France - Butterflies of La Brenne

Tour Code: FRA06

A 6-day holiday, travelling to and from Tours by train, to enjoy the exceptionally rich wildlife of La Brenne, focusing in particular on its remarkable variety of butterflies.

6 days from
£1,395 (Inc train)
Land only price from
£1,245
book now

Highlights

Summary

Summary

Known locally as ‘The Land of a Thousand Lakes’, La Brenne harbours a rich tapestry of habitats including marshes, deciduous woods, dry heathland and farmland. The area we visit has nearly twice the number of butterflies compared with Britain and, as La Brenne is not an extensive area, most of the habitats we visit are within a short drive of our comfortable hotel at Mézières.

  • Travel by train on a flight-free holiday!
  • 97 butterfly species recorded, including many not found in the UK
  • A wealth of blues, coppers, fritillaries & much more
  • Rarities such as Lulworth Skipper & Berger’s Clouded Yellow
  • Great Peacock, nonpareils & wetland species in evening moth-trapping sessions
  • Based in a quiet, picturesque corner of France
  • Led by Naturetrek’s own resident expert

Grading

Grade A. Day walks only.

La Brenne lies in an area of central France south of the Loire, about 80 kilometres south-east of Tours and 80 kilometres east of Poitiers. It is known locally as ‘The Land of a Thousand Lakes’ because of the numerous pools, mostly man-made, which dot its landscapes. Owing to the French appetite for freshwater fish, these have been managed over the centuries for fishing, and being privately owned by numerous smallholders, a rich tapestry of habitats has developed, including marshes, deciduous woods, dry heathland and farmland.

La Brenne is both the home and workplace of our local guides, Jason and Emilie Mitchell. Jason has been visiting La Brenne at least annually since 2001, and the region's exceptional wildlife and unique ambiance prompted him to move there with his family in 2013. Both Jason and Emilie have an exceptional knowledge and passion for this little-known wildlife gem lost in central France.

La Brenne has a dense population of breeding birds in the spring. Its heronries are of particular note, with good populations of both Grey and Purple Herons, Little Egrets, and Cattle Egrets (a recent colonist). Night Herons, Bittern and Little Bittern may also be seen with a little luck, whilst a careful search of the lakes reveals breeding Black-necked Grebes and Garganey, and overhead Black and Whiskered Terns — the latter more numerous here than anywhere else in France. No fewer than 16 species of warbler have bred in the area, and these include Savi’s, Great Reed, Cetti’s, Fantailed, Melodious, Dartford and Bonelli’s Warblers. The variety of habitats is particularly appealing to birds of prey. Whilst Black Kites, Short-toed Eagles and Honey Buzzards may be seen over the woodlands, Marsh, Montagu’s and Hen Harriers quarter reedbeds, marshes and arable land, and the dashing Hobby may be seen almost anywhere. In the farmland Quail and Stone Curlew may be found; in orchards and woodland are Wrynecks, Red-backed Shrikes, Black Redstarts, Short-toed Treecreepers, Serins and Cirl Buntings. The calls of Hoopoes and Golden Orioles, and liquid songs of Nightingales complete this classic collection of European birds. Although some of these birds, such as Montagu’s and Marsh Harrier, Honey Buzzard, Stone Curlew and Cirl Bunting occur locally or in small numbers in southern England, in La Brenne they are widespread and common. Likewise, a number of butterflies that are rare in England are common in La Brenne. These include the Large Tortoiseshell, Swallowtail, Scarce Swallowtail, White Admiral and Purple Emperor.

Most remarkably, no fewer than 36 species of orchid occur in the area! Whilst they are not all in flower at the same time, species we have seen on previous visits at this time of year include Early Spider (Ophrys sphegodes), Fly (Ophrys insectifera), Monkey (Orchis simia), Burnt Tip (Orchis ustulata), Lizard (Himantoglossum hiricinum), Tongue (Serapias lingua) and Violet Bird’s Nest Orchid (Limodorum abortivum). Other plants of interest that we should see include Milkweed (Vincetoxicum hirundinaria), White Asphodel (Asphodelus albus), Greater Broomrape (Orobanche rapum-genistae), Hairy Spurge (Euphorbia villosa), Blue Bugle (Ajuga genevensis) and Viper’s Grass (Scorzonera humilis).

Though rich in interest, La Brenne is not an extensive area and most habitats are within short drives of our hotel at Mézières. Thus we can maximise our time spent in the field, limiting the time spent in minibuses. This, therefore, is an ideal trip for the all-round naturalist, or the botanist, entomologist or birdwatcher who prefers unhurried outings, with the opportunity to sit for an hour or more by a lake watching a colony of Whiskered Terns, observing dragonflies, or searching for orchids.

DETAILED INFORMATION
Itinerary

Outline Itinerary

Day 1
Eurostar and TGV from London St. Pancras to Tours, either via Lille or Paris; drive to La Brenne
Day 2/5
Butterfly and wildlife excursions throughout La Brenne
Day 6
Drive to Tours; TGV and Eurostar train to London St. Pancras, either via Lille or Paris
cloud_downloadDownload Full Itinerary
What's Included

What's Included?

  • Trains
  • Accommodation:

    A small, comfortable hotel with en suite rooms. Rooms tend to be on the small side with quite spartan furniture.

  • Food:

    All included in the price, starting with dinner on Day 1 and finishing with breakfast on day 6

Reviews
Dates & Prices

Dates & Prices

2025

Departures Availability Cost
Wed 25th Jun – Mon 30th Jun SPACES £1,395
Book Tour Show Details
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,245
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£150
Tour Leader:
Please note that, whilst we assign leaders to particular tours well in advance, we reserve the right to make changes if necessary
Emilie Mitchell

Tour Leader: Emilie Mitchell

2026

Departures Availability Cost
Wed 24th Jun – Mon 29th Jun SPACES £1,395
Book Tour Show Details
Land only cost:
The "Land Only" cost is the tour price you will pay if you choose to arrange your own flights/transport.
£1,245
Single Room Supplement:
Single Room Supplement.
£150 
  Array
(
    [181] => stdClass Object
        (
            [id] => 181
            [parent_id] => 165
            [level] => 2
            [path] => tour-focus/butterflies
            [title] => Butterfly Watching
            [alias] => butterflies
            [description] => 
Butterfly Watching Holidays Led by Expert Naturalists


Who can fail to be delighted by butterflies – the intensity and variety of their colours, their delicate beauty and fascinating life cycles? Our tours allow butterfly-watching enthusiasts to observe marvellous species all around the world. Sadly, butterflies are in decline in many regions. To help prevent the loss of these beautiful creatures, our butterfly holidays make a direct contribution to their conservation.




Naturetrek Butterfly Tours


    

  • We offer an excellent range of dedicated butterfly holidays
    • 

  • All tours are led by a Naturetrek butterfly-watching expert
    • 

  • Although butterflies are the main focus of our butterfly tours, we also take time to observe other wildlife
    • 

  • By booking one of our dedicated butterfly holidays you will automatically be making a contribution to their conservation.
    • 



Here’s a selection of our dedicated butterfly tours:
Although we include butterfly-watching in many of our holidays, we offer a wide selection of dedicated butterfly tours, including:



Naturetrek & Butterfly Conservation 
As a top category ‘Gold’ corporate sponsor of Butterfly Conservation (BC), we donate around £1,500 annually to the charity. As well as this, since 2002 we have donated 10% of all income generated by our annual programme of butterfly tours that we run in partnership with BC, and give BC membership to all non-members joining the tours.




Our specialist recommends...







"I'd recommend Naturetrek's Butterflies of South Africa holiday. On this butterfly holiday we look for butterflies in the Wajkkerstrom (montane grassland), which supports a wonderful diversity of species. Closer to home I'd suggest our Butterflies of Hungary tour, or Butterflies of Croatia for unspoilt landscapes and a density of butterfly-life rarely seen in western Europe now." 

Tom Brereton - Operations Manager




 


All Butterfly Watching Tours



            [params] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [category_layout] => 
                    [image_az] =>  https://i.assetzen.net/i/4nqk52HDKwI4/w:1500/h:824/q:70.jpg
                    [image_alt] => 
                )

            [metakey] => Butterfly Holidays
Butterfly Watching Holidays
Butterflies
            [note] => 03
            [parent] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [id] => 165
                    [parent_id] => 1
                    [level] => 1
                    [path] => tour-focus
                    [title] => Tour Focus
                    [alias] => tour-focus
                    [description] => 
                    [params] => stdClass Object
                        (
                            [category_layout] => 
                            [image_az] => 
                            [image_alt] => 
                        )

                    [metakey] => 
                    [note] => 
                )

        )

    [197] => stdClass Object
        (
            [id] => 197
            [parent_id] => 165
            [level] => 2
            [path] => tour-focus/no-fly-tours
            [title] => No Flight
            [alias] => no-fly-tours
            [description] => 
Flight-free Wildlife Holidays


At Naturetrek we make full use of the Eurostar rail service through the channel tunnel, and of the ferry routes between England’s south coast and France and Spain, to offer a range of ‘flightless’ wildlife holidays in Belgium, Holland, France and Spain. In addition, we also offer the widest selection of wildlife holidays within the UK, none of which require a flight to participate in. Therefore, if you prefer not to fly, for whatever reason, we have a range of varied and exciting wildlife holidays for you to choose from, and we are committed to regularly adding more.


It is also the case that many of our other holidays within Europe are also accessible by rail. Generally, where there’s a will, there’s a way, and we’d be pleased to offer advice to anybody who wishes to join any of our tours within Europe by a means other than flying!




Our specialist recommends...






"Our Picos & Plains tour offers an environmentally-friendly route down to Spain for some excellent birding and cetacean-watching. More broadly, we’re very keen for Naturetrek to offer the most dynamic, market-leading carbon-reduced holidays available, and we hope you enjoy browsing our list of no-flight wildlife holidays!” 

Kerrie Porteous - Operations Manager




All No Flight Tours

            [params] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [category_layout] => 
                    [image_az] =>  https://i.assetzen.net/i/4nqk52HDKwI4/w:1500/h:824/q:70.jpg
                    [image_alt] => 
                )

            [metakey] => No Fly Tours
            [note] => 31
            [parent] => stdClass Object
                (
                    [id] => 165
                    [parent_id] => 1
                    [level] => 1
                    [path] => tour-focus
                    [title] => Tour Focus
                    [alias] => tour-focus
                    [description] => 
                    [params] => stdClass Object
                        (
                            [category_layout] => 
                            [image_az] => 
                            [image_alt] => 
                        )

                    [metakey] => 
                    [note] => 
                )

        )

)

Tour Dates or Itinerary Don't Suit?

Allow our experts to create a private, customised itinerary with dates and prices to suit you.

Enquire

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.

Enquire
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!