7 nights from £995pp

Fully Escorted

Lesvos is the third largest island in Greece after Crete and Evia. Little affected by mass tourism this very beautiful island offers outstanding beaches, a host of traditional villages, small scenic harbours and the legendary welcoming warm hospitality of the local people. This stunning island is worth visiting anytime but it does hold an exceptional appeal in spring when the islands lush interior is carpeted with nature’s vibrant colours. The island’s mild climate, diverse landscape and abundant natural springs provide a stunning habitat for more than 1400 species of wild plants. 
 
This spectacular natural garden has been well known since ancient times! The Greek poet Sappho, who was born on Lesvos around 630 BC refers to the island’s beauty in her poetry and, three centuries later, the philosopher Theophrastos, also a native, marked the beginnings of the science of botany by recording, for the very first time, around 500 plants both from his native island and from regions bordering the Mediterranean and further a field. He subsequently became known as the ‘father of botany’!

The island is also known for its abundance of olive trees – around 11 million of them – many of them centuries old, evidenced in their gnarled and twisted beauty. These ancient groves offer a deep and undisturbed soil that continues to produce a natural history of beautiful and sometimes rare flowers, plants and herbs, many medicinal.
 
During our stay we expect to find a large variety of flora; lupins, poppies, fritillaries, stars of Bethlehem, clovers, orchids - bug, diamond, holy and tongue; catchflies, buglosses, vetches, mallows and rock roses, and the sweet smelling Rhododendron luteum that is found nowhere else in Greece. Our tour also includes a visit to The Petrified Forest, one of very few in the world and unique in Europe – it is estimated to be 20 million years old! The Forest provides considerable information regarding the composition and character of flora and climatic conditions of the distant past.

The Guide
The guide is Dr Alan Harrington, formerly of the Botany Department of the Natural History Museum. Alan has been a professional botanist for more than 40 years. After obtaining his degrees at the University of London, he spent almost 11 years in West Africa, mostly as a lecturer in botany at the University of Ibadan, Nigeria. In 1976, he joined the Botany Department of the Natural History Museum, specialising in the study of liverworts. On taking early retirement, he became involved in the Museum's adult education programme, running botanical courses and leading field study tours to Crete, Lesvos, North Cyprus, Portugal and Spain. Although the programme ended in 2004, he remains a Scientific Associate at the Museum and also leads wild-flower tours. His extensive knowledge assists him in finding the interesting species in an area and his first hand knowledge of Lesvos has assisted in the planning of the week's itinerary, in order to maximise what might be discovered during the tour.