Monday, August 17: Depart for Cluj-Napoca, the unofficial capital of Transylvania (Zsofi’s birthplace and our home for half a year).  (Flight information is at the bottom of the left column.)

Tuesday, August 18: Arrive in Cluj and transfer to our hotel for two nights, the DoubleTree by Hilton, located near the Central Park and within a quick walk to Old Town. Welcome dinner will be at a fine restaurant where tradition meets innovation.

Wednesday, August 19: Cluj is the capital of Transylvania region and the second-most populous city in the country. Currently ranked the 10th most livable city in Europe, it is a major academic center, with a thriving arts and culture scene and a booming tech sector. Our walking tour will acquaint you with Old Town including its 14^th-c. Gothic church that dominates the main square, the remains of the city fortifications, the house where King Matthias I of Hungary was born, and the main building of its distinguished university. We timed our presence in the city to coincide with its annual celebration of Hungarian Days, giving you an opportunity to partake in the rich cultural heritage of Cluj: traditional folk music, dance, food, and crafts will be on display in the city center; the handicraft market alone usually features over 100 exhibitors! A special organ recital will take place at the Reformed (Calvinist) Church, renowned for its 17^th-century organ and exceptional acoustics; there will also be several open-air stages featuring Viennese-style operetta (much of it composed by Hungarians), folk-dance, jazz, and more.

Thursday, August 20: Today we depart for the Maramureș area in the northwest, home to unique wooden churches with tall spires and shingled roofs, and tall, carved gates; a region where ancient traditions and craftsmanship are passed down from generation to generation. Our hotel in Vișeu de Sus, like all our hotels following, offers spa facilities (pools, jacuzzi, sauna), with the added attraction of an artificial salt mine. Before or after this evening’s included dinner, we will arrange for a private folk performance, giving you a taste of the area’s distinctive Romanian folk music (by which Transylvania-born composer Béla Bartók was profoundly inspired, influencing his compositional style and the creation of works like the Rhapsody for Violin and Orchestra).

Friday, August 21: We dedicate this day to exploring the wooden churches of Maramureș, 8 of which are designated as World Heritage sites. They are outstanding examples of vernacular religious wooden architecture, combining Orthodox religious traditions with Gothic influences. The narrow, high, timber constructions with tall, slim clock towers, are adorned with interior painting by local artists, reflecting naïve biblical scenes alongside aspects of local life and images of traditional costumes. These edifices are a testimony to wood craftmanship, showcasing impressive techniques of wood joints and shingle roofs. We will also visit the workshops of a local woodcarver and a textile artisan. In the evening, you can enjoy the facilities at the hotel.

Saturday, August 22: Today is a first for us: we are letting you decide what to do, based on your interest in either of these two activities:

• For those interested in Jewish heritage and discovering cultural oddities - Visit Sighetu Marmației and the Merry Cemetery at Săpânța. Jews settled in Sighetu Marmației in the 17^th century, constituting about 40% of the local pre-war population. You will visit the only remaining synagogue, built in 1902 in a Moorish style, and Elie Wiesel’s birth house. Wiesel lived there until he was deported with his family in May 1944; in 2003, his family house was transformed into the local Jewish Museum. After lunch, we continue to the unique Merry Cemetery of Săpânța, where each of the 800 graves is marked with a lively, beautifully carved wooden cross, painted in the radiant blue of heaven and decorated with a painting and an original poem that disclose a little something about the life, death, and character of the deceased. These epitaphs, written in iambic tetrameter and usually penned in the first person, give the impression that the deceased wrote their life summary, often in a very humorous vein, revealing their flaws and imperfections.
• For those interested in untamed wilderness - Ride the “mocănița,” the last forestry narrow gauge steam train in Europe, as it goes up in the wild Carpathians (now part of Maramureș Mountains Nature Park) with empty wagons and returns loaded with heavy logs. Inhaling the smell of freshly cut wood, you can observe the way in which the train is loaded with supplies and how the forestry wagons as well as the tourist ones are being attached to the locomotive. As soon as you leave the train station, you lose contact with the modern world. During the trip, there is no phone signal, and you only see scattered villages and the mighty wild nature. The 40 km roundtrip takes 6 hours, with multiple stops on the way, and includes a lunch pack (mixed grill, coffee, soft drink, pastry).

Sunday, August 23: Depart for the Bucovina region in the northeast of Romania, pausing for lunch at the top of the Mestecăniș mountain pass connecting Transylvania and Moldova. Bucovina is known for monasteries whose exterior and interior walls are decorated with elaborate 15^th and 16^th-century frescoes, masterpieces of Byzantine art. Of these churches, 8 are listed as World Heritage sites. Before settling in at Hotel Forest Green & Spa in Gura Humorului for two nights, we stop at our first UNESCO-listed monastery, Voroneț.

Monday, August 24: Today we visit two other UNESCO-listed painted monasteries, Moldovița and Sucevița, making time for a visit (and shopping) at the pottery shops in Mărginea. Lunch in included.

Tuesday, August 25: Next, we head south into the Szeklerland region of Transylvania, visiting en route Agapia monastery, where nuns create hand-woven rugs. After lunch, we make our way to the luxurious Zabola Estate, tucked away in the forests of the Eastern Carpathian Mountains. The Estate is one of the carefully-selected accommodations that you will experience; please see this review in the Guardian.

Wednesday, August 26: Today we will spend a full day in the idyllic surroundings of the estate. We will tour the Mikes family estate and prepare (and eat, of course) the most famous Szekler dessert, kürtőskalács! In the early afternoon, another unique Dean Dalton Tours experience awaits: Szekler-Hungarian folk music, performed just for us, by the children’s folk group of the nearby village! The Carpathians are home to Europe’s largest brown bear population outside Russia; for the rest of the afternoon, you can go on an optional bear watch (from the safety of an enclosed viewing platform). Otherwise, you can also make use of spa treatments, the jacuzzi, or the wood-heated Finnish sauna in the forest. Dinner at the estate is included.

Thursday, August 27: Today we head southeast to Saxonland. Medieval Saxon settlers established seven fortified towns in Transylvania, providing the German name for the region: “Siebenbürgen.” Brașov is the first on our itinerary, home to the world’s easternmost Gothic church with its impressive collection of tapestries and Eastern Europe's largest organ. The Saxon settlers also built around 300 fortified churches in the south of Transylvania, to provide a safe refuge against frequent Ottoman attacks. We visit the nearby fortified church at Prejmer, the largest in southeastern Europe and a UNESCO World Heritage site. Following lunch, we continue to Bran (aka Dracula) Castle. Perched high atop a 200-foot-high cliff, Bran is in a dramatic setting, though it has only tangential associations with Vlad the Impaler (Vlad III, the voivode of Wallachia, who provided the inspiration for Bram Stoker’s Dracula.) Late afternoon we return to Zabola estate.

Friday, August 28: This morning, we head northwest, stopping at the fortified church at Viscri (another UNESCO World Heritage site) and visiting King Charles’ property, “The King’s House.” In 2006 then-Prince Charles fell in love with Viscri and bought a property there, which was turned into a local cultural center housing a permanent as well as temporary exhibitions. The house speaks about King Charles’s “passion for traditional architecture, sustainable agriculture, biodiversity protection, and valuable cultural heritage — in other words, about His Majesty’s love for Romania.” (Mihai Grigore, Administrator, The King’s House). Lunch is at a farm-to-table, “slow-food” restaurant located in a traditional Saxon home, offering a menu inspired by old Transylvanian recipes and fresh ingredients collected from local family farms. Late in the afternoon, we arrive and settle in for 3 nights in a Saxon farmhouse beautifully and meticulously restored, located in the village of Alma Vii.

Saturday, August 29: We continue exploring Saxonland, visiting two World Heritage sites: the triple-walled church at Biertan and the only inhabited medieval citadel in South-East Europe, Sighișoara. We plan to return to Alma Vii in time to for you to relax or explore the surroundings, including its own impressive, fortified church. Dinner at the guesthouse is included.

Sunday, August 30: Visit Sibiu, the largest of the seven fortified Saxon towns, and the ruins of Cârța Monastery, the easternmost Cistercian monastery in the world. Before dinner at the guesthouse, you can opt for a horse cart ride in the village and the nearby hills – or sign up for a massage (the lady in the village is an exceptional masseur; just ask the folks who took our previous Romania tour!)

Monday, August 31: Today is dedicated to wine tasting. The Transylvanian Plateau’s specific wines are mostly white and sparkling wines, influenced by the colder climate and the minerals from the mountains. Here is the birthplace of Fetească Regală (Royal maiden) grape. Our first visit is the Bethlen-Haller Castle, modeled on Chambord, where we will have a wine-tasting lunch. We continue to Villa Vinea winery for a tour and tasting; from there, it’s just a short drive the Haller Castle where we spend the night. Dating back to the 17^th century, Haller is the first Transylvanian castle renovated and reopened as a hotel. You can enjoy the quiet village surroundings or the available spa facilities, including a thermal saltwater pool sourced from a well, drilled in the castle courtyard.

Tuesday, September 1: On our way back to Cluj, we stop in Torockó (Rimetea in Romanian), which Béla Bartók called “the most beautifully sited village in Transylvania,” nestled at the foot of a 3,700-foot monolith. We will visit the local museum before enjoying a traditional meal and lifting a toast to our Romanian adventures with homemade plum brandy! In the afternoon, we drive to your hotel at Cluj airport (literally across the street from the terminal). 

If you choose a homeward flight that requires an overnight en route, you might want to depart on Tuesday evening; we will reimburse you for the unused night in Cluj.
Wednesday, September 2: Depart for home or further adventures.

DANUBE DELTA EXTENSION

Tuesday, September 1: Following the activities described above, instead of spending the night in Cluj, we will take an evening flight to Bucharest and overnight in a hotel near the airport.

Wednesday, September 2: This morning, we transfer by van and boat to our 5-star guesthouse/resort, right in the middle of the Bioshpere Reservation. Our first excursion takes place this afternoon. 

Thursday, September 3: Enjoy morning and evenings on the lakes and canals. Between and afterwards, enjoy the pool, bar, and game room at the guesthouse.

Friday, September 4: After our final Delta sightseeing adventure and lunch at the resort, we will return to the Bucharest airport hotel. You should reserve space on the airport shuttle for tomorrow, according to your flight schedule and personal preference regarding time for check-in and security. 

Saturday, September 5: Early morning departures connect in Western Europe for a same day arrival in the States.