Both the Transalpina and the Transfagarasan (two mountain roads in Romania) are usually open from the beginning of June ... and especially here, but also in many other regions, you can encounter them again ... the brown bears.

Our GREAT REQUEST, but also a CLEAR MESSAGE:
DO NOT FEED THE BEARS!!
DO NOT ATTRACT THE BEARS!!
DO NOT STOP YOUR CAR NEXT TO BEARS!!

BEARS are wild animals of the forest, not “entertainment attractions”; direct contact can be life-threatening!!! Please respect this during your journey and when encountering one or more bears! Enjoy the sighting, but remain in your car and simply continue driving slowly.

Romania is home to approximately 8,000 to 12,000 wild brown bears, and more and more bears are heading toward roads and populated areas because, unfortunately, some travellers give them food. As a result, the bears repeatedly return to the roads, even with their own cubs.

We understand that it is a special experience ... but bears can also be dangerous and, above all, feeding them destroys their natural way of life and, in some cases, even the animals’ lives ... for a brief moment of attraction.

We therefore ask you: let the bears ... be bears, and show responsibility. Do not feed the bears, and please do not stop when you see one or more bears by the roadside. By behaving this way, you attract the bear because it thinks it will receive food. Leaving the vehicle in such a situation to get a closer look at a bear should NEVER happen anyway. Thank you!

A worthwhile article about dealing with bears:
https://www.trentino.com/de/freizeit-aktiv/berge-wandern/nuetzliche-informationen/verhaltensregeln-bei-baerenkontakt/

It should be mentioned that feeding bears in Romania is now subject to severe penalties. Your holiday can come to a sudden and premature end!

Alongside the Transalpina, the Transfagarasan is one of the most beautiful mountain roads in Romania (Sibiu County), usually open from mid-June (therefore also currently) until October.

In summer / during the summer holidays, and especially at weekends, it can be a little crowded 😅, as it is a cool destination for an excursion (at over 2,000 metres), particularly when temperatures are high in the valley.

https://urlaub-in-rumänien.de | https://welcome-to-romania.com

Transalpina, Transfăgărășan, Bucegi and Făgăraș Mountains and many others. There are many wonderful trails through Romania's mountains and nature.

Let yourself be seduced and enchanted. Romania is looking forward to your visit.

https://willkommen-in-rumänien.de | https://urlaub-in-rumänien.de

The TransApuseana (also known as Transalpina de Apuseni) stretches over a length of approximately 78 kilometers on the county road DJ107I and connects Aiud, located in the valley, with the Bucium / Abrud region in the heart of the Apuseni Mountains.

Both endpoints are located in Alba County. Start / End (East): Aiud (connection to the A10 motorway). The road branches off at Aiudul de Sus and leads up into the mountain world. End / Start (West): The area around Bucium and Abrud (connection to the national road DN74).

We thank Ms. Gina S. for these beautiful pictures from her current motorcycle trip through Romania.

Once again, pictures of the Transalpina, the "King's Road," from August 2025.

We thank Mr. Hermann Loosli for the permission to use these pictures, which he took during his trip to Romania.

Beautiful pictures from the past few days of the Grossglockner High Alpine Road. It connects the Austrian federal states of Salzburg and Carinthia. The highest point of the road is at 2,504 meters (a little higher than the Transalpina / Transfagarasan), and it was completed and opened in 1935, four years before the Transalpina.

Our thanks go to Marian and his Donna (we don't know the name of the marmot in the fourth picture, but perhaps it's Phil), our tireless explorers of regions and new worlds in Romania and Europe 🥰

Current pictures (June 5, 2026) from the Transalpina, kindly sent to us by Mr. Iercosan Marian. Many thanks, Marian 🥰

The Transalpina (DN67C), reaching an altitude of 2,145 meters (Urdele Pass), is Romania’s highest road and mountain pass. This spectacular 148 km panoramic mountain road connects Novaci (Gorj County) with Sebeș (Alba County).

and please watch out for bears!!!

The Transalpina has been open for a few days now; work is still ongoing on the Transfagarasan (snow clearing), and it will take a bit longer. And for anyone going there to see bears, we recommend the bear protection project / the “bear park” in Zarnesti (Brasov County). It’s safer for both sides and still an amazing experience.

https://www.visitzarnesti.ro/en/libearty-bear-sanctuary

Video

The Transalpina (DN67C) is the highest road in Romania at 2,145 meters (Urdele Pass). The spectacular 148 km long mountain panorama road connects Novaci (Gorj County) with Sebes (Alba County) 😍🇷🇴

Video

The Transalpina, or "The King's Way" as the road is also called, is usually open from the beginning of June (like the Transfagarasan) until the first heavy snowfall in autumn / early winter.

It connects the towns of Novaci in Gorj County and Sebes in Alba County. Over a length of 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parang Mountains and reaches its highest point at the Urdele Pass.

We thank Mr. Andreas Hainbach for these beautiful pictures from his Romania tour at the end of July 2025 / beginning of August 2025. Many thanks 🥰

Pictures of the Transalpina, the "Kings Road", from June 2023.

We thank Mr. Michael Steffen for sending the pictures, which he took during his motorcycle tour in June 2023 in Romania.

We start at the end, but at the beginning we want to thank the Zitzmann family, who allowed us not only to use the pictures of the trip (end of September 2023), but also to take over the experiences. Thank you

"We drive the Transalpina, but after a few hours we realize that we miss the beautiful part. Google talks about blockage, missing guard rails and that the road was never finished...well, we let it come to that, turn around, drive back (the Transalpina is somehow divided in two) 100erte Schwammerlsucher pull 1000s of kilos of mushrooms from the forest, in large vats that we know from the grape harvest. Incredibly which quantities there are.

We find a great place to sleep, one may drive the road only from 8-18 clock...well we stand anyway, and do not drive. In Romania it is apparently no matter, locals drive around of course also after 18 o'clock, dig for stones, etc.. In the morning then a flock of sheep near us, still spend a lot of time in the wonderful mountain area, to finally arrive in the afternoon at the castle in Hunedoara to visit it."

Thanks to Gerhard Daniela Zitzmann for pictures and text.

A magical route in and through the Fagaras Mountains. The Transfagarasan road connects the two historic regions of Wallachia and Transylvania in a breathtaking mountain landscape.

Information: The Transalpina (also known as the neighboring road) has been open since June 1st, the Transfagarasan is expected to open at the end of June (more details will probably be known in mid-June) depending on the snow conditions.

https://xn--willkommen-in-rumnien-m2b.de/ (in German, English, Romanian)

We thank Vlad the Impaler - Dracula (photo: Munții Carpați) for the permission to use this picture.

Pictures of the Transalpina by Mr. Daniel Sippel, who took a trip in/through Romania in August. Thank you for sending these beautiful pictures.

The Transalpina, or "The King's Way" as the road is also called, has been fully open again since the beginning of June (like the Transfagarasan).

It connects the towns of Novaci in Gorj County and Sebes in Alba County. Over a length of 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parang Mountains and reaches its highest point at the Urdele Pass.

Pictures of the Transalpina from last autumn. Even in the last active months of the year (September / October, until the road closes when the snowfall begins), the so-called "King's Road" retains its fascinating charm.

We thank Mrs. Ramona Ciuchendea for sending and allowing us to use these pictures.

Current (fresh) pictures from Mr. Daniel Sippel, who is currently on a trip in / through Romania. Thank you for sending these wonderful photos.

The Transalpina or “The King’s Way,” as the road is also called, has been fully open again since the beginning of June (just like the Transfagarasan).

It connects the towns of Novaci in Gorj County and Sebes in Alba County. Over a length of 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parang Mountains and reaches its highest point at the Urdele Pass.

A magical road in and through the Fagaras Mountains. The Transfagarasan road connects the two historical regions of Wallachia and Transylvania in a breathtaking mountain landscape.

https://willkommen-in-rumänien.de | https://rotravel24.com

Currently open (probably until sometime in mid/end of October) and if you are already here, you should definitely also check out the "neighboring road," the Transalpina.

Our tip for a round trip: Sibiu (Hermannstadt) > towards Avrig / Brasov and then head south onto the Transfagarasan > Curtea de Arges, Arges County > Valcea County > Brezoi and via the Transalpina to Sebes and back to Sibiu. We recommend at least one, if not two or three overnight stays along the way.

Pictures from the Transalpina (July 2024), "The King's Way," and as it looks ... an absolutely "delicious" road. We thank Mr. Roland Schmid (Thank you, Roland 🥰) for these pictures that make you want more!

The Popasul Regelui Hotel is located in the middle of the Transalpina (67C) road, right by Lake Tau Bistra and the village of the same name.

The Transalpina connects the towns of Novaci in Gorj County and Sebeș in Alba County. Over a length of 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parâng Mountains and reaches its highest point at the Urdele Pass.

Thank you to Mr. Hainbach Andreas for the video.

We received a travel report and beautiful pictures from the motorcycle friends of our dear Roland 🥰. Here are pictures from June 27, 2025 and the ride over the Transalpina... Beautiful!

https://welcome-to-romania.com | https://urlaub-in-rumänien.de

Once again, our heartfelt thanks to the photographers for sending the pictures and for allowing us to use them.

The Transalpina, also called “The King’s Way,” connects the towns of Novaci in Gorj County (to the south) and Sebes in Alba County (to the north).

Over a length of 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parang Mountains (Carpathians) and reaches its highest point at the Urdele Pass.

As of today at 7 a.m., the Transfagarasan road (and also the Transalpina from 9 a.m.) is open again. The roads of all roads in Romania 🥰

If you are currently driving these roads, we would love to see lots of up-to-date pictures and info in the comments. Thank you so much!

https://welcome-to-romania.com | https://urlaub-in-rumänien.de

Info for June 2025: Transfagarasan open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m., Transalpina from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Since both the Transfagarasan and the Transalpina are open from today, you will meet them again especially on these roads... the brown bears.

First of all, the MOST IMPORTANT:
DO NOT FEED BEARS!!
DO NOT ATTRACT BEARS!!
BEARS are wild animals of the forest and not "experience objects", please respect this on your trip and when encountering one or more bears! Enjoy it, but stay in the car and just drive slowly.

In Romania, there are approximately 8,000 to 10,000 wild brown bears and more and more bears are attracted to the roads and towns, because, unfortunately, some drivers / travelers feed the bears and therefore they always return, but especially with their offspring, to the roads.

We understand, it is a special experience... but bears can also be very dangerous, especially a mother bear with her cute babies. Mothers know, with children the fun ends quickly and it can become very dangerous. Therefore, once again... PLEASE SHOW RESPONSIBILITY AND RESPECT for these animals.

By attracting or feeding them, you destroy the natural basis of life of the animals... for a moment of attraction. We therefore ask you to let the bears... be bears... do not feed the bears and please do not stop if you see one or more bears on the side of the road. By this behavior, you attract the bear, because it thinks it will get food. Leaving the vehicle in such a situation to see a bear closer should NEVER happen anyway. Thank you!

Below is a link to further rules of conduct, in case you encounter a bear (e.g. during a mountain hike). Here, the example is Trentino, but it is also valid for Romanian bears > https://www.trentino.com/de/freizeit-aktiv/berge-wandern/nuetzliche-informationen/verhaltensregeln-bei-baerenkontakt/

A magical road through the Făgăraș Mountains. The Transfăgărășan road connects the historical regions of Wallachia and Transylvania, offering breathtaking mountain scenery.

https://welcome-to-romania.com | https://willkommen-in-rumänien.de

Information: The Transalpina (also well-known, the "neighboring road") is usually open from early June, while the Transfăgărășan typically opens in early to mid-June, depending on snow conditions.

Crisscrossed by the Olt River, near the Transalpina Mountain Pass, in the heart of Romania ... and worth a visit in every season.

https://discover-valcea.com | https://xn--willkommen-in-rumnien-m2b.de/

The Transalpina, or "The King's Way," is a high-altitude mountain road in Romania's Carpathian Mountains.

It connects the cities of Novaci in Gorj County and Sebeș in Alba County. Spanning 138 kilometers, this road crosses the Parâng Mountains, with its highest point at Urdele Pass.

Text/Image source: https://destinatiaanului.ro

In some cities, it’s only six weeks until the first Christmas markets begin. Snow has already arrived (Lake Bâlea, Transfăgărășan, Transalpina), and we hope for a peaceful and reflective time to come, despite all the unsettling events currently affecting our world.

Below are the upcoming dates for a selection of the most beautiful Christmas markets in Romania, with images from previous years (please click on the image).

Craiova | Nov. 15, 2024 - Jan. 5, 2025
Sibiu | Nov. 15, 2024 - Jan. 5, 2025
Cluj-Napoca | Nov. 22, 2024 - Jan. 1, 2025
Timișoara | Nov. 24, 2024 - Jan. 6, 2025
Oradea | Nov. 29, 2024 - Jan. 1, 2025
Brașov | Nov. 30, 2024 - Jan. 7, 2025
Bucharest | Nov. 29, 2024 - Dec. 26, 2024
Piatra Neamț | Dec. 1, 2024 - Jan. 8, 2025

https://urlaub-in-rumänien.de/en/uir/christmas-markets-romania/

Whoever drives the Transalpina passes by Lake Oasa at an altitude of 1,259 meters.

A dam here blocks the Sebes River at the border of Alba and Sibiu counties in the Sureanu Mountains. With an area of 441 hectares (4,410,000 m2) and 136 million cubic meters of water, it is the largest reservoir of the Sebes River.

We thank the photographer Corina E. Mateescu for the permission to use these images.

Always beautiful ... and soon to be visited / driven on again. There is still snow at the moment and the Transfagarasan road in the Fagaras Mountains is closed, as is the equally well-known Transalpina.

Info: Opening expected at the end of June / beginning of July, depending on weather conditions.
https://xn--urlaub-in-rumnien-2qb.de/ | https://xn--willkommen-in-rumnien-m2b.de/