Romania is divided into nine provinces, all with a different flavor and all offering a variety of activities and interesting things to do. Wallachia is home to the capital and the heritage buildings of the Wallachian princes, as well as the mountain ski resorts overlooking the Prahova Valley. Moldavia is the most extraordinary of the provinces, known for its medieval cities, castles, churches and extensive vineyards and Dobruja’s beautiful Black Sea coastline holds resorts backed by unspoiled natural beauty, with its amazing Danube Delta, a mecca for birders.
More winter sports resorts are found in Crisana’s Apuseni Mountains, and Maramures is great for trekking and walking in the mountains and around the timeless villages with their UNESCO World Heritage traditional wooden churches. Banat’s baroque cities and forests cry out to be explored and, for mysterious caves and beach resorts, Oltenia is the region to head for. Transylvania, now a hub for rapid economic development, is the country’s most famous province for its high Transylvanian Alps and its place in many dark legends.
Romania’s wine culture is one of the oldest in Europe, dating back some 6,000 years. Favorite wine regions include the foothills of the Transylvanian Carpathian Mountains, the Cotnari wine region in Moldavia, the Black Sea Murfatlar wine region and the Dealu Mare wine region. Go Romania Tours offers wine-tasting tours in all the famous wine regions, giving a chance to explore the vineyards and get a fascinating glimpse of the entire process.
Visiting bird watchers and eco-tourists will be in heaven in the wetlands of the vast Danube River’s delta, itself a UNESCO World Heritage site. Its alluvial plain is covered with marshes, channels, lakes and tiny streams, all home to a huge variety of wildlife and bird species. Its 23 separate ecosystems are home to many rare species and its marsh regions support Greylag geese, Pygmy cormorants, Purple herons, Great white egrets, Dalmatian pelicans, and other rare species. Wild boar, wildcats, wolves, and foxes can all be seen, and Go Romania Tours are experts in the region for bird-watching and eco tourism.
Not yet a well-known winter sports destination, Romania’s major ski area of Brasov boasts relatively empty slopes for most of the season. It’s popular with the locals and the visitors who’ve discovered it for its dramatic scenery, gentle nursery slopes and off-piste thrills for more experienced skiers. Other resorts In Romania include Poiana, Predeal and Sinaiai, all set in pine forests and offering comfortable accommodation and good facilities. Adventure Sports Holidays gives a good choice of ski packages to most of the resorts.
For climbers, Romania offers a great choice of sites to suit visitors’ climbing skills, from mountaineering and rock-climbing to free climbing, bouldering and ice climbing during the winter months. Active Travel Romania offer their expertise in choosing the right location. The lower slopes of the high mountains are great for mountain-biking, with Mountian Biking Romania offering comfortable to challenging trails in Transylvania and around Brasov, Zarnesti and Piatra Craiului.
Walking, hiking and trekking are the best way to get to grips with the variety of experiences in this iconic land, with Transylvania, the Carpathians, Apuseni and mythical Maramures all offered by Walks Worldwide. Romania has some of the most remote, romantic and wildest trails in the whole of Europe, with many as yet undiscovered by crowds of walkers and trekkers, giving a peaceful, pristine experience of Central Europe as it used to be.
For water sports on the Black Sea Rivera, head for Mamaia, a famous resort for over 100 years and the best in the country for snorkeling, scuba diving, paragliding, sailing and fishing. Romania Tours can help with hiring sailing boats and yachts. Beautiful Constanta city holds an ancient harbor, magnificent beaches and the nearby Eforie Nord Spa, famous for its therapeutic mud treatments. Romania Travel Center offers spa breaks to Eforie Nord including selected treatments.