Romania itinerary, day by day

From Bucharest to the castles of Transylvania, by way of medieval Brașov and Sibiu with its watching roofs: a road trip with the map, what is worth booking, everything that costs nothing, and where to sleep at three budgets.

🗓️ 3, 7 or 14 days📍 4 stops☀️ Best time: May to September

Brașov · Photo Maciej Momot / Pexels

Route map (numbers = order of the stops).

Romania in 3 days

2 stops · 12 things to do · ≈ 170 km

1Bucharest

Day 1

A capital once nicknamed Little Paris for its boulevards and grand nineteenth-century facades, now dominated by the vast Palace of the Parliament built under Ceaușescu.

🎟️ Worth booking

Palace of the Parliament tour1h30 · from €15
A guided walk through the second-largest administrative building in the world, a monument to the ambitions of the Ceaușescu years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Old town and the Village MuseumHalf day · from €12
A guided half-day through the old centre, then the open-air Village Museum, where farmhouses, churches and mills were brought from all over the country.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old centre (Lipscani) · The Romanian Athenaeum · Herăstrău Park · The Arcul de Triumf

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Hotel Berthelot (€55 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Cismigiu (€80 a night) · Luxury: Athénée Palace Hilton (€180 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

AveForchetta ↗ ★ 4.9 · 12508 reviews
Nor Sky Casual Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 20013 reviews · €€€
Trattoria Garibaldi ↗ ★ 4.8 · 5206 reviews · €€
Trattoria Mezzaluna ↗ ★ 4.8 · 4188 reviews · €€
ARTO Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 1386 reviews

Photo Uiliam Nörnberg / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 170 km

2Brașov

Days 2-3

A medieval Saxon town at the foot of the Carpathians, with a Gothic square at its centre and stretches of its old walls still standing.

🎟️ Worth booking

Old town and the Black Church, guided2h · from €12
The Saxon old town and its Gothic Black Church, named for the soot left on its walls by the fire of 1689.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Cable car up Mount Tâmpa1h · from €10
A short ride to the top of the hill above the town, for the view over a sea of red roofs.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Council Square · Rope Street · The first Romanian school · The town walls

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Centrum House Hostel (€15 a night) · Mid-range: Casa Wagner (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hotel Bella Muzica (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Brunch House ↗ ★ 4.9 · 5378 reviews · €€
Masala Baba - Indian Soul Food ↗ ★ 4.9 · 944 reviews
Brauhaus Czell ↗ ★ 4.9 · 416 reviews
Cupt'or ↗ ★ 4.8 · 12848 reviews
Dei Frati ↗ ★ 4.8 · 5603 reviews · €€

Photo Cezar Creţan / Pexels

Romania in 7 days

4 stops · 24 things to do · ≈ 345 km

1Bucharest

Days 1-2

A capital once nicknamed Little Paris for its boulevards and grand nineteenth-century facades, now dominated by the vast Palace of the Parliament built under Ceaușescu.

🎟️ Worth booking

Palace of the Parliament tour1h30 · from €15
A guided walk through the second-largest administrative building in the world, a monument to the ambitions of the Ceaușescu years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Old town and the Village MuseumHalf day · from €12
A guided half-day through the old centre, then the open-air Village Museum, where farmhouses, churches and mills were brought from all over the country.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old centre (Lipscani) · The Romanian Athenaeum · Herăstrău Park · The Arcul de Triumf

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Hotel Berthelot (€55 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Cismigiu (€80 a night) · Luxury: Athénée Palace Hilton (€180 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Uiliam Nörnberg / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 170 km

2Brașov

Days 3-4

A medieval Saxon town at the foot of the Carpathians, with a Gothic square at its centre and stretches of its old walls still standing.

🎟️ Worth booking

Old town and the Black Church, guided2h · from €12
The Saxon old town and its Gothic Black Church, named for the soot left on its walls by the fire of 1689.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Cable car up Mount Tâmpa1h · from €10
A short ride to the top of the hill above the town, for the view over a sea of red roofs.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Council Square · Rope Street · The first Romanian school · The town walls

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Centrum House Hostel (€15 a night) · Mid-range: Casa Wagner (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hotel Bella Muzica (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Cezar Creţan / Pexels

🚗 Car · 45 min · 30 km

3Bran Castle and Sinaia

Day 5

Bran Castle, tied by legend to Dracula, sits on its rock above the pass. Peleș Castle, the summer palace of Romania's kings, is a short drive away in Sinaia.

🎟️ Worth booking

Bran Castle (Dracula's castle)1h30 · from €12
The fortress on its rock that the Dracula legend attached itself to, though its real history runs through merchants, soldiers and Queen Marie.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Peleș Castle in Sinaia1h30 · from €15
The neo-Renaissance summer palace of King Carol I, all carved wood and stained glass, in a clearing of the Carpathian forest.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Bran village · The Bucegi mountains (view) · The craft market · Carpathian walking trails

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Pensiunea Mama Cozonacilor (€45 a night) · Mid-range: Vila Bran (€60 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Opus Garden ↗ ★ 4.8 · 1097 reviews
Restaurant Bistro Caramello Sinaia ↗ ★ 4.8 · 993 reviews
Restaurant Paj ↗ ★ 4.8 · 184 reviews
Taverna Sarbului ↗ ★ 4.6 · 11122 reviews · €€
LA ROQ Restaurant Sinaia ↗ ★ 4.6 · 2173 reviews

Photo Valeria Drozdova / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 145 km

4Sibiu

Days 6-7

A Saxon town of cobbled squares whose roofs seem to watch you through their narrow dormer windows. It was European Capital of Culture in 2007.

🎟️ Worth booking

The old town and its watching roofs, guided2h · from €12
A walk through the old town with a guide, looking up at the houses with eyes, dormer windows that once ventilated Saxon grain lofts.
Book on GetYourGuide →
ASTRA open-air museumHalf day · from €8
One of the largest open-air museums in Europe, where traditional farms, windmills and watermills stand around a lake in the Dumbrava forest.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Large and Small Squares · The Bridge of Lies · The roofs with eyes · The Council Tower

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Old Town Hostel (€14 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Am Ring (€75 a night) · Luxury: Hilton Sibiu (€120 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Ouă și Unt ↗ ★ 5 · 1061 reviews
JAR'S Steak & Spritz - Restaurant Sibiu ↗ ★ 4.9 · 1962 reviews
Leon ↗ ★ 4.8 · 6451 reviews · €€
La Bubu Chef Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 482 reviews · €
Plai Restaurant ↗ ★ 4.8 · 323 reviews

Photo Marian Florinel Condruz / Pexels

Romania in 14 days

5 stops · 30 things to do · ≈ 625 km

1Bucharest

Days 1-3

A capital once nicknamed Little Paris for its boulevards and grand nineteenth-century facades, now dominated by the vast Palace of the Parliament built under Ceaușescu.

🎟️ Worth booking

Palace of the Parliament tour1h30 · from €15
A guided walk through the second-largest administrative building in the world, a monument to the ambitions of the Ceaușescu years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Old town and the Village MuseumHalf day · from €12
A guided half-day through the old centre, then the open-air Village Museum, where farmhouses, churches and mills were brought from all over the country.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old centre (Lipscani) · The Romanian Athenaeum · Herăstrău Park · The Arcul de Triumf

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Hotel Berthelot (€55 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Cismigiu (€80 a night) · Luxury: Athénée Palace Hilton (€180 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Uiliam Nörnberg / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 170 km

2Brașov

Days 4-6

A medieval Saxon town at the foot of the Carpathians, with a Gothic square at its centre and stretches of its old walls still standing.

🎟️ Worth booking

Old town and the Black Church, guided2h · from €12
The Saxon old town and its Gothic Black Church, named for the soot left on its walls by the fire of 1689.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Cable car up Mount Tâmpa1h · from €10
A short ride to the top of the hill above the town, for the view over a sea of red roofs.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Council Square · Rope Street · The first Romanian school · The town walls

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Centrum House Hostel (€15 a night) · Mid-range: Casa Wagner (€70 a night) · Luxury: Hotel Bella Muzica (€110 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Cezar Creţan / Pexels

🚗 Car · 45 min · 30 km

3Bran Castle and Sinaia

Days 7-8

Bran Castle, tied by legend to Dracula, sits on its rock above the pass. Peleș Castle, the summer palace of Romania's kings, is a short drive away in Sinaia.

🎟️ Worth booking

Bran Castle (Dracula's castle)1h30 · from €12
The fortress on its rock that the Dracula legend attached itself to, though its real history runs through merchants, soldiers and Queen Marie.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Peleș Castle in Sinaia1h30 · from €15
The neo-Renaissance summer palace of King Carol I, all carved wood and stained glass, in a clearing of the Carpathian forest.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

Bran village · The Bucegi mountains (view) · The craft market · Carpathian walking trails

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Pensiunea Mama Cozonacilor (€45 a night) · Mid-range: Vila Bran (€60 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Valeria Drozdova / Pexels

🚗 Car · 2h30 · 145 km

4Sibiu

Days 9-12

A Saxon town of cobbled squares whose roofs seem to watch you through their narrow dormer windows. It was European Capital of Culture in 2007.

🎟️ Worth booking

The old town and its watching roofs, guided2h · from €12
A walk through the old town with a guide, looking up at the houses with eyes, dormer windows that once ventilated Saxon grain lofts.
Book on GetYourGuide →
ASTRA open-air museumHalf day · from €8
One of the largest open-air museums in Europe, where traditional farms, windmills and watermills stand around a lake in the Dumbrava forest.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The Large and Small Squares · The Bridge of Lies · The roofs with eyes · The Council Tower

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Old Town Hostel (€14 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Am Ring (€75 a night) · Luxury: Hilton Sibiu (€120 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Marian Florinel Condruz / Pexels

🚗 Car · 4h · 280 km (return)

5Bucharest

Days 13-14

A capital once nicknamed Little Paris for its boulevards and grand nineteenth-century facades, now dominated by the vast Palace of the Parliament built under Ceaușescu.

🎟️ Worth booking

Palace of the Parliament tour1h30 · from €15
A guided walk through the second-largest administrative building in the world, a monument to the ambitions of the Ceaușescu years.
Book on GetYourGuide →
Old town and the Village MuseumHalf day · from €12
A guided half-day through the old centre, then the open-air Village Museum, where farmhouses, churches and mills were brought from all over the country.
Book on GetYourGuide →

✦ Free, not to be missed

The old centre (Lipscani) · The Romanian Athenaeum · Herăstrău Park · The Arcul de Triumf

🛏️ Where to sleep · Budget: Hotel Berthelot (€55 a night) · Mid-range: Hotel Cismigiu (€80 a night) · Luxury: Athénée Palace Hilton (€180 a night)

🍴 Where to eat · top rated

Photo Uiliam Nörnberg / Pexels

Hotel prices are per room per night, activity prices per person, checked when written. Some links are affiliate links (Booking, GetYourGuide): we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.

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Good to know before you go

🍽️ What to eat

Sarmale: cabbage leaves rolled around minced meat and rice, simmered for hours.
Mămăligă: a firm maize porridge, served with cheese, sour cream or alongside stews.
Mici: small grilled sausages without skins, eaten with mustard and a cold beer.
Ciorbă: a family of sour soups, from tripe to vegetables, sharpened with bran or lemon.
Papanași: fried cheese doughnuts topped with sour cream and jam.

⚠️ What to avoid

Watch for stray dogs in the countryside and on mountain trails.
The Transfăgărășan road is closed for most of the year, usually opening only from early summer to October.
Use cash machines attached to banks, and take metered taxis or a ride app.
Book early in the Transylvanian villages in summer, where guesthouses are small and few.

Plan this trip

📒 The free printable Romania guide→ 🗓️ Best time to visit Romania, month by month→ 🎟️ What to book before you go→

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