Hunting in Spain — the four-ibex country.
Red stags in the dehesa, chamois on the ridgelines, and the only ibex Grand Slam on earth — hosted from a finca you sleep inside.
Seven regions. One hosted base.
You sleep at El Encinarejo — a finca inside its own 5,000-hectare ground — and we move you between the ranges as the trip asks for it.
Each range, its own quarry.
Fourteen reasons to come back.
Every species on this ground, each on its own real season.
When the ground is right.
Exact windows vary by province and subspecies — we confirm dates for your year before anything is booked.
A five-star finca inside the ground.
You wake up where you hunt. Mornings start with glassing off the terrace, and days end at one long table — then the boma, then the stories.
The Spain film.
0:38 · Filmed on Approved Ground
A founder on every Spain departure.
From Madrid arrivals to the last toast at the boma, one of us is on the ground with you — working hand in glove with the family outfitter who runs this finca.
Meet the founders →
The level of service and quality is outstanding. The hunting and professionalism is out of this world. I give it my best recommendation
Absolutely a place to visit. The crew the place the wilderness all comes together. Alex and the staff is extremely services minded and make sure you are having the best time of your life - and they succed!
El Encinarejo and the hosts on it are members of SCI and PHASA, and the ground has been featured by National Geographic and The Origins Foundation.
Six ways to hunt this ground.
Each one is a fixed package rather than a day rate, so you know the shape of the trip before you commit. Tell us which fits and your host builds the rest of the week around it.
Ibex, Andalucía
One representative or bronze ibex — South-eastern or Ronda — with three days on the mountain and one to travel. Unlimited hinds, boar and cull stags if the time allows.
Further species and an observer can be addedHis & hers, in the rut
Two representative stags for two hunters, plus unlimited hinds, boar and cull stags. Built for a couple hunting the rut together rather than in turns.
Two huntersFather & son, in the rut
One representative stag between two, and unlimited hinds, boar and cull stags — the shared week rather than two separate trophies.
Two huntersPigs & pigeons
Boar after dark and pigeon over the mornings, with a long celebration lunch before the drive to the airport. The most social week on the calendar.
Four hunters minimum, eight at mostCull hunt, two to a guide
Three full days of management hunting — unlimited hinds, cull stags, boar and fallow does — paired two hunters to each guide.
Six hunters minimumCull hunt, one to one
The same management week with a guide to yourself, for hunters who would rather work the ground at their own pace.
Two to four hunters- Accommodation
- Airport transfer
- Meals and drinks
- Laundry
- In-field trophy preparation
- Guides
- Flights
- Hotels before or after the trip
- Ammunition
- Taxidermy and shipping
- Extra activities
- Gratuities
- VAT
Every hunt here is a fixed package rather than a running day rate — one number, agreed in writing before anything is booked. Tell us which hunt and when, and your host comes back with the exact figure.
The practical half.
Everything below comes from the ground itself, not from a brochure. Your host walks you through all of it once dates are set — this is so nothing on the list is a surprise.
- Which airport
- It depends on what you are hunting, and we tell you before you book. Madrid (MAD) is the best all-rounder — Gredos and Beceite ibex, and the simplest route to the finca from outside the EU. Málaga (AGP) sits closest to El Encinarejo and the southern ibex ranges. Barcelona (BCN) serves the north-east: Pyrenean chamois, mountain mouflon, Beceite ibex. Transfers are included and arranged once your tickets are booked.
- Firearms — start early
- Coming from outside the EU with your own rifle, begin the paperwork at least three months before you fly. Spain requires a legal document proving you own the firearm and many US states do not issue one; Canada requires an export permit of its own. We handle the Spanish import permit and the temporary documentation, and meet you at the airport to clear the rifle. If timing is tight, rifle rental is included in your day fee — ammunition at cost.
- Shot distances
- Expect between 100 and 500 metres depending on species and terrain, and we adapt the hunt to the range you are genuinely comfortable at. Our rifles carry ballistic turrets; if you bring your own we strongly recommend having them installed. Every rifle is checked and confirmed before the hunt starts, and shooting sticks are provided.
- What to pack
- The stag and fallow rut runs September into mid-October and a single day can swing from 35°C to 15°C before first light, so layers beat any one jacket. Winter mountain hunts drop below freezing with the real feel far lower on exposed ground — waterproofs top and bottom, broken-in boots, and a packable down layer for long glassing. Bring 8×42 binoculars or better and EU adapters. Hunting clothes are normal at the table.
- Gratuities
- Entirely at your discretion, and customary here: roughly €100–150 per hunting day for your guides, €50 per day for the lodge staff and the gamekeeper on the finca, and €100–150 per day for a local guide off it.
- Connectivity and meals
- Most of Spain has strong coverage but mountain ground can be thin, so an eSIM before you fly is worth having; there is Wi-Fi at the lodge and most hotels. Meals run late and long — lunch from 13:30, dinner kitchens opening around 20:00. On the finca we shape the timings around the hunt, and English is spoken throughout your trip.
Hunting in Spain, answered.
What can you hunt in Spain?
Fourteen species on this ground, each on its own season: all four Spanish ibex subspecies — Gredos, Beceite, South-eastern and Ronda — Iberian red deer, fallow and roe deer, Cantabrian and Pyrenean chamois, mouflon, Barbary sheep (aoudad) and wild boar, plus red-legged partridge and wood pigeon.
Is Spain good for hunting?
For mountain game above all — it is the home of the Spanish Ibex Grand Slam. Add the red-stag rut from September, driven montería from October to February, and boar, mouflon and aoudad all year, and there is something in season every month.
Can you hunt red deer in Spain?
Yes. Iberian red deer are hunted from 15 August to 14 February, and the rut runs from September into mid-October. Two of the hunts we host here are built around it — His & hers and Father & son — and red deer are among the game the hounds push on a driven montería.
Can I complete the Spanish Ibex Grand Slam from here?
Yes. Spain is the only country where you can take all four ibex subspecies — Gredos, Beceite, South-Eastern, and Ronda — each in its own mountain range. El Encinarejo works as a hosted base while we move you between the ranges. We can build the trip around a single ibex, a half-slam, or the full four.
What is a montería?
A montería is Spain's signature driven hunt: a large, organized day on which 25 to 50 posted shooters hold fixed pegs — puestos — while packs of Spanish hounds, the rehalas, push wild boar, red deer, and fallow deer through several hundred hectares of Mediterranean mountain scrub. The tradition is oldest and deepest in the Sierra Morena of Andalucía, and the season runs from mid-October to mid-February.
When is hunting season in Spain?
Red deer and fallow run 15 August – 14 February, with the red-stag rut around September. The four Spanish ibex subspecies are hunted autumn through spring (roughly 15 October – 31 May), and chamois from June into the winter. Wild boar, mouflon, and Barbary sheep are available year-round, and driven montería runs October–February. Exact windows vary by province and subspecies — we confirm dates for your year before anything is booked.
Can non-hunters and partners come along?
Absolutely. The lodge is a five-star finca with four large en-suite bedrooms sleeping up to eight, a pool, a bar, and an African-style boma — it works just as well for couples and mixed groups as for a serious mountain hunter. Non-hunters spend their days at the lodge, on the deck, or by the 150-hectare private lake.
Plan this hunt.
Tell us who is coming and what you are after — one ibex or the full slam. A host takes it from there.
We reply personally, never share your details, and there is no obligation.