YOLO TOURS
ROMANIA

​Highlights

​​

• Visit Bucharest and the famous regions of Transylvania, Bucovina and Maramures

• Travel through the beautiful countryside & explore traditional villages

• Learn about the history from an expert local guide

• Visit Peles Castle - the most beautiful castle in Romania

• Explore the famous Bran Castle and learn about the legend of Count Dracula

• Visit the famous UNESCO Painted Churches of Bucovina

• Take a Steam Train ride and visit the world famous Merry Cemetery in Maramures

 

 

          

Itinerary

​

 

Day 1. Airport pick-up - Bucharest City Tour & Accommodation



Visit inside Parliament Palace - Built by Communist Party leader, Nicolae Ceausescu, the colossal Parliament Palace is the second largest administrative building in the world after the Pentagon. The interior is a luxurious display of crystal chandeliers, mosaics, oak paneling, marble, gold leaf, stained-glass windows and floors covered in rich carpets.

​
Visit inside Village Museum - Founded by royal decree in 1936, this fascinating outdoor museum, the largest in Europe, covers some 30 acres on the shores of Lake Herastrau in Herastrau Park. It features a collection of 50 buildings representing the history and design of Romania's rural architecture.​

Walking tour Historical Center of Bucharest - Perhaps the city's unique charm can be best observed in the area known as Lipscani, which consists of a jumble of streets between Calea Victoriei, Blvd. Bratianu, Blvd. Regina Elisabeta and the Dambovita River. A once-glamorous residential area, the old city centre is now slowly being refashioned into an upscale neighborhood.



​

Day 2. Bucharest - Sinaia Monastery - Peles Castle - Brasov Tour & Accommodation

 

Sinaia Monastery: Visit the Orthodox Monastery of Sinaia also called the Cathedral of Bucegi Mountains. It was the first construction in the area of the present mountain resort being a valuable Romanian religios site and architectural monument built at the end of the 17th century.

 

Peles Castle: Located in Sinaia (44 km from Brasov), it is considered by many one of the most beautiful castles in all Europe. In the natural back drops of the Carpathian Mountains the castle is a masterpiece of German Renaissance architecture.

 

Brasov Tour: Fringed by the peaks of the Southern Carpathian Mountains and resplendent with gothic, baroque and renaissance architecture, as well as a wealth of historical attractions, Brasov is one of the most visited places in Romania.

Tour highlights: Black Church, Citadel of Brasov, Ecaterina's Gate, White Tower, Black Tower, Council Square, City Hall and Palace of Justice.

​



Day 3. Brasov - Bran Castle - Rasnov Fortress - Brasov free time & Accommodation

 

Bran Castle also known as the 'Castle of Dracula': Discover one of the most famous sights in Romania, a medieval dwelling dating from the 14th century. The legend about Dracula, Stoker's story is based on the life of Vlad Tepes/Vlad the Impaler (1431-1476), a ruler revered by Romanians for standing up to the Ottoman Empire. Known as one of the most dreadful enemies of the Turks, Vlad started organizing the state and enforcing the law by applying death penalty and impaling all those he considered enemies.

 

Rasnov Fortress: Approximately halfway between Brasov and Bran, lies the town of Rasnov, which was founded around 1225 by German Teutonic Knights. Rasnov’s impressive fortress - was built in the 14th century to protect the people of Rasnov and surrounding villages from the numerous invasions happening at the time. During periods of war, the townsfolk would pick up their cattle and retreat into the fortress

​



Day 4. Brasov - Biertan (UNESCO) - Sighisoara Tour (UNESCO) & Accommodation



Fortified Church of Biertan (UNESCO) - The architectonic ensemble from Biertan impresses by a harmonious matching in position, by its aesthetic and historic value and especially by the original substance preserved since the end of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century, characteristics which determined its inclusion on The UNESCO List of World Patrimony. **After visiting the church stroll around the village, you will really feel that you have traveled back in time.

Sighisoara (UNESCO) - Founded by German craftsmen and merchants known as the Saxons of Transylvania, Sighisoara is a fine example of a small, fortified medieval town which played an important strategic and commercial role on the fringes of central Europe for several centuries.
Tour highlights: The Clock Tower & History Museum, The Church on the Hill, House of Dracula, The pupils roofed stairways.





Day 5. Sighisoara - Bicaz Gorges - Red Lake - Bucovina: Voronet Monastery (UNESCO) & Accommodation

​

In the morning take the road that slices through the Bicaz Gorges in order to cross from Transylvania to Bucovina. This road is among Romania's most staggering and spectacular. The gorge twists and turns steeply uphill for three miles, cutting through sheer 1,000-foot limestone cliffs on its journey through the mountains. Enjoy your lunch at a little restaurant with a view of the Red Lake and afterwards if you have some bread left you can feed the ducklings.

 

The Red Lake is a natural storage dam lake and is situated at the foot of Hasmasu Mare Mountains, somewhere near the town Gheorgheni. It is the largest natural mountain lake in Romania, its name coming from the reddish alluvia (iron oxides and iron hydroxides) deposited in the lake by the Red Creek. During Ceausescu’s reign, these two wonders were compulsory tourist destinations for the ones who wanted to spend their vacations in the mountains.

The lake seems dark and threatening, the stumps that come out of the water makes you think that a lacustrine civilization met their fate just a few years before you pass by. After lunch with a lake view take a walk around and maybe feed the ducklings on the lake.

​

Among the most picturesque treasures of Romania are the Painted Monasteries of Bucovina (in northeastern Romania). Their painted exterior walls are decorated with elaborate 15th and 16th century frescoes featuring portraits of saints and prophets, scenes from the life of Jesus, images of angels and demons, and heaven and hell.

In the afternoon visit the most famous of the painted monasteries: Voronet 'the Sistine Chapel of the East' (UNESCO). Voronet’s most stunning feature is a Last Judgment fresco painted – as at all the churches – on the exterior façade. The blue paint that has miraculously never faded is known throughout the world as ‘Voronet blue’.





Day 6. Humor Monastery (UNESCO) - Sucevita Monastery (UNESCO) - Moldovita Monastery (UNESCO) - Marginea village & Pottery Workshops - Painted Eggs Museum



Visit the other painted churches not to be missed: Humor, Sucevita with its distinctive greens and Moldovita where the frescoes are predominantly red.

​
Village of Marginea and Regional Pottery of Bucovina
Marginea Ceramics is already a well-known brand. Historians date the beginning of pottery at Marginea in 1500. The little village is famous for its black pottery. Local artisans still produce this pottery - you can pick up a piece as a souvenir of the region.

​

The Painted Eggs Museum exhibits the largest collection of painted eggs in Romania and also one of the most important in Europe. Located not far from the Voronet, Moldovita or Sucevita monasteries, the museum is an important place to discover traditions of the painted eggs handcraft. In the workshop you will be able to work alongside Professor Letitia, the owner of the museum and also the creator of painted eggs, which will explain to you the meanings of Bucovina symbols.

The Painted Eggs Museum includes over 3,000 eggs, gathered by Letitia in 12 years of participation in national and international exhibitions, and of course Bucovina eggs made by the artist herself. The collection includes rare eggs, like those of emu, rhea, tinamu, turtle, crocodile, flamingo, and very small eggs, like of partridge, sparrow, dove and also of pheasant, peacock, quail, duck, goose, turkey, ostrich.

 



Day 7. Bucovina - Wooden Churches of Maramures (UNESCO) - Accommodation in Viseu de Sus

 

In the morning start the wonderful and scenic journey towards Maramures region.

 

Maramures is considered by many to be the heart and soul of rural Romania. With its picturesque countryside of small villages, rolling hills, pastures, and meadows full of wildflowers, Maramures epitomizes all that the rural lifestyle encompasses. Visitors to Maramures have a unique opportunity to step back in time and bear witness to simpler times and simpler lives.

​

Maramures is a small and unique location in the geographical heartland of Europe that has carefully and distinctively preserved the culture, traditions and lifestyle of a medieval peasant past. The region stands as a testament to traditional; to a romantic era of simplicity, pride and moral values that many of us can only now read about or hear from our grandparents. Little has changed in the centuries gone by. Families remain in the same villages as their ancestors. Traditional skills and crafts are passed down from generation to generation. Traditional hand-woven clothing continues to be practical. The church continues to be the soul of the village. Neighbors know one another and continue to lend a helping hand. Life in Maramures is like a mystery.  Visitors to Maramures drive through mountain passes and descend into the valleys of life where the mystery of rural traditions unfolds before their eyes. 

​

Visit the ancient wooden churches and explore the villages of Barsana, Rozavlea, Ieud Deal - the oldest of the wooden churches.

As it has for hundreds of years, social life in Maramures continues to revolve around the village church. The wooden churches of Maramures have been recognized by UNESCO as some of the most important sites of world heritage. Unique in shape and ornamentation, they have characteristic high roofs and tall, narrow, pointed steeples, often collectively described as ‘the Gothic style of Maramures.

 

​

Day 8. Mocanita Steam Train Ride - Merry Cemetery - Peri Monastery (UNESCO) - Accommodation in Sighetu Marmatiei

 

Mocanita Steam Train Ride - For a one-of-a-kind experience, take the narrow-gauge steam train. Starting from the small logging town of Viseu de Sus, the steam railway runs along a scenic road for about 30 miles, chugging behind an old steam engine. The train provides the only access - other than walking - to settlements higher up in the valley. During stops, you can watch workers load firewood and take on water from clear mountain streams. On the trip back down in the evening, the engine driver whistles for brakemen to stop the train - sometimes to pick up or drop off passengers, sometimes to stop to pick wild mountain mushrooms.

 

Merry Cemetery - The spiritual philosophy of the people of Maramures is perhaps nowhere more apparent than in Sapanta. The town folks’ ancestors considered death as a beginning, not the end, and this faith is reflected in the carvings in the town’s uniqueMerry Cemetery . Blue wooden crosses feature a carved scene and humorous verses that endeavor to capture essential elements - both the good and the imperfections - of the deceased’s life. Even without benefit of translation, visitors can appreciate the handiwork of sculptor Stan Ion Patras, who began carving these epitaphs in 1935, and his successors. Patras’ house in the village is now a fascinating museum. Sapanta is also home to several wooden gates and one of the region’s tallest wooden churches.

​

Sapanta Peri Monastery - features one of the most representative churches for Maramures - the tallest wooden church in the world. Located next to Sapanta Village, within a dendrology park this monastic settlement dates from the 14th century. Currently the monastery hosts eight nuns and it is included in the UNESCO Patrimony.

 

Day 09. Maramures - Cluj Napoca Walking Tour - Sibiu Walking Tour

 

Cluj-Napoca City Tour - This western city in the region of Transylvania traces its origins back to the Dacian settlement of Napuca in the 2-nd century A.D. The main square, resplendent with 18th and 19th century buildings and home to many shops and restaurants, is dominated by the 15th century St. Michael's Church, one of the finest examples of gothic architecture in Romania.

Tour highlights: Union Square, St. Michael's Church, Opera House, Historical Center, Othodox Cathedral Dormition of the Theotokos.

 

Sibiu’s Old Town retains the grandeur of its earlier days when rich and powerful guilds dominated regional trade. Like Sighisoara and Brasov, it has a distinctly Germanic feeling. Sections of the medieval wall still guard the historic area, where narrow streets pass steep-roofed 17th century buildings with gable overhangs before opening into vast, church-dominated squares such as Great Square and Little Square.

Tour highlights: Evangelical Church, The Bridge of Lies, Historical Center, Brukenthal Museum, The Stairs Passage, Holy Trinity Cathedral, antique & souvenir shops.

​

​

Day 10.  Sibiu - Curtea de Arges Tour - Bucharest

​

Curtea de Arges is a city on the right bank of the Arges River, where it flows through a valley of the lower Carpathians. The name, literally The Court upon Arges refers to the former status of the town as the capital of Wallachia. Take a walking tour of the town visiting: the Princely Church and Old Court ruins, the Episcopal Church, and the unique Olari Church a painted church from Moldavia found on Wallachian grounds.

 

 

Day 11. Goodbye Romania! Transfer to Bucharest Airport​.