Two millenniums ago the Dacian tribes were already inhabiting the territory for a long time. They were mainly farmers, venerating the Sun and cultivating vines. Starting with 101-102 A.D. the Kingdom of Dacia started becoming a Roman province. For over 150 years the Romans ruled the area, built fortifications and roads and opened exploitation mines. The Emperor Aurelian decided in 271 to retreat of the Roman troops from Dacia. This was the beginning of the Dark Ages, a period that was characterized by successive waves of migratory populations arriving from the East, crossing the territory towards the West and never really settling in the area.

To this period we owe the Dacian and Roman fortresses and the Latin origin of the Romanian language.

Starting with the 8^th century the Huns and the Magyars, two of numerous the nomadic tribes coming from the East, settled in Pannonia basin which later on became the core of the arising Hungarian state. Not long after, Transylvania started being included in the Hungarian Kingdom. In order to defend the Eastern borders of the kingdom against the Mongols and the Turks, the Hungarian King initiated the colonization of Transylvania with Szekler and the Saxon populations.

Starting with the 15^th century, as they were getting stronger and conquering new territories, the Turks took great influence upon East European politics. This is how, for about 170 years, between the second half of the 16^th century and the end of the 17^th century, Transylvania arose as an independent state, under Ottoman suzerainty, known as Transylvania Principality.

Standing from this period, Transylvania now takes pride in the defense lines and systems, be them cities, churches, castles or fortresses.

The Battle from Vienna, in 1683, between the Habsburg Monarchy and the Turkish armies, once again influenced the history of Transylvania. The victory of the Holy Roman Empire led to the inclusion of Transylvania to the Habsburg House, later on part of Austria-Hungary dual state.

WWI brought the disintegration of the dual state and the union of Transylvania with Romania, in 1918, under the Romanian Monarchy.

The end of WWII marked the beginning of a new era in Romanian history: the arise of the communist party. Until December 1989, for 42 years, the country struggled with freedom and propriety limitations, hunger, individual’s political oppression and a low standard of living.

In 2007 Romania entered the European Union.

Positioned in north-central part of Romania, Transylvania neighbors Hungary (north-west), Serbia (south-west) and Ukraine (north) and is surrounded by the Carpathian Mountains on the south-eastern part, which create a natural border to Moldova (east) and Wallachia (south).

The total surface of Transylvania, including Banat, Crisana, Satmar and Maramures sub-regions, sums up to 100.293 km², representing 42.1% of the entire surface of Romania. With a population of over 7 millions, Transylvania gives almost one third of the population of the country.

Transylvania’s emblematic landscape displays a smooth alternation of plains, hills and high mountains, with an average altitude of around 500m and a culmination at 2544 m in the Carpathians (Moldoveanu Peak).

The Carpathian Mountains are divided in three main chains: Eastern Carpathians, Southern Carpathians (the highest) and Western Carpathians (the shortest). With an extension of 910 km, they cover about 30% of the total territory of Romania.

All of the major rivers (Somes, Mures, Aries, Cris, Olt, Tarnava) spring up in the mountains and end up in the Danube River which lead them down to the Black Sea. Beside the running waters, the region is also rich in lakes (salt water lakes, volcanic lakes, natural lakes and finally man created lakes) and underground waters (which led to the formation of caves and of mineral water springs).

Once covered by sea, the area enclosed by the mountains is very rich in salt deposits. The average depth of this blanket of salt, covering all of Transylvania, is of about 400m. Its presence is connected to the start of salt exploitation in the area, most interesting spots to visit being Turda and Praid salt mines.

Underground waters and limestone combined and created incredible cave formations in the Carpathians. The Apuseni Mountains, with its total of 1500 caves, be them ice caves, potholes, fossil or active caves, represent the no 1 destination for cave lovers. Beside the underground formations, the varied karst landscape of the Apuseni Mountains, including wild gorges, dry valleys, short blind valleys, dolines and polje, are most accessible for all nature and adventure lovers.

Strongly connected to geology, Transylvanian spas are varied and very popular for therapeutic purposes:

> thermal baths: found all over Transylvania (Felix, Geoagiu Bai, Figa, Toplita, Oradea, Deva, Tasnad)

> sulfurous mineral water springs and mofetta gas emanation spas: most common in Eastern Transylvania, in Harghita and Covasna counties (Balvanyos, Tusnad, Valea Zalanului)

> salt water spas: Turda (mixed with mud treatments), Praid, Sovata

Hundreds of natural protected areas welcome travelers with the most diverse interest to visit Transylvania:

> geological reserves: Groapa Ruginoasa, Zarnesti Gorge, Racos Basalt Columns, Praid Salt Mountain

> botanical & ornithological reserves: Mohos bog, Sinca Secular Forest, Sic Reedbeds, Breite Secular Oak Tree Forest

> speleological reserves: Vanatarile Ponorului, Scarisoara Ice Cave, Meziad Cave

> mix reserves: Turda Gorge, Ramet Gorge, Scarita-Belioara, Padis karst plateau, St. Ana Volcanic Lake, Geoagiu Bai Thermal Baths

> parks: Retezat National Park, Piatra Craiului National Park, Muntii Rodnei National Park, Apuseni Nature Park.

Transylvania’s landscape is home to an extremely large collage of habitats: pastures, shrubland, arable land, hilly areas with deciduous forests, alpine areas with evergreen forests, hay meadows, orchards, bogs, virgin forests, wetlands and salt marshes. Traditional agriculture is still popular here, organic manure is still outclassing synthetic fertilizers in the peasant practice, the holdings are still at a small-scale holdings and the human impact is low compared to Western European countries. All these varied habitats together with the practice of traditional agriculture have allowed a great density and array of wild flowers and wildlife to survive. The plant life sustain the life of insects, birds, mammals and humans and many of the animals help to control agricultural pests, arranging life in perfect ecological balance. It’s like ‘biodiversity’ becomes synonym with ‘Transylvania’.

The hilly landscape of Saxon Transylvania, starting with spring until autumn, change color from pink, to blue, yellow and white, according to flower seasons, culminating with a veritable flower-rich spectacle in mid June: orchid species (Three-toothed orchid, Military orchid), Yellow pheasant’s eye (Adonis vernalis), Burning bush (Dictamnus albus), Nodding sage (Salvia nutans), Greater milkwort (Polygala major), Jurinea (Jurinea mollis), Red viper’s-bugloss (Echium maculatum), Siberian bellflower (Campanula siberica), Yellow rattle (Rhinanthus minor), Kidney vetch (Anthyllis vulneraria), Sainfoin (Onobrychis viciifolia). But a walk in the Apuseni Mountains or Szekely Transylvania can also reveal unforgettable color displays.

It is popular for the locals to collect their own wild aromatic and medicinal herbs, directly from the wildest meadows or forests: wild garlic, thyme, oregano, parsley, sorrel, Perforate St John’s-wort, yarrow, etc.

From a young age, the locals from Transylvania learn to distinguish edible from non edible mushrooms. They look for them on the meadows, in the forests and even on trees or in the soil. From different species of russula and boletus, to Horn of plenty (Craterellus cornucopioides), Chanterelle (Cantharellus cibarius), True morels (Morchella esculenta), Ox tongue (Fistulina hepatica) or to various species of truffles, all edible mushrooms find a place in the cuisine of mushroom lovers.

You may be surprised to find out that mushrooms are not only used for food in Transylvania. In Szekely Transylvania, in the village of Corund, artisans got specialized in creating different object (hats, bags, table cloth, etc.) out of a fungus (of the Fomes genus) growing on trees!

With the name of Transylvania deriving from Latin and meaning ‘Land beyond the forest’, it is easy to understand why this region has such a special connection with the forest. Once covering more than 80% of the area, the forest has reduced, during the centuries, to a modest percentage of about 20%. Yet, the variety of the natural deciduous forest (hornbeam, oak, beech, hazel, alder, silver poplar, birch, ash, rowan, willow) and the survival of several virgin forests is still a strong point of the region.

Beside the forest, the secular oak and pear trees decorating the pastures in Southern Transylvania are as much a part of the local cultural identity as the fortified Saxon churches.

Insects, butterflies, moths and their caterpillars are valuable indicators of nature, their presence expressing a positive impact on biodiversity. Being food for many birds, reptiles and mammals, they provide a natural balance. They also help plant pollination and seed spreading.

Walking on a flowered meadow in summer time, you are sure to see at least some of these species: Narrow-bordered bee hawk-moth (Hemaris tityus), Hermit (Chazara briseis), Small emperor moth (Eudia pavonia), Chalkhill blue (Polyommatus coridon), Knapweek fritillary (Melitaea phoebe), Burnet moth (Zygaena carniolica), Danube clouded yellow (Colias myrmidone).

The poor use of chemical fertilizers lead to little pollutants being released into underground waters and water-courses, thus influencing the survival of fish (trout, carp, bullhead, bleak, grayling, bass, pike, Prussian carp), reptiles (turtles, lizards, snakes) and amphibians (newts, frogs & toads). Note: the only venom snake in Romania is the viper!

Strongly connected to the diversity of habitats, to traditional agriculture and small scale monocultures, quiet village life, to wildflower, insect, amphibian and reptile variety, the bird life in Transylvania is flourishing. You can delight you hearing with the sound of songbirds (Skylark (Alauda arvensis), Cuckoo (Cuculus canorus), Blackbird (Turdus merula), Robin (Erithacus rubecula), Thrush nightingale (Luscinia luscinia), Songthrush (Turdus philomelos)), enchant your eyes with the colored-feather birds (Bee eater (Merops apiaster), Green woodpecker (Picus viridis), Blue pit (Parus caeruleus), Golden oriole (Oriolus oriolus), Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), Yellorhammer (Emberiza cintrinella)) or simply admire the hunting session of the birds of pray (Lesser spotted eagle (Aquila pomarina), Honey buzzard (Pernis apivorus), Common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)).

Last but not least, one of the iconic images of rural Transylvania are the storks, still nesting on rooftops and electricity poles. Starting with April until late August you’re sure to see them leaving their nest in search of food and calling their chicks for feeding when coming back.

What would be biodiversity without the survival of mammals, especially large carnivores? Playing their role in nature, they prevent smaller species of animals from becoming a pest for the different habitats, thus maintaining an ecological balance.

> carnivores: brown bear, lynx, wild cat, wolf, fox, marten

> hoofed feet mammals: wild boar, red & roe deer, chamois, European bison

> rodents: marmot, European otter, brown hare, badger, least weasel, European polecat, European mink, muskrat, edible dormouse, beaver

> bats: of the total 32 species of bats living in Romania, 27 species are found in Transylvania. One of Europe’s largest bat colonies (of about 10.000 individuals) is found inside a cave from the Apuseni Mountains.

Occupying three counties in Eastern Transylvania, it is inhabited ever since the Middle Ages by a Hungarian speaking population called Szeklers. Typical for this area are: carved and painted wooden gates, mineral water springs, mofetta and thermal spas, brown bear, painted pottery, old Hungarian runic alphabet and the ethnographic heritage. This is also the coldest region in Romania.

Laying south of Hunedoara, it is a historic region which has always been inhabited by a Romanian speaking population majority. Renowned for the Dacian and medieval fortresses, the stone medieval churches, Hunyad Castle and nature parks and reserves.

Located in Southern Transylvania, represented the first and main area where the West European colonists settled in the Middle Ages. Until the end of the 20th century it was inhabited by a German speaking population majority. It is not an ethnographic region in itself, as the Saxon population lived in most of Transylvania. The term is rather related to the tourism field, denominating the area where we have the most compact Saxon heritage, namely fortified churches and villages. Besides the built heritage, together with Szekely land, Saxon Transylvania represent the trademark of biodiversity in Transylvania.

Situated in the north, by the border with Ukraine, Maramures is a historic and ethnographic region sometimes considered to be part of Transylvania. It is best known for the wooden architecture and the old-style agriculture. We treat this region as an independent destination. You may find more information about it here.

Positioned in central-western part of Transylvania, west of Cluj, it is an ethnographic region, reputed for the nature parks and adventure sports possibilities. We treat this region as an independent destination. You may find information about it here.

Placed in the south-west, by the border with Serbia, Banat is a historical and ethnographic region considered sometimes to be part of Transylvania. It is inhabited by a mix of Romanian, German, Hungarian, Serbian and Slovakian speaking communities. Best known for the city of Timisoara, where the revolution in December 1989 started. We treat this region as an independent destination. You may find information about it here.

Located in South-Eastern Transylvania, around Brasov, Burzenland is a historical and ethnographic region inhabited by a mix of Romanian, Hungarian and German speaking communities. In the 13th century, for 24 years, it was the territory of the Teutonic Knights.

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Laying at the foot of the high Carpathians, west from Sibiu, it is a famous shepherd area, mainly inhabited by a Romanian Orthodox community. Dairy products from the area are famous throughout the country.

Situated west from Cluj-Napoca and inhabited by a representative Hungarian speaking community, it has a very particular ethnographic inheritance.

Positioned east from Cluj-Napoca, it is inhabited by a large Hungarian speaking community. Distinctive for the traditional music, dances and outfits. Together with Kalotaszeg, these would be the two regions around Cluj where Táncház dance tradition is still practiced.

Romania’s most important air transport hub is in Bucharest, the capital city found in the south-eastern part of the country, which has two airports. The biggest of them, Bucharest Henri Coandă International Airport (Aeroportul Internațional Henri Coandă București , IATA code: OTP) is the one used for regular flights, while the much smaller Bucharest Băneasa Aurel Vlaicu International Airport (IATA code: BBU) is nowadays used mostly for private and business flights.

Bucharest Henri Coandă International Airport is also the country’s biggest airport, used by over 13 million passengers a year. Regular direct flights operated from this airport by some of the worlds top airlines reach over 100 international destinations, most of which are in Europe.

Cluj Avram Iancu International Airport (Aeroportul Internațional Avram Iancu Cluj, IATA code: CLJ), situated just 8 km east of downtown Cluj-Napoca, in the heart of Transylvania and close to Apuseni Mountins, is the country’s second busiest airport. These last years, almost 3 million passengers took regular direct flights from here to 38 destinations in 19 different countries. Most direct flights from Cluj are bound for Western Europe, while some reach a limited number of big cities in the Middle East.

Timișoara’s airport is the main regional airport in western Romania. Due to its proximity to Romania’s frontiers with Hungary and Serbia, Timișoara Traian Vuia International Airport (IATA code: TSR) can be used also to reach north-eastern Serbia and south-eastern Hungary. Lately, slightly under 2 million passengers a year took direct flights from Timișoara to 22 destinations in 8 European countries as well as to Tel Aviv.

Eastern Romania’s most active regional airport is to be found in Iași. Though Iași International Airport (IATA code: IAS) only recently exceeded the 1 million passengers a year boundary, it is the country’s fastest growing airport. As Iași is already linked by direct flights to 22 destinations in 11 European countries and in Israel, it is estimated that the airport will reach its whole passenger traffic capacity during the next few years.

Romania has several other regional airports which operate international direct flights, virtually all of them bound for Western Europe, but most probably you’ll enter the country through one of the four airports mentioned above.

Though Romania’s rail network is well stretched out (fourth biggest in European Union by total track length) and covers the entire country, train would seldom be a good solution for those trying to visit as much as possible in the shortest of times.

As the outdated rail infrastructure is currently being repaired and modernized in many areas and in an extensive part of the network, trains tend to be rather slow, especially on long distances. Besides, many train operating companies, including the state owned CFR Călători, confront themselves with a shortage of wagons, so that on some lines trains can get crowded.

However, night trains might be a good option when you consider crossing the country from one end to the other. Sleeping cars come in two versions: basic six berth couchette cars and reasonably comfortable 1^st class two berth sleepers. Whatever you chose, don’t forget your earplugs in case you want to rest during your journey.

One must admit there is a tight link between the pristine nature of Romania and the country’s road network, as the former is stronger where the latter is meager. Thus, most of the 86,000 km of roads the country has (52,000 km of which are paved) are to be found in the flatlands and in the hilly areas of the country, which are more densely populated, while many a remote corners of the mountainous third of Romania, heavily forested and populated more with wildlife than with humans, are virtually unreachable by car for lack of roads.

Even though you will be driving in those parts of the country where there are more settlements and a denser network of roads, most probably you will spot some does or the casual fox in just a matter of days. That’s because you will seldom find yourself driving on a motorway and at least some of the roads you will take don’t get much traffic.

The fact that you won’t drive often on motorways has nothing to do with nature, but with politics. During the second half of the 20^th century, communist Romania built only slightly over 100 km of motorways because there was no need for more: just one out of 24 people had a car in this country (which, being similar in size with UK, is not a small country by European standards).

Since the early 2000, the total length of Romania’s motorways multiplied by seven, just like the number of cars, but that’s still not enough. So far, there is no motorway crossing the country from one end to another (that’s why there is no toll on our motorways) and most of Romania’s over 7 million cars (yes, nowadays more than one Romanian out of three has a car) drive on “national roads” (highways which connect all the cities in the entire country), “county roads” (smaller roads connecting small towns and bigger villages in every county) and “communal roads” (which connect the smallest villages in a given area).

With rare exceptions, motorways and “national roads” are in very good condition throughout the country. That’s why they take most of the traffic and many of them tend to be crowded with impulsive and impatient drivers. However, even though these roads are good, that doesn’t mean you’ll reach your destination in no time. All “national roads” cross plenty of localities big and small and you’ll have to reduce the speed of your car in each of them. Thus, the average speed of your driving through Romania will be of about 65 km/h. Besides, the more you’ll drive on smaller roads (either the “county” or the “communal” type), the more likely will it be to stumble upon bad roads. By the way, almost all of Romania’s unpaved roads are “communal roads”.

Those who come to Romania also in order to take pictures of horse-pulled carts will have to drive on bad roads. There are two reasons for that: 1. animal-drawn vehicles are not allowed to drive on motorways and on “national roads” in order to avoid accidents and 2. since the beginning of the 21^st century, the number of horse-pulled carts has drastically diminished, while oxen-pulled carts have almost entirely disappeared. The ones that you can take photos of are to be found in remoter areas, in more isolated villages, that you will reach on roads less taken care of…

Romania is not exactly that kind of country where people are mad about bicycles. To the beginning of the 21^st century there were practically no cycling lanes in our towns and cities. Things started to change since then, and now you’ll find a fare amount of them especially in Transylvania’s biggest cities.

Bicycle infrastructure outside urban areas is less developed. Thus, most of the time you would have to pedal on public roads. As it is always better to avoid the roads with intense car traffic, most of the cycling takes place on “communal roads”, far away from the hustle and bustle. Many such roads are covered only in gravel and they link tiny villages at the end of the world. The air you’ll breathe will smell like flowers and hay, crickets will be responsible with the white noise making and, as you won’t meet many other people during your leg, you’ll end up saying “hello” to all other passers-by.

Such idyllic cycling roads do exist, mostly in Transylvania and especially in the southern part of it. They are not hard to find and you won’t get lost on them like in a maze. Lately, a bunch of passionate outdoor cyclists have done everything in order to make them accessible to whomever wants to explore the most famous parts of rural Transylvania. Thus, not only these roads are marked, but you’ll also have apps and maps at your disposal, so that to fully enjoy your holiday.

Romania is a Christian country. Transylvania, in particular, has a strong multiconfessional feature, reason for which, it is not rare case to see two or three churches belonging to different confessions lining up on the same street or in a village center.

Beside the official Orthodox religion, there are three Catholic (Roman Catholic, Greek Catholic and Armenian Catholic) denominations, three main Protestant (Lutheran, Unitarian and Calvinist) denominations and the Judaic denomination that are practiced.

The first official religion in Transylvania, starting with the 11th century, was the Catholic religion. Strongly connected with the extension of the Magyar rule, the integration of Transylvania to the Kingdom of Hungary and the settlement of the Saxon colonists, the Catholic Church opened a first diocese in Alba Iulia, where one can visit nowadays the oldest still standing Catholic cathedral.

The power of the Catholic church in the Transylvania was also enforced in the area by the establishment of various monastic orders: Franciscan, Benedictine, Dominican, Ursuline, Cistercian, Minorite, Jesuit, etc. During the 13th century, for 24 years, Transylvania was also home for the Teutonic knights, a Catholic military order. The fact that, during the Middle Ages, Latin was the lingua franca used by the Catholic church, would explain the Latin inscriptions one can find in the medieval Transylvanian churches. Also, as it was only the clergy and the educated nobility that spoke Latin and the believers often couldn’t understand a world of what was being said during the holy service, the need to decorate the churches with frescoes, statues and sculptures was obvious, so that everyone can get familiar with the stories and the characters from the Bible.

During the 16th century, the Protestant Reformation makes its way to Transylvania, with the first Protestant book being published in Brasov in 1543. Soon, the three privileged nations (Saxon, Hungarians and Szekely) embraced the Protestant confession, namely Lutheran. Later on, the Hungarias and Szekely became Calvinist and Unitarian, the Lutheran confession remaining rather defining of the Saxon community. One of the reasons many believers abandoned their old Catholic religion for the new Protestant religion is that the Protestant holy services were held in the language of the community, making it much easier for everyone to pray and understand.

Starting with the end of the 17th century Transylvania became part of the Habsburg Monarchy. Being Catholic, they could not accept the Catholic church loosing ground in favor of the Protestant one and started a Counter-Reformation movement, trying to get people back closer to the Catholic Church. New churches were built, in a totally new style, the Baroque. The old Catholic monastic orders, once banished from the land by the Protestants, were brought back and given privileges. Under Ukrainian influence, starting with this period, the Greek-Catholic confession (a mix of Orthodox and Catholic religion) appeared in Transylvania. And finally, during the 18th century the Armenian communities settled in Transylvania, establishing their Armenian Catholic churches.

The Orthodox religion in Transylvania, starting with the Middle Ages, was mostly embraced by the Romanian communities, especially in border areas against Moldova and Wallachia (where the main religion has always been Orthodox). As in medieval times, the lingua franca for this confession was Slavonic, for the same reasoning of believers not understanding the words of the holy service, Orthodox churches were decorated with frescoes and icons. Compared with the Catholic church, in the Orthodox church there is just one monastic order, for monks and nuns, namely the contemplative order. After the union of Transylvania with Romania, in 1918, the Orthodox religion became majority and official.

The Judaic confession only became legal in Transylvania by the end of the 19th century. Unfortunately, during WWII the great majority of synagogues were abandoned, if not destroyed.

Even though still living in a traditionalist culture, Romanians have learned that censorship is not good for the soul. So, after the fall of the communist block, they started expressing themselves, more vocal, more colorful, more essence full, invading and trying to conquer the gray communist streets and buildings. Irlo Doidoi, Pisica Patrata, Ocu, Kero Zen and Dan Perjovschi are just a few names of the streets artists that have something to say.

If you are a fan, do not hesitate and visit the some of the most relevant artshubs in Transylvania: Launloc Street Art Gallery and Fabrica de Pensule (The Brush Factory) in Cluj and Petrila mine.

An abundance of traditional crafts are still practices and much appreciated in Transylvania. Hand embroidery and pottery making, wood carving, basket weaving, icon painting on glass, leather crafting, metal, copper & brass objects production, bee keeping, jam & cheese production are the best known local traditional crafts. Beside admiring them in the shops or in specialized markets, you often have the option of seeing how they are made and even do some tasting. Do not let the local craftsmen be strangers to you!

The multicultural feature of Transylvania, characterized by the various populations and cultures who settled or ruled the territory, is reflected in the local cuisine. Like all over Eastern Europe, the local cuisine is a veritable melting pot of dishes. One can easily identify Hungarian, Slavic, German, Armenian or Jewish influences. They all found a place in Transylvanian cuisine, sometimes with some herbs and spices being added or substituted, other times with the cooking procedures changing and even improvising for missing ingredients.

Being positioned in the cold hemisphere, Transylvania focused it’s cuisine on harvesting energy from fatty food and cold resistant vegetables. So do not be surprised if many dishes are pork, bone broth, dairy, potatoes and cabbage based.

But the real marvel of the Transylvanian cuisine lays in it’s ingredients. With many small subsistence farms and plenty of farmer’s markets, the local products is what gives flavor to the dishes. We encourage you to look for small restaurants and even try to have a meal with the locals to really savor the benefits of it.

After 45 years of communism, it may be tricky to speak about Romanian comfort food, as all food was rationalized and hard to get. Surprising or not, for certain generations, the comfort food remains based on poor quality products, the only ones available on the shelves in the 80’s.

Food is a portal into culture and trying a local dish can make you better understand it.

With the Cistercian monks bringing the vine plant from Burgundy, in the early Middle Ages, the tradition of wine production spread all over Transylvania, adapting the plant to the climate and the landscape to the plant. Even though the majority of vineyards disappeared, the terraced hills remain a true witness of the old times plantations. During the communist period, the focus was switched from quality to quantity, but nowadays there is a vigorous revival of the quality wine local production.

The wine trademark of Transylvania is the white dessert wine. If you’re a wine lover, you’d be surprised how much it can make of your stay a perfect holiday.

Epiphany (Boboteaza) – Celebrated on January 6th, it principally commemorates the baptism of Jesus in the waters of Jordan River, unlike the Western Christian churches who mainly celebrate at this date the visit of the Magi to the Christ Child. Water rites connected to purification play a special role on this day. In the period between Christmas Day and Epiphany day, the Orthodox and Catholic priests visit the homes of the believers to bless them with holy water.

Farsang / Fasching – Celebrated at the beginning of Lent period, it is a big village custom which involves everyone into partying and wearing traditional costumes, fancy dresses or something unusual. In Romania it is celebrated only in Transylvanian Hungarian and Saxon villages, representing the regional equivalent of the major carnivals that take place everywhere in the Catholic and Protestant world: the New Orleans Mardi Gras, the famous Rio de Janeiro carnival or those in Venice and in Nice.

Resurrection Night (Noaptea de Inviere) – Celebrated at midnight on Easter eve. The believers and the priest surround the church on the outside three time, while holding lit candles and singing. Then, the priest knocks at the closed doors of the church, everyone goes inside and the service continues. Starting with Easter Eve until the third day (as Easter is celebrated for three days) all Orthodox and Greek-Catholic believers would bring back home from the church a bread-and-wine mixture which is simply called Pasti (Easter). Also, for the next 40 days, until Pentecost, the common greetings, especially in the countryside, will be substituted with ‘Christ has resurrected!’ and the reply ‘Indeed He has!’.

Easter Sprinkling or Watering (Udatul de Paste) – Celebrated on Easter Monday (also known as White Monday), in Catholic countries of Central and Eastern Europe: in Poland under the name of Śmigus-dyngus, Wet Monday or Dyngus Day, in Hungary as Locsolkodás, Vízbevető or Water Plunge Monday, in Ukraine as Polyvanyy ponedilok or Watering Monday, in the Chech Republic as Oblévačka and in Slovakia as Oblievačka or Watering. In Romania it remains typical for Transylvania. While in certain villages young girls ready to get married are soaked with fresh water from the well, in other locations, they are simply sprayed with perfume. Both practices are connected to ancient fertility rites.

All Saints’ Day (Luminatia) – Celebrated in the evening, when, according to Transylvanian customs of Catholic influence, the people visit the graves of the deceased relatives to lit candles. In certain areas, the tradition of having a couple of fiddlers playing the favorite tunes of the deceased is still practiced.

Táncház (dance house) – a Hungarian folk custom from Cluj area, that allow the youngsters living in the countryside to learn the traditional dances, directly by practicing them.

Oser flea markets – Any city in Transylvania has a weekly flea market called ‘oser’ or ‘ocska ‘. For the locals it is quite popular to visit them for a weekly treasure hunt, as one can find some of the most useful or yet awkward objects, from live pet animals to communist remains.

Farmer’s markets (piata) – opened daily, especially in the morning, in any town and city. They provide fresh fruit, vegetables, honey, dairy products and even meat products. The older generation goes to the farmer’s market at least every second day.

We’ve selected a short list of events taking place in Transylvania throughout the year. You can still find hundreds of them, of smaller or larger scale, while visiting around. You just have to be present and curious!

January

Fuga Lolelor (Urzelnlauf) – Transylvanian Saxon culture festival, celebrating the end of winter

Takes place in: Sibiu & Agnita / last weekend of January

February – March

Burial of Farsang – carnival celebration celebrating the end of winter and beginning of Lent period (six weeks before Easter)

Takes place in: selected villages / at different dates, according to Easter date

April

Apulum Roman Festival – international historical Roman reenactment festival

Takes place in Alba Iulia / end of April – beginning of May

May

Transilvania International Film Festival (TIFF) – film festival

Takes place in: Cluj-Napoca / end of May – beginning of June

Apuseni Marathon – sports event

Takes place in: Apuseni Mountains

Sibiu Jazz Festival – music festival

Takes place in: Sibiu

June

Negreni Flea Market Summer edition – the biggest flea & antiques market in Eastern Europe

Takes place in: Negreni village / lasting from Thursday to Sunday, 2nd weekend of June / twice a year

Transylvania Tattoo Expo – international tattoo event

Takes place in: Sibiu

Sibiu International Theater Festival (FITS) – theater festival

Takes place in: Sibiu

Sumuleu Ciuc Pentecostal Catholic Pilgrimage – religious event, the Hungarian version of El Camino, one of the biggest Catholic pilgrimages in Europe

Takes place in: Sumuleu Ciuc (Csíksomlyó) / during Pentecost (the month may differ from one year to another)

July

Jazz in the Park – music festival

Takes place in: Cluj-Napoca

Sibiu International Steet Art Festival (SISAF) – street art festival

Takes place in: Sibiu

Electric Castle – music festival, one of the biggest in Romania

Takes place at: Banffy Castle from Bontida village (close to Cluj-Napoca)

Sighisoara Medieval Arts & Crafts Festival – the first medieval festival in post-communist Transylvania

Takes place in: Sighisoara / last weekend of July

Artmania Rock Festival – the biggest rock music festival in Transylvania

Takes place in: Sibiu

August

Untold Festival – Romania’s largest music festival

Takes place in: Cluj-Napoca / first week of August

Haferland week – Transylvanian Saxon culture festival

Takes place in: different villages around Sighisoara and Brasov

Full Moon Horror & Fantasy Film Festival – film festival

Takes place in: Biertan village (close to Sighisoara and Sibiu)

Smida Jazz Festival – music festival

Takes place in: Smida village, in the Apuseni Mountains

Mera World Music Festival – music festivals. Great chance to listen to some Gypsy fiddlers and good quality world music

Takes place in: Mera village (close to Cluj-Napoca)

Szent Istvan International Folklore Festival – music festival

Takes place in: Cluj-Napoca and selected surrounding villages

St. Bartholomew Celebration – folk event. Great opportunity to admire the unique local traditional outfit

Takes place in: Sic village (close to Cluj-Napoca)

September

Cheese & Cured Mutton Festival ‘Ravasitul Oilor’ – food & folk festival, marks the end of the transhumance season. Great occasion to taste delicious local cheese and mutton

Takes place in: many villages with a pastoral tradition, the most famous being the one from Bran village (close to Brasov).

Food culture festival – local food festival

Takes place in: Sibiu

October

ASTRA International Film Festival – documentary film festivals

Takes place in: Sibiu

Negreni Flea Market Fall Edition – the biggest flea & antiques market in Eastern Europe. Fall edition is much bigger than summer edition

Takes place in: Negreni village / lasting from Thursday to Sunday, 2nd weekend of October / twice a year

Transylvania Rose Hip Festival – food & folk festival

Takes place in: Sancraiu village (close to Cluj-Napoca)

November

Interferences International Theater Festival – theater festival

Takes place in: Cluj-Napoca / every second year

December

Christmas markets – food & folk events

Take place in: all major town, the biggest being in Sibiu, Cluj, Brasov / last from mid November until the beginning of January

Note: for the international film and theater festivals, all movies and plays have English subtitles.

Romanesque style – emblematic for the ecclesiastic architecture of the 11th -13th century. Most of these edifices were either destroyed during the Mongol attacks or later on rebuilt and modified in Gothic style. Great representations of the Romanesque style can be found at the churches of Cisnadioara, Cincu, Herina.

Gothic style – represented mostly by the civic, ecclesiastic and military architecture of the Saxon communities during the 13th-15th century. The Gothic style found in Transylvania differs from the West European Gothic. By virtue of it’s simplicity and sobriety, it became known as ‘Transylvanian Gothic style’. Good examples of the Gothic in Transylvania are the city center of Sibiu, Sighisoara fortress, various fortified churches (Viscri, Prejmer) and castles (Corvin Castle).

Renaissance style – connected to the humanist figure of King Mathia the Just, in the end of the 15th century. If, in the beginnings, the Renaissance style was used more for redecorating the old Gothic edifices, starting with the 15th century new constructions appear, following a typical Renaissance architectural plan. Impressive Renaissance features can now be found at St. Michel Cathedral in Alba Iulia, Corvin Castle in Hunedoara, Fagaras Castle.

Baroque style – adopted in the area following the integration of Transylvania to the Habsburg Monarchy. The first construction to be built in the Vienna Baroque style, in the fist part of the 18th century, was the Piarist Church in Cluj, followed by many other churches built by the Jesuit Monks all around the major cities. From the second half of the 18th century, the Baroque style was also adopted for civic architecture, one of the first and most emblematic of them being Brukenthal Palace in Sibiu. The city center of Gherla is representative for the Baroque style.

Vauban style – favorite defense architecture of the Habsburg House, introduced in Transylvania starting with the 18th century. Most outstanding example is Alba Carolina citadel from Alba Iulia.

Secession style – typical for the second half of the 19th century and early 20th century Austria-Hungary dual-state period. Born as an Avant-Garde style, the Secession movement opted for a more romantic, sensual and free approach to design compared to the formalism of the academic architecture of the past. It became Art Nouveau with a local Austro-Hungarian inflection, as opposed to European eclecticism. Best representations of the Secession style in Transylvania can be found in Targu Mures, Timisoara and Oradea.

Civic architecture

The urban Transylvanian centers are build around one or several main squares. All of the seven medieval towns that gave the German name Siebenburgen to Transylvania preserve most of the typical Western and Central European architectural styles mentioned above. The other towns, according to their age, origin and historic importance, are rather more Eclectic in style. And, of course, during the second half of the 20th century, no urban center escaped the communist touch.

The rural inhabited centers are organized according to landscape conditions (influences the construction materials), ethnic structure of the community (influences the structure and style of the households and the public establishments) and the vicinity to big urban centers (lead to the appearance of urban influences, thus creating styles like ‘peasant baroque’), often without following a planning. In lowland areas, the communist village systematization allowed the display of communist constructions. If in the cityscape, the communist features are mostly displayed on the sides, in the village areas, when the case, they were present in the very core of the establishment.

Defense architecture

Without attempting a scholastic approach to classifying the still preserved defense architecture from Transylvania (as there are many controversies concerning the correct terms to use), we will mention as relevant the following:

* fortified towns

Starting with 1351, when the King of Hungary passed a fortification decree, all royal settlements in Transylvania had to be fortified. The defensive walls (surrounding at least the core of the settlement) included watchtowers, defense towers and bastions, that used to be protected and maintained by the different guilds of the community. Representative for this type of defense architecture stand the seven fortified towns that gave the German name of Siebenburgen to Transylvania. Sighisoara, as UNESCO heritage site, is the most famous of them. From the ancient fortified towns the ruins of Ulpia Traiana Sairmizegetusa can stand as a good example.

* fortified churches (Wehrkirchen) & fortress churches (Kirchenburgen)

Even though two different types of fortifications, because of often being found together, they are simply referred to as ‘fortified churches’. During the Middle Ages, in Saxon and Szekely Transylavania, fortified churches (Wehrkirchen) and fortress churches (Kirchenburgen) also acted as refuge castles. With around 200 medieval Kirchenburgen still standing, they became an icon image of the Transylvanian countryside.

* castles & fortresses

Usage of the term ‘castle’ (castellum) has varied over time. There is also a permanent evolution of the structures: military structures became permanently inhabited castles, manor houses got fortified. As a result, there is a wide variety of establishments and structures now being referred to with the general terms ‘castles’ and ‘fortresses’.

Most of the castles in Transylvania are nowadays known by the names of their proprietors (not all of them, as often a castle would have different successive proprietors): Corvin (Hunyad) Castle from Hunedoara, Lazar Castle from Lazarea, Banffy Castle from Bontida, Matinuzzi Castle from Vintu de Jos, Kornis Castle from Manastirea, Miko Castle from Miercurea Ciuc, Bethlen Castle from Cris, etc. But this is not a general rule, as some of the most famous castles are simply know by the name of their settlement: Bran Castle, Fagaras Castle.

The Saxon fortifications (such as Rupea, Saschiz, Rasnov, Slimnic) generally had little in common with the castles erected by the nobility and royalty as residences, but often consisted just of defensible locations erected due to the crenelation right given by the King to the privileged nations. Among the ancient such fortified structures we can mention the Dacian fortresses (Sarmisegetusa Regia).

* military fortifications

Built only for military purposes, they were built for enforcing the power of the ruler and to defend roads and strategic points and to be a stop in the advancing of the enemy troops. They were only inhabited by a garrison and never used to shelter inside the population in war times. The most representative such military structures in Transylvania date from the early 18th century and are exemplified by the Vauban (start shaped) fortresses of Alba Iulia and Oradea.

Flowering in the Middle Ages, the defense architecture lost it’s importance starting with the 19th century. Not only were defense assembles no longer being built, but the existing ones were either abandoned or even demolished, mainly to allow the modern development of the urban centers.

Ecclesiastic architecture

Starting with the 20th century, religious architecture in Transylvania is closely related to confessions. If Catholic and Protestant churches started adopting modern styles (see Millennium Church in Miercurea Ciuc), the Orthodox churches, follow the Byzantine style mixed, in certain cases, with the Brancovenesc style (a Romanian style rather typical for nowadays Southern Romania). The modern styles are lacking in the construction of Orthodox churches.

Industrial architecture

In Transylvania, as well as in Romania, when referring to industrial architecture we mainly refer to iron, concrete and brick structures dating from the second half of the 19th century and first half of the 20th century.

The industrial structures dating previous to 1918 continued to be used during the communist period, sometimes with a reshape. As part of the systematization plan and the industrial development, for 45 years, many industrial structures, all built in the typical Eastern bloc style, appeared all over the country. The fall of the regime came with a collapse of industry, which resulted in many structures being demolished or simply abandoned (see the factories from Copsa Mica or the Beer Brewery from Turda).

So what is left, you may ask. There are still a few interesting structures for those interested to see:

– dams and water towers (present in all shapes and materials)

– the railway system, including the narrow gauge railways and all the railway stations that came together. First railways to appear in the territory were strictly related to mining and wood exploitation. From all the narrow gauge trains once existing in Transylvania, a single one is still operating for tourism nowadays (Mocanita Transylvaniei, an experience worth trying!).

– in the last years there is a slow moving revival of industrial structures through cultural regeneration: Fabrica de pensule from Cluj (the Brush Factory) and Petrila mine.

Among the most prestigious architects activating in Transylvania we can mention: Kos Karoly, Makovecz Imre, Thoroczai-Wigand, Vago brothers, Pakei Lajos, Lechner Odon, Marcell Komor and Dezso Jakab.

> violin and kontra (second harmony violin): very common for the taraf bands. Many of these string instruments are produced in the small town of Reghin, where we have the biggest artisan luthier community in the country.

> horn violin (Stroh violin): typical for Bihor county, Apuseni Mountains region

> double bass: very common for the taraf bands

> gardon (hit cello): typical for the Csángó community from Gyimes area, in Szekely Transylvania; it is played as a percussion instrument by being hit with a stick

> taragot: typical for south-western Transylvania

> tulnic (the Romanian Alpenhorn): typical for the mountain areas, used to call the sheep or as form of ommunication for the people in the highlands

> brass: common for the fanfare village bands; typical mostly for Saxon Transylvania

Most musicians being part of a taraf would be Gypsy. Previous to WWII they were employed by Transylvanian nobility to play in the styles typical of the time. Compared to Moldova or Wallachia, where the eastern and Turkish influences are obvious, the tarafs from Transylvania are based on a central European string ensemble. The Gypsy tarafs play for both Romanian and Hungarian communities. Some of the famous Gypsy taraf ensembles would be the ones from Soporu de Campie, Palatca and Ceaus.

> chain dances: hora (not as common in Transylvania as in Moldova or Southern Romania)

> couple dances: ardeleana, purtata (walking dance), lassú (typical for the village of Sic/Szék), invartita, csárdás.

> men’s dances: fecioreasca (both group & solo dance) and legényes (solo lad’s dance)

> strigături (rhythmic shouts in verses)

The term derived from a Transylvanian village tradition to organize weekly dances at individual’s homes. Nowadays, it signifies a method of teaching and learning traditional music and dances, being typical for Cluj area. Since 2011, the táncház event is enlisted on the UNESCO list of intangible heritage.

Of all Romanian regions, Transylvania has the richest and most varied heritage included in the UNESCO list:

> historic center of Sighisoara

> villages with fortified churches (Calnic, Saschiz, Biertan, Viscri, Prejmer, Darjiu, Valea Viilor)

> Dacian fortresses of Orastie Mountains (Sarmisegetuza Regia, Costesti, Blidaru, Piatra Rosie, Banita, Capalna)

> Sinca secular forest

> Tanchaz (dance-house) method of teaching folk dance

> ancient & medieval fortifications (Dacian fortresses, Saschiz, Rasnov, Rupea, Slimnic)

> manor houses, castles & palaces (Banffy Castle in Bontida, Bran Castle, Hunyad Castle in Hunedoara, Apor Manor in Malancrav, Bethlen Castle in Cris, Fagaras Castle,

> fortified churches (Biertan, Calnic, Valea Viilor, Viscri, Prejmer, Harman, Cloasterf, Malancrav, Alma Vii, Richis, Archita, Copsa Mare, Cincu, etc.)

> wooden churches (from the Apuseni Mountains)

> traditional villages (Rimetea, Marisel, Sancraiu, etc.)

> medieval towns (Alba Iulia, Bistrita, Brasov, Cluj, Medias, Sebes, Sibiu, Sighisoara, Oradea, Targu Mures)

> salt mines (Turda, Praid)

> craftsmen (blacksmiths, coppersmiths, weavers, potters, bee keepers, etc.)

> museums (ASTRA open air village museum)

> traditional fairs & farmers markets

> local food

> wine tasting

> traditional music & dance

> panoramic roads (Transfagarasan, Transalpina)

> spas (Sovata, Felix, Tusnad, Oradea, Gioagiu Bai, Turda, etc.)

> caves (Meziad, Scarisoara Ice Cave, etc.)

> mountain trails in the Carpathians

> wildlife (bear watching, ornithology)

> wild flowers (Saxon Transylvania and Apuseni Mountains)

> gorges, reserves & nature parks

> adventure sports (Apuseni Mountains)

Miklos Banffy

> The Transylvanian Trilogy (They Were Counted, They Were Found Wanting, They Were Divided)

John Paget

> Hungary and Transylvania; with Remarks on Their Condition, Social, Political and Economical

Jules Vernes

> The Carpathian Castle

Bram Stoker

> Dracula