On this tour, you will visit regions of Europe that are incredibly diverse in terms of ethnicity, politics, and religion. Experience a blend of peoples and cultures—including Slovaks, Poles, Hungarians, Austrians, Russians, Germans, Romanians, Roma, Turks, and Jews, as well as Orthodox, Catholic, and Protestant communities. All of them have left their mark on the regions surrounding the Carpathians.

But rest assured, this is not intended to be a heavy-duty cultural tour. If you prefer enjoying beautiful landscapes, forests, and mountains, you certainly won't be disappointed. With mostly short daily stages, the trip offers plenty of free time—especially for hikers, cyclists, and photographers.

Romania is a diverse country. The Southern Carpathians run through it, creating sweeping hilly landscapes and impressive mountain scenery. We will visit the three most important regions: Wallachia, Bukovina, and Transylvania.

Highlights of this part of the tour include Maramure?—with a ride on the forest railway—Bukovina and its picturesque Moldavian monasteries, and the 100-meter-deep Bicaz Gorge. The capital, Bucharest, offers a potpourri of modern capitalism, socialist grandeur and "wedding-cake" architecture, French-influenced styles, and a few gems from the Ottoman and medieval eras. We can also marvel at the cities of Bra?ov and Sibiu—important trading hubs since the Middle Ages thanks to settlement by Transylvanian Saxons—as well as their historic centers, picturesque towns, and impressive fortified castles.

This trip is a segment of the longer "Carpathians" tour.