About Us

The view

Pavel Simeonov is a professional musician who loves birds and specialized in birdwatching for Bulgaria and Balkan countries.

He is one of Bulgaria’s leading naturalists and ornithologists. Graduated High school of music (Bulgarian Conservatory) in 1981 he is one of the representatives of the Bulgarian Flute School, specialized in multiinstrumental composing. He speaks Bulgarian (native tongue), fluent French and English and fairly well Russian. Being actively involved with conservation programmes at national and international level Pavel is able to provide a wealth of background information on wildlife matters, and indeed on cultural topics. He leads most of our tours personally. His sharp-eyed vigilance and nowledge of the best wildlife sites ensures a magical and fulfilling experience from start to finish. He has conducted numerous trips as a bird-guide and leader throughout Bulgaria, Azerbaijan, Romania, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Croatia, Southern France and Norway.

Qualified as an international expert on environmental and biodiversity conservation projects he is also the founder of the Le Balkan – Bulgaria non-profit organization. He is involved in numerous monitoring programmes on the autumn migration of soaring birds on the “Via Pontica” flyway, several management projects on globally threatened species including Red-breasted Goose and Dalmatian Pelican, mid-winter counts of water birds and raptors and many other international activities for the development of the eco-tourism concept.

Pavel is also an enthusiastic photographer. He provides most of the photographs presented in this site.

Tatyana Simeonova is the owner and manager of the Branta-Tours Birdwatching Company.

Thanks to her numerous contacts with experts of the Council of Europe and their joint work on the territory of Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve in Belarus, Les Vosges du Nord National Park in France, Peak District National Park in the UK, as well as her visits to several national parks in the USA aimed at studying their ecotourism development models, she has acquired a great deal of experience in this field. She spent more than 10 years of her life in the Berezinsky Biosphere Reserve in Belarus being in charge of overseas communications and working as a group leader and interpreter. She also worked as a Consulting Assistant to the Pripiatsky National Park and Belovezhskaya Pushcha Biosphere Reserve in Belarus, in elaborating programmes on wildlifewatching tourism for foreign visitors. Her many years working in the field make her an expert in several areas. She is speaking Russian, Bulgarian, fluent English and fairly well French. Her Byelorussian nationality and a good command of the Russian language are of great advantage in organizing birdwatching trips throughout Belarus and other former Soviet bloc countries.

Tatyana is also responsible for developing and operating Professional Birding Tours and General Nature and Wildlife Holidays in Bulgaria, Romania and Far-Eastern Russia.