Tulcea is the last large port on the Danube before the second longest river in Europe meets the Danube Delta. The small Romanian city is subject to increasing tourism as small boat excursions into this nature reserve embark from here. The famous river flows almost three thousand kilometres, through ten European countries, begins in Germany and extends to the south-east of Romania.

Tulcea is the gateway to the Delta and is where the Danube divides into three tributaries. We choose the middle one, Braţul Sulina, and make for Crisan. Painted in vivid colours, small fishermen's huts and guest houses provide overnight accommodation, very cosy and well appointed, the ideal starting point into the region’s amazing labyrinth of thousands of canals and lakes.

The Danube Delta is also a paradise for birdlife and acts as a magnet for migratory birds as it is a junction for six migration routes. The Danube flows across this natural paradise almost three thousand kilometres to the Black Sea and is the bolt hole of the final barrier, the Dobrudscha Mountains.

The pelican is king of the Delta. They gather within this primordial landscape and together form the largest colony in Europe. When they hunt, the pelicans smash the water with their wings, produce strange sounds and push the fish to the shore where they are able catch the fish in the shallows and can easily reach down with their beaks.

The rare, Fire-Bellied Toad is well camouflaged in this habitat. Underwater plants promote the reproduction and growth of numerous animal organisms.

The Danube Delta is a world of untamed nature that is being continuously transformed, an ancient landscape indelibly locked in the past.