About this book
This new, third edition of Bradt Travel Guide: Romania: Transylvania remains the only standalone English language guide to this legendary and enchanting region. Comprehensive chapter-per-county coverage is offered, including details to cater for the diverse range of travellers to the region, from city breaks to rural escapes, ski enthusiasts to charity volunteers. Thoroughly updated, this new edition reflects all the changes of the past few years, from improved transport infrastructure (in particular the regional airports at Cluj, Sibiu and Târgu Mures) to the completion of new motorway routes, such as that between Sibiu and Deva. Also covered are a number of striking new accommodation options: for example the sustainable guesthouse in Valea Zalanului owned by HRH The Prince of Wales, and the mountaintop retreat of Raven's Nest in the Apuseni Mountains. More attractions have opened up, such as Baroque palaces formerly owned by Hungarian aristocrats, seized under the Communist regime and now being restored by the descendants of their original owners. And the region is developing its offer for new types of tourism, such as summer rock festivals, notably the Untold Festival at Cluj and Electric Castle Festival at Bontida.
Transylvania, literally the 'land beyond the forest', is a wild, wooded, intensely romantic region, filled with mountains, gorges and valleys, myths and legends, dragons, bears, wolves – and vampires. Bram Stoker called it 'one of the wildest and least-known parts of Europe' a description which remains true today. One of the most beautiful regions in central Europe and home to three UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Transylvania preserves its cultural and artistic treasures in a unique landscape, bordered on three sides by the Carpathian Mountains. The hay meadows of the lower Carpathians form a man-made, high nature-value grassland ecosystem of extraordinary diversity, offering a beautiful display of wild flowers. The Carpathians are home too to lynx, wild boar, and one of Europe's largest populations of brown bear. Other natural phenomena include the Scarisoara ice cave in the Apuseni Mountains and the Sfanta Ana volcanic crater lake in Harghita.
Whatever your interests, with Bradt Travel Guide: Romania: Transylvania, you can discover all of the region's many and varied attractions.
Contents
PART 1 GENERAL INFORMATION
Chapter 1 Background Information
At a glance, Geography, Climate, Natural history & conservation, History, Government & politics, Economy, People, Language, Religion, Education, Culture
Chapter 2 Practical Information
When to visit, Highlights, Suggested itineraries, Tour operators, Red tape, Embassies, Getting there and away, Health, Safety, Women travellers, Travelling with children, Disabled travellers, Gay and lesbian travellers, What to take, Money, Budgeting, Getting around, Accommodation, Eating & drinking, Public holidays & festivals, Shopping, Arts & entertainment, Castles, fortresses, palaces and ruins, Spas, Sports and activities, Media & communications, Maps, Business, Buying property, Public toilets, Cultural etiquette, Travelling positively
PART 2 THE GUIDE
Chapter 3 Brasov County
Brasov, Places to visit en route from Bucharest to Brasov, Brasov County
Chapter 4 Covasna County
Sfântu Gheorghe, Covasna County
Chapter 5 Harghita County
Miercurea-Ciuc, Heading south and west, Heading north
Chapter 6 Mures County
Târgu Mures, Heading east, Heading north, Sighisoara, Around Sighisoara
Chapter 7 Sibiu County
Sibiu, Heading south and west, Heading north, Heading east
Chapter 8 Hunedoara County
Deva, Hunedoara County
Chapter 9 Alba County
Alba Iulia, Heading south, The Apuseni Mountains, Heading north and east
Chapter 10 Cluj County
Cluj-Napoca, Heading west, Heading north, Heading southeast
Chapter 11 Bistrita-Nasaud County
Bistrita, Bistrita-Nasaud County
Chapter 12 Salaj County
Zalau, Salaj County
Appendix 1 Language
Appendix 2 Further Information
Customer Reviews
Biography
Born and educated in the UK, Lucy Mallows worked for 12 years in Budapest as a reporter. She first visited Transylvania in 1997, but her links with Romania go back to the late 1980s when she worked as a volunteer for Operation Romanian Villages, and to an early childhood fairytale The Lost Princess, written in 1924 by Queen Marie of Romania. Lucy Mallows is also the author of the Bradt guides to Bratislava and Slovakia. She now lives in Brighton from where she works as a freelance photojournalist and translator.
