the peninsula. Peschici is a small and charming fishing village that spills down the cliffs into the sea. In summer this is a busy seaside resort but during our visits we will almost have it to ourselves. Our hotel looks out over the harbour, with steps winding up behind us to the old town.

From here we will spend a full day in exploration of the north coast. We will make many botanical stops but our site of key focus is Bosco di Spinapulci, a rocky hillside with many familiar Mediterranean plants, including Cyclamen repandum and some interesting orchids, including Serapias cordigera, Ophrys parvimaculata, and the Fragrant Bug Orchid, Orchis fragrans. During the last part of the day we may take the opportunity to explore the Gargano’s largest dolina, its limestone content assuring us of interesting flowers.

By the end of our holiday we will have had some wonderful experiences in a relatively unknown area, and enjoyed the genuine friendliness of the local people, the beautiful scenery, excellent local food (including some superb fish!) and wines and, we hope, will have returned with a lengthy and highly interesting plant list.

DETAILED INFORMATION
Itinerary

Outline Itinerary

Day 1
Fly Bari and transfer to Monte Sant' Angelo
Day 2/5
A daily programme of gentle botanical walks from our base in Monte Sant' Angelo
Day 6
Transfer to Peschici
Day 7
Botanical walks from Peschici
Day 8
Fly London
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What's Included

What's Included?

  • Flights
  • Accommodation: Two comfortable and friendly family-run hotels, both with private facilities.
  • Food:

    All food included in the price.

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Dates & Prices

Dates & Prices

2026

Departures Availability Cost
Thu 9th Apr – Thu 16th Apr SPACES £2,195
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Fri 17th Apr – Fri 24th Apr SPACES £2,195
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Prefer to Travel in a Private Group?

For any interested natural history club or society, we can arrange for a private departure of this tour.

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Why Naturetrek?

Why Naturetrek?

At Naturetrek we craft expertly-guided group and tailor-made wildlife holidays and cruises to all seven continents. On one of our holidays, you can be assured that our passionate team will enable you to experience and enjoy the best of the world's wildlife and natural spectacles in as comfortable and rewarding a manner as possible, caring as best we can for the environment in the process. We are proud to provide:

  • The widest choice of wildlife holidays worldwide
  • Tours managed and led by naturalists, for naturalists
  • Outstanding value and exceptional customer service

Furthermore, as a Naturetrek client, our office team are always to on hand to help you – so if you have any queries about your holiday, whether before or after you have booked, we will be delighted to answer them on the phone. Please just give our team a call!