Maramures

The fierce individuality of the Maramures mountain valleys in the north-west of Transylvania is legendary. Their inhabitants are of Dacian descent and their independence as a State reached its peak under Decebalus in the first century AD, before the Roman conquest. Wave after wave of invasions followed.
A unique lifestyle
Nonetheless the villagers here continued to vividly assert the independence of their customs and their folklore. Today you can visit and admire their unique lifestyle. Few other parts of Europe have developed so distinctive a rural culture.
Traditional headscarves during an outdoor religious celebration
An inheritance of folklore
Agriculture has always been the lifeblood of existence in the mountains. Local traditions reflect this, as there are festivals in April, May, August and December.
The one in December is held at Sighetu Marmatiei, with carnival parades and revellers wearing animal masks.
Sighetu Marmatiei
Sighetu Marmatiei is a typical Maramures town, famous for its markets, peasant costumes and lively atmosphere.
The Museum of Maramures has many carnival masks among its exhibits. Herefrom you may easily drive to the mountain resort of Borsa and such villages as Bogdan-Voda and Rozavlea, renowned for their wooden architecture.

Woodcarving skills are the dominant feature of Maramures crafts. Particularly characteristic of the villages are wooden churches, with tall steeples and shingled roofs, some dating back to the 14th century.
A typical high-steepled Maramures church
Highly developed too is the embroidery of traditional costumes. On Sunday afternoons both women and men often parade and dance as they have for centuries.
Women wear colourful headscarves and flowered skirts with black sheepskin jerkins; men wear black trousers and white jerkins, though costumes vary from village to village. The Easter festivals are a particularly good time to see them.
Touring the valleys
Baia Mare lies at the heart of this region. Its modern hotels make it the point of departure for many tours. A popular local expedition is to Surdesti, which has the tallest of the region's wooden churches.
Another is the one to Sapanta, famous for its "merry cemetery", where carved tombstones and humorous epitaphs are a remembrance of the dead.

BLACK SEA RESORTS

Marvellous weather from spring to autumn and miles of golden sand make Romania's Black Sea resorts the ideal destination for beach holidays.
One can find everything there: modern hotels and facilities, a busy night-life, a wide range of sports facilities and numerous inland attractions from castles to vineyards. Now, while the country is heading towards a promising future, the Black Sea is coming back onto the European touristic agenda.
From Wildlife to Watersports
Altogether, the Romanian Black Sea coast stretches out for 245 km (153 miles) from the fascinating unspoilt natural reserves of the Danube Delta to the leisure activities of numerous holiday centres. Whereas the Delta is strictly protected from intrusion, the southern 72 km (45 miles) area has been developed into a string of beach resorts and health spas catering for all ages and interests, from little children to exigent grandparents.
All waited on by the employees of the local touristic and transport services in the city of Constanta. Furthermore, the Black Sea tides are practically not-existent, so swiming is safer than in most parts of the world.
Constanta
With an international airport, a busy seaport, express trains linking it to Bucharest (2 1/2 hours) and a 2,500 year history (the Roman poet Ovid lived in exile here), Constanta is the very kind of cosmopolitan place a seaside vacation needs.
Hotels, shops, ancient monuments, a magnificent casino by the sea and interesting museums complete the picture. All the Black Sea resorts are easily accesible either by train or bus.

Mamaia
The major resort near Constanta is Mamaia, sited north of the city, between a magnificent 7 km (4.5 miles) long beach of unbelievably fine sand and a lake. It is especially designed for families with children.
Sports like sub-aqua diving and paragliding offer thrills from May to October. Restaurants, bars and nightclubs enliven the evenings. Typical country villages, the ruins of the ancient Greek fortress of Histria, and the Danube Delta are easily accessible.
South of Constanta - beauties and gods
From Constanta, a 50 km (31 miles) strip of fine golden sand stretches all the way to the border with Bulgaria; and it hosts a series of resorts poetically named after women and mythological gods.
The Black Sea at its Best
Among the most popular are Neptun and Olimp, built as leisure sites for the rich of the communist era, now offering de-luxe villas and excellent hotels, some on the beach, others in the quiet Comorova forest between the shore and a lake.
Tennis and other sports, open air restaurants, discos, night clubs and cabarets all cater for demanding visitors.
Economical and Youth Holidays
Southwards, the resorts of Jupiter, Cap Aurora, Venus and Saturn offer a variety of inexpensive hotels, campsites and rented accomodation, while Costinesti is mostly a youth resort, with basic accomodation and informal entertainment.
Mangalia is renowned for therapy treatments
The 6th century BC fortified town of Callatis became today's balneary spa of Mangalia, with a special cure hotel. Here, as in Eforie Nord, Eforie Sud and the spa in Neptun, a wide variety of therapeutic treatments are available, including mineral-rich mudbaths, thalassotherapy and the famous Romanian Gerovital cure.
Medical staff are highly qualified and clinics and consulting rooms remain open all through the year. So you can combine professional treatment with all the pleasures of a seaside holiday.
Local Tours
As well as long-distance tours to the Danube Delta with its birdlife and mysterious waterways, or even to Bucovina and the legendary decorated monasteries, or to Bucharest, there are plenty of sites available in the immediate hinterland to tempt you away from sunbathing for days. The 7th century BC Greek city ruins at Histria have already been mentioned.
At Adamclisi, 62 km (39 miles) inland from Constanta, stands the impressive circular monument built at the end of the first century AD to commemorate emperor Trajan's victory over the Dacians. Cottage industries like woodcarving and pottery thrive in the villages. Vineyards producing Romania's savoury wines, including the famous Murfatlar, cover the hillsides.
Traditional costumes are displayed in folklore centres. And, if you feel like getting to the heart of the warm welcoming Romanian experience, there are Romanian feasts with local dishes, plum brandy, wine, music and dancing that will remain in your memory as part of a special seaside holiday.

Romanian arts & architecture

Visiting Romania gives you the chance to see Constantin Brancusi's works in the marvelous setting of a park in Targu Jiu, near Hobita, his home village. "The Endless Column" (Coloana Infinita), "The Gate of the Kiss" (Poarta Sarutului), "The Table of Silence" (Masa Tacerii) and "The Alley of Chairs" (Aleea Scaunelor) are displayed among trees and lawns as Brancusi wanted them to be.Romania has a great diversity of museums preserving every facet of its history and arts. Some are small museums, catering to enthusiasts with a taste for special interests such as pharmacy, clocks, railway trains, folk arts and architecture, wine making and traditional crafts. Larger museums host regular exhibitions from around the world, as well as housing permanent collections of paintings and sculptures. Prominent museums include Romania's National Museum of Art, the Art Collections Museum, the Village Museum, the Museum of the Romanian Peasant in Bucharest, and the Bruckenthal Museum in Sibiu. Romanians' vivid imagination and intense spirituality have always been expressed through their architecture. Fortunately, they also have strong preservation instincts, resulting in village museums that display bygone ways of life through found and restored peasant houses, elaborately carved gates, barns and other architectural elements. The best and most comprehensive of these is the Village Museum (Muzeul Satului) in Bucharest. Constructed by a visionary during the 1930s on a large tract within the city, this is a fascinating collection of more than 300 houses and other structures from every region of Romania. It also has a small museum and shop of fine Romanian crafts. Other such village museums well worth visiting are Museum of Wood (Muzeul Lemnului) in Campulung Moldovenesc and Museum of Peasant Techniques (Muzeul Tehnicii Populare) in Sibiu. Both have collections of early farm tools and household implements.Monasteries, churches, synagogues, castles and palaces throughout the country, some dating from the 12th Century, depict the country's tumultuous history. Even its Communist era is expressed through Ceausescu's master planning and rebuilding of Bucharest. The best example of his testament to secularity is the Palace of Parliament — the world's second largest building after the U.S. Pentagon — whose 1,000 rooms reflect the country's best architects, artisans and building materials. Among the best examples of Romanian's Orthodox religion are the painted monasteries of Southern Bucovina, acclaimed as masterpieces of art and architecture, "perfectly in harmony with their surroundings and unique in the world for their painted exteriors." They hold UNESCO's Prix d'Or for "artistic, spiritual and cultural value." Of the five best known, the most famous is Voronet, also called the "Sistine Chapel of the East" whose blue exterior background lent its name to the color "Voronet Blue." These are essential sights for anyone interested in religious architecture, but they are only a few of Romania's architectural treasures.Romania's Architectural Treasures, by location:

BucharestPalace of Parliament, Cotroceni Palace, Royal Palace, Patriarchal Complex, St. Joseph's Roman Catholic Cathedral, Italian Church, Russian Church, Anglican Church, Armenian Church, Great Synagogue, Choral Temple, Sutu Palace, Mogosoaia Palace.WallachiaPeles and Pelisor Castles (Sinaia), Iulia Hasdeu Castle (Campina), Hurez Monastery, Dinu Mihail Palace (Craiova).MoldovaPainted Monasteries of Southern Bucovina (Voronet, Sucevita, Moldovita, Humor and Putna), Ruginoasa Palace, Metropolitan Cathedral, Great Synagogue, Palace of Culture (Iasi).TransylvaniaBlack Church (Brasov), Bran Castle (Bran), Brukenthal Palace (Sibiu), Hunedoara Castle (near Deva), Sighisoara Medieval Town, Sibiu — Old Town, Brasov — Old Town, Fortified Churches in Biertan, Harman and Prejmer.MaramuresWooden Churches, Wood Museum, Sighet Synagogue (Sighetu Marmatiei), Satu Mare Synagogue.

Festivals & Events

Throughout the year, Romanians celebrate their ancient heritage, changing seasons, religious holidays and life-cycle events, such as birth, marriage and death, with festivals that have remained unchanged for centuries. Some of Europe's most traditional folkways are meticulously preserved here, with young celebrants wearing the same costumes and dancing the same steps to tunes played on instruments traditional to their forefathers since time immemorial.Festivals provide wonderful opportunities for visitors to experience the amalgam of the people who make up this country whose Latin roots dating from the Roman Empire make it unique in East-Central Europe. Major festivals throughout the year include:

June

The Traditional Crafts Fair — Crafts enthusiasts from all over Romania gather at the Village Museum in Bucharest to offer free demonstrations of traditional woodcarving, rug weaving, textile weaving and embroidering, pottery molding, glass blowing, egg painting and more.

July

Bucharest of Old — Celebration of the city as it was 150 years ago. Parade of 1800s costumes, horse-drawn carriages, traditional food, music and special performances.Medieval Days — Three-day celebration of medieval arts, crafts, music. Recreating the atmosphere of medieval Sighisoara using medieval arts, music, and crafts.The Maidens' Fair (Targul de Fete) — Traditional matchmaking festival where villagers in traditional costume walk up to Gaina Mountain for dancing, feasting and choosing a mate.

August

Dance at Prislop (Hora de la Prislop) — Traditional celebration of ties among three of Romania's main regions: Transylvania, Moldova and Maramures; villagers parade in traditional costume to Prislop Pass in the Carpathian Mountains, then participate in traditional dances, singing and feasting.Romania's Folk Art Festival — Initiation in folk art creation (pottery molding, textile embroidering, woodcarving and more) offered, for free, by preeminent folk artists to those interested in traditional crafts.

September

Sambra Oilor — festival marking the return of the sheep herds from the Mountains.

October

Wine Making Festival — Celebration marking beginning of the grape harvest.Halloween in Transylvania — Tours, shows and celebrations following the footsteps of Bram Stoker's novel character, Count Dracula.

December

Christmas Traditions Festival.Of all the events enjoyed during the year, folk festivals are without a doubt the most spectacular. While some festival dates remain fixed, others change year by year so it's wise to check before your trip.

Danube River Cruises

The mighty Danube River, named by the Greek historian Herodotus "The King of the European Rivers," forms much of Romania's southern border. The Danube enters the territory of Romania at the famous Iron Gates (Portile de Fier) and ends its 670 mile journey through the country in the Black Sea. Before meeting the Black Sea, the Danube forms one of the most spectacular wetlands in the world, The Danube Delta - a unique 2,100-square-mile wildlife reserve - home to more than 300 species of birds and about 160 kinds of fish, both fresh and salt-water species.Sights along the Danube Among the many sights near or along the Romanian section of the Danube River, worth visiting are: the ruins of the Roman bridge at Drobeta, Topolnita Cave, The Iron Gates Dam, the cities of Drobeta Turnu Severin, Orsova, Giurgiu, Oltenita, Braila, Galati and Tulcea. Bucharest, Romania's capital city, is only 40 miles north of the cities of Giurgiu (Romania) and Ruse (Bulgaria), both situated on the banks of the Danube.

Among the many sights near or along the Romanian section of the Danube River, worth visiting are: the ruins of the Roman bridge at Drobeta, Topolnita Cave, The Iron Gates Dam, the cities of Drobeta Turnu Severin, Orsova, Giurgiu, Oltenita, Braila, Galati and Tulcea. Bucharest, Romania's capital city, is only 40 miles north of the cities of Giurgiu (Romania) and Ruse (Bulgaria), both situated on the banks of the Danube.

Sailing on the Danube, with privately owned boats, is allowed for the entire Romanian section of the river. The only formalities required when sailing from Vienna, Budapest or Belgrade are:- passport check,- yacht/ boat technical inspection.No inoculations are required, no visa for Americans, Canadians and citizens of the Europe Union countries.There are two Danube Border Checking Points :Orsova and Drobeta Turnu Severin (or Turnu Severin for short)Required documentation:- passport- yacht / boat proof of ownership & registrationThere is a yacht/ boat fee of $15.00 to $30.00 depending of the size of the boat.