FLAVOURS OF ROMANIA
13 days cultural tour

Danube Delta - Europe's Most Spectacular Wetland
Painted Monasteries - Unique Byzantine Art and Architecture
Medieval Towns of Transylvania

Europe's richest and most beautiful wetland ecosystem is found on Romania's Black Sea coast. After flowing 2,860 km across Europe, the river Danube spreads out into a spectacular delta. The variety of its unspoiled landscapes, the richness of its fauna - birds in particular - and its sand dunes have long attracted visitors. This unique natural habitat formed out of channels and lakes, floating islets ("plauri"), reed marshes, lianas, and forests of willow and poplar, shelters over 300 species of birds, some sufficiently rare to enjoy legal protection. The waters are home to over 100 different species of fish.

"Sweet Bucovina", so called by its inhabitants, is a land of ever-present history, tradition and culture. The Painted Monasteries, built in the 15th and 16th centuries to thank God for victories against invaders, are unique in the world. The beautiful landscape, vernacular peasant architecture, traditional folk music and costumes, carved wood artifacts and decorated Easter eggs all give continuing pleasure to visitors. The traditional gastronomy of the region, celebrated by visitors, is a further attraction.

Transylvania is the land "beyond the forests" (from the Latin "Trans silve"), a land of beauty and wonders. Its very name conjures up visions of thickly forested peaks, sweet waved valleys and sparkling streams, visions of high-roofed wooden churches, medieval towns, mysterious castles and a troubled history.

Day 1
Bucharest (40 km)
Meet and greet at Bucharest Otopeni airport. Drive to the center and take a tour of Bucharest - the old center and the University Square, well known since the 1989 Revolution. Welcome dinner in a restaurant and overnight in a 3* hotel.




 

Day 2
Bucharest - Tulcea - Crisan (275 km + 3 hours cruise)
Breakfast. Depart for the Danube Delta, arrival in Tulcea and cruise on Sulina channel to Crisan (packet lunch en route), a magnificent fishermen village in the heart of the Delta.
All human activities you'll see on the way are related to water and the river: rowing boats transport fish, sometimes even small animals, melons and water melons and even building materials. Boats are also "local cabs", crossing people from shore to shore. On the surrounding lakes, masses of swans and herons are ready for a snap.

Free time to enjoy the gorgeous view of the sunset over the willow forests and the purple reflections in the Danube.
Enjoy dinner and overnight in a rural guesthouse with all facilities.


 

Day 3, 4 and 5
Danube Delta in place
Spend these days exploring the secrets of Danube Delta by motor or rowing boat (eventually packet lunches will be provided instead of lunch). The boat will take you to narrow channels, where you will discover what the birdwatchers simply call "the paradise of birds". Depending on the season, you can expect to see Dalmatian and White Pelicans, Pygmy Cormorants, Purple, Squacco and Night Herons, Little and Great White Egrets, Spoon bill, Glossy Ibis, Swans, Ferruginous Duck, etc.
Raptors include the Black Kite, Osprey, White-tailed Eagle, Marsh Harrier, Hobby and Red-footed Falcon.


Terns include the Gull-billed, Sandwich, Black, White-winged Black, and Whiskered. Crakes and Warblers are present too. The very discreet human intervention allowed more than 1000 plant species to survive in the Delta.
White and yellow water lilies decorate the lakes. Forests of oaks stand covered by lianas, giving them the aspect of a tropical forest. You will also discover villages where fishermen continue living according to a centuries-old way of life. Each day, breakfast, dinner and overnight in a rural guesthouse.















Day 6
Crisan - Tulcea - Braila - Piatra Neamt (350 km + 3 hours cruise)
Breakfast. Cruise on Sulina channel from Crisan to Tulcea.
Departure to Bucovina, region of the Painted Monasteries. Traveling North, we enter an area of hills famous for the Panciu and Odobesti vineyards.

Lunch in a restaurant. Then continue to Piatra Neamt. Dinner and overnight in a 3* hotel.


 

Day 7
Piatra Neamt - Bicaz - Targu Neamt - Bucovina (190 km)
Breakfast. Continue towards Bucovina. Stop at the Izvorul Muntelui Lake for a one-hour cruise (weather permitting). Have lunch in a pretty restaurant.

Continue on to the fortified monastery of Neamt, still home to around 100 monks. Visit the monastery church built in 1497 by Stefan cel Mare (Stephen the Great).
In the evening arrive in a traditional village for dinner and overnight in a rural guesthouse in Bucovina.
 

Day 8
Discover Bucovina (60 km)
Breakfast. Discover Bucovina, land of the outwall frescoes painted monasteries. Visit Voronet Monastery, UNESCO Patrimony, the “Sistine Chapel of the East”. Continue with Monastery Humor to visit the monastery renowned for its exterior frescoes. Lunch in a guesthouse.
Drive to Marginea, a village famous for its black pottery considered to date back to the ancient Dacian period.

Go on with the Sucevita monastery, founded by the Movila family in the 16th century, whose exterior painting are considered "the testament of the old Moldavian art". Visit Moldovita monastery and a local egg decorator.
Dinner and overnight in a rural guesthouse in Bucovina.


 

Day 9
Bucovina - Vatra Dornei - Bistrita - Reghin - Sovata (290 km)
Breakfast. Our route leads westward towards Transylvania crossing the picturesque Bargau Pass - the "Borgo Pass" of Bram Stoker's novel "Dracula". We follow the route that Jonathan Harker, Van Helsing and others followed on their way to intercept and finally destroy the vampire Count.

Stop for lunch at the gothic Hotel Castle Dracula's restaurant and continue to the Szekler Land in Eastern part of Transylvania. Dinner and overnight in a 3* hotel in Sovata, a well known resort with over salted water lakes.
 

Day 10
Sovata - Praid- Corund - Sighisoara - Brasov - Bran (200 km)
Breakfast. Drive to Brasov, stopping in Praid to explore the historic salt mine. Continue to Corund, center of craft workers in the Szekler Land. Visit a small pottery workshop where you may purchase items directly from the producer. Arrival at midday in Sighisoara. Lunch in a restaurant.

After lunch, tour medieval Sighisoara (to its Saxon founders, "Schassburg"), an imposing fortified hilltop town dominating the valley below. Here you will see the house where Prince Vlad Tepes (historical prototype for Dracula) was born. Visit the historical museum in the Clock Tower. Drive to Bran. Dinner and overnight in a rural guesthouse.



Day 11
Bran - Brasov - Bran (70 km)
Breakfast. Visit Bran Castle, often wrongfully attributed to prince Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler)! Perched over a rock, the castle dominates the valley connecting Wallachia to Transylvania. Developed by Saxon settlers since the 13th century, this was once a vital trade route. Continue to Rasnov and visit the Saxon fortress Rasnov, located on a 150m high hill.

Drive to the city of Brasov (called by its Saxon builders "Kronstadt" - city of the Crown). Lunch in a restaurant. In the afternoon, explore the medieval town center, including the Merchants' Hall, the gothic Black Church, and the historic market place.
Return to Bran for dinner and overnight accommodation in a rural guesthouse.

 

Day 12
Bran - Predeal - Sinaia - Bucharest (180 km)
Breakfast. Departure to Bucharest. Stop in Sinaia, "the Pearl of the Carpathians", a mountain resort offering both sport and leisure facilities. Visit Peles Castle, former summer residence of the Romanian Royal Family, home to a large art collection. Lunch in a restaurant.

Drive to Bucharest. Late afternoon, short city tour with major highlights of the capital: the University Square, Lipscani Street (the former merchants' street), the Palace of the Parliament (exterior only).
Farewell dinner in a restaurant. Overnight in a 3* hotel.


 

Day 13
Bucharest (40 km)
Breakfast.

Free time for city sightseeing and shopping in Bucharest.
Transfer to Bucharest international airport for departure.
 

Duration	13 days / 12 nights
Lodging	rural guesthouses (ocasionally, bathrooms shared between tourists) and hotels
Notes	1. Rates do not apply in Easter period. 2. According to the opening hours for some visited sites (e.g. museums), this programme can be applied as it is if Day 1 is Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday or Sunday. If Day 1 differs, some visits or activities will be replaced consequently. 3. Price does not include: extra taxes for cameras and filming (requested in some places - e.g. the monasteries), personal drinks off the boarding, tips (optional).