Cornelius Amann
October 06, 2026
5/5
Romania: Transylvania, Brasov, Sighisoara and Sibiu
9 days from Bucharest and back: Peles and Bran castles, three nights in Brasov, the Saxon villages of Viscri, Prejmer and Biertan, Sighisoara, and Sibiu with the Transfagarasan road in season.
9 days · Round trip from Bucharest · up to 12 guests
The Council Square (Piata Sfatului) in Brasov at dusk Photo: Constantin Barbu, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Brasov,_Piata_Sfatului.jpg)
The facts
At a glance
- Length
- 9 days, 8 nights
- Start and end
- Round trip from Bucharest
- Group size
- 7 to 12 guests
- Longest drive
- 5 h on day 9
- Activity level
Easy
Easy walking on cobbles, steep old-town lanes and castle stairs, usually 2 to 3 hours on foot a day. Bran Castle, the Clock Tower and the covered stair in Sighisoara and the tower at Viscri all mean narrow steps; each has a sit-out. Balea Lake is at about 2,034 m, reached by road, with an optional short walk above the lake.
- Meals included
- 8 breakfasts, 8 lunches, 1 dinner
- Room of your own
- + CAD 745 (estimated price)
- Season
- May to October
Highlights
Why this trip
- Bran Castle at opening, before the coaches from Bucharest
- Peles Castle on a timed entry, with lunch in the mountain town of Sinaia
- Three nights in Brasov, with the Black Church, Prejmer's fortified church and a free afternoon
- Viscri, a Saxon village the coaches do not reach, with lunch at a family's table
- Sighisoara's citadel in the evening and again at 8:30 am, before the day visitors
- Biertan's fortified church inside its three rings of walls
- The Transfagarasan road up to Balea Lake from July to October, and Sibiu's squares on foot
What makes this trip different
Short drives, all published
Every drive is listed day by day. The longest is 5 h, on day 9.
Free time is part of the plan
Free time and choices are marked on the days they fall.
Solo without the penalty
A room of your own is + CAD 745 (estimated price).
Day by day
Itinerary
The longest drive is 5 h, on day 9.
Tap any stop on the map to open that dayClick any stop on the map to open that day
Arrive in Bucharest
Bucharest Henri Coanda Airport to your hotel in central Bucharest
- Welcome dinner
- Stay in Bucharest
- Drive about 45 min
Fly into Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP) at Otopeni, about 17 km north of the city centre. A driver meets you in the arrivals hall whatever your flight time and takes you to our central hotel, 30 to 60 minutes depending on traffic. If you land early, walk down Calea Victoriei, the city's oldest grand avenue, past the domed Romanian Athenaeum concert hall and the former royal palace that now holds the National Museum of Art.
Evening
In the evening your See Sight Tours guide meets the group for a short briefing on the days ahead: where we stop, how long we drive, what to pack for the mountains and how the free afternoons work. Then we walk to a welcome dinner of Romanian food: sarmale cabbage rolls, grilled mici sausages, polenta with sour cream and cheese, and papanasi doughnuts if you have room. Plan to land by about 5 pm to make the briefing; later arrivals are still met and join us at dinner or at breakfast.
Included
- Pick-up at Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP)
- Welcome briefing with your guide
- Welcome dinner
Free time: Free until the evening briefing
Activity: Plan to land by about 5 pm for the briefing.
Bucharest: the old town and the Palace of Parliament
Bucharest old town, Revolution Square and the Palace of Parliament
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Bucharest
- Drive about 30 min
Morning
After breakfast a licensed local guide walks us through Bucharest's history in the order it happened. We start in the old town by the ruins of the Old Princely Court, where the princes of Wallachia kept a residence from the 15th century, and step inside Stavropoleos, a small 18th-century church with a carved stone porch and a quiet courtyard. Then we walk up Calea Victoriei to Revolution Square, where Ceausescu gave his last speech from the balcony of the Communist Party headquarters in December 1989, and on past the Athenaeum.
Afternoon
After a sit-down lunch the van takes us to the Palace of Parliament, the vast civic building Ceausescu ordered in the 1980s, for a guided tour of about an hour and a half through its marble halls and the balcony view down the boulevard built to lead to it. Tours are booked ahead and need your passport, which we ask for when you book.
Evening
The rest of the afternoon and the evening are free.
Included
- Bucharest walk with a licensed local guide: the Old Princely Court, Stavropoleos Church, Calea Victoriei, Revolution Square and the Romanian Athenaeum (outside)
- Sit-down lunch in Bucharest
- Guided tour of the Palace of Parliament
Optional experiences
- The Village Museum, an open-air museum of farmhouses and wooden churches
- A concert at the Romanian Athenaeum, when one is on
Free time: Late afternoon and evening free
Activity: About 3 hours on foot, mostly flat. Bring your passport for the Palace of Parliament.
Peles Castle, Sinaia and on to Brasov
Bucharest to Sinaia, then over the Predeal pass to Brasov
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Brasov
- Drive about 3.5 h
Morning
We leave Bucharest at 8:30 am, after the worst of the morning traffic, and drive north across the Wallachian plain and up the Prahova valley into the Carpathians, about two and a half hours to Sinaia. Peles Castle was built from 1873 to 1914 as the summer residence of King Carol I, Romania's first king, and its neo-Renaissance rooms of carved wood, stained glass and arms are why people come. Our timed entry is booked for about 11:30, an hour after we expect to arrive, so DN1 traffic eats the slack, not the visit; we spend about an hour and a half inside with a castle guide.
Afternoon
Afterwards we visit Sinaia Monastery, founded in 1695 and named after St Catherine's on Mount Sinai, then sit down to lunch in the town. The last hour of driving climbs over the Predeal pass, at about 1,000 m, and drops into Brasov.
Evening
We check in to a hotel in or by the old town for three nights, and your guide takes a short orientation walk to the Council Square before a free evening.
Included
- Peles Castle with a castle guide, on a booked timed entry
- Sinaia Monastery
- Sit-down lunch in Sinaia
- Orientation walk in Brasov to the Council Square
Free time: Evening free in Brasov
Activity: Peles entry is booked for about 11:30, leaving an hour of slack for traffic on the DN1. Start on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday: that keeps day 3 off Peles's Monday closure, day 4 off Bran's late Monday opening and day 8 off the Brukenthal Museum's closed day, which we expect to be Monday.
Bran Castle at opening, Brasov with a local guide
Brasov to Bran and back, then Brasov old town on foot
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Brasov
- Drive about 1.5 h
We leave Brasov at 8:15 am to be at Bran Castle when it opens, about 40 minutes away, before the tour coaches arrive from Bucharest. The castle sits on a rock above the Bran pass, the old road between Transylvania and Wallachia, and was built by the Saxon townspeople of Brasov in the late 14th century as a border and toll fort. The Dracula link is borrowed: there is no firm evidence that Vlad the Impaler stayed here, and Bram Stoker never visited Romania. Its real story is Queen Marie, who made it her home in the 1920s, and your guide tells both in about an hour and a half at the castle.
Afternoon
We are back in Brasov for lunch, then a licensed local guide walks us through the old town: the Council Square, the Gothic Black Church, named for the soot left by the great fire of 1689, Rope Street, a lane barely wider than your shoulders, and the Catherine's Gate in the old walls. The late afternoon is free.
Included
- Bran Castle at opening, with your guide
- Sit-down lunch in Brasov
- Brasov old town walk with a licensed local guide: the Council Square, Rope Street and the Catherine's Gate
- The Black Church (entry included)
Optional experiences
- Cable car up Mount Tampa for the view over Brasov
More active option: Walk up Mount Tampa on the marked forest path (about an hour of climbing) and ride the cable car down.
Free time: Late afternoon and evening free
Activity: Bran Castle is all narrow stairs and small rooms, with an uphill walk from the gate; you can wait in the garden café below. Start on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday: that keeps day 3 off Peles's Monday closure, day 4 off Bran's late Monday opening and day 8 off the Brukenthal Museum's closed day, which we expect to be Monday.
Prejmer and a free afternoon in Brasov
Brasov to Prejmer and Harman, then back to Brasov
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Brasov
- Drive about 1 h
Morning
A slower morning. At about 9 am we drive 20 minutes east to Prejmer, where the Saxon villagers ringed their 13th-century church with thick round walls, one of the Villages with Fortified Churches in Transylvania listed by UNESCO. Inside the walls, small storerooms, one for each family, rise in tiers on several floors, reached by wooden stairs and galleries; in a siege the whole village moved in. We give it about an hour. On the way back we stop at Harman, a smaller fortified church in the next village, on the days it is open.
Afternoon
Lunch is a sit-down meal in Brasov, and then the afternoon is yours. Walk the path below the walls to the White and Black Towers for a view of the old town, ride the cable car up Mount Tampa, sit over coffee in the Council Square, or join the optional afternoon at the Libearty Bear Sanctuary near Zarnesti, where bears rescued from cages live in oak forest.
Evening
Dinner is your choice.
Included
- Prejmer fortified church with your guide
- Harman fortified church, on its opening days
- Sit-down lunch in Brasov
Optional experiences
- Libearty Bear Sanctuary near Zarnesti (afternoon, booked ahead, price shown when you book)
- Cable car up Mount Tampa
Free time: Afternoon and evening free in Brasov
Viscri and on to Sighisoara
Brasov to Rupea and Viscri, then Sighisoara
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Sighisoara
- Drive about 3 h
We leave Brasov at 8:30 am and drive about two hours north through rolling farmland, past the basalt hill of Rupea fortress, then down a small country road to Viscri, a Saxon village of pastel farmhouses along one long street that the coach tours do not reach. Its fortified church, begun in the 12th century and walled in the centuries after, is part of the UNESCO listing; climb the wooden stairs of the tower for the view across roofs and hay meadows.
Afternoon
We spend about three hours in the village, lunch included, with time to watch the blacksmith at work and see the wool socks and felt slippers that village women knit and sell, then sit down to lunch at a local family's table: soup, home-raised meat or vegetables, bread from the oven and plum brandy if you want it. In the afternoon it is under an hour to Sighisoara.
Evening
We check in near the walled citadel, and your guide leads a short evening walk once the day visitors have gone.
Included
- Viscri fortified church and tower
- Village walk in Viscri with a blacksmith demonstration
- Lunch with a local family in Viscri
- Evening walk in Sighisoara's citadel with your guide
Easier option: Skip the tower stairs at Viscri and sit in the churchyard inside the walls.
Free time: Late afternoon free in Sighisoara
Activity: The tower stairs at Viscri are steep wooden ladders in places.
Sighisoara early, Biertan and on to Sibiu
Sighisoara citadel on foot, then Biertan and Sibiu
- Breakfast and lunch
- Stay in Sibiu
- Drive about 2.5 h
Sighisoara's citadel is a lived-in medieval town on a hill, listed by UNESCO in 1999, and at 8:30 am its lanes belong to the people who live there. In about two and a half hours with a licensed local guide we climb the Clock Tower, the 14th-century gate tower that now holds the town museum, for the view over roofs and the old guild towers, pass the house where Vlad the Impaler is said to have been born, and climb the covered wooden Scholars' Stair to the Church on the Hill and the old German cemetery under the trees.
Morning
Late morning we drive about 40 minutes to Biertan, whose fortified church stands inside three rings of walls above the village, the seat of the Lutheran bishops of Transylvania for about three centuries. Look for the sacristy door with its many-bolted lock and the small room where quarrelling couples were reputedly shut in together.
Afternoon
Lunch is in Biertan, then it is about two hours to Sibiu, arriving late afternoon.
Included
- Sighisoara citadel walk with a licensed local guide: the Clock Tower (entry included), the covered Scholars' Stair and the Church on the Hill
- Biertan fortified church
- Sit-down lunch in Biertan
Easier option: Skip the covered stair and the Church on the Hill and wait in a café on the Citadel Square.
Free time: Evening free in Sibiu
Activity: Sighisoara's citadel is steep and cobbled, and the covered stair has about 175 steps.
The Transfagarasan road and Sibiu
Sibiu to Balea Lake on the Transfagarasan and back, then Sibiu on foot
- Breakfast, lunch and dinner
- Stay in Sibiu
- Drive about 3.5 h
From July to October, when the high road is open, we drive about an hour and a half from Sibiu to Balea Lake, across the plain to the Fagaras mountains and up the Transfagarasan, the road built in the early 1970s that switchbacks up the north face to Balea Lake, a glacial lake at about 2,034 m. We go up early, before the traffic, stop at the hairpin viewpoints and spend about two hours at the lake.
Afternoon
Lunch is at the lake, and we are back in Sibiu by about 3 pm. In May and June, or on days snow shuts the road, we spend the morning at the ASTRA open-air museum, a forest park of farmhouses, mills and wooden churches moved from across Romania, and lunch in the village of Cisnadioara below its hilltop church. Late afternoon a local guide walks us through Sibiu's Large and Small Squares, over the cast-iron Bridge of Lies and into the Brukenthal Museum's European art gallery for about an hour.
Evening
We end with a farewell dinner together.
Included
- The Transfagarasan to Balea Lake with your guide (July to October)
- Out of season: the ASTRA open-air museum and Cisnadioara
- Sit-down lunch at Balea Lake or in Cisnadioara
- Sibiu walk with a licensed local guide: the Large and Small Squares and the Bridge of Lies
- The Brukenthal Museum (entry included)
- Farewell dinner in Sibiu
Easier option: Stay in Sibiu for a free morning and join the group for the afternoon walk.
More active option: At Balea Lake, walk up the marked path above the lake for the view back down the valley (about an hour up and back).
Activity: Balea Lake is at about 2,034 m and can be cold even in summer; bring a warm layer. Start on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday: that keeps day 3 off Peles's Monday closure, day 4 off Bran's late Monday opening and day 8 off the Brukenthal Museum's closed day, which we expect to be Monday.
The Olt valley to Bucharest and home
Sibiu through the Olt valley to Cozia Monastery, then Bucharest Henri Coanda Airport
- Breakfast and lunch
- Drive about 5 h
The last drive is the longest, about 290 km and four and a half to five hours of driving, because most flights home leave from Bucharest. We leave Sibiu at 8 am and follow the Olt River where it cuts south through the Carpathians in a deep valley, the old road between Transylvania and Wallachia. After about an hour and a half we stop at Cozia Monastery, founded in 1388 by Prince Mircea the Elder, who is buried in its church; its striped brick and stone walls stand right by the river.
Afternoon
Lunch is a sit-down stop near Pitesti, then the motorway takes us to Bucharest Henri Coanda Airport (OTP) by about 3 pm, or to a central Bucharest hotel if you are staying on. Book a flight leaving after about 6 pm. If your flight leaves from Sibiu International Airport (SBZ), about 15 minutes from the centre, the vehicle drops you there after breakfast at no extra cost and then leaves for Bucharest with the rest of the group.
Included
- Cozia Monastery
- Sit-down lunch near Pitesti
- Drop-off at Bucharest Henri Coanda Airport (OTP), a central Bucharest hotel or Sibiu Airport (SBZ)
Activity: Book a flight from Bucharest leaving after about 6 pm, or fly from Sibiu (SBZ); check SBZ routes for your dates.
- Bucharest2 nights
- Brasov3 nights
- Sighisoara1 night
- Sibiu2 nights
- Bucharestend
- Overnight stop
- Day trip
- By boat or train
Wildlife and weather: May, June and September are mild and green; July and August are warm in the towns and busy at Bran and Peles, so we go early. The Transfagarasan high road opens around July and closes with the first heavy snow, often by late October. Brown bears live in the Carpathian forests and are sometimes seen by the mountain roads; we watch from the vehicle and never feed them.
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Before you book
Right for you?
Good for you if you want
- Travellers who want Transylvania's castles and Saxon villages without moving hotel every night
- History lovers: royal Romania, the Saxon towns and the 1989 revolution in one week
- Solo travellers who want a small group and a stated single price
- First-time visitors to Romania who want the classic route with the extras included
Not for you if you want
- Step-free access: castles, citadels and church towers mean narrow stairs and steep cobbles
- A Halloween party or a Dracula theme trip; we tell the real history, legends included
- Travellers who want Maramures, the painted monasteries of Bucovina or Cluj on the same trip
- Those who want a different hotel and town every night
Book flights after we confirm your seat.
8 nights
Where you'll stay
Your hotels are named in your trip confirmation.
- Bucharest2 nights
- Brasov3 nights
- Sighisoara1 night
- Sibiu2 nights
One price
What's in the price
Included
Accommodation
- 8 nights: 2 in Bucharest, 3 in Brasov, 1 in Sighisoara, 2 in Sibiu
- Central hotels of at least 3-star-plus standard, named when we confirm your dates, within about 10 minutes' walk of the main square in each base: the old town in Bucharest, the Council Square in Brasov, the Citadel Square in Sighisoara and the Large Square in Sibiu
- Rooms shared, or your own for a supplement
Transport
- Pick-up at Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport (OTP) on day 1, whatever your flight time
- Drop-off at Bucharest Airport, a central Bucharest hotel or Sibiu Airport (SBZ) on day 9, at no extra cost even if only part of the group flies from Sibiu
- Our own air-conditioned vehicle and driver for the whole route
Your guide
- A See Sight Tours guide with the group for all 9 days
- Licensed local guides in Bucharest, Brasov, Sighisoara and Sibiu, and castle guides at Peles
Activities
- Bucharest: old town walk, Stavropoleos Church, Revolution Square and a guided tour of the Palace of Parliament
- Sinaia: Peles Castle on a timed entry and Sinaia Monastery
- Bran: Bran Castle at opening
- Brasov: old town walk and the Black Church
- Prejmer and Harman: the fortified churches
- Viscri: the fortified church, a village walk, a blacksmith demonstration and lunch with a local family
- Sighisoara: citadel walk, the Clock Tower museum and the Church on the Hill
- Biertan: the fortified church
- Transfagarasan: the road to Balea Lake, July to October (ASTRA open-air museum and Cisnadioara out of season)
- Sibiu: old town walk and the Brukenthal Museum
- Olt valley: Cozia Monastery
Meals
- 8 breakfasts
- 8 sit-down lunches: Bucharest, Sinaia, Brasov (two), Viscri with a local family, Biertan, Balea Lake or Cisnadioara, and near Pitesti
- 2 dinners: welcome dinner in Bucharest, farewell dinner in Sibiu
Not included
- International flights to Bucharest and home
- Travel insurance
- ETIAS travel authorisation fee, if it applies on your dates
- Dinners except the welcome and farewell dinners
- Drinks
- Tips
- Optional activities: the Libearty Bear Sanctuary, the Mount Tampa cable car, the Village Museum and concerts
- Photo permits at Peles Castle and some churches, where charged
- Personal expenses
- Extra hotel nights before or after the trip
Extras
- Room of your own
- CAD 745 (estimated price)
When you can go
Dates and prices
Pick your start date when you request to book. We check that date and confirm it in your quote.
Prefer to travel without a group or guide? Ask us about arranging hotels, transport and city tours for you to travel independently.
Before you book
Booking terms
Nothing is charged now. Full terms and the cancellation schedule come with your quote, before you accept.
Business addresses
See Sight Tours Trips (USA): 3172 N Rainbow Blvd, Las Vegas, NV 89108, United StatesSee Sight Tours Trips (Canada): 5305 50 Avenue, #1091, Red Deer, AB T4N 4B6, Canada+1-888-961-6584Guest reviews
What guests say
Reviews from guests on our day tours.
Jane
October 06, 2026
5/5
Susan
October 06, 2026
5/5
Tom L
October 05, 2026
5/5
MandL83
October 05, 2026
5/5
Darren O
October 05, 2026
5/5
Good to know
Questions
What does the price include?
Eight nights in central hotels, 8 breakfasts, 8 sit-down lunches, 2 dinners, airport transfers, our own vehicle and driver, your See Sight Tours guide, local guides in each town, and every entry in the day plan, including Peles, Bran, the Palace of Parliament, the Black Church and the Brukenthal Museum. Tips are extra; travellers often give the guide CAD 8 to 10 a day and the driver CAD 4 to 5.
How big is the group?
Seven to twelve guests, never more, and we do not merge groups. Everyone fits in one vehicle, sits at one table at lunch and hears the guide on a narrow citadel lane, and a small group gets through Bran Castle at opening before the coaches arrive.
Who leads the trip?
A See Sight Tours guide travels with the group for all nine days. Licensed local guides join us for the walks in Bucharest, Brasov, Sighisoara and Sibiu, and castle guides show us Peles. We name your guide when we confirm your departure.
How fit do I need to be?
An easy level suits most people who can walk 2 to 3 hours a day on cobbles and climb stairs at their own pace. Bran Castle, the Sighisoara covered stair and the Viscri tower are the steepest parts, and each has a sit-out. Balea Lake is reached by road.
I am travelling solo. What is the single supplement?
A room of your own is CAD 745 more than the shared-room price, shown before you request to book, with no surprise at checkout. Solo travellers are a normal part of our groups, and you share every meal, guide and seat in the vehicle on the same terms as everyone else.
When is the best time to go to Romania?
May, June and September are mild, green and less crowded. July and August are warmer and busier at Bran and Peles, which is why we visit early. The Transfagarasan high road is usually open only from about July to October, so pick those months if the mountain road matters to you.
Is the Transfagarasan road open on my dates?
The high section to Balea Lake usually opens around 1 July and closes with heavy snow, often by the end of October; the exact dates change every year. Outside those months, or if snow shuts the road, day 8 becomes the ASTRA open-air museum and Cisnadioara, with the same Sibiu walk afterwards.
Is Bran Castle really Dracula's castle?
Not really. Bran was built by the Saxons of Brasov in the 14th century as a border fort, there is no firm evidence that Vlad the Impaler stayed there, and Bram Stoker never visited Romania. It is still worth seeing, and your guide tells both the legend and the history of Queen Marie, who lived there.
Do I need a visa for Romania?
Canadian and US citizens do not need a visa for short stays in Romania, which is in the EU and the Schengen area. The EU Entry/Exit System registers your fingerprints and photo at the border, and the EU has said ETIAS starts in the last quarter of 2026; we confirm what applies on your dates when you book.
How does booking work?
Choose a departure and request to book. We confirm your place within 24 hours, and no payment is taken until we do. The small-group trip starts from CAD 4,380 per person sharing a room, taxes included, and a private trip from CAD 7,885.
Can we travel privately or on our own dates?
Yes. Besides the small group, the trip comes as a private trip for your party only, on a date you choose, with your own guide and vehicle; start on a Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday so Peles, Bran and the Brukenthal Museum are open. If you would rather travel independently on your own dates, ask us and we will quote the same hotels, drivers and local guides.
How long are the drives?
Most days have under three hours of driving, broken by stops. The longest is the last day, about 290 km and four and a half to five hours from Sibiu to Bucharest airport, with Cozia Monastery and a sit-down lunch on the way. You can fly from Sibiu instead and skip it.
See Sight Tours has been providing travel services across North America since 2006. Operating in 20 cities across Canada and the USA, the company specializes in small group tours that offer personalized, high-quality experiences for travelers.
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