(07-08-13, 03:36 PM)Borderraider link Wrote:
Bukk Mountain area in North very nice, first time in Hungary and impressed- clean, cheap, well surfaced roads, will be going again next year to explore.
In Romania you'll only find accommodation in towns not in small villages, food & people fine but roads & traffic horrendous. Approach roads to Transfaragaren pass horrendous, Dracula's Castle near Brasov with a visit.
I won't be in a hurry to go back.
Oh.. Money, you will need local currency contrary to advice I was given.
Enjoy your trip ;-)
This the route I'm thinking of, if I go via Slovakia. http://goo.gl/maps/aKwdr
The google streetview van went around in July-October 2012 and in some places its following a truck for miles and cant overtake, others there is quite a traffic queue behind it :lol Most of the roads look decent enough, road surface is no worse than the UK. The roads through higher land between smaller towns look the worse.
I've looked on Romanian bike tour companies websites and they dont bother with the Prislop Pass in the north, perhaps for that reason. They drop down via Bistrita.
I'm guessing the major roads between the major towns will be the busiest traffic wise. On those I've found a long queue behind trucks on single carraigeway roads. So maybe I'll look for secondary roads if its annoying.
I can't imagine a local tour companies going to rubbish places, so I've nicked some of their routes. http://motoromania.com/index.htm This one has a top 5 and spotted the DN57 Danube route so I'll be doing that.
Hopefully and damaged roads from last winter will be repaired by now.
I met some Romanians in Germany. They said avoid the bigger hotels in the touristy areas as they are more expensive and that the pensions/guesthouses are far better value and for money there are plenty of cash machines in towns. They said have plum brandy as an apperitif but dont do a session on it. They also said around Bucarest the drivers are nutters and they go to Transfagarasan on weekends so its busy. So I'll avoid there at the weekend hopefully.
Only 3 weeks to go :b