Budapest To Bucharest – And Beyond

Budapest, Bucharest, Brasov, Sibiu, Sighisoara11 days

About

From five days of health, wellness and culinary delights at Budapest – one of the world’s best spa centres in the world and a food capital to beat no other, to time spent in the mysterious and historical land that is Transylvania – the broad, mountainous and culturally rich region of Romania, and its Carpathian Mountains sometimes known as the Transylvanian Alps.

You should experience it because...

This tour is a delightful mix of ‘taking the waters’,

Hungarian gastronomy, the Danube river, Romanian fortified churches and painted

monasteries, and a journey through the Carpathian Mountains with charming

fairy-tale villages that have seemingly just stepped out of the Middle Ages.

Spa delights, traditional tastes, and a trip to Transylvania

Get steamy at one of Budapest’s many bath houses, try the recently renovated Rudas or the traditional Gellert.

See the renaissance delights on Budapest’s Castle Hill, a UNESCO Heritage Site.

Feed your eyes at Budapest’s Central Market, sights include perch-pike thrashing around in glass aquariums and irresistible multi-coloured jars of pickled cucumber.

Take a peak at the 14thcentury Bran Castle in Romania – home of Dracula.

Places covered 11 Days

Day 1 Arrive Budapest. - Danube river cruise – Grand central Market Hall
Day 2 Budapest sightseeing – walking tour – dinner of local culinary fare
Day 3 Budapest – day at the Baths ‘taking the waters’ –Rudas/Kiraly/Lukacs
Day 4 Budapest to Bucharest for start of Transylvania Tour
Day 5 Bucharest – sightseeing and attractions
Day 6 Journey in to Romania to Sinaia and Brasov (Transylvania)
Day 7 Brasov sightseeing – Carpathian Mountains
Day 8 Trip to Sibiu – medieval squares and churches – overnight Sighisoara
Day 9 Sighisoara to Bucovina via the Bargau Pass
Day 10 Bucovina – the Painted Monasteries
Day 11 Bucovina to Bucharest - Depart

Days Details
1 Arrive Budapest. - Danube river cruise – Grand central Market Hall One of the best ways to see Budapest is by boat along the Danube. Cruise under the Chain Bridge – built in 1849 by a Scottish engineer – and take in the stately royal castles and churches of medieval Budaon one bank, and the splendid neo-gothic Hungarian Parliament and the belle-epoque architecture of bustling Pest on the other. You will want to spend all afternoon at the Central Market, now one of the city’s prime tourist attractions. Hungary has one of the most sophisticated styles of cooking in Europe, and the food selection at the market reflects this. The vast glass and metal hall teems with shoppers each day and there are so many varieties of foods on display from wild mushrooms and truffles, smoked meats, paprika, and colourful chillies to hanging garlics, tomatoes galore, and multi-coloured jars of pickled cucumber. Upstairs are the buffet bars where you can try goulash soup, fozelek a delicious vegetable stew, paprika-roasted chicken, and halaszle (a spicy fish soup). Buy some delicious Hungarian honey to take home.
2 Budapest sightseeing – walking tour – dinner of local culinary fare This is Hungary’s capital and grandest city. Its down-at-heels quality gives it a scruffy charm. Split by the Danube, Buda’s rolling hills and Pest’s wide boulevards are easy to explore. A must-see is the Royal Palace that has been razed and rebuilt at least half a dozen times over the past seven centuries. There are two entrances, the first via the Habsburg Steps and the other via the Corvinus Gate. The Hungarian National Gallery is an incredible collection over four floors that traces Hungarian art from the 11thcentury to the present. And the Budapest History Museum looks at the 2000 years of the city on three floors. Restored palace rooms dating from the 15thcentury can be entered from the basement. The Szechenyi Chain Bridge is the city’s oldest and probably most beautiful bridge. Named in honour of its initiator, Istvan Szechenyi, it was in fact built by a Scotsman. Take in St. Stephen’s Basilica – Budapest’s neoclassical cathedral, and the Great Synagogue – the largest Jewish house of worship in the world outside New York City. Stroll through Memento Park, home to almost four dozen statues, busts and plaques of Lenin, Marx, Bela Kun and ‘heroic’ workers. Enjoy a coffee and pastry at Gerbeaud, located on the northern side of Pest’s busiest square, and dating back to 1858. It has been the most fashionable meeting place for the city’s elite size 1870. Dine at a local restaurant and sample some superb traditional Hungarian fare such as ‘suckling mangalica’ (a pork dish) with savoy cabbage, or ‘braised kid with polenta’, or go for the more well-known dishes such as goulash or stuffed cabbage.
3 Budapest – healthy day at the Baths - ‘taking the waters’ Budapest lies on the geological fault separating the Buda Hills from the Great Plain and more than 30,000 cubic metres of warm mineral water gush daily from more than 100 thermal springs. ‘Taking the waters’ at one of the city’s many spas and swimming pools is a real Budapest experience. Try the Szechenyi Baths with its dozen thermal baths and five swimming pools. Or relax with a soak in the ‘cathedral like’ art nouveau Gellert Baths, open to both men and women in separate sections. Soothe those joints with the warm water that ranges in temperature from 26ºC to 38ºC. The Rudas Baths have recently been renovated and date back to 1566. Lie back and enjoy relaxing in the octagonal pool, looking up at the beautiful domed cupola with coloured glass and towering columns. Or ‘take to the waters’ at the Lukacs baths – housed in asprawling 19thcentury complex, these baths are popular with keen spa goers.
4 Budapest to Bucharest for start of Transylvania Tour A short flight from Budapest to Bucharest means you will be at the capital of Romania by lunchtime. Bucharest is home to Romania’s best museums, from the Museum of the Romanian Peasant that showcases traditional country life, to the Palace of Parliament (the world’s second-biggest building) that reflects the country’s communist era. Orientate yourself with a Bucharest city tour – a double-decker bus that runs every 15 minutes along the major north-south route from Piata Unirii – one of the largest squares in central Bucharest, to the National Village Museum. Buy tickets on board. End the day with traditional song and dance at Caru’ cuBere, Bucharest’s oldest beer house, with a colourful belle-epoque interior and dazzling stained-glass windows.
5 Bucharest – sightseeing and attractions More time to explore Bucharest, and take in famous sights such as the Palace of Parliament, the National Art Museum - housed in a 19thcentury Royal Palace, the National History Museum, Dambovita Quay with the beautiful Palace of Justice, and the historical centre – the area called Lipscani. Wander through Carol Park and see the eternal flame that burns for an unknown soldier and a 20m black granite mausoleum that is toppedwith five arches. Stroll through Bucharest’s most historic street – Calea Victoriei – that was built in 1692 and connects the city’s two main squares, Piata Victoriei and Piata Revolutiei. Shop at the Museum of the Romanian Peasant Gift shop for beautifully made woven rugs, table runners, ceramics and other local crafts.
6 Journey in to Romania to Sinaia and Brasov (Transylvania) Take the train to Sinaia, nestled in a fir-clad valley backed by the imposing crags of the Bucegi Mountains, and visit beautiful fairytale Peles Castle. Built in 1883, Peles Castle is a masterpiece of German renaissance architecture full of hidden passages, fairy-tale turrets, tall galleries and classical statues. The smaller Pelisor Castle features a unique collection of Viennese furniture and Tiffany glassware. From Predeal take a 25 mile detour to the village of Bran and the spectacular 60m tall Bran Castle – home of Dracula. With its complex history, the castle is now a museum and still owned by the Hapsburg family. Overnight in Brasov.
7 Brasov sightseeing – Carpathian Mountains Legend has it that the Pied Piper re-emerged from Hamelin in Brasov. This is a charming Austro-Hungarian medieval village set in the Carpathian Mountains, with fairy-tale turrets, cobbled streets, gingerbread roofs, medieval spires and Soviet flat-tops. Locals and tourists use Brasov as a base for skiing in nearby Poiana Brasov, trekking in the Piatra Craiului National Park, castle watching at Bran, and spiraling road drives on the Transfagarasan Road. Visit Brasov’s Black Church, the largest Gothic church between Vienna and Istanbul. Relax at a café in Piata Sfatului – a wide square full of cafes, with a central landmark of the 1420 council house, topped by a Trumpeter’s Tower. For a panoramic view of Brasov and the surrounding Carpathian Mountains take the cable car to Postavarul Peak in Poiana Brasov.
8 Trip to Sibiu – medieval squares and churches – overnight Sighisoara Instantly charming with a maze of cobbled streets and baroque squares, Romania’s cultural gem has a magic of its own. In 2007 the city was voted European Capital of Culture. The city has three main squares – Craftsmen’s Square, Huet Square and Goldsmith Square. Highlights include the open-air Astra Museum of Traditional Folk Civilisation with its dazzling 120 traditional dwellings, mills and churches brought from around the country, the Gothic Biserica Evanghelica dating back to 1300, and the Council Tower – climb to the top and marvel at the views. On to Sighisoara, a Unesco-protected citadel with pretty cobblestone streets, colourful 16thcentury houses with gingerbread roofs tumbling down to pretty cafes.
9 Sighisoara to Bucovina via the Bargau Pass Most of Sighisoara’s sights are clustered in the compact told town – the delightful medieval Citadel – perched on a hillock and fortified with a 14thcentury wall, to which 14 towers and five artillery bastions were later added. It was here, in the Piata Cetatii, that Vlad Tepes (Dracula) was born in 1431. The Casa Dracula, his home until he was four, is now a restaurant. Hidden away behind the Church of the Dominican Monastery is a statue of Vlad Tepes. Visit the History Museum, located inside the Clock Tower, with its small rooms that wind up to the 7thfloor. And climb the 172 steps to the Church on the Hill – a 17thcentury Lutheran church and the town’s highest point. On through the Bargau Pass, passing through the city ofTargu Mures, and through one of the most picturesque landscapes of Romania. Evening arrival at Bucovina – land of 2000 monasteries.
10 Bucovina – the Painted Monasteries A whole day dedicated to visiting the beautiful monasteries, almost 500 years old, with incredible external paintings and frescoes. First stop is Moldovita Monastery from 1532, built by Petru Rares, and that has a striking sunny yellow colour. On to Sucevita Monastery, with exterior paintings dating from 1596 and a dominant background colour of green. Continue to Humor Monastery, and finally – the most beautiful – Voronet Monastery, founded in 1488 by the ruler Stephen the Great, and named the Eastern Sistine Chapel. Dinner and overnight in Bucovina to sample some traditional fare of honey and rosemary roasted lamb or spicy roast chicken stuffed with potatoes.
11 Bucovina to Bucharest – Depart Coach back to Bucharest, overnight in Bucharest, or depart.

€ 2,200 per person	(Prices are in Euros and exclude international flights)
Price Per Person in Twin Sharing Accomodation
(Prices are in Euros and exclude international flights)
All rates mentioned are an approximate price per person on a twin-sharing basis, and are based on a minimum of 6-9 adults travelling together. Rates are subject to change based on the number of passengers and the time of year. (Flights, visas, travel insurance, lunches & dinners, personal expenses not included. There may be some itinerary activities not included also – please ask). Inclusions : - Traditional ,Boutique or Heritage accommodation where possible or Quality accommodation (on a twin-sharing basis) in centrally located 4*Hotels . -Meals – breakfast in all destinations - Internal Travel by rail - ferries - coach as applicable -Guided sightseeing excursions as per the itinerary -First arrival and last departure transfers Most Holidays are based on Independent Travel . Holidays could be Customised to your requirements and you could choose to upgrade to Selfdrive or Exclusively Private basis .

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Eastern Europe crosses lots of boundaries and covers lots of countries - bask in Mediterranean sun one minute and ski in mountain ranges the next. Explore the southern coasts of Slovenia, Albania & Croatia in the warm summer months. Enjoy city breaks and travelling in the Czech Republic, Hungary & Poland in spring, summer and autumn, with many Xmas markets and concerts in full swing in the crisp winter. Romania’s mountain ranges are ski-tastic between December to March, and the Baltic States enjoy warm sunshine & long evenings in the spring. Not forgetting outdoor festivals galore throughout the summer.

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Freedom Holidays is passionate about creating inspirational tailor-made travel to Europe and beyond. Our business is your pleasure and our expert and dedicated team is here to listen to your travel needs down to the ‘nth’ degree, leaving you ‘free’ to enjoy your holiday of a lifetime with no gimmicks, no hassle, and no stress. What makes us different? With 14 years experience of providing quality tailor-made customised holidays with an ‘off-the beaten-track’ themed approach, we take you to well-known destinations as well as far flung locations (or a mixture of both), leaving you safe in the knowledge that you will be looked after every step of the way.

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