Helgoland

Day 1:

We gather at Brutus's in Höör by 10:00 AM at the latest. There is plenty of parking space for cars. Pickup from Höör station for those taking the train. When everyone has arrived we travel by Fokus bus VW Caravelle (extended model to carry lots of luggage) from Ågerup toward the port town of Büsum in Germany. At 5:30 PM we check into our hotel. We are served dinner at the hotel.

We have booked double rooms with toilet and shower. With early booking we might be able to arrange single rooms both here and for the three nights on Helgoland, preliminarily 3,600 kr supplement for Helgoland and 850 kr for single room in Büsum respectively. Check with us! The last night when we return to Brutus's farm there's only "dormitory" accommodation.

If anyone has difficulty arriving at Brutus's farm by 10 AM, up to three participants can arrive the evening before and stay overnight at no extra cost. Yes, Brutus serves breakfast.

Day 2:

We eat breakfast at the hotel at 7 and drive to the parking in the harbor in Büsum so we're there by 8:00. We walk the approximately 100 meters to the ferry, which departs at 9:30. No cars are allowed on Helgoland; those who work in service industries use electric cars, except for ambulance and fire truck which run on fossil fuels.

The crossing takes about 2.5 hours so we arrive around 12 noon. When we go ashore we arrange transport of suitcases to the hostel located in the northern part of Helgoland but we walk through the village and up to the hostel, so we get to familiarize ourselves a bit with the island; the walk is just over 2 km. No private car traffic is allowed on the island.

Lunch everyone pays for themselves, we'll find a good place in the village.

Dinner at the hotel.

Gannets are best photographed in the evening and if the sun shows itself there are good chances for gannets with the setting sun as background.

Day 3:

Early morning for those who want. We go up on the cliffs and continue with the gannets. Lunch around 11:30 AM

After lunch we take the boat over to the neighboring island Düne. There we find both grey and harbor seals and much other seabird life. Here a distance of at least 30 meters to the seals applies - if you come closer, a friendly guard will ask you to back away.

Back at the hostel we eat dinner and then head up to the cliffs again to the gannets.

Day 4:

This day we take as it comes, if anyone wants to return to Düne, continue with gannets or just wander around the island, these are free activities.

During daytime one of the days Frode and Brutus will have a workshop on image processing on computer.

Day 5:

Free activities again. We check out of the hostel and in the afternoon we head toward the ferry again to return to the mainland.

During the evening and night we travel back to Höör.

Bedroom/dormitory is available at Brutus's so you can rest before heading home in the morning.

Day/morning 6:

Breakfast 6-8 AM at Brutus's - for those who wish. Then journey home by car or ride to train.

As always the daily program is preliminary, we change what we do also according to weather - and if something special should turn up.

Date: June 7-12, 2026 6 days incl travel/5 nights

Trip leader/photo leader

Frode Wendelbo/Brutus Östling

Price (regular) 14,800 kr

Early-booking price: 13,600 kr

(Valid for booking before December 10, 2025)

Early-booking price: 13,900 kr

(Valid for booking by December 31, 2025)

Registration fee is 3000 SEK

Number of participating photographers

Max 8/Minimum 5 participants

With a lower number of participants, a smaller supplement applies, see below.

The trip starts and ends:

at Brutus and Agneta's farm. Latest arrival time is 10:00 AM

We return home with the bus at midnight. Sleeping place in multi-bed room included, and breakfast is served before journey home by car or train.

Included in the price

Travel to and from Höör. Hotel in double room with toilet and shower near the ferry port in Germany. Breakfast. Ferry crossing round trip. All meals at the hostel. We are served a good breakfast at which you can make a lunch pack to take along, and in the evening we are offered dinner. Bring thermos and a box for sandwiches. At the hostel we stay in twin rooms with private toilet and shower. Breakfast at Brutus's home the last morning. We return at midnight, shared accommodation the last night at Brutus's home, before everyone after breakfast heads home.

Review, guidance to good places on Helgoland. Participation with advice and tips.

Boat trip to neighboring island Düne with grey and harbor seals and many birds.

Accommodation

Very centrally located up on the cliff shelf, so it's at most a ten-minute walk to the nearest nesting sites for gannets. We stay in two very good apartments with two bedrooms each. The apartments have a well-equipped kitchen, we can choose to buy together and/or eat lunch/dinner at one of the island's many restaurants/pizzeria. We have a favorite pizzeria! Breakfast all days included, arranged by Fokus. There are also all types of shops on Helgoland, it's a large tourist resort.

First night when we arrived at the port town we have booked double rooms with toilet and shower. Good breakfast. We return to Brutus's farm in Skåne at midnight, simple accommodation the last night at Brutus's home. Generous breakfast before everyone heads home by car or is given a ride to the station in Höör/Hässleholm.

Not included in the price

Travel to and from the meeting point Höör. Insurance and other private matters. Alcoholic beverages. Any snacks, etc.

Don't forget cancellation protection.

Single room

Supplement preliminarily 3,700 kr on Helgoland, only subject to availability.

Last night at Brutus's home before journey home not possible.

Currently it looks like we can arrange a couple of single rooms in Büsum (extra cost 850 kr),

Camera equipment

We get very close to gannets so there everything from wide-angle to telephoto works, good is a zoom 70-200 mm (preferably with converter) or a 100-400/500 mm is perfect. When we photograph incoming gannets a bit longer focal length, preferably a zoom 100-400, 100-500, 200-600, 200-800, 400-800 mm or a fixed telephoto 400 mm with converter or 500/600 mm. Having only a zoom 200-600 mm or 400-800 mm becomes too long at some nesting sites.

Tamron's 35-150 mm or 28-200 mm are useful for landscapes and at nesting sites. Or 24-70 plus 70-200/100-400 mm.

For other birds it's telephoto lenses, from 400mm and up, this also suits the seals well where it's important to respect the 30m distance.

If you have wide-angle zoom and telephoto zoom that works excellently. Tripod can be good to have but not necessary, it depends a bit on what type of telephoto lens you have or if you want to photograph when it gets dark.

If you have a fast long telephoto it's useful for beautiful portraits with fine bokeh background.

Clothing

In evenings and during early morning it can get chilly with the proximity to the sea, but during the day it can become summer heat. Rain-resistant clothing is of course good to have, possibly other things based on personal preference. Comfortable shoes/boots as there will be quite a bit of walking. The cliff we walk up is 80 m high, nearest road from the hostel goes through sand dunes but good surface and then stairs up the cliff. In town there's an elevator for those who want to ride up a bit but it's a detour and costs ten kronor.

Accessibility/disabilities

Good walking paths, however stairs part of the way, but elevator exists to the cliff shelf where we live. The apartments are probably worse for accessibility for example wheelchair. We walk on asphalted or gravel walkways up to 1.5 km.

Elevator from Helgoland's lower center exists. Otherwise stairs or road respectively.

Visa/Passport

Swedish citizens need passport. In these times everyone must keep track of special rules, and we will naturally check everything extra carefully and inform as much as we can.

*Payment terms

Payment terms deviate from our general travel terms.

Registration fee is 3000 SEK. The remainder is paid within 10 days after the trip's completion. For cancellation later than 30 days before, neither the registration fee nor the final payment is refunded. Please note that for cancellation later than one month before the trip's start, the traveler is obligated to pay the trip's full price even if the final payment is due after the trip's completion.

If we become fewer than 6 participants we must charge 1,000 kr extra per participant. If we become fewer than 5 participants there's a price supplement of 2,000 extra. The above applies regardless of the price at which booking was made.

Our price is calculated based on a euro rate of 10.90 SEK.

Insurance

In cooperation with Europeiska ERV we offer a complement to your home insurance and cancellation protection. All to make you as secure as possible on your trip. Read more about what the insurance covers and