Coto Donana National Park

Donana National Park covers an area of about 140 square kilometres of dunes, umbrella pine forests, marshes, lagoon and scrubland at the mouth of the Río Guadalquivir.

It is a drive of approximately 4 hours from Tarifa, direction Cadiz, autoroute to Sevilla, autoroute to Huelva, turning off at exit 48 to Bollullos and straight down on the A 483 to El Rocio. The best place to stop for lunch either on the way there, or on the return journey, is at Bollullos itself, at Restaurante-Bodegon Reyes in the main street - a large and pretty basic restaurant, but good prawns and fried fish. About 40 mins from El Rocio.

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El Rocio, when you get there, is like something out of a film set for a ‘Western’ …! No asphalted roads, only sand, and most of the largely unoccupied houses (other than for the famous El Rocio Feria once a year when hundreds of horse drawn carriages make an annual pilgrimage there) have wooden balustrades in front of them where you can tie up your horses….. (you feel someone will emerge drawing a gun from its holster and saying in broad American “I’ll give yer five seconds to get outa town …”)

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The choice of hotels is limited. Hotel Toruno (959 442 323) is adequate and commands the best position on the edge of the marsh; beds and pillows were hard, if it is mosquito season you are obliged to keep your windows closed and I personally hate the sort of regurgitated air which is then pumped through the conditioning. There was plenty of hot water. There is a restaurant almost next door for breakfast and dinners. The food was OK; any food eaten in really good company is enjoyable.

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To go round this immense park, to go through the dunes and along kilometres of unspoilt beach, you are obliged to go on one of the organised tours in the specially designed buses. These tours can be organized through the hotel and cost €.50 p.p. (2007). You get a breakfast voucher from the hotel, drive to Acebuche which is about 12 kms. down the road, have breakfast there and join your bus. You can buy a large and rather solid sandwich there to take with you. The tour lasts about 5 hours. You can then spend the afternoon (or, if you choose, the following morning when the birdwatching is likely to be better) doing the most lovely walk through the park. You again go from El Rocio to Acebuche, take the first parking on your left, and the walkway is almost opposite, taking you to the first hide from which you can watch for birds.

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I have visited the park twice; once with blue skies and brilliant sunshine, and once in non-stop pouring rain. Both times I went with a private party (about 20 of us) organized by a friend who is a biologist, is a former teacher, and a brilliant guide and organizer. I thoroughly enjoyed both visits but am aware that this was predominantly due to the great ‘guiding’ and the totally smooth organization, so the weather was less important. Martin is not doing guided tours any longer.

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I am not sure whether I would enjoy it if I were to organize it myself, having to fall back on local guides etc. You cannot visit the park on your own, it is only the specially designed 20 seater buses with their enormous wheels that can go round the park without getting stuck in the dunes, and this also limits the amount of people visiting, restricts the routes, and therefore the wildlife is virtually undisturbed.

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Although on both visits I found the birdlife less abundant than I had expected, we saw a lot of interesting birds, some of which I now list:

The great white egret (rather exceptional as this is much more common in the Eastern Mediterranean); greater flamingos, grey herons, dunlins, blacktailed godwits, whiskered terns, sandwich terns, artic skuas, the great grey shrike, and on both of my visits the peregrine falcon (fastest bird) posed obligingly on the top of the tower where it nests.

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The vegetation is rich and varied. It is fascinating to see the very clear dividing line between the lush green vegetation and the dry vegetation, the ‘white scrubland’. The wilde thyme, rosemary and myrtle smell fantastic.

Donana is a UNESCO Wetland of international importance and a World Heritage Site.
If you are a real ‘birder’ and nature lover it is surely a must.

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Hotel Guesthouse Dar Cilla Tarifa Spain Zoë is the owner of Guesthouse Dar Cilla which is unique of its sort in Tarifa. It is located on the outskirts of the old town within the old 12th century walls. 'Dar' is an Arabic word for a town house in which a series of suites are grouped around a central courtyard. Each suite is fully independent, but there is a pleasant air of 'sociability' and you will meet Zoë and fellow guests on the roof terrace over a glass of wine.

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