Category: Traveller’s Guide

Today we invite you to Vatra Dornei in Bukovina, Northern Romania, a mountain resort famous for its ski slopes and a perfect place to spend winter holidays. Vara Dornei is also famous for the quality of its mineral waters that have been used ever since 1899 to treat various diseases. Bukovina’ s traditions and customs, however, are much older. Around Christmas, you can still see groups of carolers wearing traditional costumes. Women in Bukovina are well known for their cooking skills so a table with 12 dishes does not surprise anybody anymore.

A perfect holiday in Vatra Dornei starts on a ski slope, head of the Salvamont Mountain Rescue Service, Petru Ariciuc has said:

“There are three ski slopes in Vatra Dornei and one of them is equipped with floodlights. We also have snow canons and starting next season we’ll have a ski route network connecting the main three slopes. All three slopes have been provided with parking. We are going to expand the ski area by another 5 kilometers. It may not seem much, but in terms of easing traffic and the access to cable car transportation the difference will be notable. Spa tourism is in high demand. We have opened another two spa centers here one of which is a four-star facility with prices specific to a 3-star one.”

Vatra Dornei’s guesthouse offer is also attractive. Located in the middle of a forest, far from the hubbub of the ski slopes, the guesthouse we’re now going to present you has all that it takes to guarantee you a relaxing holiday. Its owner, Constantin Chetraru, has told us that he had guests from all over the world, Australia included:

” This is a very beautiful area and all our tourists – even those from Switzerland, France, Germany and Austria, countries famous for their mountains and landscape – are impressed with the warm welcome they get, with the people in Bukovina and the breathtaking landscape here. This year we have managed to set up a leisure center with lots of facilities for our customers. Right at the entrance we have a small salt mine pit, then there is an electronically controlled area, with a swimming pool with hydro-massage, beam lights and jacuzzi. We also have a massage area, a Finnish sauna and a gym. These are all located at the ground floor. On the first floor we have an Olympic bowling room with four lanes, a table tennis room, a leisure area, and a fitness area, while the top floor is devoted to those who love snooker, billiards, air hockey, darts, table football, chess. We offer our clients three types of access cards, for 60, 90 and 120 hours respectively. Fees are rather small and start from an hourly rate of 8 lei ( that is around 2 Euro) for the access card. “

Besides skiing, there are several other ways of spending time in Vatra Dornei, says the head of the Mountain Rescue Service Petru Ariciuc.

SOUNDBITE V.M.:” All three slopes are for medium level, so all our tourists can go skiing safely. There are certain areas, however where the level of difficulty is slightly higher, but these areas are very short. As for the equine tourism, there are several routes that are open even at wintertime and take one or two hours at the most. There are also routes for tourists who want to take walks and we plan to open the route to the Giumalau Chalet as well.“

For tourists in Vatra Dornei, a visit to the Egg Museum is a must. The museum’s owner, teacher Letitia Osinschi, tell us more about it:

SOUNDBITE V.F.: ”After representing Romania, Bukovina in particular, at international egg salons and exhibitions, I succeeded to set up this museum, which hosts the country’s most important egg collection, with more than 1,000 items brought from 79 countries from around the world, all countries with a long-standing tradition in egg painting. You can see here by yourselves an evolution of the egg painting technique. In the past the Bukovina eggs were decorated in a plain manner, with unrefined elements and with a single prevailing pattern, yet with the same colors and motifs that you can still find in Bukovina today, especially in the case of traditional carpets and costumes. Colors were obtained from plants, such as onion leaves and beetroot and even coal. “

You can also find some of these otifs at the guesthouses in Vatra Dornei. Their owners are eager to provide tourists with all the information they might need.

Albumita Preotescu is another guesthouse owner in Vatra Dornei:

SOUNDBITE V.F.:” Apart from offering visitors the opportunity to see the local customs and traditions, such as the goat and the bear, to name just a few, the holiday packages also include Bukovina evenings. At the entrance of the guesthouse there is a special area where tourists can find maps, leaflets and magazines. Not to mention were are always there to assist them with whatever they need.”

Vatra Dornei becomes very special around winter holidays but that doesn’t mean that once winter celebrations are over we can’t continue to celebrate. The beginning of the New Year provides fresh opportunities for having fun, says the head of the Mountain Rescue Service Salvamont Petru Ariciuc.

“The Snow Festivities have already been scheduled for late January and early February. The festivities will cover three or four weekends. On Fridays and Saturdays we will be having pop music concerts, while Sundays will be devoted to traditional music, with famous ensembles on stage. Ski competitions will also be held just like in the previous years. We also want to organize a couple of competitions fro students, as we want to get the schools here involved.”

We know our offer is hard to turn down, and for that you need to contact your tour operator. Early bookings mean generous discounts.

As Romania boasts several mountainous regions, you can go skiing in several charming places, which are famous for their traditions and the locals’ hospitality. The best known and also the most crowded ski resorts are those in Prahova Valley: Sinaia, Busteni, Azuga and Predeal. The numerous ski pistes, cable cars, ski lifts and snow cannons here, create the necessary conditions for beginners and experienced skiers alike to spend a perfect holyday. Radu Miscoci, the owner of a sports base in Sinaia has some tips for us to choose the right place to go skiing:

Radu Miscoci: “Valea Dorului” is extremely beautiful. I for one like the place a lot. You can also choose the slopes at ‘Cota 2000’ and ‘Cota 1400’. ‘Valea lui Carp’ is a ski run for experienced skiers, whereas ‘Drumul de vara” is perfect for beginners. There are two ski lifts in ‘Valea Dorulu’, two separate routes and you can actually enjoy very good skiing conditions here. You can rent snowboards only near the Telegondola in Sinaia. There are few runs for snowboarding and you need a lot of snow to be able to use them.”

In the evening, you can enjoy the offer of clubs or you can replace the skies with skates and go to the skating rinks, which are open in all resorts. Further north, at the foot of the Postavaru Massif, you can visit the resort of Poiana Brasov. It was set up in 1895, for the inhabitants of the city of Brasov. As early as 1906, Poiana Brasov had already been recognized as a winter resort and three years later, in 1909, it hosted the first winter competitions.

With the organization of the Winter University Games of 1951, Poiana Brasov became the first mountain resort in the country destined for winter sports, with a 24-km skiing area. Swimming or going to a sauna are some of the activities you can practice after going skiing. You can also try a massage or go to the gym.

In the west of the country you can ski as well, in Semenic, in the Sibiu area, or on Muntele Mic, in the Timisoara area. Dragos Pop, manager of the “Muntele Mic” company told us why this is a great destination for a winter vacation:

Dragos Pop: “Muntele Mic is the mountain resort with the highest elevation in the west of the country. We have three ski lifts, snow lasts from the middle of November until the middle of April. It is beautiful here and we have plenty of accommodation newly created. Starting this year, we have another novelty, a car parking lot up on Muntele Mic, which means you can reach the resort by car, not just by ski lift. Prices are affordable compared to other resorts: a 1-day ski pass is 50 lei, and one ride is between 1.5 to 3 lei. That would be one of our advantages, in addition to affordable prices for accommodation. We await tourists every year with lots of snow and good slopes, with the warmth specific to this area, and lots of sun on the ski tracks. ”

Even though Bukovina is best known for religious tourism, and visitors look mostly for the monasteries built by Stephen the Great, you can also ski in the Vatra Dornei area. Petru Grigoras, headmaster of a ski school in Vatra Dornei, gave us some details:

Petru Grigoras: “Vatra Dornei is one of the most important ski resorts in northern Romania. It attracts thousands of tourists every winter. In our ski school, we have the entire range of skiing and snowboarding activities. We offer both private lessons and group lessons. We have slopes for all levels and for all tastes. In Vatra Dornei we have at this point four ski tracks. Some have ski lifts and there is also a cable car. We also have flood lighting, as well as snow cannons. Vatra Dornei is a great place to visit.”

If you want to enjoy Christmas and the New Year party in a ski resort in Romania, now would be the time to do the bookings. Everyone in the area offering accommodation has announced they are 80% full, but we still hope to see you there.

Amusement parks make holidays unforgettable for children and grown-ups alike. Let’s find out next which are the most beautiful such parks in Romania. And we start our adventure in the center of the country, in Brasov county, where we invite you to discover the first park in Romania that included tree climbing among the activities taking place in the forest. That happened in 2006, one year after Cristina and Olivier Rebierea set up the Romanian-French company which, now, at the end of the year, is inviting you to take part in an active holiday.

Liliana Nimat is the administrator of the “Parc Aventura Brasov”: “Our offer is about sports and recreational activities in the open. This is a very pleasant way of spending one’s spare time with one’s family, friends and work colleagues. Our park covers 2.5 hectares, has 14 routes with progressive difficulty and includes suspension bridges and zip lines. Even during winter we have many tourists, especially from Israel. One condition when hiring our personnel is the knowledge of a foreign language: English, French or German.”

A mini zoo, a multi-sports ground, a climbing wall, a mini golf course, air castles, petanque- a specific French game known to Romanians from the film “Le gendarme de Saint Tropez” – these are some of the attractions in this amusement park. But the most interesting attractions are the routes.

Liliana Nimat: “The most adventurous route is the black one. It requires energy, force and technique. It’s a route for people older than 16. Each route is full of surprises and everyone can choose the route that best suits them. For instance there are people who spend a lot of time at work and need to do some sport. So they will choose a yellow or a green route, as they are easier, suitable for people without physical training. According to European norms, routes are marked by colors depending on their difficulty.”

Cezar Cotescu has combined his taste for adventure with his career as an architect as well as with the years he spent in Asia, and the result was the holiday village called “The Jderi Brothers- the Green Utopia”.

He takes refuge here quite frequently, saying that the holiday village is his second home, if not the first. At the end of the year people are enticed with many all- inclusive offers. After 14 years of investment, Cezar Cotescu makes the following “exotic” offer, far from the madding crowd, to a place in the Lotru Mountains, in the north of the Valcea county, in the middle of forests, surrounded by waters and wooded mountainsides.

“We have managed to recreate nature on a 2-hectare surface, because we love nature. We have planted more than 5 thousand trees and shrubs. We have created a small paradise where we built our small constructions. I offer you all an exotic holiday, where you can find life in its pure form at a high altitude. We have complex programs of 3 up to 7 days. For instance, for 100 euros per day you can benefit from a complex package that includes accommodation with full board and activities such as climbing, trekking, rafting and visits to nature reserves.”

Another attractive amusement park in Romania is the Balu Park, in Harghita spa and resort. Kristaly Peter is one of the park’s administrators: “Balu Park is the largest adventure park in Romania. We have a 1,000-meter long zip line, over a lake. The park offers opportunities for practicing 150 games. We have a skating rink and snow tubing facilities, which resemble the attractions in Aqua Parks. Our ski slopes are 7,300 m long. We also have 4 ski lifts. Tourists come to this park both in summer and winter”.

Another attraction of Romania is the Aqua Park in Arad, in the west, which was built from European funds and opened this year. The park covers 12,500 square meters.

Brancsik Zsolt is the deputy manager of the Arad Aqua Park: “The park is open all year long and has two compounds: indoors and outdoors. The indoor compound has three swimming pools, seven saunas, a restaurant, a gym and a medical center.”

The amusement and adventure parks in Romania offer lots of opportunities for spending the winter holidays here. So, don’t wait any longer, pick one and come to Romania!

Even if the weather is getting colder by the day, it does not mean mountain hiking is no longer an option. In fact, now it’s the right time for adventure tourism, a sector that has developed rapidly in the past years in Romania and the number of operators specializing in this type of tourism has grown. Outdoor Activity Coordinator Dan Panturu gave us a few hints about what the more adventurous tourists can do at this time of the year:

Dan Panturu: “The offer is rich. We are actually trying to get tourists out of their comfort zone and help them discover new things, to discover Romania as we know it. We’ve got all the necessary ingredients for great adventure tourism in Romania. We’ve got mountains, water, actually everything we need for outdoor activities.”

In the Rasnov or Brasov areas, in central Romania, in places such as Cheisoara, Lempes, Bunloc or Poiana Brasov, tourists have the opportunity to do hang-gliding in the mountains, to go zip lining or to climb up and down special nets. Here is Dan Panturu again:

Dan Panturu: “If we talk about outdoor sports, Romania is perfect for hang-gliding. This can be done with a professional trainer, who can help us go up and look at the world from high above. Also, people can fly extra light planes, which means they can fly over the mountains and take some great pictures. Another option is to fly in a hydrogen balloon, which can be yet another exceptional experience. If we talk about mountain sports, we can also mention zip lining or climbing.”

Another of Romania’s strengths are the fast mountain springs where people can do rafting or kayaking, not to mention the Black Sea, the perfect place for sailing and diving.

Dan Panturu: “We pass on to the water sports category, where there are lots of sports. I’d like to insist on rafting, which is an extraordinary sport sure to induce adrenaline rush, a sport that can be practiced on several rivers in Romania. I’d recommend the Buzau and the Jiu rivers, two interesting options. Buzau is the most interesting option for us because it is a river on which rafting can be practiced all year round, maybe less in winter. Speaking of water sports, let’s also mention kayak paddling, which can be practiced on the mountain rivers in Romania, yachting which can be practiced on the Black Sea, and diving.”

You can enjoy adventure trekking on less accessible mountain routes without having previous training or a special physical condition. Dan Panturu again:

Dan Panturu: “There are lots of options as regards outdoor sports. You can have a ride by off-road vehicles to difficult areas that you can’t reach by foot. Speaking of the mountains, let’s not forget mountain biking. ATV tours are also quite popular in Romania.”

More adventurous tourists in a better physical shape can also discover less known caves. Here is Dan Panturu with the details:

Dan Panturu: “But there are other options too. Why shouldn’t we go down into caves? Why shouldn’t we try out cave exploring? We’re fortunate from this point of view, because we have a lot of caves that can be visited. The Western Carpathian area is fabulous in this respect. In the central Brasov area there is quite an interesting cave, called “The Fortress Valley”, where you can have a guided tour. It is very exciting because you go into the cave on one side of the mountain and go out on the other side. It’s fabulous!”

There are qualified trainers with experience in mountain activities and there is also adequate equipment available. Climbing the mountains by foot to as far as an altitude of 2500 m is another activity available for tourists. In winter, you can enjoy cross-country skiing, alpine ski touring, and snowmobile touring, as part of one or several days’ programmes giving you the possibility of enjoying freedom and adventure.

Visitors could pick a destination for their winter holidays, or could simply consult some of the travel suggestions on offer for the spring and summer holidays of next year. For this reason on today’s show we will go through some of the most appealing such offers.

Marilena Stoian, the founding chair of the National Association for Rural, Ecological and Cultural Tourism, suggests a heavenly holiday in the countryside: “One way of celebrating the winter holidays is to spend Christmas and the New Year’s Eve in traditional villages, via our branches in Alba and Brasov counties. We have many offers in Covasna, Balvanyos, Valcea, Vrancea and nearly all of rural Romania. Our offers are available for next year as well. Even if prices are not still final, we’re trying to present some travel packages for 2014 in tourist and agri-tourist guesthouses”.

For instance, what should a normal family with two children choose? “I would tell them to go to Tulcinesti, near Targu Jiu. They can arrange accommodation there with an agri-tourist guesthouse. Breakfast consists of cheese and free-range eggs and homemade blueberry jam. They can retrace the steps of famous Romanian sculptor Constantin Brancusi, and even discover his works, the Endless Column, the Table of Silence and the Gate of the Kiss. They can even visit the house where he grew up. Village children are eager to teach them local carols. The next day, they can light a campfire and interact with the locals. If they extend their stay, they can take a ride on the horse-driven sleigh. We have French people over who admire Romanian traditions quite a lot, as well as German people who are quite fond of Sibiu and its surroundings, the Saxon villages there, and even tourists from Israel”.

Northern Romania, Maramures in particular, was richly represented among the travel offers at the tourism fair, ranging from those that address people who are keen on finding out more about traditional peasant households to those for winter sports lovers.

Cosmin Rohian is the representative of a tourist compound located here: “This year we also have New Year’s Eve packages on offer. Our room vacancy is only 10% at present, with prices ranging between 330 euros per person for a three-night stay up to 440 euros per person for a five-night stay with full board, ski pass, festive dinner on New Year’s eve and traditional dinner with folk music on January 1st. Moreover we want to promote our ski offers for the 2013-2014 skiing season. We have packages standing at 180 euros for four nights with half board, and ski pass. We have tourists visiting from Hungary, Germany and Belgium”.

In central Romania, in Harghita Spa, Kristaly Peter makes us the proposal of an adventurous holiday. The Balu Park, available for both grownups and children, has 11 marked tracks and a Tyrolean traverse cable. Measuring 985 meters, it is the longest such cable in central Europe.

Cosmin Rohian: “We organise team building sessions, we have a skating rink and a snow doughnut. A snow doughnut is in fact a snow-roller used for sliding. We also have ski tracks that are 7300 meters long and four T-bar ski lifts. The park is open between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. during winter. Most of our tourists are Romanian, but we also have visitors from Hungary and Britain. The American soldiers from the Miercurea Ciuc base also came here for training. “

A wonderful holiday has been offered to us by Camelia Goarna, owner of the Knights’ Temple Castle from Livezile, in Alba County. Here tourists have the opportunity to go for walks in the forest, do all sort of sports, extreme ones included, discover the secrets of the local cuisine and investigate the past of a castle that used to be a check point during the Austro-Hungarian empire and then a Romanian military barracks during the two World Wars.

Camelia Goarna gives us several reasons to spend our holiday in the area: “This is a tranquil area and tourists can have a luxury holiday in a medieval, rustic style. The furniture in all the rooms is made of wood and stone. Once here, you can visit the Turda Salt Mine, the Alba Carolina Fortress, the city of Cluj-Napoca and the Scarisoara Ice Cave. This castle dates back to the 1300s. It used to be a military barracks, then a mountain hunters’ barrack. It was later purchased by an investor from Brasov who refurbished it. The new building has been opened for 2 years and has 17 rooms.”

The last holiday offer today comes from Brancsik Zsolt, an assistant manager of the Aqua Park in Satu Mare: “This Aqua Park covers 12,500 sq m and is open daily, irrespective of the season. It has three interior swimming pools, a swimming pool for children and one for beginners. There are also seven saunas of 4 types, two Finnish sauna cabins, two infrared sauna cabins, two with steam as well as a saline one, a sports room, and a recently opened medical centre. We organise Christmas and New Year’s Eve parties and we have many surprises in store for our visitors.

Arsenal Park is located on the outskirts of Orastie, in Hunedoara county, in western Romanian, at equal distance from the Dacian fortresses from Orastie Mountains: Blidaru, Costesti, and Sarmisegetuza Regia.

In medieval times, Orastie Fortress survived the Mongol invasion, Ottoman sieges, the plague of 1783, and numerous medieval battles. Today, almost 90 hectares of forest await you for a unique experience: barracks life adapted for tourists. Petre Racovita, director of Arsenal Park, told us why it is worth going there:

Petre Racovita: “Arsenal Park is the only place in Romania with a military theme. In addition, Arsenal Park is also a museum of military technology, the largest in Romania. Our facilities make it a very attractive place for visitors. As a military museum, you can see there a very wide range of exhibits, from heavy combat vehicles, to tanks, rocket launchers, anti-air artillery, anti-tank artillery, cannons of all kinds, machine guns, and a wide range of military transport vehicles. In addition, everywhere, in rooms, in the restaurant, in the headquarters, we have all sorts of military objects, used by the army along the years. Accommodation is special as well, it is in line with the general idea of Arsenal Park. We have general villas, the highest level of comfort, we have colonel apartments, we have officer rooms, the equivalent of a usual hotel room, and we also have soldier rooms. Soldier rooms are also special, you can, for instance, sleep in a light armored vehicle or on a cannon, as well as in military barracks, with bunk beds, with a specific barracks atmosphere.”

Speaking of spending the holidays, the organizers provide special entertainment in the form of boot camp. It isn’t actual boot camp, but the guests still have to comply with military discipline and get used to some athletic exercise. All of them are meant to make people feel great. There is a short march, then an obstacle course. All the training is timed. There are also competitions between teams and platoons. Platoons have commanders who are responsible for them, and get punished on their behalf. Among the more challenging activities during training are jogging in pairs, jogging in a car tire pulled by a competitor, or jogging handcuffed to a comrade or with a gas mask on.

Petre Racovita, director of the complex, told us about the activities in the park:

Petre Racovita: “I believe that right now we are the location with the largest variety of activities, from military ones — as we are the only place in Romania which offers entertainment military training- to rides in military cars, paintball and air-soft gun battles, shooting real military weapons, shooting bows, and even crossbows. On top of this we have sports games, in sports yards, with night lighting, and we also have a minigolf court. Our customers can relax in the club, where we have pool tables, table tennis, chess, backgammon, poker, darts, air hockey, a very wide range of activities. For a year now we’ve had a modern spa center, because soldiers need to relax; we have a heated indoor pool, with the whole range of sauna, showers, relaxation rooms, massage cabinets, the whole range of wellness and fitness.”

The newest activity introduced at Arsenal Park are the enduro races, that involve motorcycling over very difficult terrain, on specific routes, in the Orastie Mountains. Tour guides can help tourists choose the proper routes, depending on their skill at handling a motorcycle.

If you have never been in the army, you have an opportunity to familiarize yourself with military terminology, and if you have been there, then you have the opportunity to remember it in a relaxing atmosphere. The reception is called the headquarters, the restaurant is called the mess hall, and the training gets adapted to your personal taste, if you are the adventurous type.

One of the most spectacular sites in these parts is Transalpina, a road winding through the mountains. Other attractions in Alba county include the Red Ravine, the Glacier in Scarisoara, the White Citadel, the Vidra Waterfall and the Snail Hill. Our journey started in the county capital of Alba Iulia, where we met our guide Emanuel Dragusin:

“I recommend tourists, whether they are from Romania or abroad, to start with a visit to the Vauban-style citadel Alba Carolina. Covering 100 hectares, this is the biggest fortification of this type in Romania and south-eastern Europe.”

The Alba Iulia fortress also stands out for the wealth of its sculpted decorations, says our host Emanuel Dragusin:

“The fortress has six extremely beautiful gates, three of which are located on its eastern side. Visitors can also see the change of guard, a unique ceremony in Romania, which has been introduced in 2009. Guards clad in 18th century uniform change round at the citadel’s third gate every day at 12 pm. Tourists enjoy the change of guard very much. The soldiers from the guard unit can also be seen at the other gates of the fortress as well. The show is all the more interesting and enjoyable to tourists as there are also thoroughbred horses taking part in the ceremony. Every Saturday throughout the tourist season, the change of guard is accompanied by cannon salvos, something unique in Romania.”

Another interesting fact about Alba Iulia is that it is home to the largest concentration of historical monuments in Romania, which are amassed here on Michael the Brave Street. You can visit them as part of guided tours, which are available in different languages, such as English, French, German and Hungarian. The fortress can be visited free of charge around the clock. In fact, only a few sites charge a visitor’s fee, such as the National Union Museum.”

Alba county is also a good place for skiing, as our guide, Manuel Dragusin, explains:

“These ski slopes are located in the Sureanu Mountains, which is an interesting place both in summer or winter. Because of the accumulation of clouds over the nearby Western Plain, there is a lot of snow in these mountains for a long period of time, almost half the year. So the slopes here are always covered in a thick layer of snow. We have 10 functional ski slopes fitted with ski lifts and chairlifts. The investments planned for 2014 are likely to turn this ski area into one of the biggest in Romania. The area is enclosed by three mountain summits above 2,000 meters in height. Tourists coming here have always enjoyed the breathtaking views of this mountain range and the perfect skiing conditions it offers.”

At the foot of these slopes some of the most experienced ski instructors as well as centres offering the best equipment are waiting for winter sports enthusiasts.

VM Daniela Florean is an ethnographer working at the Augustin Bena Cultural Centre in Alba Iulia who says that wherever you go in Alba County, you will find tourist attractions that are well worth visiting and will fill your heart with the joy of getting to know Romania’s past:

”Whether it’s literature, history or ethnography, Alba County has got loads of things to offer the passing tourist. The best time for tourists to get to know the region’s unknown side is during the regular feast days usually held on fixed dates every year. The best-known of these feasts is that held on Saint Elijah’s day, on Gaina Mountain. Gaina Mountain has become a household name not merely on account of the annual celebration held there, but also thanks to the famous female Alphorn players, who each year delight audiences with their Alphorn playing — sounds that come from afar, high up in the mountains.”

The ethnographer goes on to explain how the rural areas of Alba County are famous for their centuries-old traditional costumes, knapsacks and unique household items, things many of us may never have seen before or have long since forgotten:

“There have been projects to recreate traditional households, and one of these is located in Alba County’s Cetatea de Balta, a village rich in historical traditions dating back to the famous ruler Stephen the Great, who built a citadel there. This house museum only adds to the region’s picturesque attractions. It is a typical winemaker’s household, for the village is situated close to vast Jidvei vineyards. There you can see how wine used to be made in the olden days.”

These are just some of things that make a holiday in Transylvania one to remember.

We invite you on a trip to Targoviste, a small town in south-central Romania, which was once the Princely Court of the southern historical province of Wallachia, between 1396 and 1714.

Ovidiu Carstina, the director of the Princely Court museum compound in Targoviste to review some of the town’s tourist attractions: “The princely court museum compound consists of 14 different museums located in Targoviste or across Dambovita County. The most important site is the princely court, which was recently restored. Within the court’s grounds, visitors can see a lot of Middle Ages monuments, as well as a museum of printing and old Romanian books. This is a unique museum in Romania and the place where the first book in the Romanian-speaking regions was printed. The princely court is also interesting for the many monuments that have been preserved here. For example, the main princely church built in 1698 during the reign of Constantin Brancoveanu is 90% intact. Other highlights are Chindia Tower, a symbol of the town and the county of Dambovita, and the remains of the princely residence, which is a source of some very interesting stories and legends.”

Ovidiu Carstina also told us about other fascinating sites in Targoviste: “I also recommend the Museum of Art, which is very close to the Princely Court. The museum was opened in 2009 and is home to an important collection of art starting from the Middle Age until today. You will find here works by well-known Romanian painters such as Nicolae Grigorescu, Sava Heltia, Nicolae Tonitza and Gheorghe Petrascu. The medieval art collection, with its Brancoveanu-era exhibits, is extremely beautiful and interesting. Another site worth visiting is the History Museum, which hosts many valuable pieces which are unique in this area. The house where the painter Gheorghe Petrascu used to live and work is another must for visitors to the town. Also, an exhibition entitled ‘The Metamorphoses of a Place of Recollection’ has opened recently on the site of the former military base where the communist leaders Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu were tried and executed.”

While in Targoviste, it’s also worth going on a trip outside the town, as its surroundings are equally beautiful. Ovidiu Carstina tells us more: “The county of Dambovita boasts many beautiful museums, many of which have very interesting histories. One such place is the studio and house of Gabriel Popescu. A remarkable etcher, he was the founder of the Romanian etching and engraving school. Another place worth visiting, which lies in the northern part of the county, is the museum of mountain art in Pietrosita, a village which is itself worth a trip. Last but not least, I would like to recommend the Brancoveanu Palace in Potlogi, which is currently being restored and will soon open its doors to the public again. Visitors will be able to see what life used to be like at a medieval court during the time of Constantin Brancoveanu. These cultural and historical sites are complemented by a rich natural heritage, especially in the mountainous part of the county and around the town of Targoviste. Tourists interested in religious sites may visit the Dealu Monastery, where the head of the ruler Michael the Brave is buried, as well as the Archbishopric Museum in Targoviste, which has an outstanding collection.”

Targoviste is also a vibrant town full of restaurants and bistros serving traditional dishes and quality local wines.

For a few years now, Halloween has also been celebrated on October 31st in Romania. This fact has caused changes in how tourism agencies handle business, adapting to the new circumstances. They included in their offers haunted houses, bonfires, period balls, and traditional dance shows. Clubs in the big cities, such as Cluj, Brasov, Sibiu and Bucharest have already put up posters for special events, mostly involving vampires.

This year, the celebration is on a Thursday, and so the events extend to the weekend, on November 1 and 2. One excellent place to visit is Bragadiru Palace in Bucharest. This beautiful building, erected in 1905 based on the designs of the Austrian architect Anton Shuckerl, hosts a dinner with the Addams family. You are invited into the WonderUnderWorld hall, where you can party until dawn among graves, skeletons and spider webs. Outside in the palace garden there is an exhibition of costumes, where professionals stand ready to paint your face in patterns typical of this holiday.

You find the best Halloween celebrations in the heart of Transylvania, at Dracula’s castle, according to the organisers of the first edition of the Horror and Fantasy Film Festival, as Anca Gradinaru, a journalist and film critic explains: “Dracula is a hugely popular brand, of which Romanians have not managed to take advantage properly. In addition, there are very few horror and fantasy festivals in Romania, considering how dedicated and enthusiastic the audience is. We thought it would be a brilliant idea to have such a festival in Dracula’s castle, it has tremendous potential.”

Initially designed to last three days, the event now stretches over five. It is a big festival, with over 40 films, Anca Gradinaru says:

“It starts on 30 October, with Crypt animation live, animated horror, and a live band. It continues with a Halloween party and screenings of classic films as well as new productions and Romanian and foreign short films, a silent movie with a new soundtrack, and a lot of theme parties. We also hold an event in Bran castle, where we show the first Dracula film ever made, Nosferatu, followed by a Halloween party. We try to blend film, entertainment and music. We have two parties, one right on Halloween, with the Aria Urbana band, and another in the cellar of horror, a place especially created for the festival. We’ll make it really scary, but attractive at the same time. On Saturday we have another party at Bran. We have a tent set up there, which will also serve a lot of different foods. We encourage people to come in costume. We will also have competitions for best character, best vampire, and best zombie, alongside all kinds of other competitions with prizes.”

Brasov is usually teeming with tourists this time of the year. They come in all year long, but Halloween is especially popular. According to Anca Gradinaru, they come thanks to Dracula’s popularity:

“Hotels offer special packages for this festival, even though this is the first edition. We hope that more and more people will hear about this festival, banking on a well-known brand name, but also on the fact that we have a great variety of offers from the very first edition. Even a tourist who is not a horror film fan has lots of things to do. There is enough time to visit the area, which is magnificent, and is getting more and more popular. If we go abroad and mention Transylvania, it’s hard to meet someone who doesn’t wish to visit. It’s a magical land, and if people come to the festival, they can travel during the day and then catch a film at night, then join a party and get to know people. Around this time at Bran we promote tourism and socialising, which seems to me the perfect combination.”

David Jalea, a programme coordinator with a tourist agency in Brasov, has an alternative proposal:

“Around Halloween we have two special packages, two tours, one is four days, and the other is seven days. Foreign tourists especially are invited to come and discover Romania, both its cultural and historical sites, and its natural sites. Of course, during this time we offer them a lot of information about Vlad the Impaler, both history and legend. The highlight is the Halloween party. We believe that Transylvania is the ideal place to spend Halloween, especially in a medieval castle. Therefore we offer them a party in Corvinus Castle in Hunedoara, built in the 14th century. This is a private party exclusively for the members of the group. It has a medieval atmosphere, with knights, dances, light and fire shows, and a medieval dinner, just like the knights of yore used to have. Both tours include trips to Bucharest, Curtea de Arges, the castle in Poenari, the city of Sibiu, the fortifications of Sighisoara and Brasov, Bran Castle and Snagov monastery. These are the highlights of the tour.”

Wearing a Halloween costume is not obligatory, but recommended. There will be prizes for the best costumes. And, because this year’s party is in the third edition, we asked David Jalea about the feedback he got from the participants in previous years:

“Most of the people who visited us and used our services left with a great impression of Romania, were delighted with Romania’s tourist and cultural potential, and said their impression changed radically compared to what they expected before they got here. They loved the historical sites, the fact that we showed them the castles, the painted monasteries in Bukovina, cities such as Cluj, Sibiu, the Danube Delta, the Carpathian Mountains, local traditions and cuisine. During Halloween we have guests from the US, Canada, the UK, places where this holiday is traditional, but we also get tourists from Germany, Spain and South America.”

For a few years now, Halloween has also been celebrated on October 31st in Romania. This fact has caused changes in how tourism agencies handle business, adapting to the new circumstances. They included in their offers haunted houses, bonfires, period balls, and traditional dance shows. Clubs in the big cities, such as Cluj, Brasov, Sibiu and Bucharest have already put up posters for special events, mostly involving vampires.

This year, the celebration is on a Thursday, and so the events extend to the weekend, on November 1 and 2. One excellent place to visit is Bragadiru Palace in Bucharest. This beautiful building, erected in 1905 based on the designs of the Austrian architect Anton Shuckerl, hosts a dinner with the Addams family. You are invited into the WonderUnderWorld hall, where you can party until dawn among graves, skeletons and spider webs. Outside in the palace garden there is an exhibition of costumes, where professionals stand ready to paint your face in patterns typical of this holiday.

You find the best Halloween celebrations in the heart of Transylvania, at Dracula’s castle, according to the organisers of the first edition of the Horror and Fantasy Film Festival, as Anca Gradinaru, a journalist and film critic explains: “Dracula is a hugely popular brand, of which Romanians have not managed to take advantage properly. In addition, there are very few horror and fantasy festivals in Romania, considering how dedicated and enthusiastic the audience is. We thought it would be a brilliant idea to have such a festival in Dracula’s castle, it has tremendous potential.”

Initially designed to last three days, the event now stretches over five. It is a big festival, with over 40 films, Anca Gradinaru says:

“It starts on 30 October, with Crypt animation live, animated horror, and a live band. It continues with a Halloween party and screenings of classic films as well as new productions and Romanian and foreign short films, a silent movie with a new soundtrack, and a lot of theme parties. We also hold an event in Bran castle, where we show the first Dracula film ever made, Nosferatu, followed by a Halloween party. We try to blend film, entertainment and music. We have two parties, one right on Halloween, with the Aria Urbana band, and another in the cellar of horror, a place especially created for the festival. We’ll make it really scary, but attractive at the same time. On Saturday we have another party at Bran. We have a tent set up there, which will also serve a lot of different foods. We encourage people to come in costume. We will also have competitions for best character, best vampire, and best zombie, alongside all kinds of other competitions with prizes.”

Brasov is usually teeming with tourists this time of the year. They come in all year long, but Halloween is especially popular. According to Anca Gradinaru, they come thanks to Dracula’s popularity:

“Hotels offer special packages for this festival, even though this is the first edition. We hope that more and more people will hear about this festival, banking on a well-known brand name, but also on the fact that we have a great variety of offers from the very first edition. Even a tourist who is not a horror film fan has lots of things to do. There is enough time to visit the area, which is magnificent, and is getting more and more popular. If we go abroad and mention Transylvania, it’s hard to meet someone who doesn’t wish to visit. It’s a magical land, and if people come to the festival, they can travel during the day and then catch a film at night, then join a party and get to know people. Around this time at Bran we promote tourism and socialising, which seems to me the perfect combination.”

David Jalea, a programme coordinator with a tourist agency in Brasov, has an alternative proposal:

“Around Halloween we have two special packages, two tours, one is four days, and the other is seven days. Foreign tourists especially are invited to come and discover Romania, both its cultural and historical sites, and its natural sites. Of course, during this time we offer them a lot of information about Vlad the Impaler, both history and legend. The highlight is the Halloween party. We believe that Transylvania is the ideal place to spend Halloween, especially in a medieval castle. Therefore we offer them a party in Corvinus Castle in Hunedoara, built in the 14th century. This is a private party exclusively for the members of the group. It has a medieval atmosphere, with knights, dances, light and fire shows, and a medieval dinner, just like the knights of yore used to have. Both tours include trips to Bucharest, Curtea de Arges, the castle in Poenari, the city of Sibiu, the fortifications of Sighisoara and Brasov, Bran Castle and Snagov monastery. These are the highlights of the tour.”

Wearing a Halloween costume is not obligatory, but recommended. There will be prizes for the best costumes. And, because this year’s party is in the third edition, we asked David Jalea about the feedback he got from the participants in previous years:

“Most of the people who visited us and used our services left with a great impression of Romania, were delighted with Romania’s tourist and cultural potential, and said their impression changed radically compared to what they expected before they got here. They loved the historical sites, the fact that we showed them the castles, the painted monasteries in Bukovina, cities such as Cluj, Sibiu, the Danube Delta, the Carpathian Mountains, local traditions and cuisine. During Halloween we have guests from the US, Canada, the UK, places where this holiday is traditional, but we also get tourists from Germany, Spain and South America.”

In Romania, autumn ushers in images of storerooms filled with jars of pickled vegetables, jam and comfiture, and all sorts of other great tasting preserves that will see us through winter. Viewed as low season in tourist terms, autumn is nonetheless the best time for a holiday in the countryside.

To encourage the rediscovery of Romanian villages, the National Association for Rural, Ecologic and Cultural Tourism — ANTREC Romania, runs this early autumn a special programme called “Holidays in the Countryside,” in which various boarding houses from around the country enrol every year. We talked to Violeta Didilica, the manager of a guesthouse in the village of Ceahlău, Neamţ County, about their tourist offer.

“We have joined the ‘Holiday in the Countryside’ programme, organised and promoted by ANTREC. The best thing about our guesthouse is its location in a wonderful area, overlooking the Izvorul Muntelui Lake and Mount Ceahlău. Adding to this are, of course, our services: we provide accommodation, a meal plan in our restaurant, we have an outdoor sports court and an indoor sport and game area. Tourists can get involved in the local activities. We can take them to local sheepfolds to see how cheese is made and sample it. We can also take them hiking or walking. They get a taste of the quiet village life, with roosters crowing in the morning and everything.”

Depending on the amenities they offer, guesthouses in villages are rated as 2, 3, 4 or 5-star. But, regardless of your choice, you will be able to enjoy the peace of patriarchal life and sample traditional dishes cooked by the locals. Holidays in rural boarding houses do not exclusively address families, however. Many guesthouses also have facilities able to host workshops or team-building sessions.

“We cook traditional dishes, such as fish in fir-tree crust, which is specific to our area, particularly the smoked trout that we keep wrapped in fir-tree branches until it gets a special flavour. We also serve freshly delivered pot cheese and soft cheese and mutton pastrami, which are specific to the Neamt region. We offer 5-day packages with breakfast included for individual tourists and company employees on training courses. We have a conference room with wi-fi and all the necessary facilities for business seminars.”

Maramures is the perfect place for an autumn visit. Victoria Bernecaru, from the Association for Rural, Ecological and Cultural Tourism in Maramures:

“Everything is beautiful in autumn. Orchards are full of fruit, the forests are no longer green but red, yellow and rust coloured. You can find all these colours in the woollen fabrics painted by the women of Maramures. They use plants, tree bark and other natural substances to paint the fabrics. We teach our visitors how to paint their pullovers using these autumn colours. This is also the time when various jams are made, in particular quince jam, which is extremely tasty. Apple juice is also made around this time, and is a perfect accompaniment to traditional dishes. Our visitors can also learn how to cook such dishes from Maramures. In fact, all kinds of preserves are being made in preparation for the winter season. Our guests will be treated like family, and taught how to paint, cook and make their own winter clothes.”

No matter where you spend your holiday, whether in Transylvania, Maramures, Bukovina or Wallachia, you can always purchase authentic Romanian objects and products you can take back with you, from smoked sausage to pickles, honey, jam, home-made sweets, wine, bread and cheese to hand-crafted objects.

This October, the Iasi City Hall organizes a number of cultural, humanitarian, commercial and sports events in addition to the celebrations put together by the Bishopric of Moldavia and Bukovina to mark the day of St. Paraskeva, the patron saint of Moldavia.

This October, the Iasi City Hall organizes a number of cultural, humanitarian, commercial and sports events in addition to the celebrations put together by the Bishopric of Moldavia and Bukovina to mark the day of St. Paraskeva, the patron saint of Moldavia.

Among them are the Promenade of Vintage Costumes, the annual Writers Union Awards of Iasi, the Rose of Moldavia Folklore Festival, free open air concerts, the Autumn Fair and Wine Celebration, sports competitions, and a superb fireworks show for everyone who visits Iasi on October 15. We invited two of the organizers to talk to us today: Victoria Epurean, a travel agent, and Sebastian Buraga, spokesperson for the Iasi municipality.

Victoria Epurean accompanies tourists every month on a free tour of the city: “In this period, the Center for Tourist Information organizes a contest, ‘Get to Know Iasi’, with support from students from Cuza University. We have a free tour on foot, every Wednesday, from 9 to 11, introducing the historical center of Iasi. It includes 20 sites and interesting stories about the city. We started with locals who thought they knew the city, but realized that they didn’t really know it when they took the tour. We also had foreign guests, people in town for both business and pleasure. They were impressed by our history, by our many churches. They loved the historical center, and the area around the Palace of Culture. Many of them went to the National Theater after restoration, and were amazed. We have a lot of monuments, such as the National Theater, the House of the Union, Pogor House, and the monasteries, both in town and outside it, which have to be visited.”

The Palace of Culture, which started being built in 1906, the Three Hierarchs Monastery, documented since 1635, the Metropolitan Bishopric, Golia Monastery, even Union Plaza, are sites that come highly recommended from Victoria Epurean. There are also fine museums, such as the Museum of the Union and Pogor House, where the Junimea literary society had its headquarters. The Days of Iasi events also include all kinds of exhibitions and interactive activities for young people. One of the special events is the Parade of Period Costumes.

Victoria Epurean: “This is an event held every year by tradition. It is based on the history of Iasi. Stephen the Great Boulevard used to be known as Noble Road, and that was the promenade for noble women. They want to revive that atmosphere, and bring back the period costume promenade. There are also events relating to the history of the city, such as the Jam Fair at Golia Monastery, where they have the best water in town. They have two street fountains there, and people get the water for making the best jam. This is an annual fair, competing for the most interesting jam, such as onion, rose petal, or even chili pepper jam. It’s worth checking out.”

Sebastian Buraga, spokesperson for the municipality of Iasi, told us about the long tradition of celebrations of the city: “For over 10 years now, Iasi has been the capital of Christian Orthodoxy in south eastern Europe, and the day celebrating Saint Paraskeva has become very important in the Romanian Orthodox space. This is the city with the biggest pilgrimage in Romania, with as many as 800,000 pilgrims visiting Iasi between October 7 and 15. Other significant events are the celebrations around the founding of the city. The idea came up first in the 1920s and ‘30s. They had important fairs in the city back then. They revived this month of Iasi together with the Bishopric of Moldavia and Bukovina, along with the celebration of Saint Paraskeva, and it was decided to celebrate the city’s days, too.”

Craftsmen gather around this time and hold demonstrations or mount exhibitions where you can buy the objects they make. They have pop and traditional music concerts every evening. There is also a military parade with torches, they have theater plays as part of the International Theater Festival, as well as poetry and photography evenings.

These are only some of the alternatives you have this month in Iasi, according to Sebastian Buraga, spokesperson for Iasi municipality, who offered us a rich selection for all tastes: “These are events referring to the secular side of the celebrations, as well as to the spiritual side. If you were a foreign tourist, it is probable that the first point of reference is spiritual. One should not omit the fact that the day of St. Paraskeva is a special event. From this point of view, this event is up to the level of the pilgrimages made by the Greek Catholics in France or Italy. Of the secular events, the first I would mention is the Wine Fair, a traditional event for everyone. It is similar to Oktoberfest, but with wine, not beer. The most important event we want to bring to the attention of public opinion is the Night of Personalities. This is dedicated to great personalities from Iasi. We introduce the most important people, who made a significant contribution nationally and internationally, with their activities from the previous year. I want to officially emphasize that we want to be the European Capital of Culture in 2021. As a result, we have to push forward the cultural and spiritual frontiers of Iasi. Alongside special organizations, the media and academics, we hope to achieve this goal in 2021.”

In the hope we have convinced you to visit Iasi during its days of celebration in October, stay tuned for more of our tourist destinations in the coming weeks.

They visited 3 areas covered by regional broadcasters of the public Radio – Gorj, Timis and Cluj Counties. At the end of their holiday, Elena Kurbanova said:

Elena Kurbanova : “How many places we’ve seen, how many things we’ve been told about this country?! In such a short time, we’ve found out a lot, our programme has been very rich. We wanted to see all that was to be seen. During our holiday we visited three regional studios of Radio Romania in the cities of Craiova, Timisoara and Cluj-Napoca. These stations’ editors told us many things about the establishment of their radio stations, their work and the prospects of improving radio broadcasting. They showed us how broadcasts were prepared, they took us to their studios and concert halls. It was important for us to see all that is linked to radio broadcasting because we came to Romania by participating in the contest devoted to the 85th anniversary of Radio Romania, to be celebrated on November 1st 2013.”

Certainly, our listeners’ trip was not confined to visiting regional studios. The museums, both the open air ones and the ones hosted by famous buildings were a priority of the winners.

Elena Kurbanova said that during their journey they had visited open-air ethnographic museums with unique peasant houses, households, wooden churches built from the 15 century to the early 20th century.

Elena Kurbanova : “We visited the Cartianu half-fortified house and the Museum of Curtisoara in Gorj County, the Banat Village Museum in Timisoara and the ethnographic park in Cluj-Napoca. Worth mentioning is our visit to the sculpture compound of Constantin Brancusi, in Targu Jiu, the Gorj County Museum and the Art Museum in Targu Jiu, the Art Museum in Timisoara, which displays works by renowned Romanian painters, including Corneliu Baba’s paintings. I was impressed by his portraits of composer George Enescu. The 1989 Revolution Museum in Timisoara is quite remarkable. The museum exhibits, the historical testimonies on show there are very moving. We also visited wonderful parks such as the charming rose park in Timisoara and the Botanical Garden in Cluj- Napoca. I was greatly impressed by the salt mine in Turda. We stayed there for one hour; we went down to 120 m altitude and saw the underground lake. What is unique is the fact that the salt mine has been open since 1271.”

Elena Kurbanova said she is a great music lover, so she hadn’t missed any musical event in the places she had visited. Luckily, there were many such events.

Elena Kurbanova : “As a great music aficionado, I wanted to hear Romanian music, Romanian songs live and my wish was fulfilled with the help of my Romanian friends. We attended folk festivals in Baia de Fier, Gorj County and in Union Square in Cluj-Napoca. There we had the opportunity to listen to incendiary traditional songs with performers from all regions of Romania. We also danced a circle folk dance, we danced whole-heartedly. Complying with our request, they took us to a concert of the Banatul Philharmonic Orchestra in Timisoara, where we had the happy opportunity of listening to the wonderful music of the brilliant composer George Enescu. We didn’t miss modern Romanian music either. In Cluj-Napoca, we went to the concert of the Nightlosers band. I liked the blend of genres: rock, blues and Romanian traditional elements.”

Probably used to the architectural landscape of their native country, whose population is predominantly Muslim, Elena and Igor, Orthodox Christians, were impressed by the large number of churches and Romanians’ attitude towards the church.

Elena Kurbanova: “I’d like to mention the serious and pious attitude of the Romanian people towards religion. We’ve seen very beautiful churches here, in every village and there are a lot of churches in towns. There are very old churches from the 15th and 16th centuries. It is important that they are very well preserved and the icons, their decorations, the frescoes are simply unique. We were greatly impressed by the monasteries we visited: Tismana, Crasna and Polovragi in Gorj County, the St. Ana Monastery in Orsova and the Nicula Monastery in Cluj County. Romanians have deep respect for their historical monuments. The historical centers of Timisoara and Cluj are simply unique. The 15th-17th century squares and buildings are admirable. I, for one, liked Union and Victory Squares in Timisoara.”

Our guests had the chance to become familiar with the Romanian traditional cuisine and wines.

Elena Kurbanova :“I liked the highly seasoned forcemeat balls and the oyster mushroom salad. Frankly speaking, I can’t remember many names of dishes; unfortunately, I haven’t written them down. And of course, I’ve liked Romanian wines, which Romanians are proud of, with good reason. We visited the Recas wine cellars and took part in wine tasting. The Romanian cuisine is very interesting and original. They use various spices, which change the taste of dishes. Then, the display in plates was unique, I could say. The dishes in plates were natural art works and we were sorry to destroy them. Everything was perfect. We are very content.”

Elena and Igor promised us they would recommend Romania as an ideal tourist destination to all their friends and acquaintances. Worth mentioning is that our listeners had visited lots of other countries before they came to Romania. In addition to the usual tourist packages that you can purchase from travel agencies, the contests run by RRI are a good opportunity for you to visit Romania. So you have to see what contest comes next and give the correct answers.

The lack of spare time and the city’s daily hustle and bustle have along the years taken their toll on tourism, creating a fresh concept, that of city-break. It’s already common knowledge that a couple of days spent in a new tourist destination can recharge your batteries for another workweek. In recent years, Romania has managed to tailor its travel offer in order to meet this modern request.

The representative of the National Travel Agencies Association in Romania, Cosmin Marinof, has more on the issue: “Sibiu, in central Romania, is a groundbreaker in this field, being the first Romanian city to become European Capital of Culture, in 2007. Due to that success, city-breaks are now products of increasing interest for both local and foreign tourists. Other cities, like Brasov, and more recently Bucharest have followed suit. Bucharest, particularly in summer, is full of tourists visiting the capital or hanging around bar gardens in the Old City Centre. Another first in Romania is also related to Sibiu, which became the first city in this country to have an official Christmas market. Its example was later followed by other cities like Bucharest. Spring and autumn are, in our opinion, the most appropriate seasons to visit a city. The most visited three cities in Romania are Brasov, Sibiu and Cluj, followed closely by the towns of Sinaia and Sighisoara. Historical places like Brasov, Sibiu and Sighisoara are ranking first among the preferences of our tourists. An average price for two nights in a guesthouse (BB) stands at some 50 euros.”

A report issued late last year shows that the largest number of foreign tourists who visited Romania during that period came from Hungary and Bulgaria, accounting for 32.3% and 19.7% of the total number of tourists, respectively. Tourists from Hungary are mainly visiting the Western Romania and the regions with a Hungarian-speaking majority. Visitors from Bulgaria prefer the major cities as they mainly come on business in Romania. Other countries well represented in terms of tourists are Germany, Italy and Poland, visitors from these countries accounting for 9.5%, 7.2% and 7.1% of the total number of foreigners coming to Romania, respectively.

Also, some 100,000 foreign visitors a year are interested in the Romanian health services, mostly spa treatment. Most tourists who fall into this category go to Covasna and Herculane to undergo treatment for heart and rheumatism problems. Most of them come from Israel, Germany and more recently, from Italy.

Cosmin Marinof tells us how Romania has adapted to this new demand and what city-break offers include: “A recent growing tendency is the development of wellness and spa type hotels, with Transylvania leading this trend. Most of these hotels have emerged in the western part of the country, near the towns of Targu Mures and Medias, which attract many foreign tourists. Last but not least, there are many city-break offers for the seaside, especially in the resort of Mamaia. We had a lot of such tourists in 2012 and already have many bookings for this year.”

As Cosmin Marinof has pointed out, you should take advantage of the fact that spring has finally arrived in Romania and nature has come back to life, making everything look beautiful. At this time of the year, hotels and guesthouses, including on the Black Sea Coast, are getting ready for the Labour Day and Orthodox Easter holidays with interesting packages. Travel agents also provide customised tourist packages including flights, transport to hotels, accommodation, optional trips and visits to tourist and cultural sites, as well as attendance of various sports and cultural events.

The lack of spare time and the city’s daily hustle and bustle have along the years taken their toll on tourism, creating a fresh concept, that of city-break. It’s already common knowledge that a couple of days spent in a new tourist destination can recharge your batteries for another workweek. In recent years, Romania has managed to tailor its travel offer in order to meet this modern request.

The representative of the National Travel Agencies Association in Romania, Cosmin Marinof, has more on the issue: “Sibiu, in central Romania, is a groundbreaker in this field, being the first Romanian city to become European Capital of Culture, in 2007. Due to that success, city-breaks are now products of increasing interest for both local and foreign tourists. Other cities, like Brasov, and more recently Bucharest have followed suit. Bucharest, particularly in summer, is full of tourists visiting the capital or hanging around bar gardens in the Old City Centre. Another first in Romania is also related to Sibiu, which became the first city in this country to have an official Christmas market. Its example was later followed by other cities like Bucharest. Spring and autumn are, in our opinion, the most appropriate seasons to visit a city. The most visited three cities in Romania are Brasov, Sibiu and Cluj, followed closely by the towns of Sinaia and Sighisoara. Historical places like Brasov, Sibiu and Sighisoara are ranking first among the preferences of our tourists. An average price for two nights in a guesthouse (BB) stands at some 50 euros.”

A report issued late last year shows that the largest number of foreign tourists who visited Romania during that period came from Hungary and Bulgaria, accounting for 32.3% and 19.7% of the total number of tourists, respectively. Tourists from Hungary are mainly visiting the Western Romania and the regions with a Hungarian-speaking majority. Visitors from Bulgaria prefer the major cities as they mainly come on business in Romania. Other countries well represented in terms of tourists are Germany, Italy and Poland, visitors from these countries accounting for 9.5%, 7.2% and 7.1% of the total number of foreigners coming to Romania, respectively.

Also, some 100,000 foreign visitors a year are interested in the Romanian health services, mostly spa treatment. Most tourists who fall into this category go to Covasna and Herculane to undergo treatment for heart and rheumatism problems. Most of them come from Israel, Germany and more recently, from Italy.

Cosmin Marinof tells us how Romania has adapted to this new demand and what city-break offers include: “A recent growing tendency is the development of wellness and spa type hotels, with Transylvania leading this trend. Most of these hotels have emerged in the western part of the country, near the towns of Targu Mures and Medias, which attract many foreign tourists. Last but not least, there are many city-break offers for the seaside, especially in the resort of Mamaia. We had a lot of such tourists in 2012 and already have many bookings for this year.”

As Cosmin Marinof has pointed out, you should take advantage of the fact that spring has finally arrived in Romania and nature has come back to life, making everything look beautiful. At this time of the year, hotels and guesthouses, including on the Black Sea Coast, are getting ready for the Labour Day and Orthodox Easter holidays with interesting packages. Travel agents also provide customised tourist packages including flights, transport to hotels, accommodation, optional trips and visits to tourist and cultural sites, as well as attendance of various sports and cultural events.