Highlights of Romania: Beyond Transylvania

Our journey begins in Romania’s energetic capital, Bucharest, where we will have a welcome dinner to meet our fellow passengers and tour leader.

The centre of Romania’s cultural and artistic development for centuries, Bucharest is home to a rich mix of classical, Art Nouveau and communist era architecture and includes amongst its impressive landmarks the “People’s House”. The world’s largest parliament building, built during the reign of Nicolae Ceausescu, this vast structure houses the country’s Senate and Chamber of Deputies, three museums and, allegedly, the world’s largest international convention centre. We’ll take in this iconic landmark and the city’s medieval heart on a full day tour.

Departing the city this morning we head north, towards Oltenia and the imposing mountains of the Carpathian ranges. Our first visit of the day will be to the World Heritage setting of Horezu, whose 17th century monastery and traditional ceramics have both been recognised by UNESCO. A tour of the stunning Brancovenesc style monastery and a local pottery workshop will then be followed by a late afternoon visit to the historic village of Maldaresti, before we complete our journey to this evening’s impressive accommodation, a 300-year old manor.

Crossing the southern Carpathian Mountains today we journey along the famed King's Road, or as it is better known, the Transalpina (weather and date dependent). Ascending up to 2,000 metres this is the highest tarmac road in the country and offers up some spectacular vistas down into Transylvania. Weather permitting we’ll take a short walk amongst the high valleys of the Parang Mountains today, before descending by road down to the shepherds’ villages of Jina and Poiana Sibiului and then on to our final stop in Sibiu.

Straddling the banks of the Cibin River, Sibiu provides one of the highlights of our journey. One of the country’s most important cultural centres, it is home to some of the best preserved historical sites anywhere in Romania and in 2007 was designated as European City of Culture. A walking tour this morning will take in some of its highlights, before we then depart for the spectacular salt mines of Turda and the wine cellars of “La Salina”. We will arrive in Cluj for a free evening.

After a morning walking tour of Cluj, the unofficial Transylvanian capital, we then continue by road north towards Maramures. Renowned for its beautiful UNESCO wooden churches and colourful traditional attire, this is Romania at its most traditional and captivating. Stopping in Breb, considered one of the most authentic of Maramures’s fairytale villages, we’ll enter a world steeped in the customs and folklore of its medieval past, a world which writer William Blacker once described as ‘a country frozen in time’. We will have time in the late afternoon to explore the village on foot and enjoy dinner prepared by our guesthouse hosts in their traditional house.

The colourful tombstones and jolly artwork of the extraordinary ‘Merry Cemetery’ of Ion Stan Patras is one of Romania’s most unique attractions. Based in the village of Sapan?a it can date its colourful origins back to the 1930s, when a local artist began sculpting its first decorative tombstone crosses. Continuing to Sighetu Marmatiei we then visit the ‘Memorial of the Victims of Communism and of the Resistance’, a former prison that today houses one of the most remarkable museums on this theme in Europe.

Departing Breb this morning we drive first to the Orthodox village of Ieud, where we visit the oldest wooden church in Romania. Then we cross the Carpathian Mountains via the Prislop Mountain Pass, heading into the neighbouring province of Bucovina with its UNESCO listed painted monasteries. This afternoon we visit the 17th century Gothic and Byzantine splendours of the Sucevita Monastery, one of the last of its kind to be painted in the famous Moldavian style of exterior painting. We spend another night in a traditional homestay, sampling local cuisine and taking in the wonderful rural setting.

Moldovita Monastery is our first port of call this morning. Built in 1532, its exquisite gold and deep blue frescoes are considered amongst the best preserved of the region’s spectacular painted churches. A visit to the workshop of Glicheria Hretiuc then provides a chance to enjoy the elaborate art of egg painting, before we continue on to visit the Voronet Monastery, the ‘Sistine Chapel of the East’. Return to Sucevita by way of the black ceramic workshop in Marginea Village to see the craftsmen at work.

Leaving Bucovina behind today we drive deeper into the historical landscapes of Moldavia, heading first for the town of Targu-Neamt, where a local cookery workshop will introduce us to the savoury delights of traditional sausage-making. After sampling our efforts and trying some local cheeses, we then drive to Agapia Monastery, where we’ll see the impressive frescoes by the Romanian master, Nicolae Grigorescu. Continuing west through the Moldavian villages of Varatec, Valae Arini and Valea Seaca, we end the day in the city of Piatra-Neamt, surrounded by the peaks of the Eastern Carpathians.

The drive into Transylvania today takes us through the impressive limestone cliffs of the Bicaz Gorges, whose towering walls reach some 350 metres in height. At Lacu Rosu (Red Lake) we enjoy lunch and a gentle walk around the area before continuing to Sighisoara. Arriving later this afternoon we then visit Sighisoara’s UNESCO citadel and wander its narrow cobbled streets, soaking up the character and charm of a town that is steeped in the legend of Vlad Tepes, the bloodthirsty Wallachian prince who gave birth to the vampire legend.

With a Saxon heritage that is a direct result of colonisation by German settlers in the 13th century, the Transylvanian village of Viscri is one of the most famous in Romania. Inscribed on UNESCO’s World Heritage List, its fortified church and timeless cobbled streets sit amongst a rural landscape that takes you back to a Romania that existed pre 1900. We enjoy a horse cart ride through the surrounding pastures and forests of the Transylvanian Hills, before taking some time to explore the church and the village. Tonight, we will stay in one of the traditional Saxon houses to delve deeper into this well-preserved way of life.

We will have some free time in Viscri before turning south this morning to the city of Brasov, whose colourful medieval centre is one of the best-preserved in Romania. Surrounded by the Southern Carpathians, the city is home to the celebrated Gothic edifice of the Black Church, at one time the largest of its kind anywhere between Vienna and Constantinople. We will go on a city tour before enjoying a free evening.

This morning we transfer to the nearby village of Bran, the location of the impressively imposing citadel of Bran Castle. Built in the 14th century and renovated during the 19th century by the Romanian royal family, the castle has long been associated with Bram Stoker’s famous creation, Count Dracula. Returning to Brasov this afternoon there will be time to enjoy the rest of the day at leisure before enjoying a final dinner together at a local restaurant.

After some free time this morning we transfer back towards Bucharest, following the spectacular Prahova Valley through the craggy mountains. A short stop in Azuga provides an opportunity to visit the cellars of the official supplier of sparkling wines to the royal household, with lunch and wine tasting included. Following lunch we’ll then wander to a viewpoint overlooking Peles Castle in Sinaia, the former summer residence of the Romanian royal family, before heading straight to Otopeni airport in Bucharest where the tour ends.