Romania: Transylvania

Book excerpt: This new, fourth edition of Bradt’s Romania: Transylvania remains the only standalone, full-length, English-language travel guidebook to Transylvania – the legendary, enchanting and increasingly popular region of Romania. Co-authored by former British Ambassador to Romania Paul Brummell, Romania: Transylvania has been thoroughly updated by prolific travel writer Tim Burford, who wrote his first Romania guide in 1991. Transylvania (the ‘land beyond the forest’) is a wild, wooded, intensely romantic region, filled with mountains and gorges, myths and legends, dragons, bears, wolves – and vampires. Bram Stoker called it ‘one of the wildest and least-known parts of Europe’, a description that remains true today. Comprehensive chapter-per-county coverage caters for a diverse range of interests, from city breaks to rural escapes, skiing to wildlife watching. One of the most beautiful regions in central Europe and home to three UNESCO World Heritage sites, Transylvania preserves its cultural and artistic treasures in a landscape bordered on three sides by the Carpathian Mountains, which provide Romania’s finest skiing and hiking destinations. Hay meadows in the Lower Carpathians form a grassland ecosystem of extraordinary diversity, offering beautiful wildflower displays. The Carpathians are home too to lynx, wild boar and one of Europe’s largest populations of brown bear. Other natural phenomena include the Scarisoara Ice Cave in the Apuseni Mountains and the Sfanta Ana volcanic crater lake in Harghita County. Transylvania’s cultural riches include the Dacian fortresses of the Orastie Mountains, including Sarmizegetusa Regia, conquered by Roman Emperor Trajan in AD106. Historic Sighisoara is a picture-perfect medieval hill town. The fortified churches of southern Transylvania are testament to the perils of life in medieval Saxon communities, subject to frequent attacks from Ottoman raiders. The historic cities of Cluj, Sibiu and Brasov are rightly feted (and host internationally renowned film, electronic music and theatre festivals). At Turda’s salt mine, you can ride the big wheel in an underground amusement park. And, if you’re inspired by the Hotel Transylvania or Twilight films, why not follow the Dracula trail, visiting sites linked to Bram Stoker’s novel? Whatever your interests, with Bradt’s Romania: Transylvania, you can discover the region’s many and varied attractions.