7-Day Romania Tour -Transylvania and Painted Churches

Arrival at Bucharest-Henri Coanda Airport: meet and greet by our guide-driver; Depending on the arrival hour we can take a tour of the most important sites of Bucharest.

After we cross the Southern Carpathians, you will have the chance to discover the famous castles of Sinaia – which served as a residence for the Royal family. Sinaia began developing into an important settlement with the construction of the famous Sinaia Monastery in 1695. Peles Palace is one of the best-preserved royal palaces in Eastern Europe. The Castle is full of ornaments the inside as well as on the outside, and features elaborate wood sculptures and paintings representing scenes from the works of German composer Richard Wagner.

Once we arrive in Bran Village, we visit Dracula’s Castle, whose striking hilltop appearance inspired many myths and legends.

Brasov city is located in the central part of Romania. It is surrounded by the Southern Carpathians, and is part of the Transylvania Region. Brasov is a good starting point for trips around Romania. It is also the largest city in a mountain resorts area. The old city itself is very well preserved, and is best seen by taking the cable-car to the top of Tâmpa Mountain (995 m), a beautiful lookout.

Before reaching Gura-Humorului, we will have a few interesting stops. Agapia Monastery is one of them. This is one of the largest nunnery in Romania. More than 300 nuns are working together in different workshops of the monastery. You can visit the workshops where the nuns are making different stuff such us: painted icons, or handmade carpets.

First visit of the day is at the famous painted monastery of Voronet. Erected in 1488, Voronet Monastery is a combination of Byzantine, Gothic and local elements. On the western wall, the exterior murals depict traditional scenes, and the famous Last Judgment scene, unique in the whole world.

riving on one of the most beautiful roads in the country, crossing the gentle slopes of Bucovina Mountains, admiring the amazing panoramas from the Ciumarna Pass, you’ll reach Moldovita Monastery. Built in 1532, this monastery occupies a fortified quadrangular enclosure with tower, gates and well-tended lawns. The central painted church has been partly restored and features impressive frescoes from 1537. The southern exterior wall depicts the Siege of Constantinople in AD 626, under a combined Persian-Avar attack. Interestingly, the besiegers are depicted in Turkish dress – keeping parishioners concentrated on the current enemy.

We visit Sucevita Monastery, where we will find out more about the “Virtue Staircase”, most impressive due to its dimension and contrast between the angel’s order and devil’s chaos.

rossing the Eastern Carpathian Mountains through Bicaz Gorge you will discover a mysterious realm, the same one described in Bram Stoker`s Dracula. Once reaching the Red Lake you are in Transylvania passing through an area inhabited mostly by the Hungarian Szekler community.

We reach Sighisoara Medieval Town in the evening. Sighisoara Citadel is a World Heritage Site and the only still inhabited medieval fortress in Europe.

n the morning you will explore the Old Town of Sighisoara with cobbled streets, burgher houses and ornate churches. You will visit the Clock Tower, Church on the Hill and Dracula`s house where Vlad Tepes was born in 1431.

UNESCO site and one of the first German settlements in Transylvania. This fortified church, surrounded by three rows of fortifications, was built by the German peasants in Transylvania and was used for nearly 300 years as the residence of the Transylvanian Archbishop. A room in the citadel was used for a long time as a reconciliation place for couples about to divorce (hear the full story on spot). The name “Biertan” was first attested in 1283. It had a township status.

Sibiu: the chief city of the Transylvanian Saxons. Take a leisurely walking tour of Sibiu, visit the old surrounding defense walls and the remaining towers each belonging to a certain guild.

One of the landmarks of Sibiu is the Brukenthal Museum assembled by baron Brukenthal, governor of Transylvania at the end of the 18th century. The Evangelical Cathedral was completed in its actual shape in 1520, but inside there is an exquisite fresco of the Crucifixion on the north wall of the choir dating from 1445. View the Passage of Stairs linking the Upper town to the Lower town, the 1859 Liar`s Bridge and the Byzantine style Orthodox Cathedral, a replica of St. Sophia in Constantinople.

Visit Curtea de Arges, the first capital of Wallachia with the old Princely Court and the monastery – the place where three of the four Romanian Kings of the Hohenzollern dynasty are buried. Drive to Bucharest.